Rise and Fall of the Borscht Belt
1986•1h 21m•9.0•Released
Documentary
At its peak, one million New York Jews spent their summers in the Borscht Belt, the birthplace of Jewish-American iconoclastic humor. This film shows how these Catskills communities were run by women, and how class divisions were reflected in the resort hotels: upwardly-mobile hotel guests were entertained by a who's-who of talent, while in the bungalows, do-it-yourself burlesque and vaudeville reigned among the blue-collar families. This film is happy, humane, ironic, and, finally, bittersweet, as we see that today's Jews no longer share the tastes or aspirations of their parents.
Director
Peter Davis
Languages
English
Studio
Villon Films
Cast
Joseph Wiseman
Self - Narrator (voice)
Production
Company
Villon Films
Producer
Peter Davis
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