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Friday June 29, 2007

Celebrity Jews

by nate bloom

Simon says

Simon Schama, 62, is an entertaining historian who has hosted such PBS/BBC series as “The History of Britain” and “The Six Wives of Henry VIII.” His new PBS series, “Power of Art,” began on Monday, June 18. Every Monday, through July 30, Schama will cover one artist in each program. The July 30 show is about Mark Rothko, the famous Jewish abstract expressionist.

Schama has had so much success as an author and TV host that he no longer has to hold a teaching post. His books include “Two Rothschilds and the Land of Israel,” about James and Edmond Rothschild’s sponsorship of early Jewish settlers in Israel.

Jewish ‘Idol’ judges

Singer Paula Abdul, a member of the judging trio on “American Idol,” is the star of a new reality series “Hey Paula!,” premiering on the Bravo cable channel on Thursday, June 28. The show gives us a candid, backstage look at Paula, who may be blowing her “sweet image.” In the first episode, she is seen berating her assistants. Abdul is the daughter of a Jewish father of Syrian Jewish descent and a Canadian-born Jewish mother.

As everybody knows, the overtly “nasty” judge on “American Idol” is British music executive Simon Cowell, who also created “Idol.”

The Daily Telegraph, a Brit paper, regularly publishes articles by a family history expert on celebrity family trees. A 2006 profile of Cowell just came to my attention. It states that Simon’s paternal Jewish grandparents were wed in an English synagogue.

While not crystal-clear, it appears that Simon’s mother is of mixed English and Scottish non-Jewish ancestry. Simon’s father was an executive at EMI, the big English music company. Simon began his own music career in 1979 in the EMI mailroom and then rose through the EMI ranks. Some early attempts to strike out on his own failed, but eventually Simon hit it huge with the British talent show “Pop Idol” and its American equivalent, “American Idol.”

Huge Hebrews

By coincidence, two of the most physically impressive Jews in showbiz, Brad Garrett, 46, and Jake Steinfeld, 49, have voice roles in the upcoming Disney/Pixar animated flick, “Ratatouille.” (Opens Friday, June 29.)

Garrett, who hovers over any crowd at 6-foot-9, has a leading role in “Ratatouille.” He is the voice of the ghost of a famous French gourmet chef who acts as a mentor to the lead character, a rat who wants to cook gourmet food. Meanwhile, Garrett had some good news recently — his Fox TV show, “’Til Death,” was renewed despite lackluster reviews and ratings.

Steinfeld has a bit part as the voice of a lab rat. In real life, Jake has piled up more than a bit. Starting as a bodybuilder and personal trainer — he created the extensive line of “Body by Jake” videos and books. Along the way, he founded the Fit TV cable station and he sold the station a few years ago for $500 million. He is also one of the three founders of the successful Major League Lacrosse professional league.

Columnist Nate Bloom, an Oaklander, can be reached at middleoftheroad1@aol.com.

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