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Letting Jews Be Jews: The Comedy of Max Davidson

Kenneth Turan
APRIL 22, 2007 11:15 AM
MACGOWAN LITTLE THEATER, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES

Before the establishment of the Production Code in 1930, Hollywood films were marked by displays of raw ethnicity, sometimes offensive in their stereotyping, but also exuberant and untamed. In anarchic comedies like Pass the Gravy, Jewish Prudence, and Should Second Husbands Come First, Max Davidson created characters who were Jews first and foremost, something that would not be seen again for many decades. Kenneth Turan screens clips from Davidson's films and talks about Hollywood's early fascination with Jewish ethnicity.

KENNETH TURAN is film critic for The Los Angeles Times and National Public Radio's Morning Edition. He has been a staff writer for the Washington Post and TV Guide and the Times' book review editor. He teaches film reviewing and non-fiction writing at USC and is on the board of directors of the National Yiddish Book Center. His most recent books are Sundance to Sarajevo: Film Festivals and the World They Made, Never Coming to a Theater Near You, and Now in Theaters Everywhere.