Dramatist and poet, born in Venice, Italy, on the 10th of March 1749. He was of the Hebrew race and bore an assumed name. For several years he wrote plays and opera librettos in Vienna, among which were the texts of Mozart’s Don Giovanni and Nozze di Figaro, both of which were made famous by the music. He was for a short time a secretary of Emperor Joseph II. In 1805 he settled in New York City, and in 1828 became professor of Italian at Columbia College. He wrote sonnets, made translations from English into Italian, and compiled several instruction books for acquiring his native language. Among his publications are his Life (3 vols., New York, 1823), and a History of the Florentine Republic (2 vols., 1833). He died in New York City on the 17th of August 1838.
