An interview show celebrating Jewish contributors and contributions to American popular culture co-hosted by Jonathan Friedmann and Joey Angel-Field.
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Sep 28, 2026 · 24:28
Ari Ashkenazi is a retired professor of anthropology of art and arts education whose latest memoir is Retracing My Steps: A Queer Memoir. Retracing My Steps…
Sep 21, 2026 · 20:10
Elizabeth Stordeur Pryor is a professor of history at Smith College and author of the new book, Something We Said: Richard Pryor, a Notorious Word, and Me. Co-hosts: Jonathan…
Sep 14, 2026 · 34:02
Jacques Berlinerblau is the Rabbi Harold White Professor of Jewish Civilization at Georgetown University and author of The Philip Roth We Don’t Know: Sex, Race, and…
Sep 7, 2026 · 20:16
Joe D’Esposito is a comic book artist and painter whose latest graphic novel, The Outsider, is published by Fantagraphics. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field…
Aug 31, 2026 · 25:49
Michael Isaac Shokrian is publisher of the Thieving Magpie literary quarterly and author of the new novel, American Playground. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field…
Aug 24, 2026 · 38:15
Yona Verwer is a Dutch-born multidisciplinary visual artist based in New York City and founder of the Jewish Art Salon, a global network of contemporary Jewish visual artists and…
Aug 17, 2026 · 22:10
Hannah Eve Rothbard is a multimedia artist, curator, and writer based in New York City. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren Hannah’s…
Aug 10, 2026 · 33:35
Ascendants: Technology, Corporate Power, & Humanity’s Future – with sci-fi author Don Schechter Don Schechter is an author, filmmaker, and film & media studies professor at Tufts…
Aug 3, 2026 · 20:36
Julian David Stone is an author, photographer, and filmmaker whose novels include The Strange Birth, Short Life, and Sudden Death of Justice Girl. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann &…
Jul 27, 2026 · 29:57
Alex Shvartsman is a prolific science-fiction author whose latest novel is The Best of All Possible Planets. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer:…
Jul 20, 2026 · 42:06
Jacques Berlinerblau is the Rabbi Harold White Professor of Jewish Civilization at Georgetown University and author of the new book, Can We Laugh at That? Comedy in a Conflicted…
Jul 13, 2026 · 44:26
Mathew Klickstein is a pop culture historian and author of See You At San Diego: An Oral History of Comic-Con, Fandom, and the Triumph of Geek Culture. Gus Krueger is an art…
Jul 6, 2026 · 44:01
Steven Lee Beeber is a freelance journalist and author of The Heebie-Jeebies at CBGB’s: A Secret History of Jewish Punk. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field…
Jul 2, 2026 · 42:25
Adrienne DeArmas is director of the Shapell Roster of Jewish Service in the American Civil War at the Shapell Manuscript Foundation, an independent educational organization…
Jun 29, 2026 · 30:16
Patrick McGilligan is a biographer and film historian whose books include, Funny Man: Mel Brooks. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren…
Jun 22, 2026 · 26:45
Director Gaylen Ross and producer Carol King have a new documentary, Sapiro v. Ford: The Jew Who Sued Henry Ford. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field…
Jun 15, 2026 · 31:35
Joe Alterman is an Altana-based jazz pianist and executive director of the Neranenah Concert and Culture Series. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field…
Jun 8, 2026 · 30:25
Eric Beck Rubin is an author and academic whose new novel is Ten Clear Days. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren Ten Clear Days…
Jun 1, 2026 · 23:04
Barb Rosenstock is a picture book author whose latest book is Houdini’s Library. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren Houdini’s Library…
May 25, 2026 · 24:44
Command Sergeant Major (Retired) Samuel P. Yudin recently retired from the California Army National Guard and is president of the Jewish American Military Historical Society.…
May 18, 2026 · 21:59
Kim Deitch is a prolific cartoonist who’s been making comics since the underground movement of the 1960s. His latest book is How I Make Comics, published by Fantagraphics.…
May 11, 2026 · 31:12
Michael Seth Starr is a prolific biographer whose books include Nothin’ Comes Easy: The Life of Rodney Dangerfield. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field…
May 4, 2026 · 27:33
Barbara “Willy” Mendes is a fine artist and underground comix pioneer whose new anthology, Queen of Cosmos Comix Trilogy, is published by Fantagraphics. Co-hosts: Jonathan…
Apr 27, 2026 · 32:20
Michael Kimmel is a SUNY distinguished professor emeritus of sociology and gender studies at Stony Brook University, whose latest book is Playmakers: The Jewish Entrepreneurs Who…
Apr 20, 2026 · 17:44
Johanna Silver is a garden writer and author of the book, Growing Weed in the Garden: A No-Fuss, Seed-to-Stash Guide to Outdoor Cannabis Cultivation. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann…
Apr 13, 2026 · 30:34
Peter Kuper is a prolific cartoonist whose work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Nation, Charlie Hebdo, and MAD magazine. He’s the author of numerous books, including the…
Apr 6, 2026 · 27:29
Michael Seth Starr is a prolific biographer whose books include Don Rickles: The Merchant of Venom. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren…
Mar 30, 2026 · 19:59
Rena Strober is a Broadway, television, film, and voice actor who’s currently working on a memoir, Singing for Sid and Other Wow Moments. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey…
Mar 23, 2026 · 37:33
We’re thrilled to chat with Mark Rubin, Jew of Oklahoma, a multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter whose latest album is Dispatches: Songs from a World Gone Mad. Co-hosts:…
Mar 16, 2026 · 20:50
Deborah F. Blum is an artist, educator, and documentary filmmaker whose latest film is Laemmle’s List. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike…
Mar 12, 2026 · 28:27
Mathew Klickstein is an author and pop culture historian whose books have covered such topics as Nickelodeon, The Simpsons, The San Diego Comic-Con, and Lloyd Kaufman, president…
Mar 9, 2026 · 28:58
Alan Bernstein is a filmmaker whose latest documentary is When We Went MAD! Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren When We Went MAD!…
Mar 2, 2026 · 43:26
Jeff Newelt is a veteran PR and social media macher who has worked with Harvey Pekar, Art Spiegelman, Al Jaffee, the Zappa family, and many more. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann &…
Feb 23, 2026 · 21:52
Yossi Yovel is an ecologist, neurobiologist, and author of The Genius Bat: The Secret Life of the Only Flying Mammal. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field…
Feb 16, 2026 · 34:07
Arie Kaplan is a prolific writer of non-fiction, television, graphic novels, video games, and transmedia. His new book is The Encyclopedia of Curious Rituals and Superstitions.…
Feb 9, 2026 · 23:00
We’re delighted to chat with Andrew Rubin, a filmmaker and author whose debut novel is Hell or High Winter. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer:…
Feb 2, 2026 · 34:24
Mark Rutzick is a retired attorney who was twice appointed to the federal government’s Senior Executive Service. His new book is Breaking New Ground: The Untold Story of Early…
Jan 26, 2026 · 26:16
Marcie Maxfield is an award-winning author and playwright whose latest book is JewGirl: A Memoir on Being and Belonging. Marcie’s website https://marciemaxfield.com/ Amusing Jews…
Jan 19, 2026 · 43:09
David Margolick is a journalist and author whose latest book is When Caesar Was King: How Sid Caesar Reinvented American Comedy . Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field…
Jan 12, 2026 · 42:59
Henry Sapoznik is a five-time Grammy-nominated producer/performer of over fifty recordings and author of the award-winning book, Klezmer! Jewish Music from Old World to Our…
Jan 5, 2026 · 24:23
Frances Jetter is a prolific illustrator, sculptor, and printmaker whose latest book, Amalgam: An Immigrant, His Labor Union, and his American Family in Brooklyn, is published by…
Dec 29, 2025 · 32:15
Bob Levin is a longtime contributor to the Comics Journal whose latest book, Messiahs, Meshugganahs, Misanthropes, and Mysteries: True Tales of Comics, Conflict, and Creativity,…
Dec 22, 2025 · 41:14
Mathew Klickstein is an author and pop culture historian whose books have covered such topics as Nickelodeon, The Simpsons, The San Diego Comic-Con, and Lloyd Kaufman, president…
Dec 15, 2025 · 22:46
Diana Harmon Asher is an award-winning author of the middle grade novels Sidetracked and Upstaged. Her latest novel, Trouble Finds Evie Lefkowitz, is distributed to 9- to…
Dec 8, 2025 · 9:54
Sam Singer is known as the "Ed Wood of Animation" for making cheap, shoddy, and borderline-intolerable cartoons during the early days of television cartoons. Co-hosts: Jonathan…
Dec 1, 2025 · 31:12
Eric Glickman and Stephen Hersh have an ongoing series, How to Lose Your Mind: A Comics Project about Friendship, Memories and Alzheimer’s Disease, documenting Stephen’s…
Nov 24, 2025 · 22:32
Deborah Gitell is director of client partnership at Wilkins Media, a global outdoor media company. In 2013, she helped spread the term Thanksgivukkah with her sister-in-law, Dana…
Nov 17, 2025 · 41:23
Seth Michael Donsky was named to the International Screenwriters Association's list of the top 25 screenwriters to watch. He’s currently working on a project exploring the 1951…
Nov 10, 2025 · 27:08
Gary Lippman is the author of the novel Set the Controls for the Heart of Sharon Tate, the short story collection We Loved the World but Could Not Stay, and, most recently, I…
Nov 3, 2025 · 34:27
Eli Valley is a critically acclaimed political cartoonist whose latest book is Museum of Degenerates: Portraits of the American Grotesque. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey…
Oct 27, 2025 · 27:16
Julian David Stone is an author, photographer, and filmmaker whose novel It’s Alive! recounts the frantic days leading up to the filming of Universal’s 1931 classic,…
Oct 20, 2025 · 25:41
Kelilah Miller is an artist and rabbi whose linocut design is featured on a new shirt from They Might Be Giants. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field…
Oct 13, 2025 · 30:07
Steve Vertlieb is an award-winning writer, film historian, critic, archivist, and poet who’s been writing about motion pictures and symphonic film music since 1969. Many of his…
Oct 6, 2025 · 32:08
Stephen Weiner has been writing about graphic novels since 1992 and spearheaded the movement to bring graphic novels into public libraries. Dan Mazur is a screenwriter,…
Sep 29, 2025 · 38:14
*Finding humor in the Bible with Gil Kidron, a writer, editor, and host of A Podcast of Biblical Proportions. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer:…
Sep 22, 2025 · 28:13
Michael Hirsh is a trailblazing producer of children’s programming and former head of Nelvana, Cookie Jar, and Wow! Unlimited Media. His shows include Inspector Gadget, The Care…
Sep 15, 2025 · 26:13
Noah Diamond is a co-host of The Marx Brothers Council Podcast, an author, performer, and cartoonist whose books include 400 Years in Manhattan; Love Marches On: A Saga of…
Sep 8, 2025 · 24:05
Mathew Klickstein is an author and pop culture historian whose books have covered such topics as Nickelodeon, The Simpsons, The San Diego Comic-Con, and Lloyd Kaufman, president…
Sep 1, 2025 · 20:11
Julian David Stone is an author, photographer, and filmmaker whose photography is collected in the coffee table book, No Cameras Allowed: My Career as an Outlaw Rock & Roll…
Aug 25, 2025 · 22:09
Ilana Trachtman is an Emmy award-winning documentary director and producer whose latest film is Ain’t No Back to a Merry-Go-Round. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field…
Aug 18, 2025 · 28:41
Jonathan Lackman is an author and art historian and Zachary J. Pinson is an artist and illustrator. Their new book, The Woman with Fifty Faces: Maria Lani & the Greatest Art…
Aug 11, 2025 · 31:13
Harold Schechter is a true crime author and professor emeritus at Queens College whose latest graphic biography is “Dr. Werthless,” illustrated and co-written by Eric Powell.…
Aug 4, 2025 · 36:41
Miriam Eve Mora is managing director of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute at the University of Michigan and author of Carrying a Big Schtick: Jewish Acculturation and Masculinity in…
Jul 28, 2025 · 20:37
Jonathan Rosen is co-host of Pop Culture Retro and host of The Jewish Lens. He’s also the author and editor of several books, including Night of the Living Cuddle Bunnies and…
Jul 21, 2025 · 31:36
Roy Schwartz is a comic book historian, former CNN regular contributor, board member of the American Jewish Historical Society, and author of Is Superman Circumcised? The…
Jul 14, 2025 · 38:19
Jonathan L. Friedmann is the president of the Western States Jewish History Association; vice president, academic dean, and director of programs at Ezzree Institute; admissions…
Jul 7, 2025 · 23:17
Paul Levitz is a comic book writer, editor, and executive best known for his decades-long association with DC Comics, which began as a freelancer in the early 1970s and included…
Jun 30, 2025 · 40:28
David Denby is a New Yorker staff writer and New York Times bestselling author whose latest book is Eminent Jews: Bernstein, Brooks, Friedan, Mailer. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann…
Jun 23, 2025 · 40:01
Danny Fingeroth is a biographer, cultural historian, and former writer and editor at Marvel Comics whose latest book is Jack Ruby: The Many Faces of Oswald’s Assassin. He also…
Jun 16, 2025 · 29:06
Alina Adams is a New York Times bestselling author whose latest historical novel, Go On Pretending, explores three generations of Jewish women battling the tides of history from…
Jun 9, 2025 · 41:36
Bruce Vilanch is Hollywood’s go-to comedy writer for award shows, sitcoms, and variety specials. His new book is It Seemed Like a Bad Idea at the Time: The Worst TV Shows in…
Jun 2, 2025 · 45:56
Victoria Aarons is the O.R. and Eva Mitchell Distinguished Professor of Literature at Trinity University and editor of a new book, The Story’s Not Over: Jewish Women and Embodied…
May 26, 2025 · 18:54
Janice Shapiro is an author and illustrator whose new graphic novel, Honoria: A Fortuitous Friendship, is published by Fantagraphics. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey…
May 19, 2025 · 35:42
Amy Kurzweil is a cartoonist and graphic memoirist whose latest book is Artificial: A Love Story. She previously authored Flying Couch: A Graphic Memoir, and you can find her…
May 12, 2025 · 37:42
Michael Benson is the author of more than 60 nonfiction history and true crime books. His latest is Moguls: The Lives and Times of Film Pioneers Nicholas and Joseph Schenck,…
May 5, 2025 · 25:27
Barry Horowitz’s professional wrestling career spanned nearly four decades, including memorable runs in both WWF and WCW. His new memoir is titled, Wrestling is My Gimmick: My…
Apr 28, 2025 · 44:46
Ken Krimstein is a cartoonist and graphic novelist whose latest book is Einstein in Kafkaland. He previously authored The Three Escapes of Hannah Arendt; When I Grow Up: The Lost…
Apr 21, 2025 · 19:14
Rob Kutner is an award-winning author and television writer whose credits include The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien, Teen Titans Go!, Ben10,…
Apr 14, 2025 · 17:37
Melanie Chartoff voiced Didi Pickles and her mother Minka on Nickelodeon's long-running cartoon, Rugrats. She was also Principal Musso on Parker Lewis Can’t Lose, a cast member…
Apr 7, 2025 · 26:02
Koren Shadmi is a cartoonist, illustrator, and author of The Twilight Man: Rod Serling and the Birth of Television. Among his other books are Lugosi: The Rise and Fall of…
Mar 31, 2025 · 24:08
With recent news that the long-awaited reboot of The Toxic Avenger will finally be released in August 2025, we thought it would be a good time to revisit a question some have…
Mar 24, 2025 · 45:25
Miriam Eve Mora is managing director of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute at the University of Michigan and author of Carrying a Big Schtick: Jewish Acculturation and Masculinity in…
Mar 17, 2025 · 28:01
Jaime Weinman is a cartoon historian and author of the book, Anvils, Mallets & Dynamite: The Unauthorized Biography of Looney Tunes. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey…
Mar 10, 2025 · 49:45
Steve Stoliar is the author of the classic memoir, Raised Eyebrows: My Years Inside Groucho’s House. He also wrote for TV shows like Murder, She Wrote, Simon & Simon, and…
Mar 3, 2025 · 41:56
Richard Bernstein is a reporter, foreign correspondent, and cultural critic whose latest book is Only in America: Al Jolson and The Jazz Singer. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann &…
Feb 24, 2025 · 24:09
Michael Skloff is a composer best known for “I’ll Be There For You,” the theme song for Friends. His music is heard on many films and TV shows, as well as on the stage, in…
Feb 17, 2025 · 20:26
Nancy Cohen is a “multi-un-disciplinary” filmmaker, artist, and activist. Her candid documentary, My Dinner with Abbie, was filmed with Abbie Hoffman at Sarge’s Deli in Manhattan…
Feb 10, 2025 · 45:50
Mathew Klickstein is a prolific author, filmmaker, and pop culture historian, whose latest book is Lloyd Kaufman: Interviews, part of the Conversations with Filmmakers Series of…
Feb 3, 2025 · 29:37
Jodi Kornfeld is rabbi of Beth Chaverim Humanistic Jewish Community in Deerfield, Illinois, and co-editor of a new book, Contemporary Humanistic Judaism: Beliefs, Values,…
Jan 27, 2025 · 32:26
Mathew Klickstein is a prolific author, filmmaker, and pop culture historian. Rick Geary is a renowned artist, illustrator, and cartoonist. Their new graphic novel, Daisy Goes to…
Jan 20, 2025 · 27:23
Marc Summers is a legendary television personality, best known for hosting Nickelodeon’s Double Dare and Unwrapped for the Food Network. He is the author of Everything in Its…
Jan 13, 2025 · 24:04
There’s an old debate about Yosemite Sam’s possible Jewish identity. Amusing Jews gets to the bottom of it! Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer:…
Jan 6, 2025 · 46:55
Brothers Mark and Matthew Jacob are the co-authors of Globetrotter: How Abe Saperstein Shook Up the World of Sports. They previously co-authored What the Great Ate: A Curious…
Dec 23, 2024 · 26:49
Antonia Carlotta is a film historian and niece of Universal Studios founder Carl Laemmle. She explores her great uncle’s legacy on her YouTube channel and website, Antonia…
Dec 16, 2024 · 21:19
Alex Shvartsman is an author, translator, and anthologist whose latest book is Dreidel of Dread: The Very Cthulhu Hanukkah Board Book. His other works include the fantasy novels…
Dec 9, 2024 · 25:30
Barbara Laven is a retired trauma therapist and daughter of producer-director Arnold Laven – one-third of Levy-Gardner-Laven, the production company behind the classic TV Western…
Dec 2, 2024 · 24:59
Liz Kleinrock is an antiracist and antibias educator and author of What Jewish Looks Like, a book for young readers co-authored with Caroline Kusin Prichard and illustrated by…
Nov 25, 2024 · 37:59
Glenn Kirschbaum is a documentary writer, producer, and director whose latest film is Remembering Gene Wilder. He also wrote episodes of Unsolved Mysteries, and has overseen…
Nov 18, 2024 · 27:41
Debra Caplan is an associate professor of theatre at the Graduate Center and Baruch College, City University of New York. She's the author of Yiddish Empire: The Vilna Troupe,…
Nov 11, 2024 · 52:11
Sam Firstenberg is an independent film director best known for his work with Cannon films, including Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo and the American Ninja series. Co-hosts:…
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