Almost a year ago, I blogged about the presence of Jews on TV. I am reminded of this because of the May 3 episode of ER (which I watched a few days ago: Tivo is God, praise Tivo).
In the episode “I Don’t,” Luka arranges a surprise wedding for Abby (seriously, have these people completely run out of ideas?). He has managed to get the dress she was lusting after in a bridal magazine, and gotten her measurements so he could have it fitted, and picked the flower arrangements she’d been idly admiring, and so on. Everyone at work shows up for what they’ve been told is a departmental dinner, conveniently dressed in wedding attire (I am starting to hate this show).
And in a moment of hilarity! The Justice of the Peace is sick! And a rabbi! That’s right a rabbi! Fills in to perform the ceremony.
I just. Couldn’t. Believe it. My jaw was just dropping. The rabbi (played by George Wyner) was a caricature more suited to the 1950s than 2007. He was there for no reason except Jews Are Funny. He said “meshugga”—Funny! He had a Yiddish accent—Funny! After marrying two gentiles he asked the groom to step on a glass and said “Humor me”—Hilarious!
I was so offended my skin just about crawled off my body. He did everything except ask for money (because Jews! Like money!) and offer to circumcise Luka.
Based on last names alone, episode writer David Zabel and director Andrew Bernstein are Jewish, so I am baffled at this ill-considered and kind of creepy display of kitsch anti-Semitism. But I assure you, it was sickening.
*sigh* Are we back to this? I thought we were long past it. 🙁 I’m glad I don’t watch ER anymore. This kind of thing always made my skin crawl.
I read your earlier post, and the history it linked to. Very interesting. I thought of another sexually attractive Jewish male from 1980’s television: Lt Myron Goldman on Tour of Duty, who was, of course, played by the Irish-American actor Steve Caffrey. And a more recent example of the character/actor Jew/gentile reversal: On Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the Jewish Willow Rosenberg was played by Irish-American Alyson Hannigan, while the blonde shiksa Slayer Buffy Summers was played by the Jewish Sarah Michelle Gellar.
It’s changing, though. On Numb3rs, the attractive, non-stereotyped men of the Jewish Epps family are all played by Jewish actors: Rob Morrow, David Krumholtz, and Judd Hirsch.
It is changing, which is why this was so shocking. Sarah Michelle Gellar is the perfect example of a Jew who doesn’t look stereotypically Jewish; she has the same sort of upturned nose as Alyson Hannigan. (I don’t fault Whedon, who apparently had originally cast someone else as Willow.)
I never saw Tour of Duty. Rob Morrow was fairly stereotypical in Northern Exposure, and is short (in the stereotype, they’re always short), but he was ultimately a bit of a sex object on the show.
I didn’t know Sarah was a Jew. I often miss that. And married to a Puerto Rican! How vogue.
Morrow was also an elitist (a nicer word than snob) on Northern Exposure. And that seemed to stem from his Jewishness, where really, anyone from any city would have been as overwhelmed by being placed in Cicely, Alaska.
In the answer to the first question, yes, the ER writers have completely run out of ideas…as of about five years ago. The show causes me physical pain now. 🙁
Erm, I realize I haven’t watched it in a while, but isn’t ER a drama? So what are they doing trying to get everyone to yuk it up with stereotypes, anyway?
I mean, yes, I realize that a good drama has elements of humor in it, too. But I’d expect them to be far more subtle than that.
At any rate, I feel for you.