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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Rudy Giuliani Applauds Homeland Security
Spotting N.Y.C. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly as I arrived at the Grand Hyatt for the October 28 Federal Enforcement Homeland Security Foundation Gala, I felt very safe. Petite sexpert, Dr. Ruth Westheimer, perennial photo-op magnet and a former sniper in Israel’s 1948 War of Independence, managed to be photographed with Federal enforcement groupings that included…
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‘Aftermath’ Sheds Light on Polish Anti-Semitism
“Aftermath,” written and directed by Polish filmmaker Władysław Pasikowski, is everything you can ask of a movie and more. It is intelligent, thoughtful and involving, an experience that will generate conversations long after the last frame dissolves into nothingness. It is also brave — brave of Pasikowski, brave of his actors, brave of his crew….
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Say Thanksgivukkah With Your Nails
Every week, Rabbi Yael Buechler paints her nails. Only, unlike most of us, she isn’t on the prowl for the new Essie obsession. Every manicure has a purpose: to represent that week’s Torah portion. “I started doing nail art designs back when I was in middle school, long before nail art was in fashion. One…
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Learning To Be Jewish From MAD Magazine
It was a thrill to learn recently that one of my favorite Mad magazine artists, the legendary Al Jaffee, would give his personal papers to Columbia University. Among those treasures are a massive cache of Jaffee’s much-loved Mad fold-in cartoons and notebooks of ideas Jaffee never even submitted for publication. But the most intriguing part…
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$14.5M Pricetag for Jewish Novelists’ Brownstone
Novelists Jonathan Safran Foer and Nicole Krauss are listing their opulent century-old Brooklyn brownstone for a cool $14.5 million, the Daily News reported. The Park Slope townhouse, located on Second Street right next to Prospect Park, was built in 1902 for the heirs to the Woolworth fortune. It has six bedrooms, a backyard, a conservatory…
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‘The Weiner Monologues’ Is Now a Play
(Reuters) — Anthony Weiner, the New York City mayoral candidate undone by a sexting scandal, stands in a schoolyard — the butt of his classmates’ jokes. A chorus of reporters breaks out into a sexually charged dance number during a Weiner press conference. A new play about the misbegotten campaign of Weiner, the former Congressman…
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Must-See Tale of Thanksgivukkah
What do you call a website that offers viral Jewish video, all the time? Pittsburgh-natives Dovid Taub, DovBer Naiditch and Sruli Broocker have come up with an answer: Shmideo. Tagged as a place that offers “Awesome content for awesome Jews,” and approved by the BJA (the Board of Jewish Awesomeness), Shmideo seeks to carve a…
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Drake Really Loves the Toronto Raptors
If you thought being named global ambassador for the Toronto Raptors was just another title for Drake, think again. The Canadian Jewish rapper just released a promo video for the basketball team’s new season, and it is seriously inspirational stuff. Check it out:
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Happy Challah-ween from Jewish Celebrities
Hollywood is a veritable treasure trove of overly expensive and elaborate costumes come Halloween time, but also some of the most fun. Here are a few of the best costumes Jewish celebs have donned this year and in years past:
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Can Soy Products Turn You Gay?
An ultra-Orthodox sect has banned its Yeshiva students from eating soy products on the basis that the levels of estrogen found in soy beans could turn the men gay, the Haredi World newspaper reported on Tuesday. School officials are concerned that eating anything containing soy, even just one a week, “can cause unwanted arousal,” and…
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‘Last Vegas’ Just the Beginning for Dan Fogelman
If Dan Fogelman were any hotter, he’d have planets revolving around him. Fogelman is the screenwriter behind such hits as “Cars” and “Tangled” and “Crazy Stupid Love.” He’s also creator and producer of ABC’s “The Neighbors,” the subversively intelligent and subversively Jewish comedy. He’s also in post-production of his first directing effort, “Imagine,” a film…
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