Mervyn Rothstein
By Mervyn Rothstein
-
Culture How a poor Jewish immigrant made a fortune as a madam — and why we’re still uncomfortable talking about it
On Dec. 10, 1913, a 13-year-old Yidishe meydl arrived alone and almost penniless at Ellis Island. She was to have traveled to America from Eastern Europe with a cousin, who decided to abandon the journey. The new immigrant’s name was Pearl Adler. The oldest of at the time eight siblings, she hailed from Yanow, a…
-
Culture How Tony Kushner changed ‘West Side Story’ and ‘Change’ itself
The Broadway musical “Caroline, or Change” is set in Lake Charles, Louisiana, in 1963, in the early years of the civil rights movement, in the home of a Jewish family with an 8-year-old son, Noah and a Black maid, Caroline Thibodeaux. The Tony Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tony Kushner, who wrote the musical’s book…
Explore
Most Popular
- 1
News Hampshire College closure reverberates for alumni who treasured a Yiddishist hub
- 2
News Brad Lander joins call to end U.S. aid to Israel, in quest to replace Rep. Dan Goldman
- 3
Opinion Mahmoud Khalil’s reassurances are bad for Jews but even worse for Palestinians
- 4
Opinion Mahmoud Khalil’s anti-Zionist case to Jews shows the case for skepticism
In Case You Missed It
-
Fast Forward As Ohio again tries to block Hebrew Union College’s restructuring, a new rabbinical school emerges in Cincinnati
-
Fast Forward Orthodox groups ask Supreme Court to hear case of Ohio man barred from hosting home prayer services
-
Fast Forward Far-right Polish lawmaker draws outrage after calling Israel the ‘new Third Reich’
-
Fast Forward Many peptides sound like Yiddish words. Here’s why.
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
