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Lost Eminence

JL;DR SUMMARY "Eminent Jews" by David Denby profiles four significant figures—Mel Brooks, Betty Friedan, Norman Mailer, and Leonard Bernstein—who have significantly impacted American culture in the twentieth century. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

Jewish IdentityLeonard BernsteinAmerican JewsMel BrooksBetty FriedanNorman MailerContemporary AntisemitismDavid DenbyEminent Jews20th Century Culture

Places mentioned

New York, United States
"A young man who religiously read The New Yorker cover to cover each week might have wandered into the Barnes & Noble on Eighty-Second and Broadway and seen Eminent Jews displayed prominently among the new releases."
Peoria, Illinois, United States
"Friedan's father owned a successful jewelry store in Peoria but was denied membership at the local country club because he was Jewish."
Czechia
"How can a furiously neurotic Czech Jew . . . be linked to the deafening American entertainer."
Israel
"He loved her trips to Israel, he writes, quoting Friedan's daughter."
Jerusalem, Israel
"Lenny conducted Mahler's gigantic Symphony No. 2 (Resurrection) with the Israel Philharmonic on Mount Scopus, which was part of the newly unified city of Jerusalem."
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Retrieved 2025-07-16 05:30:54 UTC
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