Something Ain't Kosher Here: The Rise of the "Jewish" Sitcom
Editorial Reviews
David Marc, author of Comic Visions: Television Comedy and American Culture
This is rigorous, passionate, readable television criticism
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
Book Description
From 1989 through 2002 there was an unprecedented surge in American sitcoms featuring explicitly Jewish protagonists, thirty-three compared to seven in the previous forty years. Several of these—Seinfeld, Mad About You, The Nanny, and Friends—were among the most popular and influential of all television shows over this period. Viewers also saw a rising number of "Jewish" dramatic series and Jewish supporting characters overall. Vincent Brook asks two key questions: Why has this trend appeared at this particular historical moment and what is the significance of this phenomenon for Jews and for non-Jews?
Interviews with key writers, producers, and "showrunners" such as David Kohan (Will and Grace), Marta Kauffman (Friends), Peter Mehlman and Carol Leifer (Seinfeld) and close readings of individual series provoke the inescapable conclusion that we have entered uncharted "post-Jewish" territory. Brook contends that the acceptance of Jews in mainstream white America threatens the historically unique insider/outsider status of Jews in society. No reader of this book will ever be able to watch these television programs in quite the same way again.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
Something Ain't Kosher Here: The Rise of the "Jewish" Sitcom
Something Ain't Kosher Here: The Rise of the "Jewish" Sitcom,Vincent Brook,Rutgers University Press,0813532116,Jewish - General,Jews on television,Pop Arts / Pop Culture,Popular Culture - General,Social Science,Sociology,Television - General,Television - History & Criticism,Television comedies,United States
Something Ain't Kosher Here: The Rise of the "Jewish" Sitcom
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