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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POEM: ‘In Paris’
The Place de la République’s outdoor cafe, white wine in a glass so thin it blurs realms with the greenery, and with a statue patina-ed bronze, its plaque too far to read, dull-lettered, pigeon-marked, possibly a thesis on history. Yet the student lesson for today was the bomb at Boulevard St. Michel, and the tourist’s…
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Oxford Press Bans Pigs and Pork References
Oxford University Press has banned references to pigs and pork in its publications in order to avoid offending Jews and Muslims. “Many of the educational materials we publish in the UK are sold in more than 150 countries, and as such they need to consider a range of cultural differences and sensitivities,” a spokesman for…
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Monica Lewinsky Gets National Magazine Award Nod
Getty Images Monica Lewinsky has been nominated for a National Magazine Award for her Vanity Fair essay commenting on her relationship with Bill Clinton. In “Shame and Survival,” published in June, broke Lewinsky’s near-ten years of silence about the affair that nearly brought down a president: “I, myself, deeply regret what happened between me and…
The Latest
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7 Jewish Movies To Watch Out For at Sundance
Sundance Film Festival (JTA) — Although it’s now well entrenched in the Hollywood ecosystem, the Sundance Film Festival remains a venue for some of the film industry’s more offbeat voices and still largely unknown talent — and a place for boldfaced names to redefine themselves. Jewish subjects and artists again will figure prominently in this year’s…
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Bethenny Frankel Wants to Sell You Munchie-Free Weed
Getty Images Love weed but hate the munchies? Bethenny Frankel is your new best friend. Frankel — who launched the empire that provides you with your weekly fix of Skinnygirl margarita mix— has supposedly announced that she will be peddling a kind of pot that keeps you high without sending you on an bodega Ruffles…
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Ayn Rand, Worst Jewish Aunt — Ever
Lior Zaltzman It’s hard to imagine Ayn Rand as having a warm and fuzzy family life. And yet, this letter to her niece Connie shows that Rand — born Alisa Zinov’yevna Rosenbaum in 1905 to Russian-Jewish parents — did indeed have humans who loved her. Well, maybe. The missive (posted below) outlines the rather, um, severe…
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Sarah Silverman Makes Marvel Comic Cameo
Scott Koblish/Marvel Entertainment You don’t have to tell me that Sarah Silverman is a superhero(ine). Marvel’s latest Deadpool comic features a cameo by your favorite potty-mouthed Jewess, protesting the big bad Roxxon company, which appears in several Marvel comics series. In addition to being high on the red carpet, Silverman is well-known for her environmental…
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Meet Stefan Zweig, the Jewish Author Behind ‘Grand Budapest Hotel’
Wes Anderson’s whimsical film “The Grand Budapest Hotel” was nominated for nine Academy Awards Thursday morning, just days after winning the Golden Globe for Best Comedy or Musical. Named one of the best films of the year by several top critics, it could earn Anderson, a director whose cult following has steadily grown over the…
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‘Grand Budapest Hotel’ Leads Oscar Nominations
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced the nominations for the 87th Academy Awards. Winners will be revealed in Los Angeles on Feb. 22, when Neil Patrick Harris makes his debut as Oscars host. Leading the pack is Wes Anderson’s “Grand Budapest Hotel,” inspired by the writings of Austrian-Jewish novelist Stefan Zweig,…
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Books ‘I Think You’re Totally Wrong’ Goes to Hollywood
Photo courtesy Rabbit Bandini Productions Capital punishment. Bungee jumping. Cormac McCarthy. Waterboarding. Jackson Pollock. “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” Abortion. Rupert Murdoch. The Seattle Mariners. The war in Iraq. The “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.” Disneyland. Balding. These are just few of the subjects David Shields and Caleb Powell cover in their new book, “I…
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I’ll Always Have Paris
The events in France have prompted a reminder of how France and things French have punctuated my life. As a child in pre-World War II Warsaw I remember my parents’ friends describe visits to Paris as a place where you can “otemen frei” — breathe freely. In Vilno on June 15, 1940 we went to see…
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