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Neil Diamond’s blackface scene might be the most embarrassing moment in Jewish cinema history

JL;DR SUMMARY Neil Diamond's portrayal in the 1980 remake of "The Jazz Singer" is often cited as one of the most uncomfortable moments in Jewish-American cinema due to a controversial blackface scene. 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

The Jazz SingerControversyCultural AppropriationAl JolsonBlackface1980sNeil DiamondJewish American CinemaLaurence OlivierSidney J. Furie

Places mentioned

Manhattan, New York, United States
"On October 6th 1927, the original film production of The Jazz Singer made its world premiere at the Warners Theatre in midtown Manhattan."
Russian Federation
"the actor, whose father was a rabbi and cantor, was born Asa Yoelson in the Kovno Governorate of the Russian Empire, and immigrated to the U.S. with his family shortly before his ninth birthday."
Los Angeles, California, United States
"home in New York City to pursue pop stardom in Los Angeles."
New York City, New York, United States
"home in New York City to pursue pop stardom in Los Angeles."
Katz's Deli, New York, United States
"Olivier, on the other hand, chews his dialogue like a dedicated fresser digging into a pastrami on rye at Katzs Deli; as cringe-inducing screen portrayals of Jews by non-Jewish actors go, Oliviers is just a prosthetic nose short of surpassing Alec Guinness as Fagin in 1948s Oliver Twist."
Cinderella Club, New York, United States
"they draft Jess in to deputize for him. Unfortunately, the club appears to have a blacks-only policy: Please tell me that aint no white man, begs emcee John Witherspoon, when he spies Jess in the dressing room."

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Cairo Item ID 81809
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Retrieved 2026-05-08 05:31:13 UTC
Curated 2026-05-08 08:31:01 UTC