BBC - BBC Four Time Shift - Jewish Entertainers



	JEWISH ENTERTAINERS Sunday 21 August 2005 9.20pm-10pm; 2am-2.40am

	For decades Jewish entertainers have dominated parts of the industry in both Britain and America. Time Shift investigates why American Jews celebrate their ethnicity while their British counterparts have often masked or even denied their roots.


	COMEDY Guide to the funny stuff, across the BBC

	JACK ROSENTHAL Tuesday 15 March 2005 Exploration of Jack Rosenthal's life and work

	CONTRIBUTORS Alan Yentob - BBC Head of Drama and Entertainment Barry Cryer - comedian Anna Tzelniker - actor Professor David Cesarini - historian David Mazower - author of Yiddish Theatre in London Rebecca Green - film producer Leslie Bunder - writer

	BBC Links Barry Cryer Biography from bbc.co.uk/comedy Warren Mitchell Details of comedy he has appeared in, from bbc.co.uk/comedy External Links Jewish Jokes Putting on Jewish Comedy The experience of trying to bring Jewish material to TV and radio A Humorous Occupation? The Guardian looks at the difference between Jewish comedy here and in the US The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites


			Kate Broome Time Shift Series Editor

	Julia Foot's Time Shift charts the history of Jewish entertainers in Britain. Narrated by Emma Freud, the programme examines the early days of Jewish theatre in Eastern Europe, performed in Yiddish. Jewish immigrants brought their experience to London in the 1890s and Yiddish theatre flourished in the East End. After WWII, many in the Jewish community turned to show business. As a displaced people, many Jews felt that making people laugh meant you would be accepted. In America, the big film companies, such as Warner Brothers, Metro Goldwyn Mayer, Universal, Paramount and Columbia, were all founded by Jews. Furthermore, high profile Jews in the industry were comfortable celebrating their heritage; so performers such as Lenny Bruce and Woody Allen made a feature of their Jewishness in their acts. In Britain, however, many Jewish entertainers changed their names in an effort to fit in, and while the Jewish influence on the post-war entertainment industry in Britain was massive, it did not have a Jewish voice.