Iran and Saudi Arabia, carrying the banners of the Shi’a and Sunni strains of Islam, are engaged in an intense struggle for primacy in the Middle East. Their bruising competition for dominance, playing out mainly in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen, has already affected Israel and Arab countries. Martin Smith, a seasoned Middle East correspondent, […]
Phil Rosenthal, the creator of the phenomenally successful TV sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, indulges his passion for travel and food in a new six-part Netflix series, Somebody Feed Phil. A voracious gourmand rather than an astute gourmet, he eats his way through six cities — Bangkok, Saigon, Tel Aviv, Lisbon, Mexico City and New Orleans. […]
Disguised as an Arab, the Swiss adventurer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt discovered Petra in 1812, long after it had been abandoned and left to the elements and the bedouins. Since then, droves of visitors from far and wide have descended on this Nabatean city carved out of the spectacular sandstone cliffs of southern Jordan. Tourists are […]
The second season of The Crown, a Netflix presentation, is a heady, entertaining mixture of drama and melodrama crowned by sharply nuanced performances and lavish sets, judging by the first six episodes. Like the introductory season, Peter Morgan’s series hangs on the shoulders of one indomitable character, Queen Elizabeth II, the capable sovereign who still commands the destiny […]
She’s supposedly the world’s strongest girl, a weightlifter who broke a powerlifting record at a remarkably young age, and who still holds three records in her masculine sport. “I love being strong, it’s empowering, ” says Naomi (Nahama) Kutin in Jessie Auritt’s fly-on-the-wall documentary, Supergirl, which will be broadcast on the PBS network on Monday, […]
Israeli cuisine is a kaleidoscopic amalgam of tastes, flavors and aromas from every conceivable corner of the globe, matching the national origins of its diverse Jewish, Muslim and Christian population. The typical Israeli, if there is such a person, will most probably like a Polish-style kugel — a baked noodle pudding — as much as […]
An award-winning Israeli television series is coming to Toronto. The first season of Your Honor, a 12-part crime drama, is being presented by the Toronto Jewish Film Foundation and the Anne Tanenbaum Centre for Jewish Studies on November 5 and November 12 at 2 p.m. at Innis Town Hall, University of Toronto. Created by Shlomo Mashiach and […]
The ultra-Orthodox Hassidic community is extremely tight-knit and takes care of its own in a cradle-to-grave arrangement. Conformists who abide by the rules and obey the commandments of the rebbes can expect a reasonably stable, fairly predictable life. Rebels who opt out for the secular world are treated as outcasts and often pay a price […]
Nazi Germany, in the greatest theft in modern history, plundered Europe of priceless paintings, drawings, etchings, tapestries, sculptures, rare books and priceless furniture. The collections of Jews, in particular, were targeted. To this day, hundreds of thousands of stolen pieces remain unaccounted for. Where they might be could be anyone’s guess. Hunting Nazi Treasures, an […]
The trial of Adolf Eichmann in Israel in 1961 was an historic event. For the first and only time, a major Nazi war criminal would face justice in the Jewish state. Recognizing its importance, the international media sent correspondents to cover it. Israel considered the possibility of filming the trial for posterity, but there was one […]