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Nose Job New York
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Question: It isn't anti-Jewish to point out that Jewish movie-makers more or less created
the film business in Hollywood and have continued to control all or most of the
major studios down to the present. (An exception today is 20th Century Fox,
which is controlled by Rupert Murdoch.) These are the facts and the best
sources for them are often books written by Jewish authors.
The Jewish movie-makers assumed for many years that their predominantly
Christian, Euro-American audience did not want to see Hershberg and Mandelbaum
in leading, romantic roles. Hence, actors who looked ethnic (Jewish) were cast
as villains or comics. Good-looking Jewish actors changed their names, had
their noses redone to resemble those of Western Europeans, and eliminated their
German, Yiddish, or New York accents. The average movie-goer had no idea that
Edward G. Robinson was born Emanuel Goldenburg in Bucharest, Romania, or that
the lovely Lauren Bacall started out as Betty Joan Perske in New York.
In the last 20 years or so, the Jewish movie moguls and their stars began to
be more open about their religious and ethnic background. Barbra Streisand may
have had a nose job, but the nose and the name are still Jewish. Kirk Douglas
had his ethnic-looking nose cut down to size, but his son retained a nose which
was closer to the one he was born with. Many leading movie actors of today
have retained their Jewish names and looks. One can mention David Schwimmer,
Daniel Stern, Ben Stiller (mother is of Irish background) and Jeremy Piven,
among many others.
The latest phase in Hollywood's coming out about its Jewishness.is what might
be called the all-Jewish movie, in which all or most of the leading characters
are played by actors who look Jewish and have Jewish names. Of course there
have been "Jewish" movies for decades. But most of these were comdies, such as
the Marx Brothers and Three Stooges films (and the Seinfeld Show) on TV. The
Marx brothers and the Horowitz (Howard) brothers, as well as other cast members
such as Larry Fine, were Jewish. The Jewish schmuck or schlimiel is a fixture
of American comedies. Jerry Lewis is one of the exemplars, but even today we
have the nerdy bank employee in TV ads who constantly whines that he "has lost
another loan to Di-Tech!" The actor is Ron Michaelson. We also have the
pairing of a nerdy Jewish loser with a lovely blond, Waspy leading lady. Ben
Stiller is dominating this niche with his performances in moves such as
Something about Mary and Meet the Parents. In Meet the Parents, much is made
of the fact that Stiller's character is Jewish and that he is marrying into a
Christian family.
One may also recall several movies made by Mel Brooks. These are parodies in
which characters played by English or Waspy actors in the original films are
replaced by Jewish actors who speak Jewish flavored dialogue. Among these are
High Anxiety, Young Frankenstein, Space Balls, and the History of the World.
In Space Balls, for example, the catch phrase in Star Wars, "May the Force be
with you," is replaced by the more Jewish expression, "May the Schwartz be
with you." Schwartz means black in German but is also a common Jewish surname.
The latest phase in this evolution of this trend is the all-Jewish drama or
romantic comedy. The movie-makers have apparently decided that they no longer
to cast Waspy actors such as Clark Gable, Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, or
Harrison Ford in their movies in order to sell tickets. Why not have all the
leading parts taken by Jewish looking, even Jewish sounding, actors? Why not
have the subject matter include references to Judaism?
An example of this trend, although not a pure one, is the vicious, so-called
black comedy, Very Bad Things. I don't know whether Christian Slater is
Jewish, but the leading actors include Daniel Stern and Jereby Piven (his
character's name is Michael Berkow). The movie includes a discussion of Jewish
burial law and an on-screen Jewish funeral. I believe that this movie's
Jewishness was compromised to avoid appearing "too Jewish." But the clear
implication is that the friends at the center of the action are Jewish. All
religious references are Jewish; I do not recall anything specifically
Christian being mentioned.
The Seinfeld Show, perhaps the best and most-successul TV comedy series ever,
was extremely Jewish. The four leading actors are all Jewish, as were the
show's creators, Seinfeld and Larry David. The series dealt with many Jewish
obsessions and issues. The show included a rabbi as a secondary character in
several episodes and an on-screen Jewish circumcision performed by a mohel.
But to dilute the Jewishness of the show, three of the characters (Kramer,
Benes, Constanza) specifically state during various programs that they are NOT
Jewish. Only the central character, Jerry Seinfeld, is allowed to be openly
Jewish. The success of this show clearly proves that America loves Jewish
humor. Of course, this has been obvious even before the days of Sid Caesar and
Milton Berle.
I think we can expect that in the future there will be remakes of classic moves
such as Gone with the Wind and Casablanca, revised to become Jewish stories.
Even the Waspy blond heroine, often played by Cameron Diaz (part Hispanic) or
Gwyneth Paltow (father was Jewish), is likely to be replaced by more ethnic
actresses such as Minnie Driver. Of course we can expect to see a continuation
of the endless series of films, plays, and TV shows dealing the the Holocaust
and with other Jewish oriented issues and stories. The Jewish concentration
camp victim and the Nazi offier or ex-Nazi government official will continue to
reappear in Hollywood movies which more and more are becoming an exploration of
Jewish life and thinking. What is next--a musical version of Anne Frank's
Diary?
Since this is an opera site, I will add that many of the so-called Euro-Trash
opera productions attempt to change the opera into some reflection of the
Holocaust, with tall military figures in black leather trenchcoats lording over
sallow, bearded prisoners. The Holocaust occurred over fifty years ago but the
masters of our cultural life are determined to keep it center stage forever in
all of the arts.
How do you think?
Answer: it really boggles the mind how much cheap , misinformation, bigotry
and accumulated stupidity can be accumulated into a single post ... to
what end, one may easily surmise. howard hoodlum was clearly on the
shore awaiting the first boat from plymouth. that's the only
explanation for his all-american swinehood [whoops! sorry for any
implied but unintended slur upon massasoit and his tribe]. hoodlum seems
to have a fixation upon noses, making his own fictitious surmises about
plastic surgical procedures, even suggesting that barbra streisand had a
nose job! having seen her since she was 19 years old here in new york to
an "inside the actors's studio" appearance on tv last night, i can
attest that the only possible surgical change in her nose would have
been a sharp blow to her proboscis with a sledge hammer.
anyway, has anyone noticed that howard hoodlum ranks with such rmo
worthies as ondine uno, terry ellsworth and the mushroom lady for
categorization with the lower orders of bestiality? the only difference
is that hoodlum is more longwinded and takes up more bandwidth. it may
be that the frequent suggestion of plonk-dom is too good for him. or
maybe a long siege of boot camp with the israeli defense force, with a
large badge identifying his frequent and blatant antisemitism.
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