Arts&Life
celebrity jews
48 | OCTOBER 17 • 2019
AT THE MOVIES
The documentary Where is My
Roy Cohn? opens Oct. 18 at
the Landmark Main Art Theater
in Royal Oak. The title refers to
President Donald Trump’
s report-
ed lament about former Attorney
General Jeff Sessions. Trump
thought Sessions should be a
ruthless protector of his interests,
like his former business lawyer
Roy Cohn (1927-1986).
Most people know Cohn
for his role as chief counsel to
Sen. Joseph McCarthy during
McCarthy’
s Communist witch
hunts in the ’
50s. Far fewer know
that Cohn, a closeted gay man,
had a big hand in getting gays
ousted from federal jobs in the
early ’
50s. The film also covers
his years in private practice
(1960-1985), when many famous
people hired Cohn because he
was a “bulldog fixer.”
The film’
s website describes
his tactics: “Always attack;
never admit blame or apologize;
use favors and fear to ensure
support for your objectives;
expertly manipulate the media
to gain advantage and destroy
your opponents; lie shamelessly,
invalidating the idea of truth;
weaponize lawsuits; evade taxes
and bills; and, most importantly,
inflame the prejudices of the
crowd by scapegoating defense-
less people.”
Zombieland 2: Double-Tap is a
sequel to the exciting and funny
film Zombieland (2009). All the
original stars have returned. In the
original, Jesse Eisenberg, now
36, starred as Columbus, a nerdy
guy who has cleverly avoided
becoming a zombie. Eventually,
he meets up with three other
survivors, played by Abigail
Breslin, Emma Stone and Woody
Harrelson. The four eventually
bond and, as the film ends, they
stave off a big zombie attack.
The original film, which had a lot
of wry humor, was a big critical
and box-office hit. The sequel
finds the quartet meeting up with
four new survivors, one of whom
(“Madison”) is played by Zoey
Deutch, 24. (Opens Oct. 18).
Ruben Fleischer, 44, who
directed the original (his first
feature), returns as the director
of Double-Tap. Since 2009,
Fleischer has directed two other
big box-
office hits: Gangster Squad
(2013) and Venom (2018). Paul
Wernick, 47, who co-wrote the
original, co-wrote Double-Tap.
By the way, about two years ago,
Breslin disclosed that her pater-
nal grandmother was Jewish.
JEWISH JOKE TIME
I don’
t want to ruin it by re-telling
the jokes here. I will just describe
them without giving away much.
First, there are two Jewish jokes,
both about the Holocaust, in
episode #4 (this season) of the
Netflix series Comedians in Cars
Getting Coffee. They are told
by non-Jewish comedian Ricky
Gervais to host Jerry Seinfeld,
65. Gervais does not claim credit
for writing these jokes. Neither
joke is offensive. The first one, I
would say, is “insightfully amus-
ing.” The second one is so pro-
found that it really isn’
t a joke in
the conventional sense. Seinfeld
was so stunned by the power of
this joke that he said, “That is a
novel in a joke.”
The second joke, or very witty
remark, occurs about 30 minutes
into Between Two Ferns: The
Movie (an original Netflix film).
Host Zach Galifianakis catches-up
with actor Paul Rudd, 50, and
peppers him with some Jewish
questions, including “Are you a
practicing Jew?” See how Rudd
responds to this question.
NATE BLOOM
COLUMNIST
© Universal City Studios LLC and Amblin Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Get Your Tickets Today!
NOV 14 – 17
JAN 21 - FEB 2 • FISHER THEATRE
ON SALE NOW
BroadwayInDetroit.com, ticketmaster.com, 800-982-2787 & box office 313-872-1000;
Groups (12+) Groups@BroadwayInDetroit.com (subject: A Bronx Tale) or 313-871-1132; and oc Jan 26.