Curt Schleier is a freelance writer and author who covers business and the arts for a variety of publications. Follow him on Twitter at @tvsoundoff.
Curt Schleier
By Curt Schleier
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The Schmooze Bruce Jay Friedman’s Celebrity-Filled Memoir
Lucky Bruce: A Literary Memoir Bruce Jay Friedman Biblioasis, 275 pages $29.95 Bruce Jay Friedman was sent to a charity sleep-away camp in Peekskill, N.Y. each summer. It was sponsored by the Central Jewish Institute and staffed by Israelis counselors. Like most Jews born and bred in the Bronx, Friedman didn’t take well to the…
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The Schmooze Q&A: Mandy Patinkin on Yiddish and the CIA
Mandy Patinkin has yet to meet a medium he cannot conquer. He first hit national prominence as Che Guevara opposite Patti LuPone’s Eva Perón in the Broadway production of “Evita,” for which he won a Tony Award. His film credits include “The Princess Bride,” in which he uttered the iconic lines: “My name is Inigo…
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The Schmooze Kibbitzing With Mel Brooks, Dick Cavett and Carl Reiner
Courtesy of HBO Dick Cavett calls Mel Brooks more than a comedy star; he’s a “super nova.” Mel Brooks calls Dick Cavett “spectacularly gentile.” The two share the stage on the appropriately titled HBO special, “Mel Brooks and Dick Cavett Together Again,” an hour-long, anecdote-filled, hilarious love fest debuting September 9 at 9:00 p.m. Brooks…
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The Schmooze Q&A: Director John Madden on Adapting Israeli Thriller ‘The Debt’
John Madden is a British director best known for “Shakespeare in Love,” which won the 1998 Academy Award for Best Picture. His latest film is “The Debt,” opening in theaters today. The film is a remake of the 2007 Israeli movie “Ha-Hov,” about the Mossad hunt for Nazi doctor Dieter Vogel, aka, the “Surgeon of…
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The Schmooze Q&A: Judy Gold on Comedy, Marriage, and the Tallest Woman You Know
Like many people of a certain age, Judy Gold grew up on television sitcoms. They proved to be a tremendous influence, providing a moral compass on issues such as racism (All in the Family), poverty (Good Times), single motherhood (One Day at a Time), homosexuality (Three’s Company), and unmarried professional womanhood (The Mary Tyler Moore…
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The Schmooze Friday Film: Even Mandy Moore Can’t Bring Life to British Sex Comedy
“Swinging With the Finkels,” a 2010 British comedy, opens August 26 in South Florida and Palm Springs. My guess is that the distributors had visions of West Palm Beach and Del Ray clubhouses emptying as busloads of Jewish senior citizens rushed to see the film. After all, outside of the local playground, how often do…
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The Schmooze Q&A: ‘Hardcore Pawn’ Stars Les and Seth Gold
Slow down, guys — “Hardcore Pawn” is not what it sounds like. It’s actually a hit show for the truTV cable network about third-generation pawnbroker Les Gold and his family, and their 50,000-square-foot business, American Jewelry and Loan. Located in the tough Eight Mile section of Detroit, the business has customers lining up outside hours…
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The Schmooze Q&A: Actor Danny Aiello on 9/11, Jewish Characters and Chopped Liver
Danny Aiello grew up in New York City, first in Manhattan and then at various addresses in the Bronx. The actor, 78 (“please put that in a smaller font,” he said), has appeared in films such as “The Godfather: Part II,” Woody Allen’s “The Purple Rose of Cairo,” and he was nominated for an Oscar…
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