This is the Forward’s coverage of Jewish culture where you’ll learn about the latest (and sometimes earliest) in Jewish art, music (including of course Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen), film, theater, books as well as the secret Jewish history of…
Culture
-
Film & TV
In Defense of Jane Eyre’s Rochester
My mom handed me a copy of “Jane Eyre” when I was 10, after she had finished re-reading it herself. Despite some rough going at first, I pushed my way through it and have a distinct memory of finishing it behind my prayerbook in the women’s section of an Orthodox synagogue in Rochester, N.Y. At…
-
Books Q&A: Maira Kalman on the Illustrating Life
On March 11, “Various Illuminations (of a Crazy World),” the first museum exhibition devoted to New York illustrator and author Maira Kalman, opens at the Jewish Museum. The show, which debuted in Philadelphia last summer and then traveled to the West Coast, gives Kalman’s fans a rare opportunity to see the original artwork behind her…
-
Moses Calls For Global Support of Pharaoh
[ ![][2]][2] The leaders of the Israelite tribe are publicly supporting the regime of the Egyptian Pharaoh despite ongoing protests, and their own recent conflicts with the Middle Eastern despot. Citing security concerns, top Israelite officials said they believe that the Pharaoh is the best choice to ensure stability and peace in the region. “Although…
The Latest
-
Gabby Giffords Recovering, Developing New Powers
The recovery of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords from her shooting on January 8 in Tucson, Ariz., continues apace. Doctors confirm that, although still in the early stages of physical rehabilitation, she is now debating Talmud with leading scholars. “Before the incident, she didn’t know much Hebrew,” noted Rabbi Aaron Friend. “But now she seems to understand…
-
Iran on Verge of Creating Cinema Bomb
[ ![][2]][2] LOS ANGELES — It appears that years of unflagging effort, dire warnings and sanctions may all have been for naught. Hollywood insiders are warning that the Islamic Republic of Iran has acquired both the materials and technological wherewithal to launch a motion picture guaranteed to bomb catastrophically worldwide. High-ranking officials in the motion…
-
How the French Put the Olé Into Idiolect
[ ![][2]][2] ‘Who put the condom in condominium?” asks avid reader Hugo Hefnerovich: more as an accusation than as a question. Despite the tone, the inquiry is worthy of further investigation, since the French inventor of the sheep gut prophylactic was a descendant of Rashi who had fled south from Troyes to the eponymous town…
-
Natalie Portman’s Guide to Motherhood and Parenting
[ ![][2]][2] Dear Natalie, I’m 7 months pregnant, and I’m already exhausted! I can’t imagine how I’m going to manage when the baby is actually born. Any tips for dealing with the fatigue of being an expectant mother? WORN OUT IN WASHINGTON Dear Worn Out, I hear you! The late months of pregnancy can be…
-
You Have Beards? We Have Beards!
[ ![][2]][2] LONDON — As excitement mounts for April’s upcoming International Facial Hair Festival in Götterdämmerung, Germany, organizers were delighted to announce a détente between the strong Pan-Muslim team, “Wahhabi Warriors,” and the much-fancied “Israel Right or Wrong” team. Brokered by Billy Gibbons, the lead singer of rock group ZZ Top, the groundbreaking deal will…
-
Commission Calls For Immediate ‘Chaiflation’
[ ![][2]][2] A joint commission of Israeli and Jewish communal leaders is urging that the numerical translation of the word “chai,” long associated with good luck, be changed from 18 to 25 as a form of economic stimulus. “We believe that by embarking on this policy of quantitative expansion, the Jewish community can jump-start the…
-
Glenn Beck Embraces His Yiddishkeit With Open Arms
[ ![][2]][2] Following the recent revelations that Glenn Beck (born Beckershteyn) shares the Jewish genetic marker, the Cohen Modal haplotype, he has been brushing up on his Yiddish and planning his holidays. Later this year he will be making the pilgrimage to Uman, and in his backpack will be an early draft of Eric Yoffie’s…
-
A Partial Retraction
[ ![][2]][2] This paper prides itself on its editorial independence and its willingness to speak the truth, however unpopular. But after due consideration, we at the Backward have concluded that some elements of last week’s editorial, “You Asked For It,” do not stand up to scrutiny: • Not withstanding the stale cookies at the oneg…
Explore
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward Unarmed man who tackled Bondi Beach Hanukkah attacker identified as Ahmed al-Ahmed
- 2
Fast Forward First Puka Nacua, now Mookie Betts: Why do sports stars keep getting antisemitic around a Jewish streamer?
- 3
Fast Forward After MIT professor’s killing, Jewish influencers spread unverified antisemitism claim
- 4
Opinion I grew up believing Australia was the best place to be Jewish. This Hanukkah shooting forces a reckoning I do not want.
In Case You Missed It
-
Yiddish ווידעאָ: היסטאָריקערין וויווי לאַקס באַשרײַבט געשיכטע פֿון לאָנדאָנער ייִדישער פּרעסעVIDEO: Historian Vivi Laks tells history of the London Yiddish Press
שבֿע צוקער פֿירט דעם שמועס מיט וויווי לאַקס און ביידע לייענען פֿאָר עטלעכע פֿעליעטאָנען פֿון יענע צײַטן.
-
Yiddish World Puppet Monty Pickle is guest on the Forward’s ‘Yiddish Word of the Day’
-
Culture We tried to fix Hallmark’s Hanukkah problem. Here’s the movie we made instead
-
Fast Forward Holocaust survivor event features a Rob Reiner video address — recorded just weeks before his death
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
