PJ Grisar is a Forward culture reporter. He can be reached at [email protected] and @pjgrisar on Twitter.
PJ Grisar
By PJ Grisar
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Culture Why is this Haggadah different from all others? Hitler.
This particular Haggadah, different from all others, was bound to raise eyebrows — if not create a furor. We don’t know much about its origins, but here’s what we do: It was written by a Jew in Rabat, Morocco, sometime after the start of Operation Torch, the 1942 Allied invasion that spelled victory against the…
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Culture Why Leonard Cohen’s final album features the cantor from his home synagogue
In January 2018, after the late Leonard Cohen received his last, but not final, Grammy nomination, a representative from his hometown attended the ceremony: The cantor from the synagogue he grew up in. He wasn’t just there as an observer — he was a contributor. “My greatest sources of pride is that the choir and…
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Culture Happy birthday to Barbie, an intermittently Jewish icon
Rumors of Barbie’s death were greatly exaggerated. On March 8, 2014, the day before the doll’s 55th birthday, a [Daily Beast article](The Death of Barbie (thedailybeast.com) opined that the doll’s days were numbered due to declining sales. The Forward responded with mixed feelings for the Mattel toy, who, befitting her origins, meant a lot to…
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Music Is Drake off to get some Jesus in his life?
In his newly-released EP, Drake is once more considering God’s plan for him. Judging by one song’s contemplation of Jesus, he may be entering a 1980s Dylan phase. On the track “Wants and Needs,” the artist formerly known as Aubrey Graham reflects on his success, which his mother, Sandi (née Sher) suggests is “Godsent.” That…
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Culture Did Art Buchwald come up with ‘Coming to America?’
“Coming 2 America,” arriving on our shores Mar. 5, promises the return of fan favorite Saul, the Jewish barber shop patron (played by Eddie Murphy), who has evidently led a biblically long life. The writers on the original film, David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein, are also returning. But it remains to be seen if…
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Film & TV Why Heschel’s example was the exception, not the rule
Far too often, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel is used to justify an attitude he never held: complacency. Whenever there is a civil rights anniversary or friction in white Jewish and Black relations, Heschel, a leading rabbinical luminary in the mid-century, is the go-to stand-in for the entire Jewish community. His march through Selma with Martin…
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Culture Yes, Dr. Seuss wrote racist books. He still has things to teach us.
Update March 2, 2021: This article has been updated to reflect news that six of Dr. Seuss’ books will no longer be published because they “portray people in ways that are hurtful and wrong.” My first introduction to fascism was the tin-pot dictator of Sala-ma-Sond. Yertle the Turtle, the king of a “nice little pond,”…
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Culture ‘Borat’ wins big and Aaron Sorkin quotes Abbie Hoffman at the Golden Globes
The Golden Globes were very nice for Borat, and not bad for those of us who like his brand of second-hand embarrassment. Sacha Baron Cohen, who whiffed earlier in the evening for Best Supporting Actor in “The Trial of the Chicago 7” had a major comeback at the end of the ceremony. “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”…
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