48 | AUGUST 10 • 2023 

GADOT’S NEW FLICK, 
MORE SACKLER TSURIS, 
ANIMATED FUN, BARBIE 
AND “OPPY” 

Heart of Stone is a thriller 
film that starts streaming on 
Netflix on Aug. 11. Basic plot: 
International intelligence 
agent Rachel Stone (Israeli 
actress Gal Gadot, 38) works 
for a mysterious “good 
guy” agency called Charter. 
This agency keeps a secret 
eye on other spy agencies. 
Stone, pretending to be a 
computer tech, infiltrates a 
British intelligence unit that 
is being taunted by a master 
hacker. 
Heart of Stone is the first 
film that Gadot has pro-
duced.
British Jewish actress 
Sophie Okonedo, 54, 
has a big supporting 
role as Nomad, another 
Charter agent. Okonedo, 
a Tony-winner, was Oscar-
nominated for Hotel 
Rwanda. 
Oy, vey — I thought one 
major series about the 
now-disgraced Sackler 
family was enough. You 
may recall Dopesick, the 
2021 Hulu series about how 
Purdue Pharma, a compa-
ny owned by the Sacklers, 
flooded the country with 
oxycontin, a highly addictive 
opioid drug. For a very long 
time, Purdue Pharma down-

played how addictive the 
drug is. 
On Aug. 10, the six-epi-
sode Netflix series Painkiller 
will be released in its entire-
ty. Dopesick was based on 
a book of the same name 
about the Sacklers and 
the oxycontin epidemic. 
Painkiller is based on two 
long magazine articles cov-
ering much of the same 
ground. 
Three Sackler brothers 
(Arthur, Mortimer and 
Richard), all physicians, 
founded and ran Purdue 
Pharma. It was a small 
company until they began 
marketing oxycontin in 1996. 
Arthur died in 1987, and he’s 
not in the series. 
Mortimer died in 2010. I 
gather he is a minor charac-
ter in the series. He’s played 
by veteran character actor 
John Rothman, 74. Trust me, 
you know Rothman’s face. 
Richard Sackler (died 
2017), and his son, Dr. 
Raymond Sackler, now 78, 
are major characters in the 
series. Matthew Broderick, 
61, plays Raymond. 

Strange Planets is a 10-epi-
sode adult animated series 
that premiered on Aug. 9 
on Apple TV+. It’s based on 
a bestselling graphic novel 
of the same name. Apple 
publicity says: “Strange 
Planet is a hilarious and 
perceptive look at a distant 
world not unlike our own … 
relatable blue beings explore 

the absurdity of everyday 
human traditions.” Hannah 
Einbinder, 28, the co-star of 
the hit series Hacks on HBO, 
has a big (voice) role.
Einbinder recently joined 
other striking writers and 
actors in a public protest. 
She told Indiewire that 
management was trying to 
“bleed out” the unions. She 
added: “It’s inhuman frankly 
… the horrible position the 
average writer and actor has 
been put in thus far.”

Here are some excerpts 
from the Wikipedia article 
entitled Barbenheimer:
“Barbenheimer is an 
internet phenomenon that 
began … before the release 
of two blockbuster films, 
Barbie and Oppenheimer, 
on July 21. The dichotomy 
of Barbie — a fantasy com-
edy about the doll Barbie 
— and Oppenheimer — an 
epic biographical thriller 
about physicist J. Robert 
Oppenheimer, scientific 
director of the Manhattan 
Project, which developed the 
first nuclear weapon [1945] 
— prompted a comedic 
[internet] response, including 
memes and merchandise 
… instead of Barbenheimer 
creating a rivalry, many sug-
gestions to watch the films 
as a double feature emerged 
… cast members of both 
responded by encouraging 
audiences to watch the films 
on the same day.” 
As I write this (July 31), 

Barbie has grossed over 
$750 million worldwide, and 
Oppenheimer has made 
over $400 million worldwide.
Yes, the two films have 
prompted a few articles 
that mention Oppenheimer, 
before going into the back-
ground of Ruth Handler 
(1916-2002), the creator of 
the Barbie doll. Notably, 
a Wall St. Journal July 
20 article (“She was the 
Oppenheimer of Barbie. Her 
Invention Blew Up.”). This 
article begins with stating 
that Handler founded her 
toy company (in her garage) 
in the same year (1945) that 
the first atom bomb was 
dropped. 
But I haven’t seen a sin-
gle article that notes, in the 
same article, that Handler 
and Oppenheimer were 
Jewish. Nor have I seen a 
meme or piece of merchan-
dise that says this. Such a 
“thing” may exist, but I hav-
en’t seen it. 
I would really love to see 
a meme or a T-shirt or a 
poster that has images of 
Oppenheimer and Handler 
side-by-side. The caption 
should read: “The Jewish 
father of the A-Bomb and the 
Jewish mother of Barbie.” 
Except for the word “Jewish,” 
that’s what these two inven-
tors were called in their life-
times. 
Oppenheimer and 
Handler’s creation (Barbie) 
are worldwide hits. Can’t 
Jews get a little reflective 
glory? Can’t we openly shep 
nachas via a T-shirt? Such a 
T-shirt would be a souvenir 
of an incredibly unlikely cul-
tural event. 
I realize the doll Barbie 
and the making of the atom 
bomb are not without contro-
versy. But, I say, “go with the 
moment.” The public loves 
Oppy, now, and they adore 
Barbie. 

CELEBRITY NEWS

NATE BLOOM COLUMNIST

ARTS&LIFE

 JTA

Hannah Einbinder

JAMES SALZANO

John Rothman

GAGE SKIDMORE

Gal Gadot