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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How to Wear Hanukkah Swag Without Offending Anyone
♫ On the first day of Hanukkah my true love gave to me, a dreidel with a stripper on top.♫ Not even two weeks after the offensive , we have entered the Hanukkah season minefield. As if Jewish women don’t deal with enough stereotypes, a novelty item just sprinkled some salt on the wound. According…
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Zooey Deschanel Is Judaism’s ‘New Girl’ After Conversion
Actress Zooey Deschanel has converted to Judaism. Deschanel, the daughter of a Quaker and Roman Catholic, converted shortly before marrying producer Jacob Pechenik, Us Weekly reported Monday. The article did not say what denomination of rabbi supervised her conversion. The two married in June, a month before the birth of their daughter, Elsie. “Zooey converted…
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Princess Katherine of Serbia on Front Lines of Humanitarian Needs
“When I was young, I asked my mother what do you want me to be when I grow up?’” said HRH Crown Princess Katherine of Serbia at Lifeline New York’s Annual Benefit Luncheon at Le Cirque. “She said: ’I want you to be a good example.’” Among the 200 guests Ivana Trump, Countess LuAnn de…
The Latest
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Did Chris Martin Just Compare Marriage to Gwyneth Paltrow to Auschwitz?
Breaking up is hard to do. It’s even harder when your ex-husband compares being married to you to life in a concentration camp. Maybe we’re reading too much into this, but that’s kind of what Coldplay frontman Chris Martin said about his 12 year marriage to Gwyneth Paltrow. During a radio appearance on the Rove…
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Google Doodle Celebrates Hollywood Vamp Hedy Lamarr
Nazis, sex, groundbreaking inventions, escape in disguise — sounds like the plot for the next Hollywood hit. Or, you know, real events from Hedy Lamarr’s life. The Jewish actress and inventor, who would have turned 101 on November 9, is the . Born Hedwwig Eva Maria Kiesler to bourgeois Jewish parents in Vienna, Lamarr’s film debut…
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Larry David Heckles Donald Trump on ‘SNL’ — and Scores $5K
Donald Trump was three minutes into his controversial hosting duties on SNL Saturday Night when it came. “You’re a racist!” the strangely familiar voice boomed. “Who the hell is … oh, I knew this was going to happen,” Trump responded. “Who is that?” A spotlight goes on and it is Larry David. “Trump’s a racist!”…
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What Would America Look Like Under Nazi Rule?
“If you’re looking for another Jew to kill, you know where to find me,” says Frank Frink, the protagonist’s boyfriend, at the end of the second episode of Amazon’s latest TV Series, “The Man in the High Castle.” What would America be like if the Nazis had won the war? What would have happened to…
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Vogue Hails Orthodox Fashion as Fall’s ‘Sexiest Trend’
That’s not any old behind-doors frock! It’s now high fashion. The traditional sexy slip dress for Orthodox women is getting a modern, yet still modest, upgrade that’s bringing it out to the streets, and to the top design house runways. It is almost 2016, after all. Vogue that Rag & Bone have given the slip…
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Rachel Weisz to Play Deborah Lipstadt in Holocaust Movie ‘Denial’
British actress Rachel Weisz has been tapped to play Deborah E. Lipstadt in “Denial,” a biopic based on Lipstadt’s courtroom drama with David Irving, who sued her for libel when she accused him of being a Holocaust denier. Adapted for screen from Lipstadt’s book, the North American rights to the movie were bought by Bleecker…
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Leonard Nimoy’s Son Makes Memorable ‘Big Bang Theory’ Appearance
It was one of the most ballyhooed episodes of CBS’s monster hit “Big Bang Theory” in a while: The late Spock actor Leonard Nimoy’s son Adam comes to interview his dad’s biggest fan, Dr. Sheldon Cooper. Adam Nimoy and the documentary plan are real; the interview with Sheldon (actor Jim Parsons) is just a sit-com…
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‘The Rothschilds and Sons’ On Stage — And Those I’ve Met
As comic Buddy Hackett — who frequented NBC’s Tonight Show hosted by Jonny Carson — often cited his grandmother’s Yiddish expression for “disappointed” as entoysht — is regrettably how I felt when I saw the latest incarnation of the Sheldon Harnick (lyrics), Jerry Bock (music) and Sherman Yellen(book) musical “The Rothschilds & Sons.” Presented by the York…
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Most Popular
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Film & TV The new ‘Superman’ is being called anti-Israel, but does that make it pro-Palestine?
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Fast Forward Tucker Carlson calls for stripping citizenship from Americans who served in the Israeli army
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Music ‘No matter what, I will always be a Jew.’ Billy Joel opens up about his family’s Holocaust history
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Opinion This German word explains Trump’s authoritarian impulses — and Hitler’s rise to power
In Case You Missed It
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Opinion What Democrats fighting Trump should learn from Germany’s failure to stop Hitler
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Fast Forward 31st anniversary of AMIA bombing marked by ceremonies in Argentina, Israel and, for the first time, Congress
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Fast Forward Mike Huckabee to Israel: End hostile treatment of Christian allies
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Fast Forward Connie Francis, 20th-century star turned TikTok sensation, recorded an album of Jewish songs in 1960
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