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
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HUMOR, PASSION AND KLEZMER
Trying to categorize the Rabbinical School Dropouts is no easy task. The 10-piece klezmer, funk and rock band finds its inspiration from such diverse sources as Frank Zappa, Raymond Scott, Martin Denny, Charles Mingus, Bernard Herrmann, Shostakovich, They Might Be Giants, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Nusrat Fatah Ali Khan. “When I write music for the…
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February 20, 2004
100 YEARS AGO • More than 10,000 partiers streamed into Madison Square Garden one Saturday night this month to take part in the sensational Forward Masked Ball. It was incredible to look down from the packed balconies onto the dance floor, where thousands of couples danced the night away. The masks and costumes made parts…
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The Bare Light of Personal Belief
Shadows are cast by objects and people…. Do you want to skin the whole earth, tearing all the trees and living things off it, because of your fantasy of enjoying bare light? — Mikhail Bulgakov, “The Master and Margarita” The decisive moment in Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ” occurs about midway through the…
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Some of Mel Gibson’s Best Friends Are Jewish
Watching Mel Gibson revel in the controversy surrounding his new film, “The Passion of the Christ,” it is easy to understand why critics of the Hollywood star insist that he suffers from some sort of martyrdom complex. But Gibson is not alone in envisioning himself as a modern-day Jesus, subject to crucifixion-by-press-release at the hands…
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Brighton Beach to Carnegie Hall: Neil Sedaka Sings a Familiar Tune
The first time Neil Sedaka appeared on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” the really big show almost didn’t go on. It was 1961, and the young singer-songwriter was at the top of the pop charts. He planned three numbers for his “Ed Sullivan” debut that would illustrate his multifaceted background. “Calendar Girl,” his radio hit at…
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February 13, 2004
100 YEARS AGO • In spite of rumors that Russia’s dictator has fallen ill on account of failures of the Russian army in its battles with Japan as well as the general weakness of the economy, evil decrees against the Jews of the empire are continuing unabated. Thousands of Jews are being driven out of…
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Looking Back February 6, 2004
100 YEARS AGO • At a time when pogroms are occuring so frequently, it seems like all Russians hate Jews. The Bund reports, however, that there are not only working-class Russians who consider themselves compatriots of Jewish workers, but they are also willing to stand up and protect their Jewish colleagues during pogroms. For example,…
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January 30, 2004
100 YEARS AGO • After pogroms in which their stores and homes were destroyed, more than 1,200 Jews from a number of smaller towns in Morocco have arrived in Casablanca. Morocco has been wracked with violence and riots, which, though directed at the ruling classes, have victimized the Jewish and, to a lesser degree, the…
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New Initiative Aims To Recruit, Retain Jewish Teachers
To spotlight what it regards as one of the most pressing problems plaguing Jewish education today, the Jewish Education Service of North America, known as JESNA, will host a summit next month to address recruitment and retention of teachers in Jewish schools. Major Jewish philanthropists — including Michael Steinhardt, Susan Crown and Edgar and Charles…
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Catholic Headmaster Helps Jewish Academy Prosper
When Adam Holden, 38, took over as the headmaster at the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy — the only Jewish day school in the Kansas City metropolitan area — he never was sure when he met Orthodox women and girls whether he should shake their hands. This uncertainty makes sense, given that the British-born Holden is…
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Dr. Ruth Shares Her Passion — for Israel
As America’s most outspoken sex therapist, Dr. Ruth Westheimer is an expert at keeping romance alive. Now, Dr. Ruth is focusing on a different kind of passion: her love for Israel. Before she was writing books and hosting talk shows about sex, Dr. Ruth served in the Haganah, fighting valiantly in Israel’s War of Independence….
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