APRIL 29 • 2021 | 41

thing the collection contains 
— prayer books, rabbinic 
texts, Biblical texts, person-
al letters, commercial lists, 
compositions by people like 
Maimonides, Judah Halevi 
poetry, marriage documents 
and exercises for children 
learning how to write.”
All the documents remain 
in their original languages, 
whether Hebrew, Aramaic, 
Arabic or Judeo-Arabic for 
scholars to translate. 
“
A major point [in the 
collection] was the great 
acculturation of the Jewish 
community in the Arab-
Muslim community of medi-
eval Cairo,” said Kraemer, 
who has spoken many times 
at local synagogues and the 
University of Michigan. 
“Jews spoke Arabic, lived 
in ways very similar to 
their neighbors and were 
very much involved with 
the lives of their neighbors 
but [remained] powerful-
ly Jewish. [The Geniza] is 
about people living together 
in ways that are often quite 
unexpected.”
Other documentaries 
being showcased this year 
include Mrs. G, which tells 
about the woman who 
designed and established a 
booming swimwear busi-
ness; Hollywood’s Second 
World War, which reveals 
how successful European-
born directors returned to 
Europe and risked their lives 
to make films about U.S. 
Army triumphs, such as the 
liberation of Dachau; and 
Maverick Modigliani, which 
chronicles the life of the 
Jewish Italian artist.

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE
“I remember talking to a 
Michigan audience as a nice 
experience with everything 
very well organized, and I 
love Forgiveness because I 
love comedies,” said Shafran, 
who has been a producer 
with his own company, 
Firma Films, for 15 years and 
has overseen 10 feature mov-
ies, TV series and shorts.
“This comedy is warm and 
funny, and it has a meaning 
that says although someone 
or something is harming you, 
you need to try and find a 
place to forgive. I hope that 
people will see this film, laugh 
and cry, and think about how 
forgiveness is a great thing.
” 
Other festival comedies 
include Kiss Me Kosher, which 
is about lovers who don’t 
seem meant for each other, 
and If You See My Mother, 
which is about a young doc-
tor who talks to his mom 
after her death while starting 
a romance mom likely would 
not approve of.
Remaining films delve into 
relationships, wildlife adven-
ture, Holocaust drama, mys-
tery and other topics that draw 
audiences to plotlines in varied 
contexts of Judaism. 
While the documentary 
On Broadway features big-
name stars talking about 
stage creativity and business, 
Israeli singer-actress Shiri 
Maimon, who has starred 
on Broadway, can be seen in 
Forgiveness. She is particu-
larly familiar to a Michigan 
audience who watched her 
remote musical appearance 
in a recent Temple Israel 
program. 

details 
The Lenore Marwil Detroit Jewish Film Festival runs 
May 2-23. $5 per film per viewer 
available in a 24-hour time frame. For a full listing 
of films, associated programming, sponsorship and 
festival passes, go to culturalarts.jccdet.org/filmfest. 
(248) 609-3303.

CHIMPS, LOONEY TUNES, 
LATE NIGHT, KIDS’ GEMS
The HBO special, The 
Human Chimp, pre-
mieres on April 29. In 
1964, Univ. of Oklahoma 
psychologist Maurice K. 
Temerlin (1924-1988) and 
his wife, Jane Whitbeck 
Temerlin, adopted a young 
chimpanzee whom they 
named Lucy and raised as a 
human child. At first, things 
went well. However, by the 
time a young grad student, 
Janis Carter, was hired 
(1976) by the Temerlins, the 
experiment had turned sour. 
Lucy was considered unpre-
dictable and dangerous. 
The Temerlins told Carter to 
just feed Lucy and clean up 
after her. The next year, they 
asked Carter to accompany 
them, and Lucy, to a facility 
in Africa where chimps were 
trained to go back into the 
wild. Carter was supposed to 
be in Africa for a few days, 
but stayed for a decade, try-
ing to help Lucy and some 
other chimps. 
Carter, now 70, was exten-
sively interviewed by the 
filmmaker. The Hollywood 
Reporter, which highly 
praised the film, does note 
that Maurice did express 
regrets about how he raised 
Lucy without contact with 
other chimps.
On a much lighter note, 
on April 29, HBO will begin 
streaming new Looney 
Tunes cartoons. The 10-epi-
sode season follows critically 
acclaimed new Looney 
Tunes cartoon releases on 
HBO in 2019 and 2020. I sus-
pect that Jeff Bergman, who 
voices Elmer Fudd and other 
characters, is Jewish, but it’s 
unconfirmed. However, Bob 
Bergen, 57, who voices 

Porky Pig, is definitely 
Jewish. In a 2014 interview, 
he discussed his one-man 
show, describing it as “the 
story of a nice Jewish boy 
who wanted to be Porky.” In 
the same interview, he relat-
ed how, at age 14, he bluffed 
his way into a Hollywood 
studio and met his idol, Mel 
Blanc, who originated the 
Porky voice. Bergen, a three-
time Emmy nominee, is a top 
voice actor. He has been the 
voice of Porky, in cartoons 
and ads, since 1990.
The Story of Late Night is 
a six-part original CNN series 
(starts Sunday, May 2). It’s 
about the history of late-night 
talk shows. For whatever 
reason, there has never 
been a Jewish host of a “big 
ratings” late-night talk show. 
However, Chelsea Handler, 
46, who had a “2nd tier” talk 
show, appears in the series. 
Also appearing is Lorne 
Michaels, 76, the creator 
of SNL and the producer 
of Late Night (now hosted 
by Seth Meyers, who isn’t 
Jewish, but his wife is, and 
they were wed in a Jewish 
ceremony.)
The second season of 
the revival of the popular 
’60s series, Kids Say the 
Darndest Things, will begin 
on CBS on Wednesday, May 
5, at 8 p.m. Host Tiffany 
Haddish, 41, has the ability 
to coax “real” and often 
funny comments from the 
kids. The show also features 
clips from the original series, 
which starred Art Linkletter. 

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Tiffany Haddish