Looking Back From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History accessible at www.djnfoundation.org 70 | NOVEMBER 17 • 2022 A Ground-Breaking Film T wo very public instances of antisemi- tism occurred over the past few weeks. High-profile celebrities, the rapper/ songwriter Kanye West — or as he now calls himself, “Ye” — and National Basketball star Kyrie Irving made international news for their promotions of long-debunked tropes and false- hoods about Jewish people. Unfortunately, the actions of West and Irving are nothing new in this modern era of rising antisemitism. It was good to see that they were met with wide- spread criticism as well as eco- nomic punishment as they lost important sponsors. Antisemitism was also in the news 75 years ago. Gentleman’s Agreement, the acclaimed book by Laura Z. Hobson (1900-1986) and the subsequent movie with the same title starring Gregory Peck (1916-2003) were both released in 1947. But unlike West and Irving, Hobson and Peck made significant contribu- tions to the fight against everyday antisemi- tism. Hobson, nee Laura Kean Zametkin, was the daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants. Her novel, Gentleman’s Agreement, was first pub- lished as a serial in the magazine Cosmopolitan in 1946 and released as a book in April 1947. It sold 100,000 copies in the first month and became a bestseller. The protagonist in her novel is a New York magazine writer, who is asked to write about antisemitism. He reluctantly takes the assignment, but after a moment of inspiration, decides to pretend to be Jewish in order to personally experience antisemitism. He soon gains a first-hand knowledge of everyday antisemitism, both subtle and blatant, in post- war America. The movie Gentleman’s Agreement was released in November 1947. Now generally rec- ognized as the best post-World War II film to deal with antisemitism, the movie was critically acclaimed and a huge success at the box office. It was nominated for eight Oscars and won three, including Best Film and Best Director (Elia Kazan). Regardless of some tepid critiques of the movie years later, its enor- mous impact on the film industry and audiences cannot be denied. I decided to research the impact of Gentleman’s Agreement upon the local community in the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History. I found 113 men- tions. Along with references to the book and movie, there are also some citations of generic “gentle- man’s agreements,” or unwritten non-legally binding yet honored deals between nations or people, but many pages hold relevant reports about the book and movie themselves. Shortly after the book was released, it was a topic of discussion around town. Rabbi Leon Fram of Temple Israel discussed the book at the Detroit Institute of Arts (May 2, 1947, JN). The Golda Myerson group of Detroit Pioneer Women reviewed the book in October 1947 (Oct. 24, 1947). Gentleman’s Agreement also generated controversy. A JN editorial, “Spanish Justice,” addressed the Spanish Film Censorship Board’s banning of the movie (Oct. 15, 1948, JN). The DeWitt High School in New York banned the book because “it is offensive to the Roman Catholic Church (Feb. 20, 1948, JN).” There are other reports of book and movie discussions, as well as references to the movie’s inclusion on lists of best-ever movies. For the best read on the subject, see the story in the Oct. 18, 1997, issue of the JN: “The Golden Anniversary of a Groundbreaking Film.” It appears that our local Jewish community recognized the importance of Gentleman’s Agreement. It was indeed pathbreaking. Want to learn more? Go to the DJN Foundation archives, available for free at www. djnfoundation.org. Mike Smith Alene and Graham Landau Archivist Chair Anniversary of a Groundbreaking Film.” Gentleman’s A Ground-Breaking Film Regardless of some tepid critiques I decided to research the impact upon the Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish tions. Along with references to the deals between nations or people, but many