Amusing Jews

Atheists United Studios

An interview show celebrating Jewish contributors and contributions to American popular culture co-hosted by Jonathan Friedmann and Joey Angel-Field.

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176 episodes
Updated Monday

Episodes176

Newest first

March 23 · 37 min
Ep. 141: Jews, Music, and the American South – with Mark Rubin, Jew of Oklahoma
We’re thrilled to chat with Mark Rubin, Jew of Oklahoma, a multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter whose latest album is Dispatches: Songs from a World Gone Mad. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike...
March 16 · 20 min
Ep. 140: Carl Laemmle vs. the Nazis – with documentarian Deborah F. Blum
Deborah F. Blum is an artist, educator, and documentary filmmaker whose latest film is Laemmle’s List. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren Laemmle’s List https://www.laemmleslist.com/ Amusing Jews...
March 12 · 28 min
Oscars Special: Supremely Jewish Marty Supreme – with pop culture historian Mathew Klickstein
Mathew Klickstein is an author and pop culture historian whose books have covered such topics as Nickelodeon, The Simpsons, The San Diego Comic-Con, and Lloyd Kaufman, president and co-founder of Troma Entertainment. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann...
March 9 · 28 min
Ep. 139: Going Mad for MAD Magazine – with documentarian Alan Bernstein
Alan Bernstein is a filmmaker whose latest documentary is When We Went MAD! Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren When We Went MAD! https://tubitv.com/movies/100047417/when-we-went-mad Amusing Jews...
March 2 · 43 min
Ep. 138: Hyping the Legends: Pekar, Spiegelman, and more – with PR specialist Jeff Newelt
Jeff Newelt is a veteran PR and social media macher who has worked with Harvey Pekar, Art Spiegelman, Al Jaffee, the Zappa family, and many more. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren Jeff’s...
February 23 · 21 min
Ep. 137: The Genius Bat – with neurobiologist Yossi Yovel
Yossi Yovel is an ecologist, neurobiologist, and author of The Genius Bat: The Secret Life of the Only Flying Mammal. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren The Genius Bat...
February 16 · 34 min
Ep. 136: Curious Rituals and Superstitions – with author Arie Kaplan
Arie Kaplan is a prolific writer of non-fiction, television, graphic novels, video games, and transmedia. His new book is The Encyclopedia of Curious Rituals and Superstitions. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer:...
February 9 · 23 min
Ep. 135: Ancient Gods in the Digital Age – with novelist Andrew Rubin
We’re delighted to chat with Andrew Rubin, a filmmaker and author whose debut novel is Hell or High Winter. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren Andrew’s website https://www.hellorhighwinter.com/ ...
February 2 · 34 min
Ep: 134: Jewish Electoral Pioneers – with author Mark Rutzick
Mark Rutzick is a retired attorney who was twice appointed to the federal government’s Senior Executive Service. His new book is Breaking New Ground: The Untold Story of Early America’s Jewish Electoral Pioneers—1788 to 1920. Co-hosts: Jonathan...
January 26 · 26 min
Ep. 133: JewGirl: A Memoir on Being and Belonging – with author Marcie Maxfield
Marcie Maxfield is an award-winning author and playwright whose latest book is JewGirl: A Memoir on Being and Belonging. Marcie’s website https://marciemaxfield.com/ Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/ Subscribe to the...
January 19 · 43 min
Ep. 132: Sid Caesar: Comedian of Comedians – with author David Margolick
David Margolick is a journalist and author whose latest book is When Caesar Was King: How Sid Caesar Reinvented American Comedy. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren When Caesar Was King...
January 12 · 42 min
Ep. 131: Lost Yiddish New York City – with author Henry Sapoznik
Henry Sapoznik is a five-time Grammy-nominated producer/performer of over fifty recordings and author of the award-winning book, Klezmer! Jewish Music from Old World to Our World. His latest book is The Tourist’s Guide to Lost Yiddish New York City. ...
January 5 · 24 min
Ep. 130: Garment Workers Illustrated – with artist Frances Jetter
Frances Jetter is a prolific illustrator, sculptor, and printmaker whose latest book, Amalgam: An Immigrant, His Labor Union, and his American Family in Brooklyn, is published by Fantagraphics. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field ...
Dec 29, 2025 · 32 min
Ep. 129: Meshugganahs, Misanthropes, and EC Comics – with author Bob Levin
Bob Levin is a longtime contributor to the Comics Journal whose latest book, Messiahs, Meshugganahs, Misanthropes, and Mysteries: True Tales of Comics, Conflict, and Creativity, is published by Fantagraphics. Messiahs, Meshugganahs, Misanthropes,...
Dec 22, 2025 · 41 min
Rob Reiner: A Retrospective - with pop culture historian Mathew Klickstein
Mathew Klickstein is an author and pop culture historian whose books have covered such topics as Nickelodeon, The Simpsons, The San Diego Comic-Con, and Lloyd Kaufman, president and co-founder of Troma Entertainment. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann...
Dec 15, 2025 · 22 min
Ep. 128: Writing for Middle Grades – with novelist Diana Harmon Asher
Diana Harmon Asher is an award-winning author of the middle grade novels Sidetracked and Upstaged. Her latest novel, Trouble Finds Evie Lefkowitz, is distributed to 9- to 12-year-olds across North America through PJ Library's program for older...
Dec 8, 2025 · 9 min
Ep. 127: Sam Singer: The Ed Wood of Cartoons - with Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field
Sam Singer is known as the "Ed Wood of Animation" for making cheap, shoddy, and borderline-intolerable cartoons during the early days of television cartoons. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren Amusing...
Dec 1, 2025 · 31 min
Ep. 126: Alzheimer’s Comics Memoir – with Eric Glickman and Stephen Hersh
Eric Glickman and Stephen Hersh have an ongoing series, How to Lose Your Mind: A Comics Project about Friendship, Memories and Alzheimer’s Disease, documenting Stephen’s experiences with Alzheimer’s. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey...
Nov 24, 2025 · 22 min
Thanksgivukkah Retrospective Special – with co-creator Deborah Gitell
Deborah Gitell is director of client partnership at Wilkins Media, a global outdoor media company. In 2013, she helped spread the term Thanksgivukkah with her sister-in-law, Dana Reichman Gittel, capturing the unlikely convergence of Thanksgiving and...
Nov 17, 2025 · 41 min
Ep: 125: Judy Holliday, Born Yesterday, & the 1951 Oscar Race – w/ screenwriter Seth Michael Donsky
Seth Michael Donsky was named to the International Screenwriters Association's list of the top 25 screenwriters to watch. He’s currently working on a project exploring the 1951 best actress Oscar race. Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey...