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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Why Son Of Sam Was Bad For The Jews In 1977
Editor’s Note: David “Son of Sam” Berkowitz was arrested on this day in 1977. We return to this story to examine the impact Berkowitz’s crimes had on the Jewish community. The arrest of the Son of Sam in August 1977 was good for the Jews, and it was also bad for the Jews. Good because…
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In ‘The Dead Of Jaffa,’ The Past Haunts Israel’s Present
We usually don’t think of a debut feature as made by someone senior, especially if the filmmaker is one of the figureheads of Israeli culture. And yet, this is the case with Ram Loevy’s “The Dead of Jaffa,” which premiered recently at the Jerusalem Film Festival, and which will go into theatrical release in Israel…
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Silver Jews Front Man David Berman Has Died At 52
Musician and writer David Berman, whose provocatively-named band Silver Jews brought poetry to the ragged world of ‘90s indie rock, has died at age 52. Berman’s label, Drag City, announced his passing on August 7. It did not share a cause of death. Known for his cryptic, verbose lyrics, steady baritone and resistance to performing…
The Latest
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David Grossman’s ‘A Horse Walks Into A Bar’ To Be A Feature Film
No joke: Israeli author David Grossman’s award-winning “A Horse Walks into a Bar” is coming to a cinema near you. The Australian-American studio Village Roadshow will adapt the 2017 novel into a feature film, Variety reports. The book, which snagged Grossman and his English translator Jessica Cohen the Man Booker International Prize in 2017 and…
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Errol Morris’s Steve Bannon Film Now Has A Distributor
It’s been almost a year since “American Dharma,” Errol Morris’s Steve Bannon documentary, premiered at the Venice Film Festival. In the interim, another Bannon documentary, Allison Klayman’s “The Brink,” came out to considerably more acclaim; FBI Director Christopher Wray identified white nationalism of the kind winked at by Bannon as America’s major source of domestic…
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A Lee Krasner Painting Just Sold For $11.6 Million. But Its 1990 Theft Is Still Unsolved.
The great abstract expressionist painter Lee Krasner had no shortage of drama in her life. Krasner, known for her bold, gestural work, was a celebrated female artist at a time when her field was dominated by men. She continued to stand out at the time of her death in 1984, that year becoming one of…
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Sept. 3: Forward Archival Material On The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire Debuts On PBS
The Forward archive was influential in the making of a show on the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, which will play on PBS stations beginning September 3. The history-meets-travel series “The Future of America’s Past” looked to the Forward’s vast archival collection for photos and information to help create an episode that focuses on the 1911 industrial…
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The Last Of Kafka’s Papers Arrive In Israel – Some In Hebrew
Perhaps no one defied the wishes of a dead friend as flagrantly as Max Brod. In 1924, the author Franz Kafka died after a years-long battle with tuberculosis, leaving Brod, his confidant and fellow writer, with orders to burn his unpublished work. Brod did not comply, spending the rest of his life publishing the words…
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The Secret Jewish History Of The Village People
The French music entrepreneur Henri Belolo, of Moroccan Jewish origin, died on August 3 at age 82, reminding us how a melting pot of cultures in the Old and New Worlds has inspired émigré Jews through the generations. Belolo is best remembered for forming the American group Village People in the twilight of the disco…
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This Doctor Has The World’s Largest Collection Of Jewish Baseball Cards
The annals of baseball history are rife with Jews of exceptional ability, from Sandy Koufax and Hank Greenberg to modern sluggers Kevin Youkilis and Astros All-Star Alex Bregman. Less remembered are the Chosen People’s baseball diamond duds, remarkable for something other than their athletic prowess. But even also-ran baserunners deserve a custodian. Enter Doctor Seymour…
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Toni Morrison Is Dead At 88. Here’s How The World Is Honoring Her.
The Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison, whose work gave moving voice to the African American experience, died August 5 at the age of 88. Morrison’s death, announced this morning by her publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, is already drawing an outpouring of tributes, with many emphasizing Morrison’s abiding interest in empathy and the pernicious…
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