David Broza Israeli folk star David Broza returns to Tucson on Oct. 30 for a solo performance — with a few special guests — at the Fox Tucson Theatre. With a career spanning almost four decades, Broza’s eclectic musicianship ranges from flamenco rhythms to lightning fast guitar picking to his own… Read more »
Demonstrators in new York protesting the Metropolitan Opera's decision to produce "The Death of Klinghoffer," Sept. 22, 2014. (Raffi Wineburg) NEW YORK (JTA) — On Oct. 8, 1985, our 69-year-old wheelchair-bound father, Leon Klinghoffer, was shot in the head by Palestinian hijackers on the Achille Lauro cruise ship. The terrorists brutally and unceremoniously threw his body and wheelchair overboard into the Mediterranean. His body washed up on the Syrian… Read more »
Stanley Lehman will celebrate his 85th birthday on Oct. 13, 2014. His children, Andrew (Juanita) Lehman, Richard Lehman and Nancy (Mark) Bishop, and his grandson, Ryan Bishop, wish him nachas and a happy and healthy birthday on this special occasion.… Read more »
“Zero Motivation,” a new film by Israeli filmmaker Talya Lavie, will have its Southwest premiere at the Loft Cinema on Sunday, Oct. 19 at 2:15 p.m. The film is described as a “zany, dark comedic portrait of everyday life for a unit of young, female Israeli soldiers” who work… Read more »
Auguste Rodin's "Adam" The Tucson Museum of Art will host one of its most prestigious exhibitions, “The Figure Examined: Masterworks from the Kasser Mochary Art Foundation,” Oct. 18 through Feb. 22, 2015. The exhibit will include some 120 works of art by more than 70 noted artists from the 19th and 20th… Read more »
"Tel Aviv Noir" exposes through short fiction the seamier sides of the Israeli city known as "the bubble." (Courtesy of Akashic Books) (JTA) — Asked by a literary magazine to name an Israeli author deserving of English translation, Etgar Keret — the Tel Aviv-based writer whose short stories have been published to worldwide acclaim — named novelist Gadi Taub. A year later, Keret has been instrumental in bringing Taub’s prose to… Read more »
The Civic Orchestra of Tucson, the oldest community orchestra in the region, will begin its 2014-2015 season with a free concert at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. The concert, on Saturday, Oct. 11 at 7 p.m., also marks the orchestra’s participation in Daniel Pearl World Music Days to honor… Read more »
Yoram Bauman Yoram Bauman, Ph.D., “the world’s first and only stand-up economist,” will present “Comedy, Economics and Climate Change” at the University of Arizona on Monday, Sept. 29 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Berger auditorium, 1130 E. Helen St. “It turns out that comedy actually pays better than teaching,”… Read more »
Paul Reiser The Hearth Foundation will present its 2nd Annual “Comedy for a Cause” starring Paul Reiser on Thursday, Oct. 9 at 7:30 p.m. at the Fox Tucson Theatre. A seasoned actor, writer, producer and stand-up comedian, Reiser co-created and starred in the critically acclaimed NBC series “Mad About You,” which… Read more »
Adam's Sandler's Hanukkah song, which debuted on "Saturday Night Live" in 1994, became a popular hymn of Jewish pride. (Diane Freed/Getty Images) HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (JTA) — This week marks the season premiere of “Saturday Night Live,” which is entering its 40th season. Happy birthday guys! To mark the occasion, we’ve assembled a list of our 10 all-time favorite Jewish moments on SNL (they’re like butter, so good Coffee Talk and Hanukkah… Read more »
Exterior shot of the $351 million Canadian Museum of Human Rights in Winnipeg. (Flickr) TORONTO (JTA) — On the fourth floor of the new Canadian Museum for Human Rights, visitors will find a gallery called “Examining the Holocaust,” which is devoted entirely to the story and lessons of the Shoah. On the same floor, in a smaller, adjacent space, a gallery called “Breaking… Read more »
As Jews are known as “the People of the Book, “ the Arizona Jewish Post asked Tucson’s congregational rabbis to recommend a book that would inspire their congregants for the new year. Here are some intriguing suggestions: I recommend “John Lennon and the Jews: A Philosophical Rampage” by Ze’ev… Read more »
Janni Lee Simner Janni Lee Simner takes both her writing and her Judaism seriously. Being a full-time writer, with eight published young adult and children’s novels, has influenced her observance of Shabbat, she says. “On Friday night I take a deep breath, light candles in the window,” followed by a Shabbat dinner… Read more »
Abigail Gumbiner Abigail Gumbiner defies the adage “you can’t go home again.” On Sept. 14 she will speak at the Jewish History Museum of Tucson about photos she and two other artists have contributed to the current exhibit “Temple of Shadows.” The exhibit title refers to the building that many in… Read more »
From left, Gustavo Bulgach, Divina Gloria and Cantor Marcelo Gindlin performing at the Skirball Cultural Center. (Courtesy of Skirball) LOS ANGELES (JTA) – The music that packs the Skirball Cultural Center’s stately courtyard – Yiddish tango – is a musical hybrid twice over. On the tango side, it is a blend of African-born rhythms and a potpourri of European music styles. On the Yiddish side, it combines mournful… Read more »
New children's books: a tale from Spain, easing a young girl's pain (Courtesy Wisdom Tales Press) BOSTON (JTA) — Fourteen years ago, sitting in her synagogue during Saturday morning services, Jacqueline Jules was browsing some Torah commentary when a story about a medieval poet struck an inspirational chord. “It was an ‘aha’ moment. This will be my next writing project, my next children’s book,” recalled… Read more »
The Beatles -- from left, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison -- letting off steam with a pillow fight. (Harry Benson) LOS ANGELES (JTA) — It was 6 a.m. on Aug. 19, 1964 when the phone rang in the Los Angeles apartment of Ivor Davis, the young West Coast correspondent for London’s Daily Express, circulation 4 million. On the other end was the paper’s foreign editor, who told Davis to… Read more »
Comedian and host Jon Stewart speaks onstage at Spike TV's "Don Rickles: One Night Only" on May 6, 2014 in New York City. (Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Spike TV) NEW YORK (JTA) — Jon Stewart’s directorial film debut, “Rosewater,” is set to premiere at film festivals in the United States and Canada this September. So the Hollywood Reporter took the opportunity to grab some golden quotes (and glam shots) of the iconic “Daily Show” comedian about filming in… Read more »
Clifford Odets, 1935 Clifford Odets’ “Awake and Sing,” about a Jewish immigrant family in the Bronx during the Great Depression, is an American masterpiece, says Cynthia Meier, managing director of Tucson’s Rogue Theatre, which will stage the play next month. Originally performed in 1935 by the Group Theatre, directed by Harold Clurman,… Read more »
Rabbi Joseph Telushkin’s latest book, “Rebbe: The Life and Teachings of Menachem M. Schneerson, the Most Influential Rabbi in Modern History” landed on the New York Times bestseller list within weeks of its release in June to mark the 20th anniversary of the Rebbe’s death. Telushkin, one of the… Read more »
