The Schmooze lies at the intersection of high and low culture. Here, the latest developments and trends in Jewish art, books, dance, film, music, media, television and theater are all assimilated into one handy pop culture blog.
The Schmooze
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WATCH: Conan O’Brien And An Orthodox Jew Light A Vape Pen Menorah
As the song goes: A Rock of ages, let our song praise thy saving power! / Thou giving us the vape pen menorah, is your finest hour. That hour arrived on Wednesday night’s episode of “Late Night With Conan O’Brien,” when the host invited the show’s Orthodox music producer to the stage to demonstrate one…
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‘Hitler’ Accusation Angers The Real Housewives Of New Jersey
Was Adolf Hitler a good person? No, he wasn’t, and The Real Housewives of New Jersey can all agree on that. But should non-Jews use Hitler as rhetorical examples to prove points to their Jewish friends who are children of Holocaust survivors? The Real Housewives of New Jersey are split on this question. Yes, ladies…
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The Surprising Reason Behind The Redskins Hoax Going Around
“Dan Snyder Honors Native Americans, Changes Team Mascot To Washington Redhawks” is how headlines appeared this morning on webpages like ESPN Sports, The Washington Post and Sports Illustrated. But none of those outlets actually wrote about the Washington football team changing its name. And Redskins owner Daniel Snyder has not changed the team’s controversial name…
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The 12 Best GIF(t)s For Hanukkah
Hanukkah is a great time to exchange gifts with your neighbors and loved ones. But it is just as good of a time to exchange GIFs, or Graphic Interchange Formats. Here are the very best Hanukkah GIFs to keep you laughing for eight nights. via GIPHY Ross is without a doubt the worst character on…
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These Are The Best DIY Hanukiah Ideas On The Internet
Hanukkah is a holiday based on traditions, not commandments. Eat foods fried in olive oil? Tradition. Exchange gifts? Tradition. Try to interest anyone under the age of 18 in a game involving a plastic spinning top? Weird tradition. There’s really only one big thing the rabbis of the talmud ask us to do for Hanukkah,…
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This All-Women Israeli Hip-Hop Group Dancing To Psalms Will Make Your Day
Israelis. Hip hop. Orthodox female singers. Psalms. Implied political implications. This music video, a new setting of Psalm 102:14 by Julliard-educated religious musician Franciska in collaboration with the Halelu hip-hop troupe, has it all. Come for the amazing thing one of the dancers does with her ponytail, stay for the spiritually catchy all-female psalm rendition,…
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Happy HAIMakkah! Listen To The Girl Band’s Killer New Hanukkah Song
Put on your yarmulke, the Haim sisters are taking over Hanukkah. Este, Danielle, and Alana Haim, known collectively as the rock band Haim, may be about to unseat Adam Sandler in the eternal Best Hanukkah Song competition. The band debuted a brief new Hanukkah song on their Instagram on Tuesday, with the caption, “sandler we’re…
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Seth Rogen Takes A Stand Against Steve Bannon
Seth Rogen, stoner, manchild, Jew and now social justice warrior? I was supposed to do a press tour on @SIRIUSXM on teusday but I’m no longer doing it because I can’t bring myself to appear on the same service that has decided to support Steve Bannon. Apologies to the shows I had to cancel. And…
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‘Saturday Night Live’ Seriously Mishandled Al Franken’s Assault Accusations
Is America ready for a nuanced commentary that uses comedy to examine how women can be inconsistent about sexual harassment allegations? Of course! We are always ready for great, nuanced criticism no matter how hard it is to hear. But what happened on “Saturday Night Live” over the weekend was not great or nuanced. The…
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Why Is Spotify’s Hanukkah Playlist So Unbearably Awful?
I will be the last person to argue that Hanukkah’s musical heritage is one of particular depth; we sing the same few songs every year, they’re heartwarming if not exciting, and that’s great. Yet even I must wonder: How did Spotify get its Hanukkah playlist so egregiously wrong? Only six of its 46 songs were…
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Malala Yousafzai Talks About Palestinian Freedom While At The Anne Frank House
Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani women’s education activist and youngest person to have won the Nobel Peace Prize, visited the Anne Frank House on Sunday, December 10. Yousafzai, a student at Oxford University who has launched major education initiatives, was personally targeted and shot three times by a Taliban gunman on her school bus as a…
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