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
-
How to Give a Speech Like Mandy Patinkin
(JTA) — Mandy Patinkin has done Shakespeare and Showtime, Sondheim and “Oyfn Pripetchik,” but one thing he does not do is a dull after-dinner speech. The legendary veteran of Broadway and screens large and small let it all hang out when he accepted the Yitzhak Rabin Peace Award recently from the dovish Americans for Peace Now…
-
Mila Kunis, ScarJo Make FHM’s ‘Sexiest Women’ List
Photo: Getty Images FHM magazine has released its “Official 100 Sexiest Women In The World 2014” list and Jewish ladies have snagged 10 spots, including three in the Top 10. Leading the contingent of Nice Jewish girls is Emily Ratajkowski (in fourth place), star of Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines,” According to Haaretz, Ratajkowski is of…
-
Portraits of Holocaust Heroism
The title characters of filmmaker Michael King’s inspirational documentary, “The Rescuers,” are a dozen people, mostly diplomats, who saved thousands of Jewish lives during the Holocaust. In many cases, they defied their own government’s specific instructions in order to arrange exit visas for families otherwise headed for extermination. Some of these stories are already reasonably…
The Latest
-
Backstreet Boys To Play in Israel This Summer
Backstreet’s back all right! (in Israel) The best boy band of the ’90s is set to tour the Holy Land this summer, Haaretz reports. Time to dust off your scrunchies and snap bracelets. Nick, A.J., Kevin, Brian and Howie will be performing in front of an adoring crowd of 8,000 in Ra’anana on July 29….
-
Real Kramer Sues ‘Seinfeld’ Writer — Not That There’s Anything Wrong With That
Photo: Getty Images If you’re a “Seinfeld” fan, you may have shouted “Not that there’s anything wrong with that,” a couple of times. It’s just one of those lines that has stuck from the show, much like, “Big Salad,” “Yada Yada,” or “These pretzels are making me thirsty!” You might also argue that there is…
-
Monks Breakdance for Beastie Boys’ Adam Yauch
Let it be written that from this day forward, the only acceptable way to celebrate MCA Day shall be with breakdancing Buddhist monks. This past Saturday, four Buddhist monks took to Union Square, the site of the first MCA Day, to pay tribute to Beastie Boys rapper Adam Yauch, who died in 2012 after a…
-
Jen Selter Named N.Y. Post Fitness Columnist
The New York Post likes big butts and it cannot lie… Jen Selter, dubbed the Butt Queen of Instagram, has been named the Post’s new fitness columnist. The column’s name: Kicking Butt. (Insert snare drum sound) Meet our new fitness columnist: @jenselter! You know her (and her incredible booty) from @instagram: http://t.co/mCQQuE9voF — New York…
-
Genocide Remembrance From New York to Rwanda
To commemorate the 20-year anniversary of the genocide of the Tutsi people in Rwanda, the Museum of Jewish Heritage: A Living Memorial to the Holocaust will present a staged reading of actor-writer Jay O. Sanders’ play “Unexplored Interior” on May 11. It promises to be a striking event in several ways, not least as a…
-
Chelsea Clinton Receives Interfaith Award from AJC
A poised in a black suit and white shirt Chelsea Clinton, recipient of the American Jewish Committee’s Interfaith Award at its Spring Luncheon, brought back the memory of the 16-year old First Family daughter when I first met her in August 1996 at President Bill Clinton’s 50th birthday-cum-Democratic Fund raiser trifecta. At the ($1500 ticket)…
-
Celebrate 10 Years of ‘Friends’ With the Holiday Armadillo
Today, dear friends (get it?), is the 10th anniversary of the “Friends” finale. So to celebrate the good times spent with Ross, Phoebe, Monica, Rachel, Chandler and Joey, we revisit one of the iconic Jewish moments of the show: The Holiday Armadillo. Ah interfaith problems. Short summary: When Ross’ son Ben stays with him for…
-
Monica Lewinsky Puts Blue Dress Behind Her
Monica Lewinsky is putting her beret behind her — and her blue dress too. Now 40, Lewinsky speaks out in the June edition of Vanity Fair. The time has come, she writes, “to burn the beret and bury the blue dress.” After nearly 10 years of silence, the question is: why now? Lewinsky explains following…
Explore
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward ‘Rabbi rebellion’: 33 Orthodox rabbis endorse Harris
- 2
Opinion I was a Bernie supporter. This year, I’m voting Trump. Here’s why liberal Jews like me made the switch
- 3
Opinion Here’s why Orthodox Jews are loyal to Trump — even if they don’t love him
- 4
FIRST PERSON As a rabbi, he helped others mourn. So why wouldn’t his daughter say kaddish for him?
In Case You Missed It
-
Fast Forward Pro-Trump PACs back more misleading ads about Harris and Israel in final bid for swing-state voters
-
Fast Forward Thirsty Philly voters were in for a surprise: Paul Rudd and some handy hydration
-
Opinion Netanyahu’s firing of Gallant is a cynical betrayal of Israel’s security
-
Fast Forward They quit the Biden administration over the war in Gaza. But they are backing Harris.
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
