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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This Jewish 16-Year-Old Is The Next ‘Evan Hansen’ On Broadway
Andrew Barth Feldman has years of experience in musical theater. He’s starred in “Catch Me If You Can,” “High School Musical,” “Shrek,” and “We Will Rock You,” among other productions. He’s trained. He’s taught. He’s directed. He’s won awards. Now, he’s going to star in the title role of Broadway’s smash hit “Dear Evan Hansen.”…
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Rising GOP Star’s Cute Bit On SNL Just A Distraction — He’s Linked To Conspiracy Theories
Everybody was a winner on Saturday night. Pete Davidson apologized on air on Saturday Night Live for the joke he’d made in a segment the week before, mocking injured veteran and then-GOP House candidate Lieutenant Commander Dan Crenshaw. Crenshaw himself then appeared on air, graciously accepting the apology, getting in some funny barbs, and speaking…
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Sarah Silverman: I’m Lucky My ‘Walk Of Fame’ Star Isn’t Getting Sewn Onto My Clothing
It was a joke so not-nice she used it twice: Upon receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and appearing on “Real Time with Bill Maher,” Sarah Silverman made a pitch-black joke about anti-Semitism. “In a scary time when anti-Semitic crime is up 57% since 2016, it’s not lost on me how lucky…
The Latest
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‘Great British Bake Off’ Has Zero Jewish Friends
The Great British Bake Off is a great love of mine. From the mythology of the show (rumor has it Sue protects bakers from crying on camera by stepping in front of them and cursing) to the gentle pastel-y set that melts into the frontal cortex like a Xanax, GBBO is a soothing antidote to…
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Natalie Portman Has A Feminist Celebrity Coven With Reese Witherspoon
Raise your hand if you’ve ever felt personally intimidated by Natalie Portman. via GIPHY It’s hard to talk about the way female celebrities’ appearances affect their young fans without either blaming a woman for the work of a larger system or blaming the larger system, and snatching away the woman’s very agency. But, come on,…
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Jill Soloway Of ‘Transparent’ Wants To ‘Reclaim’ The Word Zionism
You can love Israel and want it to exist without loving Israel’s current government or every aspect of Israeli society. That’s the radical (or not) message Jill Soloway, creator of the watershed Jewish family drama “Transparent,” is spreading. Soloway, the auteur behind the four seasons of Amazon Prime’s “Transparent” and the network’s short-lived “I Love…
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Rapper Ice-T Has Never Eaten A Bagel, Thank You, And Has No Intention Of Doing So
Rapper Ice-T is tired of fighting. He’s tired of hiding. He is who he is: A 60-year-old man who has never eaten a bagel and never intends to eat one. He said as much on social media today, sending Bagel Twitter into a fit: White people.. Don’t lose your Fn minds because I’ve never eaten…
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Marshmallows, Rejoice! Max Greenfield Will Return As Leo In ‘Veronica Mars’ Reboot
For all you OG “Veronica Mars” fans, we have a surprise as sweet as a marshmallow. Last month it was announced that the early 2000s teen murder mystery series, which starred Kristen Bell as the titular investigative popular high schooler, will be rebooted for a limited series on Hulu. In the first season, Veronica’s love…
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Did Bernie Sanders Say Something Very Confusing About The Elections?
Update: Sanders tweeted to clarify his comments on Thursday afternoon. Here’s the Daily Beast tweet, including Sanders’ most controversial quote: “I think you know there are a lot of white folks out there who are not necessarily racist who felt uncomfortable for the first time in their lives about whether or not they wanted to…
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Zoe Kravitz Opens Up About Feeling ‘Like A Freak’ As A Black, Jewish Teen
Zoe Kravitz, the swanlike actress and style icon we’re seriously crushing on, revealed to Elle Magazine that she was severely insecure during her childhood. We’re not sure we can wrap our heads around the idea of the “Big Little Lies” and “Fantastic Beasts” star not being the beautiful superhuman that she is, but she explained…
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A Prayer For Hospitalized Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has been hospitalized after an injury, The New York Times reported on Thursday morning. Justice Ginsburg fell in her office on Wednesday night, the paper reports, but was brought to George Washington University Hospital on Thursday morning where she was admitted, having broken three ribs on her left side….
Most Popular
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Culture Trump wants to honor Hannah Arendt in a ‘Garden of American Heroes.’ Is this a joke?
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Fast Forward The invitation said, ‘No Jews.’ The response from campus officials, at least, was real.
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Opinion A Holocaust perpetrator was just celebrated on US soil. I think I know why no one objected.
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Fast Forward Columbia staff receive texts asking if they’re Jewish, as government hunts antisemitic harassment on campus
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