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NEWSLETTER VOLUME 17 Flash version: cjs.ucla.edu

SKIRBALL Jewish Culture Salon 2 LA OPERA Recovered Voices 3

The “Myth of Silence?” 6Mellon Program Explores Debates over the Post-War Holocaust “Silence”

Cover: Modifi ed panoramic photo of Los Angeles taken from the Getty Center. Design: David Wu and Carol Bakhos. Original, unmodifi ed panoramic work by Matthew Field (February 12, 2006)

Recovered Voices:hile Prof. David N. Myers is on sabbatical during the 2009-10 academic year, it is my honor to serve as acting director and ensure that the Center’s activities con-

tinue on without interruption. As we begin the year, we look forward to collaborating with two important Los Angeles institutions in the spring: an April 7-8 conference on the LA Opera’s Recovered Voices project; and an April 14 Jewish Culture Salon, “The Art of Jewish Illustration,” in conjunction with an exhibition at the Skirball Cultural

Center, Monsters and Miracles: A Journey Through Jewish Picture Books.

Our students and faculty are also thriving, as they learn from, challenge and inspire each other to push beyond the established boundaries of Jewish studies. Among the highlights of this past year were our first undergraduate student conference, organized by Federica Francesconi, Visiting Viterbi Professor of Mediterranean Jewish Studies; an international junior scholars’ conference on the history of Jewish LA and Buenos Aires; and an impressive assortment of graduate student projects supported by the UCLA/Mellon program on the Holocaust in American and World Culture.

These and similar accomplishments play an important role in the recognition and support that our Center receives. An example of this recognition came to us this year by way of a generous gift from the estate of a well-known Toronto philanthropist. The Bluma Appel Research Innovation Fund will support cutting-edge research in the field of Jewish studies by UCLA graduate students and faculty, as well as seminars and lectures by leading innovators in Jewish studies from around the world.

On a sad note, we must share with you the passing of a dear friend to the Center, Mickey Ross. As many of you know, Mickey, an award winning writer-producer, was a dedicated supporter of Yiddish at UCLA; last year he very generously endowed a chair in Yiddish culture and language at our Center. In coming years, this gift will allow us to establish a first-rate Yiddish studies program. Mickey’s spirit and dedication to the Jewish community will be sorely missed.

As the cover panorama illustrates, we are fortunate to be at the center of Jewish life in a most vibrant metropolis. We are grateful for the support of all our friends who make this possible. Your generosity is so vital to our mission, especially given the current economically challenging environment. Please do not hesitate to contact me at the Center office or by email (cbakhos@ucla.edu) to discuss our work and/or your interests. And please do join us at the Center as we continue to explore the corners of Jewish civilization.

Carol BakhosAssociate Professor of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures and Acting Director

Box 951485

Los Angeles, CA 90095-1485

www.cjs.ucla.educjs@humnet.ucla.edu

editors Mary Enid Pinkerson, Ph.D.

Carol Bakhos

design David Wu

From the Director Pushing the Boundaries of Jewish Studies

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Photo: Chyna Chuan Farrell

Center Advisory Board: Jerry Monkarsh, Stephen O. Lesser, Elaine Lindheim, Milton B. Hyman, Andrew J. Viterbi, Chic Wolk, Al Finci (chair), and Prof. David N. Myers.

Not pictured: Rabbi Daniel Bouskila, E. Randol Schoenberg, Kerri Steinberg, Harold Williams, Rabbi David Wolpe and Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky.

Recovered Voices:

The work of the historian is not only to document this loss; we can also make some small contribution to undoing this terrible story: forgotten artists and composers can be brought back to public attention, lost masterpieces can be retrieved.

And great music can be heard again and enter into its rightful place as part of the repertory. On April 7-8, the UCLA Center for Jewish Studies and The OREL Foundation will hold a conference inspired by the “Recovered Voices” project of James Conlon,

Music Director of the Los Angeles Opera. Conlon’s ongoing commitment to stage masterpieces of 20th-century European opera that were suppressed by the Third Reich continues on April 10 when he will direct the American premiere of Franz Schreker’s

opera Die Gezeichneten at LA Opera. LA Opera’s project has richly demonstrated that an enormous amount of this music--much of it by composers little known or unknown in America--is not only worthy of retrieval from the abyss of historical circumstances,

but by any standard is great and capable of speaking to us urgently and eloquently today.

Inspired by James Conlon’s performances and recordings, the OREL Foundation is dedicated to helping restore these works to the stage, concert halls and chamber music venues, whether formal or informal. Following Conlon’s lead, the Foundation encourages musicians, scholars and music lovers to become bet-ter acquainted with these composers and their works, many of which would certainly be better known today, but for the catastrophe of their history.

Each day will culminate with a special public evening event with the support of the “1939” Club and the Natalie Limonick Endowment in Jewish Civilization. April 7th will feature a free performance and presentation by pianist and conductor, Jeffrey Kahane, British violinist, Daniel

Hope, and others. On April 8, James Conlon will give the key note presentation. Registration, lodging and

additional information will be available via The OREL Foundation’s web site at: www.orelfoundation.org

Kenneth Reinhard Conference Organizer

In 2008-09, LA Opera presented Walter Braunfels’ adaptation of the ancient Greek comic-dramatist Aristophanes’s play The Birds. Soprano Désirée Rancatore made her Company debut in the high-flying role of the Nightingale. Photo: Robert Millard

he Nazi regime was not only responsible for the destruction of millions of lives, but also for the

suppression of countless works of art, literature and music. These works, grotesquely termed “degenerate

art” by the Nazis, were banned, and the artists, Jewish and non-Jewish, were branded enemies

of the state. Thousands were murdered, some went into hiding, and some escaped, though even many of the “fortunate” ones were ruined by the trauma. Although by now this is a well-known story, it continues to unfold in its

tragic details, and we are only beginning to truly understand the enormity of the loss.

Staging Suppressed Opera of the Early 20th Century

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Brandon Jovanovich as Good Hope Photo: Robert Millard

UCLA undergraduates increased their involvement with the Center through a series of informal lunches with faculty and other special events hosted by the Student Leader-ship Council. During Black History Month Michelle Lyon planned a lunch at which Prof. Eric J. Sundquist, author of King’s Dream, discussed his experience teaching litera-ture by both Jewish and black writers. Hila Peretz created a Hebrew Crash Course featuring skits and a YouTube video for students planning a summer trip to Israel. Netta Avineri followed up by inviting Instructor Miriam Koral to hold a Yiddish Schmooze.

The council invited stu-dents to a discussion in May with three distinguished Jewish Studies alumni: Mayim Bialik, Ph.D., actress, singer, and neuroscientist; Julie Fax, journalist for the Jewish Journal; and Daryl Temkin, Ph.D., founder of the Israel Institute Advancement for Alternative Energy Innovation. Students were able to network, ask questions, and brainstorm about their own futures. Jackie Rafii, one of the event organizers, noted, “All of the speakers pursued their passions; they did not take the typical route, but instead went after what brought them the most fulfillment. And a positive expe-rience in the Jewish community at UCLA, and in Jewish academia at UCLA, played a great part in defining their passions.” Other council members included Kayitz Finley, Ross Melnick, Ariel Sholklapper, and Ezra Wolkenfeld.

Rachel Deblinger has been awarded the Skirball Fellowship in Modern Jewish Culture for 2009-10. A Ph.D. candidate in History, Rachel has been working with the personal papers of American psychologist David P. Boder, who travelled to Displaced Persons camps in France, Switzerland, Italy, and Germany in 1946 to record the experiences of 109 witnesses of the Holocaust. Boder translated and transcribed 70 of the interviews into English and began a personal journey to make these interviews available to the American public. As part of the Fellowship, Rachel will teach a class at the Skirball Cultural Center. Thanking the Skirball for its support, Rachel noted the award offers her “the opportunity to participate in the museum’s work of making Jewish history resonant to the diverse population of Los Angeles and the vibrant local Jewish community.” In addition, Rachel Deblinger and Kevin Moore were among doctoral students participating in

the Graduate Summer Research Mentorship Program which provides support for students to develop a paper for presentation at an academic conference and/or for publication.

Student Council member, Ross Melnick, capped his graduate career in the Department of Film, TV and Digital Media as one of 5 Teaching Assistants at UCLA honored with a Distinguished Teaching Award. Ross commented, “I care very deeply about teaching and research and I’m fortu-nate to be at a university that truly values both.”

Kara Trowell, a student in Prof. Sarah Abrevaya Stein’s Sephardic Diaspora course, won a Certificate of Special Recognition for Undergraduate Research from the UCLA Library for her reflective essay “French Colonial Influence on the North African Jewish Identity.”

During the summer, thirty students explored the pre-classical remains of the Medi-terranean port city of Old Jaffa, through the Cotsen Institute of Archeology field school. Tradition says the town was named for Noah’s son Japheth, who estab-lished it after the Flood. The students excavated Hellenistic (3rd-1st cent. BCE) and Roman period (1st cent. CE) buildings within the visitor’s center in central Jaffa. The project is the culmination of several years of groundwork by Aaron A. Burke, Assistant Professor of Near Eastern Archeology, and his graduate students. The excavation project was the first in Jaffa in a decade.

This was the third season of excavations in old Jaffa on the south side of Tel Aviv by the Jaffa Cultural Heritage Project (JCHP), the first education abroad program in Israel in a number of years.

Initiated in January 2007 by Prof. Burke, and his co-director, Martin Peil-stocker of the Israel Antiquities Authority, the interdisciplinary project addresses both the archeology and the diverse cultural history of Jaffa.

Awards

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Ross Melnick

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NEWS BRIEFS

Student Council Expands Activities

Students Dig Jaffa Cultural Heritage Project

Vivian Holenbeck named CJS Assistant Director

David N. Myers (UCLA), Felix Posen (The Posen Foundation), and David Biale (UC Davis) were among participants in the 5th annual Posen Conference. The impor-tant gathering of profes-sors involved with the research and teaching of modern Jewish culture was convened by the Center for Cultural Judaism and the Posen Foundation at the Center for Jewish Studies last March. UCLA is one of more than forty colleges and universities in North America, Israel, and Europe to have received Posen Grants since 2001. Thirty-fi ve professors from various disciplines, and all representing institutions involved with the Posen Project, delivered papers, discussed methodology and pedagogy, and explored the study of Jewish secularization.

Vivian Holenbeck, long the power behind the scenes at CJS, has been promoted to Assistant Director of the Center for Jewish Studies. While at UCLA she earned a B.A. with a major in History and a minor in English, and took a work-study position with the Center in 1997. Her performance was so outstanding she

was invited to become a permanent Administrative Assistant upon graduation. Since then, she has played many signifi cant roles in helping the Center grow by handling the logistics and fi nances for a steadily expanding calendar of events. Her new role will entail additional responsibility in these areas as well as the supervision of the Center’s staff . When Viv is not in her offi ce in the tower of Royce Hall, she loves reading, playing with her six cats and two dogs, and tending her garden.

Center Hosts 5th Posen Conference

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Prof. Aaron A. Burke (UCLA)

(L-R) David N. Myers (UCLA), Felix Posen (The Posen Foundation), and David Biale (UC Davis)

Vivian Holenbeck and Center Acting Director Carol Bakhos

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Harmony Bench dances in “Monster.” The contemporary dance per-formance by graduate student Rebecca Pappas was also supported by a commission from Saint Joseph Ballet (Santa Ana, CA).

UCLA/Mellon Program on the Holocaust benefi ts campus community

he UCLA/Mellon Program on the Holocaust in American and World

Culture, now beginning its third and fi nal year under the direction of Professor Eric J. Sundquist, has sponsored numerous initiatives on Holocaust studies and Yiddish literature and culture benefi ting students, researchers and the larger community.

Among the events of this past year were visits by the writers Ehud Havazelet and Thane Rosenbaum; the premier of “Monster,” a modern dance performance inspired by refl ection on the Holocaust and created by World Arts and Cultures graduate student Rebecca Pappas; and conferences on “The ‘Jewish Question’ in French Philosophy after the Holocaust,” “Filming the Eichmann Trial,” and “Transforming a Culture between Soft Covers: Yiddish Journals in the New World,” which featured an advance look at the project to digitize the Los Angeles literary journal Kheshbn (http://repositories.cdlib.org/ucla_cjs/kheshbn/).In 2009-10 the program will once again off er fellowship support to twelve graduate students

permitting them to undertake extended research on a wide array of topics. In addi-tion, two undergraduates, Lauren Maddahi and Ezra Wolkenfeld, received support for summer research projects in Holocaust studies.

In Fall quarter Visiting Professor Jus-tin Cammy (Smith College) will off er two courses in Yiddish literature and lead the Nov. 8 symposium, Sholem Aleichem at 150: Celebrating the Yiddish Comic Master. On Oct. 25-26, a conference examining “The Myth of Silence: Who Spoke about the Ho-locaust and When,” cosponsored by the “1939” Club, will feature a keynote address by University of London professor David Cesarani. Lawrence L. Langer (Simmons College) will give the keynote address at “Aesthetics after the Holocaust,” an international conference exploring the problem of aesthetic reactions to the holocaust, Feb. 7-8. Renowned historian of the Holocaust, Michael Marrus (University of Toronto), will present a lecture Feb. 16 based on his forthcoming book, Some Measure of Justice: The Holocaust-Era Restitution Campaign of the 1990s.

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Thane Rosenbaum (Fordham University) addressed the question “What’s so Bad about Holocaust Films?” on March 5, 2009. He argued that Hollywood excels at feel-good, life-affi rming endings where one righteous person succeeds against over-

whelming odds; the Holocaust, however, is about the moral failure of human beings, the astonishing lack of heroes, and the death of six million lives that left no room for happy endings.

&UCLA/Mellon Program on the Holocaust benefi ts campus community

UCLA/Mellon Program Graduate Fellows represent diverse departments (L-R): Netta Avineri (Applied Linguistics), Nathalie Segeral (French & Francophone Studies), Kevin Moore (English), Prof. Eric J. Sundquist, Sara Simcha Cohen (Comparative Literature), Noa Bar (Comparative Literature), Taly Ravid (English), Rachel Deblinger (History), Mark Smith (History), Deborah Brown (History), Yehuda Sharim (History), Naya Lekht (Slavic Languages and Literatures) and Professor David N. Myers. Not pictured: Kirk Sides (Comparative Literature).

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New Publications

This work explores the literary creati vity of Kurdistani Jews exemplifi ed in translati ons of liturgi-cal poems for Jewish holidays and other special days, such as the nati onal mourning day of the Ninth of Av. Normally the Rabbis discouraged translati ng Hebrew-Aramaic canonical prayers, but permitt ed doing so in the case of non-canonical texts. Therefore, manuscripts from Iraqi, Iranian and Turkish Kurdistan include many such translati ons. Very few of these translati ons have been published, while most remain in manuscript form.

These texts are a classical example of reducing diffi cult poeti c texts to a level that would be understood by the common folk. Some of the poems were recited in the synagogue, but most were recited during home rituals, such as at the Passover Seder. More than direct translati ons, the texts oft en include many additi ons, interpolati ons, local linguisti c folklore, actualia, etc. In additi on to the translati ons, there are some poems which seem to be original, such as the poem about the halakhic rules for Passover, since no Hebrew equivalent has been found for them.

This book begins with a brief history of the Jews in Babylon (Iraq), their Hebrew creati vity and the fact that this creati vity was excluded from the history of Modern Hebrew literature because it was unknown to the scholars. The book focuses on the years 1735-1950 and presents the secular Hebrew poetry writt en in Babylon at that ti me, the folktales, journalisti c arti cles, and epistles, research of Hebrew literature, a story and a play. The last part presents the Hebrew periodicals that were published in Babylon.

Hakak is also the editor of Hador: The Hebrew Annual of America, which published its third volume in April 2009. The only Hebrew periodical in the US, Hador includes poetry, prose and arti cles.

Pe’rush (Hebrew for “interpretati on”) is a new interacti ve online journal published by the UCLA Center for Jewish Studies. The journal will make Center presentati ons available to a broader scholarly community. A space next to each arti cle allows readers to post comments by page or paragraph, and by so doing, contribute to the improvement of work in progress.

The inaugural issue features papers given at an internati onal symposium on “Jewish Politi cs and Politi cal Behavior” sponsored by the Center on October 12, 2008 under the auspices of the University of California-University of Utrecht Collaborati on. Occasionally, Pe’rush will be opened up as a platf orm for the exchange of ideas on an issue of contemporary concern, such as a forthcoming roundtable on anti -Semiti sm (featuring Hasia Diner, Michael Meyer, and Ruth Wisse, among others.)

Jewish Neo-Aramaic Translations of Hebrew Liturgical Poems:A Critical Edition

The Emergence of Modern Hebrew Creativity in Babylon,1735-1950

Hebrew University Press, 2009

Purdue University Press, 2009

PE’RUSH: An Online Journal of Jewish Scholarship & Interpretationhttp://perush.cjs.ucla.edu

Lev Hakak

Yona Sabar

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Jewish Studies @ UCLA: Classes & Podcasts www.cjs.ucla.edu

Over 60 undergraduate and graduate courses will be off ered in Jewish studies this year, enrolling some 1900 students. Through private support the Center has added diverse and pioneering courses includ-ing a second year of Yiddish, fi ve courses in Modern Jewish Culture as well as courses in Italian Jewish history, Iranian Jewish history and Lati n American Jews. The schedule of courses is available on the Center’s website.

The Center sponsors nearly 50 lectures, symposia and conferences annually. The calendar of events is available on the Center’s website along with podcasts of many programs. If you wish to receive weekly announcements, send your name and email address to cjs@humnet.ucla.edu. A new feature on the website will be Alumni News. To be included, please send CJS an email with your current personal and professional acti viti es.

CAROL BAKHOSAssociate Professor of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures. FIELD: Rabbinics and Comparative Scriptural Interpretation.

ARNOLD J. BANDProfessor Emeritus of Hebrew and Comparative Literature. FIELD: Modern Hebrew and Jewish Literature.

LEAH PLATT BOUSTAN Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics. FIELD: Jewish Migration, Residential Segregation.

RA’ANAN BOUSTANAssistant Professor of History and Near Eastern Languages and Cultures. FIELD: Jewish History and ancient Mediterranean religions.

AARON A. BURKEAssistant Professor of Near Eastern Archaeology. FIELD: Archaeology of Ancient Israel and Early Judaism.

NANCY EZERLecturer in Hebrew. FIELD: Modern Hebrew Literature.

SAUL FRIEDLÄNDER“1939” Club Professor of Holocaust Studies. FIELD: History of the Holocaust.

LEV HAKAKProfessor of Hebrew Literature. FIELD: Modern Hebrew Literature.

DAVID HIRSCHJewish and Middle Eastern Studies Bibliographer, Charles Young Research Library.

GIL HOCHBERGAssistant Professor of Comparative Literature. FIELD: Israeli, Palestinian, and North African Literatures.

ELEANOR KAUFMANAssociate Professor of Comparative Literature and French and Francophone Studies. FIELD: 20th-Century French Philosophy and Jewish Diaspora.

MIRIAM KORALLecturer in Yiddish.

EFRAIN KRISTALProfessor of Comparative Literature. FIELD: South and Central American Literature, Comparative Literature, and Philosophy.

DAVID N. MYERSProfessor of History. FIELD: Jewish History and Thought.

TODD S. PRESNERAssociate Professor of German. FIELD: Modern German-Jewish Literature and Intellectual History, Art History, and Visual Culture.

KENNETH REINHARDAssociate Professor of Comparative Literature and English. FIELD: Hermeneutics, Religion, and Modern Jewish Literature.

TEOFILO F. RUIZProfessor of History. FIELD: Medieval and Early Modern Spain and Social and Cultural History.

YONA SABARProfessor of Hebrew and Aramaic. FIELD: Aramaic, Hebrew, Jewish Languages, and Jewish and Near Eastern Folklore.

WILLIAM SCHNIEDEWINDKershaw Chair of Ancient Eastern Mediterranean Studies and Professor of Biblical Studies and North-west Semitic Languages. FIELD: Bible, Northwest Semitics, and Second Temple Judaism.

CHAIM SEIDLER-FELLERVisiting Lecturer. Director of the Yitzhak Rabin Hillel Center for Jewish Life at UCLA.

SHELLEY SALAMENSKYAssistant Professor of Theater. FIELD: 19th through 21st Century British, European, and Jewish Literature, Drama, Performance, and Culture.

ARIEH SAPOSNIK The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation Chair in Israel Studies in the Department of Near Eastern Languages & Cultures.

JEREMY SMOAK Lecturer in Near Eastern Languages and Cultures.

SARAH ABREVAYA STEIN Maurice Amado Chair in Sephardic Studies. FIELD: Modern Jewish History.

STEVEN SPIEGELProfessor of Political Science. FIELD: American Foreign Policy in the Middle East.

ERIC SUNDQUISTUCLA Foundation Professor of Literature. FIELD: Racial and Ethnic Minorities in American Literature including African-American, Jewish and Post-Holocaust America.

ROGER WALDINGERProfessor of Sociology. FIELD: International Migra-tion, Race and Ethnicity, and Urban Sociology.

JONATHAN M. ZASLOFF Professor of Law. FIELD: Law, Legal Theory, Ethical Treatises of Jewish Tradition, Moral Philosophy, and Jewish History.

Affi liated Jewish Studies Faculty

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VISITING FACULTY 2009-2010

JUSTIN CAMMYVisiting Professor, UCLA/Mellon Program on the Holocaust in American and World Culture (Smith College).

SERGIO DELLAPERGOLAVisiting Viterbi Professor in Mediterranean Jewish Studies (Hebrew University of Jerusalem).

MONICA OSBORNEPost Doctoral Scholar, UCLA/Mellon Program on the Holocaust in American and World Culture.

NAHID PIRNAZARAdjunct Lecturer in Iranian Studies.

SABA SOOMEKHVisiting Professor. (Loyola Marymount University).

BONIMThe “1939” Club

Elie (Mansoor) Alyeshmerni

Maurice Amado Foundation

Estate of Bluma Appel

Casa Sefarad -Israel

Rose & Al Finci

Sheila & Milton Hyman Foundation

Stephen O. Lesser

Natalie R. Limonick Trust

Joy & Jerry Monkarsh

Michael A. Posen Foundation

Resnick Family Foundation, Inc.

Pamela & E. Randol Schoenberg

Shirley & Ralph Shapiro

The Skirball Foundation

Lucille Ellis Simon Foundation

Viterbi Family Foundation

Western States Jewish History Association

CHAVERIMJean & Jay Abarbanel

Dr. Helen M. Adelberg

Dr. David E. Aftergood

Dr. Lilla & Edgar Aftergood

Eve Asner

Gail D. Aspinwall

Danielle Avidan

Jason Axe

Miryam Bachrach

Rolinda Baker

Eva Ballo

Prof. Arnold J. Band

Leah Barshap Family Trust

Sydney H. Bash

Phyllis & Sanford Beim

Melissa & Michael Berenbaum

Dr. Aaron Berman

Martin Bernstein

Anne M. Bodenheimer

Susan & Dr. David S. Boyer

The Brackthorn Foundation

Gertrude & Edward Brownstein

Leo Celniker

Dr. Gregory Charlop

Willard Chotiner

Shelley Ventura & Michael Cohen

Howard Cohen

Lya Cordova-Latta

Liba Feuerstein

Rachel R. Finegood

Nirit H. French

Sylvia & Jules Fried

Rita & Dr. Kenneth Geiger

Dr. Allen S. Gerber

M & H Glaser Family Trust

Cantor Jonathan N. Grant

Abner & Roslyn Goldstine Trust

Melissa Marer & David Gorlick

John L. Gray

Dr. Abraham Havivi

Esther & Dr. Herbert Hecht

Dr. Philip Hollander

Betty E. Kane

Al Finci, Chair“I have attended programs offered by the Center for Jewish Studies at UCLA from its beginnings under founding director, Professor Arnold Band. As the years progressed the Center has continued to excel. The breadth of topics and activities – with the participation of scholars of international renown - is

impressive and the number of courses in Jewish Studies offered to students keeps growing thanks to the Center’s dedicated staff. I encourage you to experience the Center for yourself and join me in supporting its fine work. “

Elaine Lindheim “How exciting to have Professor Sarah Stein as the first Maurice Amado Chair in Sephardic Studies at UCLA! She is a stellar addition to the roster of outstanding faculty associated with the Center for Jew-ish Studies, a place that continues to engage and amaze me with its tremendous range of stimulating, meaningful Jewish scholarship

and programming. I’m proud to be a supporter of all the Center’s activities.”

The UCLA Center for Jewish Studies is grateful to the many individuals, foundations and trusts for their crucial support of our students, faculty and programs. Due to the generosity of our friends, the Center has developed into an exceptionally productive scholarly resource, and is considered to be one of the nation’s busiest and most distinguished centers for Jewish studies.

We would like to acknowledge the following people and organizations for their commitment to the UCLA Center for Jewish Studies for the academic year 2008-2009.

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Executive Committee

Honor Roll 2008 - 2009

Helen & Isaac Kaplan

Margot Katz

Dr. David B. Katzin

Myron Kayton

Dr. Snira L. Klein

Carol Schneiderman-Knee & Howard Knee

Hannah & Marshall Kramer

Evelyn & Dr. Nathan Kravetz

Laura D. Kuper

Marsha & Forrest Latiner

Israel A. Levy

Peachy & Mark Levy

Josefine & Peter Loewenberg

The Markowitz Family Trust

Daniel J. Merritt

Dr. Michael D. Miller

Ruth & Robert Mirvis

Dr. Albert Mizrahi

Esther Kleitman & Dr. Steven Moszkowski

Sondra & Morey Myers

Jamie & Mark Myers

Nomi Stolzenberg & David N. Myers

Irene & Donald Naftulin

Myra & Bruce Newman

Sidney S. Nurkin

Samuel Parnes

The Shearn & Linda Platt Fund

Mary & William Pinkerson

Rabbi Joel E. Rembaum

Dorothy Richards

Adrienne & Robert Ross

Marlene Rotblatt

Barbara & Peter Rothholz

Mico I. Rousso

Carol & The Hon. Marvin D. Rowen

Avram Salkin

Dr. Albert Sattin

Dr. Matthew M. Schneiderman

Leah Schweitzer

Doreen & Rabbi Chaim Seidler-Feller

Betty & Stanley Sheinbaum

Harry C. Sigman

Andrea B. Smith

Merilee & Dr. Zanwil Sperber

Rita Spiegel

Daniel B. Spitzer

Rose & Andrew Steinberg

Arthur & Edith Stern Family Foundation

Phyllis Johnston & Tom Sorter

Lester M. Tint

Lillian & Dr. Charles Trilling

Thomas J. Tugend

Sarita Unger

Glenda E. Urmacher

Naomi Vanek

Dr. Ann E. Walts

The Hon. Henry A. Waxman

Karen & Sanford Weiner

Lillian Weiner

David J. Weiner Foundation

Shirley S. Williamson

Molly Zachariash

Andrew Viterbi, Ph.D.“I am impressed by the quantity and quality of the offerings of the UCLA Center for Jewish Studies, provided both to the students and to the community. I had the pleasure of attending an under-graduate student symposium organized by Professor Federica Francesconi’s class and was surprised at the depth of the

students’ learning and understanding in a short time. Beyond this, I believe that the Center’s emphasis on the impact of historical personages and events on our current world conditions and challenges validates the entire field of study and research.”

Center for Jewish Studies Endowments:

‘1939’ Club Chair in Holocaust Studies

Maurice Amado Chair in Sephardic Studies

Dr. Sigmund & Hermine Frey Scholarship Fund

National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)

Jewish Civilization Endowment

Natalie Limonick Endowment in Jewish Civilization

Joy & Jerry Monkarsh Family Fund

Naftulin Family Lecture on Studies in Jewish Identity

Michael and Irene Ross Chair in Yiddish Language & Culture

Michael and Irene Ross Fund for Yiddish Language Instruction

Sara & Chaskel Roter Research Fund

Jack H. Skirball Fellowship in Modern Jewish Culture

Viterbi Family Program in Mediterranean Jewish Studies

Ruth Watanabe Humanities Journal Fund

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Kerri Steinberg, Ph.D.“I have been truly fortunate to have experienced Jewish Studies at UCLA as both an undergraduate and a graduate student in art history. Now as a member of the Center for Jewish Studies’ Executive Committee, it has been a pleasure to participate in the Center’s public programs and see the range of

applied and pure research in diverse fields of Jewish studies including Jewish history, archival research and visual culture.“

Coming to the Center in Fall 20097:30 pm • Tuesday, October 20, 2009 • FACULTY CENTER

Judah Halevi, Pilgrim and Poet Raymond P. Scheindlin (Jewish Theological Seminary)

Arnold Band Distinguished Lecture in Jewish Studies

7:30 pm • Tuesday, November 3, 2009 • 314 ROYCE HALLParadise Lost and Found

Ariel Sabar (Author)Discussion with the award winning author of

My Father’s Paradise: A Son’s Search for his Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq Followed by a Q&A session with Ariel and his father, Yona Sabar (UCLA)

4 pm • Thursday, November 5, 2009 • FACULTY CENTER

Pius XII and the Holocaust: Some Further Reflections Saul Friedländer (UCLA)

The “1939” Club Lecture in Holocaust Studies

4 pm • Wednesday, December 2, 2009 • FACULTY CENTER

The Parnas: A Scene from the Holocaust in Italy Paul Dry (Publisher)

Viterbi Lecture in Mediterranean Jewish Studies

Prof. Carol BakhosActing Director

Prof. Eric Sundquist Director, UCLA/Mellon Program on the Holocaust in American and World Culture

Vivian Holenbeck Assistant Director

Mary Enid Pinkerson, Ph.D. Community Affairs Coordinator

David WuBusiness and Marketing Coordinator

phone: (310) 825-5387 RSVP line: (310) 267-5327

business hours: Mon - Thur 9am - 12pm, 1pm - 5pm

4 pm • Thursday, October 22, 2009 • FACULTY CENTER

The Talmud in its Iranian Setting Richard Kalmin (Jewish Theological Seminary)

Jason Mokhtarian (UCLA)

Box 951485Los Angeles, CA 90095-1485

www.cjs.ucla.educjs@humnet.ucla.edu