Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan Novels became a literary phenomenon. Will a televised adaptation of the books meet similar success? The author, who write under a pseudonym and has kept her identity studiously under wraps even after a reporter, last fall, claimed to have “unmasked her,” told The New York Times she thinks expectations should be kept…
(JTA) — In celebration of its 2017 centennial, JTA is highlighting stories from its archive. (JTA) — Things weren’t looking good for the more than 500 Allied soldiers trapped by German forces in France’s Argonne Forest in November 1918. Not only were they under fire from the Germans, they also were being bombarded with shells from Americans…
Over the past 30 years, quite a few adrenaline-fueled drivers have uttered the famous line from “Top Gun:” “I feel the need…the need for speed.” A substantial percentage of them were likely pulled over shortly after making the proclamation, but when Tom Cruise takes once more to the air as Navy pilot “Maverick” Mitchell, there…
‘The Women’s Balcony,” the Israeli film written by Shlomit Nehama and director Emil Ben-Shimon, could easily have turned into a polemic, awash in stereotypes, about the ultra-Orthodox versus the more liberally minded in one small, closely knit Israeli Orthodox congregation. But thanks to the talents of the actors and the creative team, the film is…
There is a major surprise in “The Wizard of Lies, Barry Levinson’s film about the Bernie Madoff scandal, which premieres on May 20 on HBO and is based on the reporting of Diana B. Henriques: It’s possible to feel a modicum of sympathy for a despicable human being. The film stars Robert DeNiro as Bernie…
The 71st Tony Award nominations have been announced, led by “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812” and “Hello, Dolly!” Here’s the full list: Best Play: “A Doll’s House, Part 2” “Indecent” “Oslo” “Sweat” Best Musical: “Come From Away” “Dear Evan Hansen” “Groundhog Day The Musical” “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812”…
Today, “The Promise, a film about the Armenian Genocide, was released in theaters. At first glance, either at the trailer or the film, we are given a sweeping historical drama filmed and written in a slightly dated fashion – a fine, if forgettable, affair. But against the backdrop of both history and the world’s current…
Just because a musical was a hit with a long run, that doesn’t mean it’s a great show. And “Hello, Dolly!” is perhaps the proof point. Its Broadway debut won 10 Tonys, played for nearly seven years, and was for a time the longest-running Broadway musical ever. It led to the movie, three revivals, and…
Imagine, for a moment, that after the Holocaust the official German position was one of denial. That the German heads of state have, since 1945, consistently asserted that the events of the Holocaust were nasty, yes, but both the Jews and the Germans bear some responsibility, and in the end, well, such things happen in…
Charles Hirsch Barris, who died on March 21 at age 87, proved that one Jewish man’s inner conflicts could entertain America in a series of game shows. Creator of TV’s “The Dating Game” and “The Newlywed Game,” in the ‘60s, Barris also launched and hosted “The Gong Show” in the 1970s, tapping into such matters…
For a complete history of broadcasting, you do not need to go through archives or visit a museum. Just have a chat with Larry King. The iconic broadcaster, now 83, is coming up on 60 years in the business, having first started on radio on May 1, 1957. Along the way he has interviewed everyone…
