‘The Jazz Singer’: How the world’s first ‘talkie’ could not be more Jewy

Welcome to The Reel Schmooze with ToI film reviewer Jordan Hoffman and host Amanda Borschel-Dan, where we bring you all the entertainment news and film reviews a Jew can use.

Hoffman starts with two quick Jangles — news with a Jewish angle — before we devote the program to the original 1927 “The Jazz Singer” and a technicolor 1991 The Simpsons parody episode, “Like Father, Like Clown.”

WATCH the full episode here:

Now in the public domain, a pristine digitally remastered version of the 99-year-old film can be viewed freely on YouTube. Although still primarily a silent film — complete with hammy acting and text cards — it features the world’s first lines of synched dialogue and half a dozen songs.

Hoffman recounts how the story was written especially for its star, Al Jolson, who was born to a rabbinical family in Lithuania that moved to the United States when he was five.

The plot unfolds on the eve of Yom Kippur, the Jewish day of atonement, and pits a fifth-generation cantor father against his entertainer son. The film is bookended by the Kol Nidre service and its famous melody.

Unfortunately, “The Jazz Singer” is likely best known for its controversial blackface scenes. In what is unimaginable today, Hoffman explains that Jolson’s trademark act was incredibly popular in that era — and especially among Black Americans.

In the final section of our program, we turn to 1991’s The Simpsons comic riff on the film. After Krusty the Clown’s past comes to light, Bart and Lisa learn rabbinic literature to help mend bridges with his rabbi father.

Let’s hear who gave this film and television episode an “oy,” “meh” or the prized “not bad” this week on The Reel Schmooze.

The Reel Schmooze is produced by Ari Schlacht and can be found wherever you get your podcasts.

Check out the previous The Reel Schmooze here: