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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Plight of Gay Palestinians No Credit to Israel
With the recent coinage of the term “pinkwashing,” presumably an “unofficial” official policy whereby the Israeli government touts its progressive stance vis-à-vis gay and lesbian rights as a way to deflect criticism of the Occupation, one entry into the sixth annual Other Israel Film Festival took on new urgency earlier this month. But the documentary…
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Larry David Remembers Thanksgiving
While you were eating turkey… Celebs ate turkey, too. However, some like Natalie Portman, Alicia Silverstone, Dianna Agron, Julianna Margulies, and Lea Micheledid not (they’re vegetarians). Larry David treated us to his animated reminiscences of Thanksgiving in Brooklyn with his family. Larry David’s Thanksgiving Special from Larry David Joan Rivers tweeted about delivering Thanksgiving meals…
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Books Author Blog: What Makes a Short Story Jewish?
David Ebenbach’s collection “Into the Wilderness” is now available. His blog posts are featured on The Arty Semite courtesy of the Jewish Book Council and My Jewish Learning’s Author Blog Series. For more information on the series, please visit: I think most Jewish writers, at one time or another, face the question of what makes…
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Israeli Filmmakers in Navajo Country
Yolanda and Dorey Nez, Navajo who lived on the Nation’s reservation in New Mexico, lost their son to a rare genetic disorder known as Xeroderma pigmentosum, or XP. The disease, which occurs only once in a million births, makes exposure to sunlight potentially fatal to children. But their second child had it, as well. And…
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An Italian Moses and Mountaineer
Italian author Erri De Luca shares two passions with the Biblical lawgiver Moses: mountaineering and the Hebrew language. Such is the message of “And He Said,” translated from the Italian original which appeared from Feltrinelli Editore last year.. Born in 1950 in Naples, Luca was a militant leftist in “Lotta continua” (Continuous Struggle), a group…
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The ‘Jewish Mother’ of Psychoanalysis
One historian wrote: “If, metaphorically, Sigmund Freud was the father of psychoanalysis, Sándor Ferenczi was the mother.” If so, then every day is Mother’s Day for the analyst born Sándor Fränkel in northeastern Hungary to Polish Jewish parents in 1873 (the family name was later changed to sound more Hungarian). In January, Karnac Books published…
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Mayim Bialik Plans Divorce
Actress Mayim Bialik and her husband, Michael Stone have announced plans to divorce after nine years of marriage. The “Big Bang Theory” actress, known for her adherence to so-called “attachment parenting,” blamed the split on “irreconcilable differences. “After much consideration and soul-searching, Michael and I have arrived at the decision to divorce,” she wrote on…
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Books Poetics of Riverdale
When we think of great New York poets — Frank O’Hara and Allen Ginsberg, Anne Waldman and Laurie Anderson, among others — what they’ve immortalized and exalted have been the streets and energies of Manhattan or, on rare and less transcendent occasions, Brooklyn. The Bronx, when it did appear, has always been something of the…
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Humor in the Burst Tel Aviv Bubble
It is clear from social media posts from friends and relatives in Israel over the past week, that many are using humor as a way of dealing with the very serious missile attacks from Gaza and strikes against Hamas by the IDF. Tel Aviv is the best inspiration for comedic material right now. The Bubble…
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Steven Spielberg’s ‘Lincoln’ Tribute
With his new movie “Lincoln” playing in theaters nationwide, Steven Spielberg paid tribute to the 16th President by giving the keynote speech at a ceremony at Soldiers’ National Cemetery commemorating the 149th anniversary of the Gettysburg Address. It looks like recently separated Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman can still be friends. They both attended DeVito’s…
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Taylor Swift is Blue (or is it Red?) over Jake Gyllenhaal
Every time Taylor Swift comes out with a new song about a broken romance, the public is quick to speculate as to which former boyfriend she is referring to in the lyrics. Well, the guessing is over when it comes to “All Too Well,” a track off her new album, “Red.” It’s about Jake Gyllenhaal,…
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