Joseph Bau wasn't only the first animator in Israel, painter, graphic artist, author and poet. Joseph Bau as, everyone knew, designed special, unique, humoristic and very smart New Year cards.
Since 1950, the year he immigrated to Israel together with his wife and daughter, he started to design the cards which he sent to many people. Those cards were so original, so smart and so surprising that people asked to be on his mailing list and were waiting every year to see what Bau would create now.
It turned out to be a tradition, without getting anything and without thinking of any profit. He invested alot of time and money and worked very hard on preparing those beautiful cards. His only aim was to make people laugh.
This is the way Joseph Bau was. Even during the Holocaust he stayed optimistic and the humor was one of his ways to survive. When his friends were sad and lost any hope they used to go to Bau who told them some jokes and this kept them going for a few more days.
Every year he came up with a new idea. One year it was a card in the shape of a check. It looked identical a to real check and it stated that the person got a 1000 wishes for the new year. The year was 1964 and then 1000 lirot (the name of the currency then) were like 100000 shekels today and people thought that they had won alot of money. Some people were so excited that they didn't even notice that it contained wishes and not lirot and ran to the bank to deposit the check. In one bank the manager called the police because he thought that the check was forged. When the policeman saw it he understood that it was a new year card and everyone laughed.
Another year Bau created a card in the shape of an insurance policy against worries. It said that the policy is valid only during that year. Someone called and said that he would sue Joseph Bau because this policy didn't help him and that he had many worries.
Another one was a card that looked exactly like a telegram and another looked like 10 lirot - that on one side had Bau's picture and on the other side Hadasa's (his daughter's) picture. Someone went to the bank to deposit a pack of 10 lirot bills and put this card among them. The bank teller didn't notice that it was only a new year card.
One of his creations was a form from the doctor - Results from tests. The results were funny. Some people called saying that they didn't understand the results.
Another was a form that looked like a horoscope. There were a few different types. One year Bau created a happiness card. He got pictures of people, glued them on the card and wrote that the authorities are requested to allow the person who carries the card a Happy New Year. He made a special stamp that said: "The Connections Department".
In the early years he created new year cards with his picture on them. Once he took 4 different pictures with him saying SHA, NA,TO,VA (which means: A happy new year). All the pictures were glued one on top of the other and when you rolled through them, it looked as if Bau is talking and wishing you a happy new year.
One year there was a card in the shape of glasses with pink lenses that said: "Look towards the new year through the pink glasses".
Lastly there was an Atidon - a word that Bau invented which means "What will happen to you in the future". It says on it: "Point the arrow to the first letter of your family name, count till five, move the arrow to the first letter of your first name... and then pull the red strip out. When you pulled it it said: "You will have a happy and wealthy year".
