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
-
Books
Swimming in the Sea of Haggadot
Image courtesy of Sanford Kearns Crossposted From Under the Fig Tree This year, or so it seems to me, the American Jewish community is awash in new editions of the haggadah, the age-old ritual text that structures the Passover seder. At one end of the spectrum, there’s the stunning Washington Haggadah, a facsimile edition of…
-
Out and About: Comics for Passover; Jeff Goldblum and His Jazz Orchestra
Vanessa Davis illustrates Passover’s seeming absurdities. Sarah Lazarovic illustrates her Passover Seder with her converted huband, Benjamin Errett. Jeff Goldblum wows Coachella festival with his jazz orchestra. The Arty Semite contributor Jenny Hendrix takes on the gender-neutered Bible for The New Yorker. The Detroit Metro Times profiles Jewish Music blogger Jack Zaientz. How Polish-born Stephanie…
-
This Week in Forward Arts and Culture
Jay Michaelson pays a visit to John Zorn’s Masada Marathon at the New York City Opera, and re-interprets the four sons of the Haggadah as characters from “Glee.” Eli Valley re-interprets the four sons in light of the Egyptian Revolution. Philologos has difficulties and questions, both. Meredith Ganzman looks back on the career of Rochelle…
The Latest
-
National Poetry Month: The Fifth Son
Karen Alkalay-Gut began her illustrious poetry career here in the Forward at the age of 10. Recently we unearthed that first foray into poetry here on The Arty Semite, along with a few of her other poems. Celebrating National Poetry Month, we not only have the pleasure of featuring Karen’s interview (along with six others),…
-
John Galliano Ousted From Namesake Label
John Galliano must be pretty sorry for his anti-semitic rant. The British designer has been ousted as head designer of his namesake line, John Galliano. Women’s Wear Daily is reporting that the board of the label has met and decided to fire him. This comes about six weeks after Galliano got the boot from Christian…
-
Making Music That’s Not Disgusting
Courtesy Fatpossum Records Having launched their self-titled debut album in February and now embarking on an American tour, British indie-rock band Yuck are causing quite a stir. A successful stint playing to crowds at the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas last month generated a great deal of conversation, particularly in the blogosphere. On…
-
JDL Compares Gay People to Nazis
Extremism makes strange bedfellows. The Jewish Defense League is trying to rally Toronto Jews to protest against the city’s Pride parade committee by comparing gay people… to Nazis. Ironically — as the Forward reported in January — a right-wing fanatic named Scott Lively had floated the notion that Nazis were “a homosexual, pagan cult” in…
-
Books Righting Wrongs
Earlier this week, Austin Ratner wrote about Hillel sandwiches and patricide, photography, and Audrey Hepburn. His first book, “The Jump Artist,” is the winner of the 2011 Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature. His blog posts are being featured this week on The Arty Semite courtesy of the Jewish Book Council and My Jewish Learning’s…
-
FBI: Tupac Extorted by Jewish Defense League
Fifteen years after Tupac Shakur’s murder, the FBI has released documents showing that the rapper received death threats from the Jewish Defense League as part of an extortion scheme. The papers reveal an FBI request for additional time to investigate the matter, with the organization interested in determining “whether the extortionate activities … are in…
-
Friday Film: Teaching the Holocaust to Teenagers
It sounds like a high-concept Hollywood pitch: Feisty 86-year-old Holocaust survivor meets tough inner-city high-school kids. In fact, a documentary about the indefatigable Fanya Gottesfeld Heller — and her conversations with students at Brooklyn’s “alternative” Pacific High School — airs on PBS affiliates throughout April. Richard Gere narrates “Teenage Witness: The Fanya Heller Story,” partly…
-
Dueling Rabbis Film Gets Cannes Nod
A movie about dueling rabbis has qualified for a chance at one of the film industry’s highest honors, the Palm d’Or. “Footnote,” an upcoming film by Israeli director Joseph Cedar, has been selected as one of 19 movies to compete in the main competition at next month’s Cannes Film Festival. The drama tells the story…
Explore
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward Why the Antisemitism Awareness Act now has a religious liberty clause to protect ‘Jews killed Jesus’ statements
- 2
News School Israel trip turns ‘terrifying’ for LA students attacked by Israeli teens
- 3
Culture Cardinals are Catholic, not Jewish — so why do they all wear yarmulkes?
- 4
Music After decades of waiting, we’re finally getting a Bob Dylan-Barbra Streisand duet
In Case You Missed It
-
Fast Forward A Jewish nonprofit may have accidentally caused Michigan to drop charges against pro-Palestinian activists
-
Culture For Christian nationalists, Trump’s pope picture isn’t a joke
-
Opinion Is Israel really going to reoccupy Gaza? Ask Trump
-
Yiddish World A photo of my bubbe when Jewish stores still had Yiddish signs
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
