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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Books
Why Ayelet Tsabari’s Sami Rohr Win Is a Victory for Arab Jews
Sami Rohr Prize winner Ayelet Tsabari / Elsin Davidi Ayelet Tsabari, author of the short story collection “The Best Place On Earth” (HarperCollins 2013), has won the prestigious Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature — and I couldn’t be happier about it. A couple of months ago, I issued one of those pre-New-Year’s calls for…
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Steven Spielberg Beats God for Oscars Thank You’s
If you watched the Oscar last night, you, like me, might be all “thank you”-ed out. It’s all about the “members of the academy,” God and mom and dad. Last night, a film-maker even thanked his dog. But who ranks No. 1 in the Oscar gratitude-meter? No, it’s not HaShem, but rather, a small, bearded…
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How Lady Gaga Saved Us From Debbie Downer Oscars
I was a little harsh on Lady Gaga when, half-joking, I accused her and Tony Bennett of mugging our dear Jewish diva Barbra Streisand at the Grammys. Today, I am singing Gaga’s praises for turning around what had become the Debbie Downer Academy Awards with an exuberant “Sound of Music” montage celebrating the 50th anniversary…
The Latest
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Joan Rivers Snubbed at Oscars
Getty Images (JTA) — Jewish artists and themes featured among the winners at the 87th Academy Awards in Hollywood Sunday night, but the star-studded night was marred when the show overlooked the death Joan Rivers. The evening’s “In Memoriam” segment, devoted to film industry notables who have passed away over the past year, included, among…
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Lena Dunham Will Guest Star on ‘Scandal’
“Scandal” has lined up its next big guest star. Lena Dunham has booked an appearance on the ABC drama, Variety has confirmed. Though details of her role are being kept under wraps, Dunham is set to appear in one episode in March, and may have some involvement with Pope & Associates. The “Girls” star has…
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PHOTOS: Playing and Praying in the Jerusalem Snow
Jerusalem was once again blanketed in shiny snow on Friday. From the Temple Mount to the Western Wall, neither Muslims nor Jews skipped their prayers. And children on both sides engaged in their favorite kind of fighting: snowball wars. GETTY IMAGES What’s a little bit of snow? Prayers go on as usual at the Western…
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POEM: ‘Waken’
For Shirley Kaufman The day never ends. Somewhere it is beginning to waken all but the dead.
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Gary Shteyngart’s Love-Hate Relationship With (Russian) TV
Gary Shteyngart from Jewish Daily Forward on Vimeo. (JTA) — Novelist Gary Shteyngart has made his reputation with wry explorations of ambivalent, conflicted, often frustrated love. Now he is launching into a new affair with television, and it seems that he’s carrying a full freight of mixed emotions. Last week came the news that Ben…
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Nick Kroll’s Ode to L.A. Delis
Comedy Central (JTA) — Comedian Nick Kroll, host of the eponymous Kroll Show, recently aired a heavy-metal ditty in homage to the pleasures of rocking it late-night in LA’s delis: Kroll, a former Solomon Schecter student and the squeeze of comedy titan Amy Poehler, name-drops a few LA delis, including Jerry’s, Greenblatt’s, and Langer’s, but…
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Clickhole Wins the Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Someone in the Clickhole (The Onion’s Buzzfeed-like equivalent) offices woke up yesterday morning with the most glorious of ideas: What better way to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict than through Facebook comments? And so, the following message was posted to social media: “Want to argue about Israel and Palestine? Have at it in the comments!” Post…
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For Tovah Feldshuh, ‘Aging is Optional’
“Happiness is a choice,” Tovah Feldshuh told me between rehearsals for her one woman world premiere show “Aging Is Optional” at 54 Below. ‘I want to grow older in linear time… to live as long as my mother Lily did.” A Tony nominated, multiple Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle Awards, Obie Award Winner — whose professional…
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