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The History of Jewish Deli with Ted Merwin

Thursday, March 4, 2021 • 20 Adar 5781

7:30 PM - 8:30 PMZoom

In New York, Baltimore, D.C. and other American cities, the delicatessen was the lifeblood and the linchpin of the Jewish community. The “soul food” and atmosphere it dished up became a quintessential part of American culture for Jews and non-Jews alike. But as Jews moved into the suburban middle class, the deli lost its bite, giving way to other ethnic restaurants and cuisines. Can the deli be resurrected? Dr. Merwin will show how the deli, which originated in Germany and Eastern Europe, developed in this country into a neighborhood institution on par with the synagogue. He will also discuss how the deli became an icon of both television shows and films about the Jewish experience.

TED MERWIN, PH.D. was the Mid-Atlantic Regional Synagogue Initiative Director for AIPAC. Prior to working at AIPAC, he taught religion and Judaic studies at Dickinson College, where he was the founding director of the Milton B. Asbell Center for Jewish Life. He is author of In Their Own Image: New York Jews in Jazz Age Popular Culture, and Pastrami on Rye: An Overstuffed History of the Jewish Deli, which won a 2015 National Jewish Book Award. In addition to serving as arts critic for the New York Jewish Week for two decades, Ted has published articles in the New York Times, Washington Post, Haaretz, and Newsweek. 

Presented by the Arts Taskforce of the Adult Education Committee. Cosponsored by Men’s Club and Sisterhood.

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