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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Sholem Asch’s Scandalous ‘God of Vengeance’ to Get Yiddish Rep Revival
On this day in 1923, the entire cast of Sholem Asch’s Yiddish play “God of Vengeance” was arrested for obscenity on the opening night of their English Broadway production, which featured Broadway’s first lesbian kiss. Almost a hundred years later, amidst an upsurge of interest in “God of Vengeance” sparked by Paula Vogel’s new tribute…
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On Bob Dylan’s 75th Birthday, Recalling When He Sang Israel’s Praises
(JTA) — “I was so much older then, I’m younger than that now,” Bob Dylan sang in 1964’s “My Back Pages.” Reverse-aging or no, the legendary Jewish folk singer turns 75 on Tuesday. While Dylan’s Jewishness has been examined and reexamined over the years, relatively little attention has been paid to his 1983 song “Neighborhood…
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Rapper LL Cool J Has Tons of Jewish Friends — but Can’t Stand Gefilte Fish
Rapper LL Cool J has too many Jewish friends to count, but there’s one Jewish custom he won’t get on board with: gefilte fish. “My grandfather was from the Bronx, he came home with gefilte fish every week. I mean, I didn’t like it, no disrespect, but I loved him, it wasn’t my thing, but…
The Latest
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Genesis Prize Mogul Will Leave BIllions to Charity — Not a Dime to 4 Kids
Russian-Jewish billionaire Mikhail Fridman has announced plans to leave his entire fortune to charity, not leaving a single kopek for his children. Fridman, Russia’s second richest man, according to Forbes magazine, said Friday that he believed his children would be better off without his money, the Times of Israel reported, citing a translation of Russia…
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Clive Davis and theSkimm Honored at Einstein College Of Medicine Women’s Luncheon
“I have introduced Nobel Prize Laureates… but I have never introduced someone who belongs to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” said Montefiore Medicine president and CEO Dr. Steven M. Safyer to award-winning music executive and record producer Clive Davis— recipient of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine Women’s Division’s 62nd Annual “Spirit of…
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Holocaust Survivor Belts Out National Anthem at Detroit Tigers Game
— A Holocaust survivor sang the national anthem before a Major League Baseball Game between the Detroit Tigers and Tampa Bay. Hermina Hirsch, 89, performed the national anthem on Saturday at Comerica Park in Detroit, fulfilling a long-time dream. Hirsch told local television station WWJ in an interview in April in which she called on…
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Dating While (Modern) Orthodox Takes YouTube by Storm With ‘Soon by You’
(JTA) — “There’s no such thing as a bad date — there’s just a funny story,” says Jessica Schechter, a 28-year-old modern Orthodox woman who teaches acting in New York City and lives on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. There’s the guy who took her to the action figure section of a Toys “R” Us after dinner…
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Of Iggy Pop, the Three Stooges and the Mezuzah in the New Almodovar Movie
My ongoing quest for Jewish stories at this year’s Cannes Film Festival is turning up slim pickings. Aside from the Israeli entries in the festival (the subject of my next report), there are few places to turn under the Côte d’Azur’s radiant sun for a heimisch taste of yiddishkeit. Was that a mezuzah I spotted…
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For President Obama, a Brand New Yarmulke From Lipa Schmeltzer
Hasidic pop star Lipa Schmeltzer recently delivered a pair of newly-designed silver yarmulkes for President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle. The gift was the culmination of a promise he had made to the First Couple last Hanukkah, after the annual candlelighting ceremony at the White House, where the singer had been invited to perform….
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This Yummy Instagram Account Is Dedicated to Hot Israeli Men Eating Hummus – You’re Welcome
Be still your beating heart! The hottest and most delicious — literally — Instagram account going viral these days is Hot Dudes and Hummus, an account dedicated to amassing a collection of attractive Israeli men noshing on some pita and hummus. Related Some are sweet poses in restaurants and parks, others feature beach photos of…
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Weirdly Talented Rapping Orthodox Girls Star in Illicit Viral Hit
What goes on in high schools for ultra-Orthodox girls? Surprisingly good rapping, apparently. An illicit video of two Orthodox girls rapping and beat-boxing about the marriage prospects of their future daughters bubbled up through the dark net of Orthodox WhatsApp groups sometime Tuesday or Wednesday. The two weirdly talented ultra-Orthodox high school hip-hop stars perform…
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