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 A Junk Man’s Ambition
“Lies My Father Told Me” is one of the most ambitious productions in the 99-year history of the National Yiddish Theatre-Folksbiene. The musical has a large and extremely talented cast of 17. It features an innovative, Broadway-caliber set (by John C. Dining). And it has a long and storied history, both as an award-winning film…
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The Schmooze Israeli Producer Says He Was a Secret Agent
The rumors were true. For years, the gossip was that the Israeli-born producer Arnon Milchan (“12 Years a Slave,” “The King of Comedy”) was a secret agent for his homeland. More recently, a 2011 book maintained that Milchan, chairman of New Regency, was recruited by Shimon Peres as a liaison for LAKIM, the Bureau of…
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The Schmooze Nursing Home Drama Leaves Questions Unanswered
“Every Day a Visitor” is a play about seniors living — no, make that confined — in a faded Bronx nursing home. They have no family, friends or, very soon, an audience nearby. Based on a short story by playwright Richard Abrons and presented off-Broadway a dozen years ago, the play tells the story of…
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The Schmooze Bringing Dr. Ruth’s Story to Stage
After watching the excellent production of “Becoming Dr. Ruth,” at Manhattan’s West End Theatre, my first thought was that someone had handed playwright Mark St. Germain (creator of “Freud’s Last Session”) a gimme. On the face of it, all Germain had to do was stick a microphone in front of the voluble sex therapist, transcribe…
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Culture Honest Tea’s Mission To Sell Less-Sugary Beverages Includes Philanthropy
It all started with a jog. On a business trip to New York in 1997, Seth Goldman went for a run in Central Park. Afterwards, he couldn’t find a drink to quench his thirst. Everything on store shelves was either too sweet or loaded with artificial ingredients. Click for more Giving stories So it got…
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The Schmooze ‘Aftermath’ Sheds Light on Polish Anti-Semitism
“Aftermath,” written and directed by Polish filmmaker Władysław Pasikowski, is everything you can ask of a movie and more. It is intelligent, thoughtful and involving, an experience that will generate conversations long after the last frame dissolves into nothingness. It is also brave — brave of Pasikowski, brave of his actors, brave of his crew….
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The Schmooze ‘Last Vegas’ Just the Beginning for Dan Fogelman
If Dan Fogelman were any hotter, he’d have planets revolving around him. Fogelman is the screenwriter behind such hits as “Cars” and “Tangled” and “Crazy Stupid Love.” He’s also creator and producer of ABC’s “The Neighbors,” the subversively intelligent and subversively Jewish comedy. He’s also in post-production of his first directing effort, “Imagine,” a film…
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Books How David Laskin Discovered Family’s Past
A family rumor was the genesis of David Laskin’s extraordinary new book, “The Family: Three Journeys into the Heart of the 20th Century.” Laskin heard from his mother who heard it from her cousin Barbara who heard it from her parents: that they were related to Lazar Kaganovich, henchman of Joseph Stalin and a perpetrator…
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