Today we’d like to introduce you to Jonathan Friedmann.
Hi Jonathan, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Growing up in Long Beach during the 80s and 90s—an era I’ve come to see as the golden age of pop culture—my life revolved around seven things: baseball cards, comic books, garage bands, home video games, action figures, Saturday morning cartoons, and movie rental shops. I entered Cal State Long Beach as a music major, but quickly drifted away because the practice and rehearsal commitments were overwhelming. I thumbed through the school catalogue and landed randomly on religious studies. I wasn’t religious and hadn’t studied religion before. I mainly entered that field as a high-commitment inside joke: I was a cultural-atheist Jew whose sense of the sacred came from the aforementioned pop culture activities. But I fell in love with the subject, and I continued on to earn a master’s in religious studies and a Ph.D. in Hebrew Bible, along with a master’s in Jewish sacred music and ordination as a cantor, making me a clergyman—a label I’m actually uncomfortable with. I’ve spent my career as a professor, leader of Jewish communities, author of numerous books and articles, and local historian; but pop culture has always been my “calling.” So, in 2022, I started Amusing Jews, a YouTube/podcast interview show celebrating Jewish contributors and contributions to American popular culture, co-hosted by fellow-renegade clergyman Rabbi Joey Angel-Field and produced by my oldest friend, Mike Tomren. The show is a project of Adat Chaverim–Congregation for Humanistic Judaism, Los Angeles, of which I’m the community leader.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
The road has been smooth but winding. Looking back, it all seems inevitable. Virtually everything I’ve done academically or otherwise has brought me down an eclectic road leading back to pop culture. For instance, my 2022 book, Goliath as Gentle Giant: Sympathetic Portrayals in Popular Culture, mashes my background in biblical studies with my interest in popular media. My latest book, Chai Noon: Jews and the Cinematic Wild West, combines film and television analysis with my expertise in the pioneer Jewish experience in the American West. If there’s a through line in my work, it’s eclecticism—which I see as a Jewish cultural trait. With Amusing Jews, everything comes together with episodes focusing on graphic novels, books, filmmaking, comedy, animation, cultural history, music, etc.—all seen through a distinct, though often subtle, Jewish lens.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I appreciate this question because I sometimes lose track of all the things I do professionally. As mentioned, I’m community leader of Adat Chaverim—Congregation for Humanistic Judaism, a non-theistic community serving the greater LA area and beyond. Humanistic Jews define Judaism as the historical and cultural experience of the Jewish people, as opposed to a religion. I’m also admissions director and associate professor at the International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism, which trains leaders for the Humanistic Jewish movement, and editor of the movement’s magazine, aptly titled Humanistic Judaism. On top of that, I’m co-founder and vice president of Ezzree Institute, a new graduate school providing educational and clinical training for spiritual care professionals. I’m also president of the Western States Jewish History Association, director of the Jewish Museum of the American West, and editor of the journal, Western States Jewish History. Then there’s Amusing Jews and my academic writing—over 30 books and dozens of articles. I’m leaving out some other stuff. I guess what I’m most proud of—and what sets me apart—is my work ethic. I’d like to accomplish as much as possible in the short time I have on this planet. If that means carrying around the workload of several people at once, then so be it.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
When I was very young, I threw a tantrum at LAX while waiting for a flight with my family. Bob Hope walked by, pointed at me, and said, “Now, that kid’s funny!”
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.amusingjews.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/amusingjews
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@amusingjewspod
- Other: https://www.humanisticjudaismla.org/
Image Credits
Friedmann photo = Elvia Friedmann
Friedmann photo 2 = Elvia Friedmann
Amusing Jews = Lauren Angel-Field
Chai Noon = University of Wisconsin Press
Humanistic Judaism = Society for Humanistic Judaism
Western States Jewish History = Texas Tech University Press
