Arts & Entertainment
Man In The Mirror
What the Torah's king of dreams can
teach us about the King of Pop.
emerged during the trial, when prosecu-
tion witnesses claimed that the singer
plied his alleged victim with alcohol to
lower the youngster's defenses and inhibi-
tions.
In the biblical narrative, Joseph used
Ami Eden
effort to raise millions of dollars to fight
a royal goblet — a symbol for drink
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
hunger. Joseph used his dream-reading
— to test whether his brothers had shed
power to warn Pharaoh of an impending
destructive sibling rivalries and their
he surprising death last month
famine, successfully fending off starvation hatred of him. Joseph framed Benjamin,
of Michael Jackson supplied the
in Egypt.
the youngest son in the family and
final chapter in the most improb-
Despite their respective good works,
Joseph's only full brother, by clandestinely
able and unprecedented celebrity tale of
both Jackson and Joseph were plagued
placing the goblet into his bag and then
modern times. But the King of Pop actu-
by a rising insecurity over their per-
having him arrested.
ally has a literary antecedent — one who
sonal appearance. For both men, physical
The ostensible goal of the ruse was to
can be found in the Bible, of all places,
change became a vehicle for assimilating
see whether the same half-brothers who
dream .walking through the final chapters
into the wider culture.
sold Joseph into slavery would step for-
of Genesis.
Jackson and his brothers hit it big after
ward decades later to save Benjamin. Yet
In many ways, both significant and
signing with Motown, the country's domi-
the reader also can detect a longing on
superficial, Jackson resembles the biblical
nant black record label during much of
Joseph's part to reconnect to his lost youth,
character of Joseph, interpreter of dreams, the 1960s and '70s. But Jackson appeared
a faint echo of Jackson's pathological
viceroy of Egypt and favorite son of the
in public with white skin, his African-
desire to create a virtual childhood at his
Israelite patriarch Jacob.
American facial features transformed
Neverland Valley Ranch.
Like Jackson, who first achieved fame as through repeated plastic surgeries into
But for all the parallels, the most impor-
the youngest and most talented member
cartoon versions of Caucasian character-
tant lessons emerge from the differences
of the Jackson 5, Joseph was imbued with
istics.
in the two stories.
natural gifts that allowed him to tower
As for Joseph, he was the emerging
Jackson often seemed to be riding the
over his older brothers. In both cases, the
leader of the nascent Israelite nation
ultimate roller coaster of fame without a
golden child's superiority was marked by
before being sold into slavery by his jeal-
spiritual center to anchor him. Over the
the acquisition of a jacket.
ous brothers in Canaan. But upon becom-
years, he conducted a highly public serial
Jackson took to wearing his trademark
ing Pharaoh's right-hand man, Joseph
religious search that included flirtations
red coat after the release of Thriller, the
assumed the trappings of an Egyptian —
with self-described paranormalist Uri
record-smashing 1982 solo album that
to the point where his siblings could not
Geller, Orthodox rabbi and Kosher Sex
propelled the performer into a strato-
recognize him after years of separation.
author Shmuley Boteach, members of the
sphere of superstardom beyond the reach
Even Jackson's nadir — standing trial
Nation of Islam and the Rev. Jesse Jackson.
of his siblings. Joseph's father gave him
for allegations of sexually abusing chil-
In contrast, Joseph maintained his faith
a multicolored tunic, underscoring his
dren — reads like a plot line adapted from in the God of his forefathers. As a result,
elevated status as Jacob's favorite son and
Genesis. Joseph, before ascending to the
the ancient and medieval rabbinic tradi-
chosen successor.
highest circles of Egyptian power, spent
tion generally insists, Joseph never actual-
And both fought famine in Africa.
years in prison after being falsely accused
ly succumbed to the worst of the spiritual
Jackson used his superstar power to line
of making advances toward the wife of his
and sexual temptations that he faced as an
up dozens of celebrities to record the hit
first master, Potiphar.
Israelite climbing the ladder of Egyptian
song "We Are the World," a successful
A final parallel between the two stories
power. He never lost an understanding of
T
Michael Jackson's last show rehearsal
at the Staples Center in Los Angeles
on June 23
his ultimate place in the universe.
Spared the ravages of seven years of
famine, Egyptians might have viewed
Joseph as a godlike figure, but he always
made clear that he had been divinely
blessed with the ability to interpret
dreams. Jackson, on the other hand, spent
years cultivating an image as a celebrity
who could make dreams come true.
The distinction is a vital one that serves
as a harsh condemnation of our celebrity
culture. It also helps to explain how one
favorite son worked his way out of jail to
become the beloved viceroy of Egypt while
another was anointed the King of Pop only
to self-destruct on the public stage.
Ami Eden is the editor-in-chief of JTA. This
article was adapted from a piece that first
appeared in the Forward.
ws
Nate Bloom
Special to the Jewish News
A Jewish Leonardo
Director Francis Ford Coppola's
new film, Tetro, opens Friday, July
10. As the movie begins, Bennie,
an Argentine of Italian ancestry,
visits Tetro (Vincent Gallo), his long-
estranged brother.
Tetro, once a bril-
liant writer, is now
tormented and
self- destructive. The
brothers' family his-
tory forms the core
of bittersweet story
Alden
inspired by events in
Ehrenreich
Coppola's life.
B2
July 9 • 2009
Playing Benny is newcomer Alden
Ehrenreich, 19, who was discovered
by Steven Spielberg. The director
met Alden at a bar mitzvah and
later saw some funny bar mitzvah-
related videos Alden helped make
and acted in. Alden grew up in the
Los Angeles area. His late father was
a CPA, and his mother is a top inte-
rior designer. A close friend of mine
attended Alden's bris and bar mitz-
vah. Strikingly good looking, he is
being compared to a young Leonardo
DiCaprio. This month's Vanity Fair
magazine and Web site feature a nice
photo of Alden and a brief profile.
Baron Cohen Is 'Bruno'
English comedian Sacha Baron
Cohen, 37, became famous worldwide
in 2006 with the surprise box office
hit Borat, about a bigoted and wacky
Central Asian jour-
nalist who toured
America and had
outrageous interac-
tions with real-life
people who didn't
realize Borat was
a comic "put on."
Cohen mines this
Sacha Baron
same vein in Bruno,
Cohen
except this time his
comic persona is a flamboyantly gay
Austrian fashion journalist. Larry
Charles, who helmed Borat, also
directed this new "mockumentary."
As in Borat, there are many Jewish
moments in the film, including inter-
actions with real Arab terrorists and
a real Israeli Mossad agent. Bruno,
of course, comically stumbles over
essential facts, like calling Hamas
"Hummus."
Mayim Blossoms
In a TNT episode of Saving Grace,
starring Holly Hunter and air-
ing 10 p.m. Tuesday, July 14, the
squad investigates the murder of a
Chasidic Jew whose body is found
near a herd of dead cows. Mayim
Bialik plays Esther, a Chasidic
woman (who though straying from
Judaism in her 20s, has returned to
her roots) and the daughter of the
murder victim. I