Curt Schleier is a freelance writer and author who covers business and the arts for a variety of publications. Follow him on Twitter at @tvsoundoff.
Curt Schleier
By Curt Schleier
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The Schmooze The Real Jewish Trans Father Behind ‘Transparent’
(JTA) — Writer and director Jill Soloway grew up in what she calls a “somewhat normalish, upper middle class Jewish household” in Chicago. Her mom was a public relations consultant (she worked for Mayor Jane Byrne) and her dad a psychiatrist. But she always sensed that “something was a little off,” she tells JTA in a…
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The Schmooze The Real Jewish Christmas Story Behind ‘The Night Before’
(JTA) — Director and writer Jonathan Levine (“The Wackness,” “50/50”) may have grown up in Jew-centric Manhattan, yet he recalls feeling somewhat like an alien every Christmas. “I don’t think it was malicious,” Levine, 39, says in a telephone interview with JTA. “But, in a way, I felt like an outsider looking in at the party.”…
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Culture What Gloria Steinem’s Non-Jewish Mother Taught Her About Being Jewish
Gloria Steinem is traveling again. Actually, “again” might not be the right word. Gloria Steinem is traveling still. She’s been on the road for well over 40 years, speaking out about women’s and civil rights and about political causes. Her recent trips, though, have been, at least in part, to promote her new memoir, “My…
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Art Is Donna Karan Offering TMI About DKNY?
One day, when fashion icon Donna Karan was 11, she went up in the attic of her home and discovered old family photos hidden away in a trunk. In one, she saw her mom with an unfamiliar man. When her mother, known as Queenie, discovered her there, she became physically abusive. According to Karan’s newly…
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Life Marlee Matlin Explains How Her Bat Mitzvah Led to Her Oscar
(JTA) — When the rock musical “Spring Awakening” premiered on Broadway, it was a critical darling and financial success. It won almost every major award possible, including eight Tonys, four Drama Desk Awards and even a Grammy. So perhaps it’s not so surprising that it’s been revived on Broadway, even if it’s only been six…
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Culture David Gregory Meets His Faith
‘I don’t get this right all the time. Faith is hard. I do still get angry and hurt by it. But I aspire to do better. I’m not going to allow myself to be consumed by disappointment by how I left. This is a rough business.” The speaker is David Gregory, former moderator of “Meet…
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The Schmooze The Jewish Dude Who’s the ‘Voice of Black America’
‘Empire’ co-creator Danny Strong, right, pictured with series star Taraji P. Henson. (JTA) — Danny Strong is probably most recognizable as being “that Jewish guy” on TV — he played eager adman wannabe Danny Siegel on “Mad Men” and the nerdy, perennial victim Jonathan Levinson on “Buffy: The Vampire Slayer.” But, among those in the…
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The Schmooze The Jewish Historian Who Made Sure ‘Hamilton’ Is Right for Broadway
(JTA) — Historian Ron Chernow has written successful biographies of the likes of J. P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller and George Washington. So it’s fair to say that at this point in his career, the Alexander Hamilton biographer knows the drill: There’s the author tour, the positive reviews, the making of the best-seller lists. There…
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