58 | OCTOBER 27 • 2022
A “PRETTY” JEWISH
MOVIE; MORE
HALLOWEEN MOVIES AND
A SWEET TREAT
Armageddon Time was
originally set to open in
theaters on Oct. 22. This
explains why the film’s
stars, Anne Hathaway and
Jeremy Strong, appeared
last week on talk shows to
promote the film. Well, it was
“yanked” at the last minute
and will open in “limited
theaters” on the 28th and
open wide on Nov. 4.
The film was directed and
written by James Gray, 53.
Gray grew up in a middle-
class home in Queens, N.Y.
He was the grandson (both
sides) of Ukrainian Jewish
immigrants. His films include
Ad Astra, Little Odessa
and Two Lovers. The latter
two have major Jewish
characters. These three
films, like most of Gray’s
films, got good reviews.
Gray’s new film is “pretty
Jewish.” The movie is set
in Queens in 1980. The
central character is Paul
Graff, a 9-year-old member
of a middle-class Jewish
family. Paul’s dignified,
Ukrainian Jewish immigrant
grandparents are played by
Anthony Hopkins and Tovah
Feldshuh, 73. His parents
are played by Hathaway
and Strong, 43 (Strong
is best known for playing
Kendall Roy on the hit HBO
series Succession. The
actor’s father is Jewish).
Much of the plot is about
the dire problems of Paul’s
Black friend and family
tensions. But there are quite
a few Jewish moments —
like Paul’s grandfather telling
him that Paul’s grandmother
saw Cossacks kill her family
in front of her — and Fred
Trump (yes, Donald’s father
and a real 1980 Queens
resident) — asking Paul what
is the “origin” of the name
Graff. Clearly, Trump is trying
to ascertain if Paul is “really”
German or “just” a Jew with
a Germanic name.
As promised last week,
here are more, recently
released Halloween-related
films.
Halloween Ends opened
in theaters in Oct. 14 and
is still playing. Also, if you
subscribe to the “paid part”
of the streaming channel,
Peacock, you can view it
until Dec. 14. The film is
the last part of a three-film
trilogy. As you might have
guessed, Laurie Strode
(Jamie Lee Curtis, 63) once
again “battles” serial killer
Michael Myers. Curtis/Strode
has been fighting him since
the original Halloween
movie (1978!).
Also in this film is Kyle
Richards, 53, who was a
child actor in the original
Halloween movie. Richards
converted to Modern
Orthodox Judaism when
she married an observant
Jewish man. Her sister
married into “that” Hilton
family and her niece is Paris
Hilton.
Hellraiser, the 11th in a
series of films dating back
to 1987, began streaming
on Hulu on Oct. 7. This
film reportedly will “set
the table” for a Hellraiser
series on HBO that is in
development. The plot is so
detailed that I will not try to
summarize it. Trust me, it’s a
scary movie.
Two Jews have big
parts: Odessa A’zion, 22,
and Brandon Flynn, 29.
A’zion plays Rily McKendry,
a recovering drug addict.
Flynn plays Matt McKendry,
Rily’s estranged brother.
A’zion is the daughter of
well-known comedy actor/
writer Pamela Adlon, 56
(Better Things). A few years
back, Odessa decided
to use her middle name
(“Zion”) as her last name.
She’s co-starred in two
short-lived series.
A friend “dug-out” Flynn’s
ancestry. It’s almost all
Jewish, but he couldn’t
determine if the ancestor
(1930s) who gave him the
name “Flynn” was Jewish
or not. Brandon has said his
family is Jewish, and he’s
tweeted nice Chanukah
greetings. Fynn is best
known for playing Justin
Foley in 13 Reasons Why,
which streamed on Netflix
(2018-20)
HALLOWEEN
TREAT STORY
Years ago, I wrote an item
about the Tootsie Roll
Company, then and now one
of a few large independent
candy companies. I have
to repeat what I previously
wrote to set-up the “big
surprise.” Here goes: The
Tootsie Roll was invented by
Leo Hirshfield (the date of
the invention is disputed —
1896 or 1907).
The Tootsie company ran
into financial problems in
the 1930s, and the company
that made its cardboard
boxes took over Tootsie
(1935). Bernard Rubin, “the
box guy,” was the head of
Tootsie until 1947, when he
died, age 55. His brother,
William, followed Bernard,
and after William’s death
in 1962, his daughter, Ellen
Rubin Gordon, a very sharp
woman and a Brandeis grad,
took control. She and her
husband, Melvin Gordon,
co-ran the company until
2015, when Melvin died.
I checked up on Tootsie
last week, and I was
astonished to learn that
Ellen, now 90, is still very
much the head of Tootsie.
The company’s stock value
is very stable, and Ellen
Gordon Rubin, who owns
55% of the Tootsie stock,
is worth at least $2 billion.
That’s sweet! (Tootsie makes
several kosher-certified
candies, including the
Tootsie.)
ARTS&LIFE
CELEBRITY NEWS
NATE BLOOM COLUMNIST
BY TOGLENN/WIKIPEDIA
Kyle Richards
IMDB
Odessa A’zion
ESHAMASHELI VIA WIKIPEDIA
Tovah Feldshuh