Apr 24, 2013 By: wpadmin
Eric Goldman's Newest Book Charts the American Jewish Story through the History of Cinema
From Al Jolson to Woody Allen, Jews have played a significant role in the American film industry even as their role in larger American society has constantly shifted and evolved. But how much of their changing experience made it to the big screen? In his new book, (University of Texas Press, April 2013), Dr. Eric Goldman, adjunct associate professor of cinema at 黑料社 All, explores the surprising visual history of American Jewry revealed in some of America鈥檚 most classic films.
YU News: How did you become interested in the idea of American cinema as lens to study the Jewish American experience?
Goldman: I was classically trained in cinema studies, but I always had an interest in combining the Jewish with the American. My first book was a history of Yiddish cinema. As I came in contact with different people from different fields鈥攕ociology, history, semiotics鈥擨 realized that in terms of trying to understand the changing American Jew and the evolving situation of Jews in America, cinema could be used as an incredible text to see those changes right on the screen.
How is the early Jewish immigrant story reflected in early 20th century cinema, with movies like 鈥淭he Jazz Singer?鈥
In my 鈥淪ociology of Mass Media鈥 class at Stern College for Women, I screen 鈥淭he Jazz Singer鈥 and a silent film called 鈥淗is People鈥 together. They were made in the 1920s, within a year and a half of each other. 鈥淗is People鈥 is about the generational gap between the immigrants who came here with deep Jewish learning and found they couldn鈥檛 turn it into a living. In this movie, the father, a man of great learning, has to become a peddler on the street. And the question clearly is what will happen to the next generation? You feel the pull of assimilation.
Looking at 鈥淭he Jazz Singer,鈥 you have that classic story in a different way: a learned man who did find parnasa, as a chazzan. His son, Jakie Rabinowitz, also has an incredible voice, which his father feels should be used in the shul as well, continuing that tradition. It鈥檚 a waste to use it anywhere else. But Jakie鈥檚 landed the opportunity of a lifetime. He鈥檚 worked small clubs all around the country and will now finally appear on Broadway. It just so happens that opening night is also Erev Yom Kippur.
For Jakie, that鈥檚 a non-issue. He鈥檚 made that choice, as did a whole generation of Jews, to be able to survive in America. It鈥檚 clear he鈥檚 going to appear in the theater. But then his father, who normally would conduct the Yom Kippur service, is ill鈥攑erhaps dying. Jakie鈥檚 mother and the shamesh of the shul come to him and say, 鈥淐ome home, maybe if you sing, your father will feel better. You鈥檙e a product of chazanut - you could lead the service yourself without preparation.鈥
Ostensibly, he鈥檚 going to just pay a quick bikur cholim visit to his farther and return to the stage later that night. But when Jakie arrives, the shamesh is there with a talis in his hand, saying, 鈥淥kay, Jack, we鈥檙e ready for you. Everyone鈥檚 going to shul now. Take the talis and go.鈥 Next to him is Jakie鈥檚 mother, also rooting for him to go to shul. Then in walks his manager from the theater and his non-Jewish girlfriend. Jakie鈥檚 stuck in the middle. In secular terms, it鈥檚 his community saying, 鈥淛ack, take your father鈥檚 mantle and join us, you鈥檝e come home,鈥 versus his manager saying, 鈥榊ou鈥檙e crazy if you give up your career for this.鈥 It鈥檚 a very striking visual.
What I try to do in the book is to point out how various visual moments capture the essence of what was happening to America鈥檚 Jews at that point in time. The tug between generations. What America offered and what the expectations in the home were. Samuel Raphaelson, the author of 鈥淭he Jazz Singer,鈥 grew up on the Lower East Side and this whole issue was central to his life, his desire to be a writer in the secular world.
What impact did the rise of anti-Semitism in the 1930s have on Hollywood, then a very Jewish industry?
There was a great concern on the part of these Jewish movie moguls that they not be perceived as foreigners, outsiders, Jews. They did everything in their power to move away from that. Circumstance in Hollywood still treated them as Jews鈥攖he country clubs of Los Angeles wouldn鈥檛 admit them. But what they did in their enterprise was create an industry that catered to everyone, and went out of their way, not only in their personal lives to gain acceptance鈥攚hat level of assimilation are you ready to accept upon yourself?鈥攂ut they also chose not to have Jewish subjects in their films. By the 30s, Jewish subject matter had all but disappeared from film.
The amazing thing about 鈥淭he Jazz Singer,鈥 which was made in 1927, was that it was made by Warner Brothers, a Jewish studio. It happened by accident, and after that they went out of their way to ensure it never happened again. It was a little bit of an embarrassment. 鈥淲hat is this, the first film with talking in it is going to be about Jews?鈥
Many of the big Jewish moguls of the time also divorced their Jewish wives to marry gentile women鈥 their own way of assimilating into American society.
In the 1930s, though, the Nazi government said to a lot of American studios, 鈥淚f you want to have a company representative here in Berlin鈥濃攚hich you have to understand had become in the 1920s a center of art, commerce and intellectual striving, so major representatives from all over were placed there鈥斺渢hey can鈥檛 be Jewish.鈥 In 1936, a Jewish representative of Warner Brothers was murdered there by a Nazi thug. Some companies withdrew their representatives completely, while others replaced their Jews with non-Jews, because they were more interested in keeping their films playing in Germany.
In this country, nobody wanted anything Jewish. Jews didn鈥檛 want to bring attention to themselves. There was something called 鈥渢he Production Code,鈥 where the Catholic Church put pressure on movie-makers to be clean and pure and not ethnic. Also, it was the Great Depression. People wanted to be entertained with giant musicals, and there was a movement toward adapting the great classics of literature for the screen. The Jewish producers simply did not want Jewish stories.
How did Jewish presence reintroduce itself in American cinema after World War II?
Anti-Semitism was unfortunately just as strong here after the war as it had been before. Here we had fought this war, we had defeated the Nazis and America saw what they had done, and yet many still disliked Jews. That was kind of scary. It incited Laura Z. Hobson to write her novel 鈥淕entlemen鈥檚 Agreement.鈥 She had seen anti-Semitic slurs in Congress which shocked the heck out of her.
The Jewish Defense agencies along with Hollywood鈥檚 Jews were frightened by the idea of attacking anti-Semitism and said, 鈥淚f we make too much of a big deal about things, it鈥檚 not going to be good for us. Let鈥檚 fight anti-Semitism in our own quiet ways.鈥
There was a guy named Daryl F. Zanuck who had been a producer on 鈥淭he Jazz Singer鈥 and then went on to become head of a studio and chose to make a film about the Rothschilds in the early 30s鈥攁t the height of Nazi propaganda about Jews, he had made a film about one of the great Jewish bankers in the world! He wasn鈥檛 scared of anyone. He also wasn鈥檛 Jewish. He wanted to attack anti-Semitism. He was ready to take on his fellow producers and the establishment. He was very capable and also made a lot of money for his investors. So he went ahead and decided to buy the rights to 鈥淕entlemen鈥檚 Agreement.鈥
The Jewish community said to him, 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 do this. This is bad for the Jews.鈥 But Zanuck said, 鈥淚鈥檓 an American and not to do this would be bad for America. Anti-Semitism is unacceptable, bigotry has no place in the world, and I鈥檓 not scared to go ahead and make this movie.鈥
How did Israel start to get screen time and how did movies like Exodus shape the identities of American Jews watching?
That could be a book of its own. We just talked about Israel this week in my Stern class. Major studios weren鈥檛 interested in dealing with the subject of Israel. It was perceived to be too Jewish or niche. In the early 50s, there were a couple of independent producers who did tackle it in their films and the examples are few but important. There was a terrific 1953 film with Kirk Douglas before he emerged as a major actor, about a Holocaust survivor who goes to Israel, called 鈥淭he Juggler.鈥 That was beautiful and rare.
But in general, as a Hollywood moviemaker at this time, you didn鈥檛 touch on the Holocaust because the feeling was that it didn鈥檛 have significance for Americans and you also didn鈥檛 deal with Israel.
Finally you have this screenplay written by Leon Uris which no one wanted to make. He transformed it into a book instead. That became a bestseller, and Otto Preminger makes 鈥淓xodus鈥 out of it, which was a major success.
Until 1958, Jewish subjects had largely been avoided in American cinema. Then it changed for a variety of reasons鈥攂ecause of sociological changes in America, because of civil rights activities and as a result of rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court. Segregation was no longer acceptable鈥攖hat had a very positive effect on Jews. Jews started coming out more, discussing Jewish subjects, talking about Israel. Before this, how could you support another country, like Israel, if you鈥檙e a good American? Someone might claim you were disloyal. Suddenly, in the late 1950s, Jews could be Jewish, they could wear kippot in public鈥 It was the coming out party for American Jewry.
How does someone like Woody Allen fit into the picture?
You see an evolution in his body of work. He鈥檚 representative of the ambivalent American Jew of the late 20th century. His early films are about wanting to be somebody else, the desire to give up his Judaism. In 鈥淟ove and Death and Sleeper,鈥 Allen is thrust into a different period where he doesn鈥檛 quite fit in, and it鈥檚 the story of how this young, talented Jewish man doesn鈥檛 feel comfortable in America because he is the 鈥渙ther.鈥 His early work revolves around this whole need to fit in, climaxing in 鈥淎nnie Hall.鈥 The classic scene there has him sitting at Easter dinner with Annie Hall, this wonderful Protestant woman. Through her, he鈥檚 going to gain acceptance into America. But then there is her grandmother who issitting at the end of the table. He turns to the camera, in a historic cinematic moment, and speaking to us says, 鈥淭here鈥檚 the classic anti-Semite at the end of the table,鈥 and you see him picturing himself as a Hasid. He may shave, but he鈥檚 still this yucky Jew who doesn鈥檛 belong at the table. Allen鈥檚 saying, 鈥淚t鈥檚 time I sat at the American table. I鈥檓 tired of being ostracized.鈥
By the 80s and 90s there鈥檚 an acceptance on his part of the fact that he鈥檚 finally found comfort in his being a Jew. You see this with his struggle with the rabbi in 鈥淐rimes and Misdemeanors.鈥 To have a rabbi in a Woody Allen film that Allen isn鈥檛 making fun of鈥攚ow! That鈥檚 a powerful statement. In a film like 1997鈥檚 鈥淒econstructing Harry,鈥 you have a wonderful debate where Allen鈥檚 sister is frum and he鈥檚 debating her. And you see an articulate rebuttal about being frum in the modern world, which is of course also written by Woody Allen. And his ex-wife in this film is also frum. This is the first time Allen is entering the debate about what it means to be a traditional Jew in today鈥檚 world.
What is the American Jewish story being told in film right now?
What has happened in 2013, especially by young, Jewish filmmakers, is there鈥檚 a comfort zone with being Jewish. We鈥檙e not going to stand for any anti-Semitic sentiment. And that鈥檚 exciting. Several generations ago we had moviemakers who were afraid to be seen as Jews. Now filmmakers are not only totally comfortable being Jewish, it鈥檚 who they are. You see this in Adam Sandler and Judd Apatow. There鈥檚 a wonderful moment in 鈥淜nocked Up鈥 when Seth Rogen is in a bar with four Jewish guys and one non-Jew. Rogen talks about how he just saw the film 鈥淢unich鈥 and wasn鈥檛 it great how the Jews showed strength and were powerful in that movie. To have a dialogue like that in a contemporary movie鈥攚hen you talk about today, that鈥檚 what鈥檚 exciting about today.
How will the American Jewish story be told in 10 to 20 years from now?
In Israeli cinema you鈥檙e starting to see movies made by frum and haredi filmmakers, which is fascinating. One of my big desires at YU is to also see our graduates making films about subjects which are important to them, have powerful Jewish themes, and can impact America and American Jewry.
YU News: How did you become interested in the idea of American cinema as lens to study the Jewish American experience?
Goldman: I was classically trained in cinema studies, but I always had an interest in combining the Jewish with the American. My first book was a history of Yiddish cinema. As I came in contact with different people from different fields鈥攕ociology, history, semiotics鈥擨 realized that in terms of trying to understand the changing American Jew and the evolving situation of Jews in America, cinema could be used as an incredible text to see those changes right on the screen.
How is the early Jewish immigrant story reflected in early 20th century cinema, with movies like 鈥淭he Jazz Singer?鈥
In my 鈥淪ociology of Mass Media鈥 class at Stern College for Women, I screen 鈥淭he Jazz Singer鈥 and a silent film called 鈥淗is People鈥 together. They were made in the 1920s, within a year and a half of each other. 鈥淗is People鈥 is about the generational gap between the immigrants who came here with deep Jewish learning and found they couldn鈥檛 turn it into a living. In this movie, the father, a man of great learning, has to become a peddler on the street. And the question clearly is what will happen to the next generation? You feel the pull of assimilation.
Looking at 鈥淭he Jazz Singer,鈥 you have that classic story in a different way: a learned man who did find parnasa, as a chazzan. His son, Jakie Rabinowitz, also has an incredible voice, which his father feels should be used in the shul as well, continuing that tradition. It鈥檚 a waste to use it anywhere else. But Jakie鈥檚 landed the opportunity of a lifetime. He鈥檚 worked small clubs all around the country and will now finally appear on Broadway. It just so happens that opening night is also Erev Yom Kippur.
For Jakie, that鈥檚 a non-issue. He鈥檚 made that choice, as did a whole generation of Jews, to be able to survive in America. It鈥檚 clear he鈥檚 going to appear in the theater. But then his father, who normally would conduct the Yom Kippur service, is ill鈥攑erhaps dying. Jakie鈥檚 mother and the shamesh of the shul come to him and say, 鈥淐ome home, maybe if you sing, your father will feel better. You鈥檙e a product of chazanut - you could lead the service yourself without preparation.鈥
Ostensibly, he鈥檚 going to just pay a quick bikur cholim visit to his farther and return to the stage later that night. But when Jakie arrives, the shamesh is there with a talis in his hand, saying, 鈥淥kay, Jack, we鈥檙e ready for you. Everyone鈥檚 going to shul now. Take the talis and go.鈥 Next to him is Jakie鈥檚 mother, also rooting for him to go to shul. Then in walks his manager from the theater and his non-Jewish girlfriend. Jakie鈥檚 stuck in the middle. In secular terms, it鈥檚 his community saying, 鈥淛ack, take your father鈥檚 mantle and join us, you鈥檝e come home,鈥 versus his manager saying, 鈥榊ou鈥檙e crazy if you give up your career for this.鈥 It鈥檚 a very striking visual.
What I try to do in the book is to point out how various visual moments capture the essence of what was happening to America鈥檚 Jews at that point in time. The tug between generations. What America offered and what the expectations in the home were. Samuel Raphaelson, the author of 鈥淭he Jazz Singer,鈥 grew up on the Lower East Side and this whole issue was central to his life, his desire to be a writer in the secular world.
What impact did the rise of anti-Semitism in the 1930s have on Hollywood, then a very Jewish industry?
There was a great concern on the part of these Jewish movie moguls that they not be perceived as foreigners, outsiders, Jews. They did everything in their power to move away from that. Circumstance in Hollywood still treated them as Jews鈥攖he country clubs of Los Angeles wouldn鈥檛 admit them. But what they did in their enterprise was create an industry that catered to everyone, and went out of their way, not only in their personal lives to gain acceptance鈥攚hat level of assimilation are you ready to accept upon yourself?鈥攂ut they also chose not to have Jewish subjects in their films. By the 30s, Jewish subject matter had all but disappeared from film.
The amazing thing about 鈥淭he Jazz Singer,鈥 which was made in 1927, was that it was made by Warner Brothers, a Jewish studio. It happened by accident, and after that they went out of their way to ensure it never happened again. It was a little bit of an embarrassment. 鈥淲hat is this, the first film with talking in it is going to be about Jews?鈥
Many of the big Jewish moguls of the time also divorced their Jewish wives to marry gentile women鈥 their own way of assimilating into American society.
In the 1930s, though, the Nazi government said to a lot of American studios, 鈥淚f you want to have a company representative here in Berlin鈥濃攚hich you have to understand had become in the 1920s a center of art, commerce and intellectual striving, so major representatives from all over were placed there鈥斺渢hey can鈥檛 be Jewish.鈥 In 1936, a Jewish representative of Warner Brothers was murdered there by a Nazi thug. Some companies withdrew their representatives completely, while others replaced their Jews with non-Jews, because they were more interested in keeping their films playing in Germany.
In this country, nobody wanted anything Jewish. Jews didn鈥檛 want to bring attention to themselves. There was something called 鈥渢he Production Code,鈥 where the Catholic Church put pressure on movie-makers to be clean and pure and not ethnic. Also, it was the Great Depression. People wanted to be entertained with giant musicals, and there was a movement toward adapting the great classics of literature for the screen. The Jewish producers simply did not want Jewish stories.
How did Jewish presence reintroduce itself in American cinema after World War II?
Anti-Semitism was unfortunately just as strong here after the war as it had been before. Here we had fought this war, we had defeated the Nazis and America saw what they had done, and yet many still disliked Jews. That was kind of scary. It incited Laura Z. Hobson to write her novel 鈥淕entlemen鈥檚 Agreement.鈥 She had seen anti-Semitic slurs in Congress which shocked the heck out of her.
The Jewish Defense agencies along with Hollywood鈥檚 Jews were frightened by the idea of attacking anti-Semitism and said, 鈥淚f we make too much of a big deal about things, it鈥檚 not going to be good for us. Let鈥檚 fight anti-Semitism in our own quiet ways.鈥
There was a guy named Daryl F. Zanuck who had been a producer on 鈥淭he Jazz Singer鈥 and then went on to become head of a studio and chose to make a film about the Rothschilds in the early 30s鈥攁t the height of Nazi propaganda about Jews, he had made a film about one of the great Jewish bankers in the world! He wasn鈥檛 scared of anyone. He also wasn鈥檛 Jewish. He wanted to attack anti-Semitism. He was ready to take on his fellow producers and the establishment. He was very capable and also made a lot of money for his investors. So he went ahead and decided to buy the rights to 鈥淕entlemen鈥檚 Agreement.鈥
The Jewish community said to him, 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 do this. This is bad for the Jews.鈥 But Zanuck said, 鈥淚鈥檓 an American and not to do this would be bad for America. Anti-Semitism is unacceptable, bigotry has no place in the world, and I鈥檓 not scared to go ahead and make this movie.鈥
How did Israel start to get screen time and how did movies like Exodus shape the identities of American Jews watching?
That could be a book of its own. We just talked about Israel this week in my Stern class. Major studios weren鈥檛 interested in dealing with the subject of Israel. It was perceived to be too Jewish or niche. In the early 50s, there were a couple of independent producers who did tackle it in their films and the examples are few but important. There was a terrific 1953 film with Kirk Douglas before he emerged as a major actor, about a Holocaust survivor who goes to Israel, called 鈥淭he Juggler.鈥 That was beautiful and rare.
But in general, as a Hollywood moviemaker at this time, you didn鈥檛 touch on the Holocaust because the feeling was that it didn鈥檛 have significance for Americans and you also didn鈥檛 deal with Israel.
Finally you have this screenplay written by Leon Uris which no one wanted to make. He transformed it into a book instead. That became a bestseller, and Otto Preminger makes 鈥淓xodus鈥 out of it, which was a major success.
Until 1958, Jewish subjects had largely been avoided in American cinema. Then it changed for a variety of reasons鈥攂ecause of sociological changes in America, because of civil rights activities and as a result of rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court. Segregation was no longer acceptable鈥攖hat had a very positive effect on Jews. Jews started coming out more, discussing Jewish subjects, talking about Israel. Before this, how could you support another country, like Israel, if you鈥檙e a good American? Someone might claim you were disloyal. Suddenly, in the late 1950s, Jews could be Jewish, they could wear kippot in public鈥 It was the coming out party for American Jewry.
How does someone like Woody Allen fit into the picture?
You see an evolution in his body of work. He鈥檚 representative of the ambivalent American Jew of the late 20th century. His early films are about wanting to be somebody else, the desire to give up his Judaism. In 鈥淟ove and Death and Sleeper,鈥 Allen is thrust into a different period where he doesn鈥檛 quite fit in, and it鈥檚 the story of how this young, talented Jewish man doesn鈥檛 feel comfortable in America because he is the 鈥渙ther.鈥 His early work revolves around this whole need to fit in, climaxing in 鈥淎nnie Hall.鈥 The classic scene there has him sitting at Easter dinner with Annie Hall, this wonderful Protestant woman. Through her, he鈥檚 going to gain acceptance into America. But then there is her grandmother who issitting at the end of the table. He turns to the camera, in a historic cinematic moment, and speaking to us says, 鈥淭here鈥檚 the classic anti-Semite at the end of the table,鈥 and you see him picturing himself as a Hasid. He may shave, but he鈥檚 still this yucky Jew who doesn鈥檛 belong at the table. Allen鈥檚 saying, 鈥淚t鈥檚 time I sat at the American table. I鈥檓 tired of being ostracized.鈥
By the 80s and 90s there鈥檚 an acceptance on his part of the fact that he鈥檚 finally found comfort in his being a Jew. You see this with his struggle with the rabbi in 鈥淐rimes and Misdemeanors.鈥 To have a rabbi in a Woody Allen film that Allen isn鈥檛 making fun of鈥攚ow! That鈥檚 a powerful statement. In a film like 1997鈥檚 鈥淒econstructing Harry,鈥 you have a wonderful debate where Allen鈥檚 sister is frum and he鈥檚 debating her. And you see an articulate rebuttal about being frum in the modern world, which is of course also written by Woody Allen. And his ex-wife in this film is also frum. This is the first time Allen is entering the debate about what it means to be a traditional Jew in today鈥檚 world.
What is the American Jewish story being told in film right now?
What has happened in 2013, especially by young, Jewish filmmakers, is there鈥檚 a comfort zone with being Jewish. We鈥檙e not going to stand for any anti-Semitic sentiment. And that鈥檚 exciting. Several generations ago we had moviemakers who were afraid to be seen as Jews. Now filmmakers are not only totally comfortable being Jewish, it鈥檚 who they are. You see this in Adam Sandler and Judd Apatow. There鈥檚 a wonderful moment in 鈥淜nocked Up鈥 when Seth Rogen is in a bar with four Jewish guys and one non-Jew. Rogen talks about how he just saw the film 鈥淢unich鈥 and wasn鈥檛 it great how the Jews showed strength and were powerful in that movie. To have a dialogue like that in a contemporary movie鈥攚hen you talk about today, that鈥檚 what鈥檚 exciting about today.
How will the American Jewish story be told in 10 to 20 years from now?
In Israeli cinema you鈥檙e starting to see movies made by frum and haredi filmmakers, which is fascinating. One of my big desires at YU is to also see our graduates making films about subjects which are important to them, have powerful Jewish themes, and can impact America and American Jewry.
