Jewish Stereo Types

...because they were faced with more than their fair share of "too sweet" critiques: You may have to bump up the volume for this recording of Kelli O'Hara singing "I Whistle a Happy Tune" Video posted by Rodgers & Hammerstein Then there's the incomparable Ella Fitzgerald singing the now-controversial "Happy Talk" (but surely the message of South Pacific should count--or should it? Drop a line in the comments if you've got some thoughts about that, please) Video posted by A Trip Down Memory Lane And there's Julie Andrews bringing us a list of what makes her character happy, "My Favorite Things" Video posted by Fox Family Entertainment Hello to you, too! *** As I've written before , Richard Rodgers (his father changed the family's last name from Abrahams) was Jewish, and one of the most influential composers on Broadway, first with Lorenz Hart, then with Oscar Hammerstein, and lastly, in a series of one...

Okay, not really, not for most of us. But today is Valentine's Day! So here's "My Funny Valentine," by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, sung by Judy Blazer: Video posted by New World Records You'll note that I chose to use a version sung by a woman, even though the Frank Sinatra and Chet Baker covers are probably the most well-known. That's because the song was written for the Broadway musical Babes in Arms , in which it was sung by a young woman about her new boyfriend, a young man named--wait for it--Valentine. The lyrics, it seems to me, make a lot more sense when you consider that they are describing a boy, and one whom the singer considers hopelessly naive and idealistic--a dope, to her way of thinking. Not that it's not a lovely, romantic song on its own because it is, ruefully expressing the impossibility of explaining even to yourself why people love who they love. *** As suggested above, Babes in Arms was written by the songwriting and Bro...