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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The Secret Nazi History of Gym Shoes
What is it with athletic shoes? Why do they keep getting inextricably entangled with Nazis and anti-Semites? Perhaps you’ve heard of the recent controversy surrounding New Balance, which began when, the day after Election Day, the Boston-based company’s vice president of public affairs, Matt LeBretton, said to a Wall Street Journal reporter, “The Obama administration…
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Poet Daniel Borzutzky Wins National Book Award
At last night’s National Book Awards, poet Daniel Borzutzky took home the top prize for poetry. His collection “The Performance of Being Human” was one of five finalists for the award; others included Rita Dove’s “Collected Poems 1974-2004” and Solmaz Sharif’s “Look.” Borzutzky, who was born to Chilean Jewish parents, is a professor at Chicago’s…
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Celebrated Israeli Author David Grossman Compares Trump to Netanyahu
Even at an evening of comedy and literature, it’s impossible to escape the specter of Donald Trump. At an event to celebrate the launch of his latest novel, “A Horse Walks Into a Bar,” in London, the author David Grossman compared Trump to Benjamin Netanyahu when he said “both of them know how to manipulate…
The Latest
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J.K. Rowling’s Jewish Wizard, Bernie Sanders’s Manifesto, And 8 Other Things To Read, Watch, And Do This Weekend
It can be hard to remember to take time for yourself, in this week between the madness of the election and that of Thanksgiving. Still, take some time this week for the arts. With good reads, a few good movies, and events in New York, D.C., Chicago and Los Angeles, there are plenty of options…
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The Secret Jewish History of Superman
Clark Kent may not have been Jewish, but the Man of Steel almost certainly was. Creator Jerry Siegel acknowledged as much in his unpublished memoir, which explains that the anti-Semitism he saw growing up inspired him to create a character that would help downtrodden groups see themselves as the superheroes that they really are. Out…
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Holocaust Love Story Opera To Make 2018 World Premiere
In January, 2018 a new opera with an unusual angle on the Holocaust will make its world premiere at Opera Colorado. The Denver-based opera company, which recently announced its 2017-2018 season, will perform composer Gerald Cohen and librettist Deborah Brevoort’s “Steal a Pencil For Me,” which tells the story of Jaap and Ina Polak, who…
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How being part of Sondheim flop ‘Merrily We Roll Along’ taught me life lessons
Abigail Pogrebin shares what she learned as part of the cast
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The Secret Jewish History of Mose Allison
There are two misconceptions that need to be cleared up about the late Mose Allison. One: in spite of the rich, jazzy, Southern blues sound embedded in his piano playing and vocals, he was white, not African-American. Two: in spite of his name, he was not a member of the tribe of Moses. Allison was,…
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How Hitler Changed The Bible — and Why It Still Matters in Donald Trump’s America
In the days of Hitler, the Bible was condensed and transformed. Throughout the Third Reich, the “Old Testament” was taken out, thus erasing the Jewish contribution. Imagine: a 12-year-old German reader in 1945 might have been entirely unaware of Genesis, Exodus, or Isaiah. It wasn’t just book burning, it was a replacement of text. It…
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Why Gloria Steinem Thinks Judaism Should Dump Patriarchy
On a miserably rainy November morning, a journalist battled the wind through downtown Manhattan to arrive at what was, until recently, a women’s prison in Chelsea. The inherent Chelsea-ness was impossible to ignore; soft electronic music pulsed above the hiss of expensive espresso machines and the journalist, wearing an unsubtle shade of red, found herself…
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How 5 Jewish Artists Paid Tribute to the Late Leon Russell
The great American singer, songwriter and keyboardist Leon Russell died in his sleep this past Sunday, November 13, at age 74. While never a household name, Russell’s career as a session musician, sideman, songwriter, and producer saw him work with a significant slice of rock and pop royalty — everyone from the Rolling Stones to…
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