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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Cameron Diaz’s ‘Jewish’ Wedding
Getty Images Mazel tov, Cameron Diaz! At least, we think so. The non-Jewish actress tied the knot yesterday in a Jewish ceremony with Good Charlotte’s (maybe Jewish? — status ambiguous) Benji Madden. Yes, you read that right. Two celebrities with no apparent connection to Judaism decided it would be fun to say “I do” under a…
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‘McMansion’ Man Gives Everyone a Raise
David Siegel is back in the news. You of course remember the head of the Westgate Resorts timeshare billionaire whose efforts to build the largest home in the U.S. were the subject of the documentary “The Queen of Versailles.” When last we heard from him, he prophesied that the election of Barack Obama would lead…
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Stephen Fry To Marry 27-Year-Old Comedian
Getty Images The best British Jewish comedian you’ve only kind of heard of, Stephen Fry, is tying the knot with 27-year-old partner Elliott Spencer. Fry took to to Twitter to confirm the news, though a date has not yet been set. Oh. It looks as though a certain cat is out of a certain bag….
The Latest
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A Miss America Who Remembered Her Yiddish Roots
Bess Myerson, a Bronx-born beauty whose selection as the first — and to date only — Jewish Miss America turned out to be more than a leggy, musically talented woman. Succumbing at 90 to dementia, she left her imprint on the Jewish community as an indefatigable supporter of Israel and never forgot her Yiddish roots. When…
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My Brush With Herzl’s Beard
Just think of Theodor Herzl and what do you see? A long, lush, black beard. There it is on Herzl’s prophetic profile staring out from the hotel balcony in Basel pointing Zion-ward. There it is again groomed in three-quarter portrait, a flowing beard fit for a modern day Moses. No better icon of the Zionist…
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Scarlett Johansson To Star in Adaptation of Japanese Anime
(Reuters) — Following the success of “Lucy,” Scarlett Johansson looks ready to take on another action pic, this one coming from the world of Japanese anime. Johansson is set to star in DreamWorks’ adaptation of the popular anime pic “Ghost in the Shell.” Deadline Hollywood had reported that the actress had the offer to star but…
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‘Werewolf’ Adoption Story Was 100% Kosher — Really!
Illustration by Lior Zaltzman (JTA) — Last week, JTA published an unusual item about a werewolf legend that generated headlines worldwide. The item was about Yair Tawil, the first Jewish man adopted as a godson by Argentina’s president, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner. The adoption took place under a longstanding custom that presidents adopt the seventh son…
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Idina Menzel Defends Her New Year’s ‘Let It Go’ Performance
Getty Images Idina Menzel wants you all to let it go already. In case you haven’t heard, the “Frozen” sensation performed the Oscar-winning song during “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve With Ryan Seacrest,” what’s up with that name by the way?. All was going as planned: people were cheering, singing along, channeling Elsa —…
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James Palmer Gets Looted Art Back
Photo: Courtesy Goh When The New York Times broke the story of a lawsuit over misdirected proceeds of Nazi-looted art, it dedicated a couple of lines to Mondex Corporation, a low-profile outfit whose research brought the case to light. But Mondex, which operates out of Toronto and London, has played a headline role in helping…
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When Mario Cuomo Did Grossinger’s — With Ed Koch
I first met Mario Cuomo, the former New York State governor who died at 82 on Thursday, at Grossinger’s in the Catskills in 1982. He and Ed Koch were debaters before the New York State Broadcasters Association Annual Conference. Hearing of my Forward connection, Koch told me outright “tell your readers to rush to the…
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POEM: ‘A Visit to the Doctor During the War’
“Where do you go,” I ask the orthopedist, “When the sirens go off?” He opens his desk drawer, The bottom one near the corner. “Here,” he says, “And don’t forget On your way out To kiss the mezuzah.”
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