Jewish popular culture

Patrons at the Synagoga Cafe in Trnava, Slovakia, September 13, 2017. (Wikimedia Commons/via JTA)

June 9, 2018, 12:50 pm

Synagogues become nightclubs in Eastern Europe, sparking anger at desecration

As former Jewish houses of worship are becoming trendy hotspots, advocates laud historical preservation while critics condemn disrespect

By Cnaan Liphshiz

May 27, 2018, 5:56 am

In an erstwhile yeshiva boy’s comedy club, Jewish jokes reign supreme

Are Jews funnier because they suffered? The Times of Israel asks three New York comics who regularly perform at Yeshiva University alum Dani Zoldan's renowned venue, Stand Up NY

By Michelle Divon

Rachel Bloom at the Critics’ Choice Awards in Santa Monica, California, January 11, 2018. (Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Critics’ Choice Awards/via JTA)

May 7, 2018, 11:20 pm

Rachel Bloom on Michelle Wolf, her first film and post-‘Crazy Ex-Girlfriend’

The 31-year-old shock comedy goddess and TV star reveals that her show's fourth season will be its last, but hopes to carry her feminist momentum into future projects

By Curt Schleier

Ruth Bader Ginsburg has attained pop culture icon status in the last decade. (Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures/via JTA)

May 4, 2018, 4:08 pm

‘RBG’ filmmakers hope to inspire Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s millennial fans

Ahead of Friday's opening, directors Julie Cohen and Betsy West say the goal of their film is to bring young fans the justice's extraordinary back story as a feminist pioneer

By Josefin Dolsten

Michael Twitty speaking at the annual Food Book Fair in New York, May 13, 2017. (Clay Williams/JTA)

May 3, 2018, 1:02 am

Jewish author wins James Beard award for book about African-American food

In 'The Cooking Gene', celebrity chef Michael Twitty intertwines the history of Southern soul food with his own Jewish journey

By JTA

Aaron Galligan-Stierle, Jim Stanek, Megan McGinnis, and Amie Bermowitz in 'Goldstein, the Musical.' (Jeremy Daniel)

April 25, 2018, 4:00 am

With bickering jokes, ‘Goldstein, the Musical’ sets Jewish family life to music

Running through the end of July, the hit play about three generations of a dysfunctional Jewish clan is a sometimes true, always poignant, airing of dirty laundry

By Danielle Ziri

Gail Asper with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Moe Levy, executive director of the Asper Foundation in Winnipeg. (Courtesy)

April 7, 2018, 12:56 pm

Canadian heiress throws millions into massive Tel Aviv-based Jewish hall of fame

The catch? Gail Asper still needs millions more for her dream $400-million Frank Gehry-designed museum, aimed at reframing the Jewish narrative and showcasing achievement

By Robert Sarner

Mikey Pauker is an up-and-coming Jewish artist. He's based in Berkeley, California, and is involved with an organization called Wilderness Torah, as well as with the Hindu-Yoga scene via Bhakti Fest. (Aleksandra Shira Dubov Lovetography)

March 19, 2018, 5:21 am

In Jewish redemption song, new album fuses ancient mysticism with reggae beats

Influenced by a brief foray into ultra-Orthodox Judaism in Israel, Mikey Pauker's rhyming lyrics quote the teachings of Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav

By Madison Margolin

'Fiddler on the Roof' lyricist Sheldon Harnick. (Courtesy)

February 9, 2018, 8:40 am

With a new show in London, 93-year-old ‘Fiddler’ lyricist is still hard at work

Sheldon Harnick is in the UK for a premiere of his newest musical, 'Rothschild & Sons' -- and is already penning a future operetta

By Anne Joseph

Bea Slater's son Mitch convinced her to audition for the campaign. (Elaine Durbach/via JTA)

February 1, 2018, 3:40 am

Meet the 90-year-old great-grandmother who is the new face of JDate

Along with three other elderly women, Bea Slater is one of the tried and true 'yentas' representing the Jewish matchmaking site

By Elaine Durbach

A OneTable dinner hosted by Erica Mitchell in New York City, November, 2015. (Courtesy OneTable/David Joshua Ford)

January 21, 2018, 3:46 am

This Shabbat dinner pairing app isn’t for everyone — and that’s the point

Even while targeting a limited demographic, OneTable's demand outpaces supply, forcing the company to continue streamlining the most modern way to do the Day of Rest

By Gideon Grudo

Adam Goldberg as the Hebrew Hammer. (YouTube screen capture)

January 13, 2018, 12:41 pm

Ahead of sequel, the Hebrew Hammer pounds Nazis on social media

Adam Goldberg talks with The Times of Israel about his misgivings in playing the Semitic superhero and why he always wanted to be a Woody Allen character

By Yaakov Schwartz

Still from filmmaker Larry Weinstein's 'Dreaming of a Jewish Christmas.' (Courtesy)

December 25, 2017, 9:37 pm

Call Adam Sandler: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer was Jewish, too

In 'Dreaming of a Jewish Christmas,' filmmaker Larry Weinstein shares why Christmas is just another Yiddishe holiday

By Tracy Frydberg

Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr. speaking at The New York Times’ New Work Summit in Half Moon Bay, California, February 29, 2016. (Kimberly White/Getty Images for New York Times/via JTA)

December 20, 2017, 5:56 am

The Sulzberger family: A complicated Jewish legacy at The New York Times

Throughout the generations, the paper has maintained a veneer of objectivity -- even as it buried stories of WWII atrocities against Jews

By Josefin Dolsten

Abbi Jacobson (left) and Ilana Glazer, the co-creators of 'Broad City.' (courtesy)

December 16, 2017, 3:32 am

Get ready for more chaos, humor, and chutzpah as ‘Broad City’ preps a 5th season

But first, check out the latest run of Comedy Central's hit feminist-Jewish-millennial show that addresses all the burning Jewy issues. And hair

By Anna Katz