Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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(JTA) - Despite the continuing COVID chaos and the mounting protests about China's human rights record, the 2022 Beijing Olympics are proceeding on schedule, just six months after the delayed Tokyo games - and we have your guide to the Jewish athletes who are on their way. In Tokyo, dozens of Jewish athletes competed, and many clinched medals. The Winter Olympics are typically a smaller affair, with fewer sports and fewer countries participating. Nevertheless, we're excited to cheer on these...
(JTA) — The Golden Globes won’t be televised, but there will be Jewish honorees — among them two directors at different stages of their directing careers. After numerous controversies have rattled the Hollywood Foreign Press Association — from a “culture of corruption” to not a single Black member — NBC decided it will not be airing the annual film and television awards show this year, and its future is unclear. But the association went ahead with announcing nominations Monday and plans to name winners Jan. 9. Here’s what you need to know ab...
(JTA) - The only Jewish kicker in the NFL for years now, Greg Joseph is used to how mentally taxing the position can be. On Sunday, he found himself in another one of its do-or-die situations. With two seconds left to go in a tied game against the division-leading Green Bay Packers on Sunday, Joseph kicked his Minnesota Vikings to victory with a 29-yard field goal, keeping the team's playoff hopes alive. He was carried off the field by his teammates. Joseph, who attended Jewish schools in...
Qian Julie Wang grew up in libraries. Coming to America at age 7, she was thrown into the brand new world of New York City. Soon, she was spending all her free time in her local Chinatown library, soaking up as much English as possible. It became her second home, a place of safety. Now, she's telling her story for the first time - buoyed by the hope of reaching those in libraries who were just like her. Wang and her parents were undocumented, and the 2016 election - which occurred just after...
(JTA) — On a night that brought weather of biblical proportions to the U.S. Open in New York City, Jewish tennis star Diego Schwartzman prevailed over his opponent Kevin Anderson. But that wasn’t the only highlight of his night. Schwartzman’s Round 2 match began on Louis Armstrong Stadium at 7 p.m. — against Anderson, who is about a foot taller than Schwartzman, at 6-foot-8 — but it did not finish until 1:02 am, at the larger Arthur Ashe Stadium. The roof on Armstrong was no match for the storm, an offshoot of Hurricane Ida, that passed through...
(JTA) — At the last Emmy Awards, “Schitt’s Creek,” the comedy from Jewish father-son duo Eugene and Dan Levy, swept the night, winning every comedy category for its sixth and final season. While there’s no big Jewish show to cheer on for another powerhouse performance this year, there’s still a bevy of Jewish nominees, which were announced Tuesday. Black Jewish actresses lead the way Jurnee Smollett received her first Emmy nomination, as lead actress in a drama series, for her role in “Lovecraft Country” starring as Letitia “Leti” Lewis. W...
(JTA) — The Jewish highlights of the Tokyo Olympics kicked off with Jewish basketball superstar Sue Bird serving as one of Team USA’s two flag bearers at the opening ceremony, a huge honor. The lasting accolades, though, are the medals that winning athletes take home. Dozens of Jewish athletes are competing in the Games this year, but the fierce competition means that only some will enter the record books as gold, silver or bronze medalists. Here are the Jewish athletes who have clinched a medal, in chronological order. We’ll continue to updat...
(JTA) - The 2020 Tokyo Olympics are finally happening, a full year after they were planned. And yes, they're still being called the 2020 Olympics, even though they're happening in 2021. The Jewish athletes competing this year - and there are many - are the products of inspiring journeys. There's the fencer looking for redemption, Israel's first Olympic surfer, one of the greatest canoe paddlers of all time, a teen track star para-athlete, and so many more. The games run July 23 through Aug. 8;...
(JTA) - Perhaps it's beginners luck: Russian-Israeli tennis player Aslan Karatsev, playing mixed doubles for the first time, has reached the finals of the French Open with partner Elena Vesnina. Maybe not: At the Australian Open in February, Karatsev had an amazing run, reaching the semifinals before losing to the eventual champion, Novak Djokovic. That was his first Grand Slam tournament in singles or doubles. Karatsev and Vesnina now have their sights set on playing mixed doubles at the Tokyo...
(JTA) — Several Jewish stars are among the nominees for the 2021 NAACP Image Awards, which celebrate Black achievement in movies, television, music and literature. The list announced Tuesday features a mix of familiar Jewish names, such as the often-awarded rapper Drake and TV star Tracee Ellis Ross, along with rising artists like actress Jurnee Smollett and rapper Doja Cat. The ceremony will air virtually on March 27. Here are the Jews to know. The stars Jurnee Smollett received a nomination for her breakout role as Leti in “Lovecraft Cou...
(JTA) - "Schitt's Creek" is trying to pick up in the Golden Globes where it left off in the fall with its historic Emmys sweep. The show about a wealthy interfaith Jewish family was nominated Wednesday for five awards, including four for the main actors and one for best series. There are plenty of other Jewish nominations, too, notably "Mank," the acclaimed film on the story of Jewish screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz, with six. The Golden Globes, taking place virtually in the new pandemic normal,...
Drunk History, the beloved Comedy Central show where comedians get drunk and tell a story from history, was just canceled after six seasons. In honor of the show's fantastic run, we decided to highlight 10 of our favorite Jewish histories to grace the screen. 1. Rachel Bloom on the capture of Adolf Eichmann What's so great about Rachel Bloom's re-telling in Drunk History is, honestly, everything. A Jewish comedian telling the story of the capture of Eichmann? We can't get enough. As Bloom...
(JTA) — An official FBI Twitter account drew criticism for tweeting a link to a 139-page selection of the bureau’s files on “The Protocols of the Elders of Zion,” the infamously anti-Semitic early 20th century text that accuses Jews of world domination. The FBI Records Vault sent the tweet on Wednesday afternoon without context, and some Twitter users took it as a promotion of the message in the “Protocols.” However, the Twitter account regularly tweets declassified archival FBI documents. “Earlier today FOIA materials were posted to the...
(JTA) - Though much about the 2020 Emmy Awards ceremony is not yet known, one thing is clear: Jewish TV stars are well positioned to clean up. Dozens of Jewish actors and creators were on the list when this year's nominations were announced Tuesday. Read through to see who could take home prizes when the awards show airs in September. One notable show that was shut out: "The Plot Against America," the HBO miniseries that depicts an alternate history in which isolationist Charles Lindbergh wins...
(JTA)-Fresh off his Super Bowl win in February, Kansas City Chiefs lineman Mitchell Schwartz took a vacation with his wife, Brooke, to St. Lucia. Little did they know that when they returned, they would be spending the next few months holed up at home because of the coronavirus pandemic. So Schwartz, 30, has turned to what he loves maybe more than football: cooking. Posting to his 79,000 Instagram followers using the hashtag #ChefSchwartz, the Jewish athlete has shared photos of many of his...
When Justice Raquel Montoya-Lewis was sworn in to Washington's Supreme Court earlier this month, she became the second Native American person to serve on a state Supreme Court. "This was never something I really planned on or expected to happen," Montoya-Lewis tells Kveller via phone from her offices in Olympia. Upon hearing of her appointment by Gov. Jay Inslee, her reaction was "disbelief," she says. You see, Montoya-Lewis never intended to be a lawyer or a judge. "My intention when I went to...
(JTA)—When Adam Sandler was shut out of this year’s Academy Award nominations for “Uncut Gems,” the Oscars lost out on the chance to have an acceptance speech as hilarious as the one Sandler delivered Saturday at the Independent Film Spirit Awards. But this year’s Oscars had some pretty wonderful Jewish moments nonetheless. Here’s a roundup. Maori Jewish director, writer and actor Taika Waititi had a big moment Waititi, 44, took home the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for “Jojo Rabbit,” his first Oscar win and the first ever by an Indigenou...
NEW YORK (JTA)-"The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" didn't add to its large collection of awards at the Golden Globes this year. But the third season of the celebrated series, now streaming on Amazon Prime, is keeping audiences hooked as it expands the world of Midge Maisel. It also comes at a time of increasing awareness and discussion about how minorities-especially Jews, during this period of rising anti-Semitism across the U.S.-are portrayed on screen. As one of the most Jewish series currently on...
Very minor spoilers ahead for “The Irishman”—but nothing big, we promise. (JTA)—“The Irishman,” Martin Scorsese’s latest organized crime epic, became streamable on Netflix last week. Even if the significant digital de-aging of the actors involved is a bit distracting, the film’s good reviews hold up thanks in large part to its legendary director and cast—Scorsese and none other than Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci and Al Pacino. Making a very brief appearance in the mafia madness? Jewish mobsters. The 3 1/2-hour story follows Frank Sheeran (De Niro)...
NEW YORK (JTA)-On a recent snowy afternoon, Tony Shalhoub is drinking tea in a room at the Whitby Hotel in Midtown Manhattan. He's in the midst of a long press day promoting season 3 of "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," and he just wants to get comfortable. So he gets up before the interview begins to turn up the room's thermostat. "Now it's good," he says in his smooth, deep voice. The move fits Shalhoub's thoughtful personality-he speaks in careful, measured sentences-and it's also something his...
(JTA)-At age 92, Laureen Nussbaum is one of the few people still alive who personally knew Anne Frank. Nussbaum's family lived in the same Amsterdam neighborhood as the Franks, and Anne's father, Otto, was the best man at her 1947 wedding. After the war, Otto spent months trying to find his daughters, Anne and Margot, who had been deported to Bergen-Belsen. With Nussbaum's husband, Rudi, Otto would go to the train station every day with photos of his children hoping for news of their fate. "They...
NEW YORK (JTA)-When New York Times journalists Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey broke the Harvey Weinstein story on Oct, 5, 2017, it started a #MeToo revolution: Women began sharing personal experiences of the sexual harassment and abuse they had faced. Even though the activist Tarana Burke coined the concept of MeToo in 2006, the reporting by Kantor and Twohey about Weinstein helped transform it into a global movement. Their new book, "She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped...
(JTA)-"Jojo Rabbit" sounds like a film that is difficult to pull off amid the state of rising anti-Semitism in 2019. It's a comedy set during the Holocaust about a 10-year-old German boy being brainwashed by Nazi ideology and his imaginary friend-a playful version of Hitler who likes to dance. But before you get outraged or assume it downplays the horrors of the Holocaust, like multiple critics have argued already, take a deep breath: "Jojo Rabbit" is a very good movie with a meaningful...
If your kids are of a certain age, they’ve probably read “Wonder,” the best-selling book about Auggie Pullman, a boy born with facial differences who, after being homeschooled his whole life, begins attending a school in fifth grade. It’s on Kveller’s must-read list of books for kids and adults navigating disabilities and special needs—and it was made into a film in November 2017 starring Julia Roberts and Jacob Tremblay. Since “Wonder” was published in 2012, the author, R. J. Palacio, has written a series of novels within the same universe,...
NEW YORK (JTA)-The Tony Award nominations announced Tuesday were dominated by "Hadestown," a musical about the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice that garnered 14. One among the "Hadestown" nods was for best director for Rachel Chavkin, who is Jewish. She also had been nominated in 2017 for directing "Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812." Sam Mendes is also nominated for best direction of a play for his work on "The Ferryman." He's known for his work on the James Bond films "Skyfall" and...
