Jerry Seinfeld: No Introduction Needed for this Observational Comedian, Actor, Writer, and Producer
Does Jerry Seinfeld (66) really need an introduction? No… but we’ll provide one anyway in case some of our readers are extraterrestrials…
Riva Lehrer: Accomplished Artist and Writer Who Was Born with Spina Bifida
Riva Lehrer (b. 1958) is a celebrated painter, writer, teacher, speaker, and activist. Lehrer was born with spina bifida, a “birth defect in which there is incomplete closing of the spine and the membranes around the spinal cord during early development in pregnancy.” Her art focuses on physical identity and the socially challenged body, especially…
2020 Nobel Prizes: Four of Six Categories in This Year’s Awards Presentation Season Have Jewish Winners
A point of pride for the Jewish people has long been that a hugely disproportionate number of Jews have garnered Nobel Prizes. It is estimated that more than 20% of prize winners have been Jews — extraordinary considering that Jews comprise about 0.1% of the world’s population and 2% of the U.S. population. The…
Gal Gadot: Wonder Woman Lands Plum Role of Cleopatra — But Not Without Controversy
Israeli superstar actress Gal Gadot (35) is renowned for her beauty (Miss Israel 2004) and acting chops. In addition to playing Wonder Woman in the 2017 blockbuster film by the same name, Gadot has appeared in several other movies, including Fast & Furious (2009), Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), and Justice League (2017).…
Michael Tilson Thomas: Beloved Conductor, Composer, and Pianist
Conductor, compsr, and pianist Michael Tilson Thomas (75) has had an illustrious decades-long career in music. He was the longtime music director of the San Francisco Symphony and the conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra. Currently, he is the artistic director of the New World Symphony, an American orchestral academy based in Miami Beach. Tilson…
Tony Schwartz: Trump Critic and Remorseful Ghostwriter of ‘Trump: The Art of the Deal’
Tony Schwartz (68) is famously known — or infamously known, depending on one’s point of view — for being the ghostwriter of the bestselling book Trump: The Art of the Deal. He says he has regretted his participation in the project for decades. Other books penned by Schwartz include What Really Matters: Searching for Wisdom…
Bill Kristol: Editor, Political Analyst, Writer, and Television Commentator
William “Bill” Kristol (68) is a neoconservative editor, political analyst, writer, and television commentator. He was the founder and editor-at-large of the now-defunct political magazine The Weekly Standard. Currently, he is editor-at-large of The Bulwark, a conservative news and opinion website. Since 2014, Kristol has appeared in a web program of the Foundation for Constitutional…
Carl Bernstein: Iconic Investigative Journalist, Writer, and Television Commentator
Nicole Krauss, 45, is a novelist and short-story writer. Her novels Man Walks Into a Room (2002), The History of Love (2005), Great House (2010) and Forest Dark (2017), have been translated into 35 languages. Short-fiction works by Krauss have appeared in The New Yorker, Harper’s, and Esquire magazines. Quote: “Public policy in the…
Oliver Sachs: Famous ‘Awakenings’ Neurologist Revered for His Wisdom and Compassion
Oliver Wolf Sacks (9 July 9, 1933 – 30 Aug. 30, 2015) was a noted neurologist, naturalist, historian of science, and author. He wrote a number of best-selling case histories about both his patients’ and his own disorders. Some were adapted for plays, feature films, animated short films, opera, dance, fine art, and musical works…
New Mexico’s Converso Jews: Forced to Convert by the Spanish Inquisition
The terms Conversos, Crypto-Jews, and Marranos are names applied to Jews in the Iberian Peninsula who were caught up in the nightmare of the Spanish Inquisition of the 15th — 17th centuries. Many converted to Catholicism under the most severe duress. Because of ongoing persecution, some of those migrated first to Mexico and later to…
To learn about these and many more AmazingJews, watch a compilation put together by JewOfTheWeek.net in 2015 and posted on YouTube.