List of Jewish American entertainers

List of Jewish American entertainers

This is a list of famous Jewish American entertainers. For other famous Jewish Americans, see List of Jewish Americans.

Comedians

• Bud Abbott, half of Abbott & Costello (Jewish mother)
• Woody Allen, comedian, director, actor
• Morey Amsterdam, comedian, actor
• Gregg Asch, comedian, humanitarian
• Dave Attell, comedian
• Ike Barenholtz, comedian, cast member of 'MADtv'
• Roseanne Barr, comedian
• Jack Benny, entertainer
• Milton Berle, entertainer, actor
• Shelley Berman, comedian
• Sandra Bernhard, comedian
• Lewis Black, comedian
• Victor Borge, comedian, pianist
• Fanny Brice, entertainer
• Albert Brooks, comedian, actor
• Mel Brooks, comedian
• Lenny Bruce, comedian
• George Burns, entertainer, actor
• Red Buttons, comedian, actor
• Eddie Cantor, entertainer, actor
• Sid Caesar, actor, writer
• Andrew Dice Clay, comedian
• Myron Cohen, comedian
• David Cross, comedian, actor
• Billy Crystal,comedian, actor
• Rodney Dangerfield, comedian
• Larry David, comedian
• Larry Fine, the Three Stooges
• Al Franken, comedian, activist
• Elon Gold, comedian, actor
• Judy Gold, comedienne
• Gilbert Gottfried, comedian, actor
• Shecky Greene, comedian
• Charles Grodin, comedian, actor
• Buddy Hackett, comedian
• Moe, Shemp & Curly Howard, the Three Stooges
• George Jessel, comedian
• Al Jolson, comedian
• Mickey Katz, comedian
• Andy Kaufman, comedian, actor
• Danny Kaye, entertainer, actor
• Alan King, comedian
• Robert Klein, comedian
• Tom Lehrer, satirist, musician
• Oscar Levant, comedian
• Jerry Lewis, comedian, actor
• Richard Lewis, comedian
• Marc Maron, comedian, radio host
• The Marx Brothers, (Chico, Harpo, Groucho, Gummo), comedians
• Jackie Mason, comedian
• Anne Meara, comedienne, actress
• Lorne Michaels, creator of Saturday Night Live
• Freddie Prinze, comedian, actor (Jewish father)
• Gilda Radner, comic actress
• Carl Reiner, comedian, actor
• Paul Reiser, comedian, actor
• Don Rickles, comedian, actor
• Joan Rivers, comedienne
• Rita Rudner, comedian
• Adam Sandler, comedian, actor
• Robert Schimmel, comedian
• Jerry Seinfeld, comedian, actor
• Al Shean, comedian, actor
• Allan Sherman, satirist, musician
• Pauly Shore, comedian
• Steve Bernard Cohen, comedian
• Sarah Silverman, comic
• Jason Sklar and Randy Sklar, comedians, hosts of Cheap Seats
• Jon Stewart, comic, TV host
• Ben Stiller, actor, comedian
• Barbra Streisand, comedian
• Rich Vos, Comic
• Henny Youngman, comedian

Dance

Persons listed with a double asteriks (**) are winners of the Tony Award for Best Choreography.

• Paula Abdul, dancer, choreographer, singer
• Michael Bennett, choreographer (Jewish mother) **
• Josephine Earp, wife of Wyatt Earp
• Eliot Feld, dancer and choreographer
• Ron Field, choreographer **
• Michael Kidd, choreographer **
• Lincoln Kirstein, dance impressario
• Bella Lewitzky, dancer, choreograher, & teacher
• Arthur Murray, dance instructor
• Jerome Robbins, choreographer **
• Anna Sokolow, dancer & choreographer

Film directors

• Jack Abramoff, Former president of Regency Entertainment Group, producing such movies as Red Scorpion
• Jim Abrahams, parody director
• J.J. Abrams, writer and director
• Woody Allen, Oscar-winning director, actor, screenwriter and musician
• Jack Arnold, director
• Darren Aronofsky, director
• George Axelrod, director, producer and screenwriter
• Ralph Bakshi, Israeli-born animation film director
• Bob Balaban, director and producer
• Andrew Bergman, director
• Curtis Bernhardt, German-born director and producer
• Peter Bogdanovich, director (Jewish mother)
• James L. Brooks, Oscar-winning director, producer
• Mel Brooks, director, actor and producer (also see Comedians, qv)
• Richard Brooks, director
• William Castle, director
• Ethan & Joel Coen, directors, screenwriters & producers
• Rob Cohen, director, producer
• Ricardo Cortez, director and actor; brother of Stanley Cortez
• George Cukor, Oscar-winning director
• Michael Curtiz, Oscar-winning director
• Paul Czinner, Hungarian-born director
• Jules Dassin, director
• Andrew Davis, director
• Cecil B. DeMille, director (Jewish mother, raised Episcopalian)
• Maya Deren, director
• Henri Diamant-Berger, French-born director, producer and screenwriter
• William Dieterle, director
• Stanley Donen, director, choreographer
• Richard Elfman, director
• Nora Ephron, director
• Richard Fleischer, director; son of animator Max Fleischer
• Carl Foreman, director, producer and screenwriter
• Milos Forman, Oscar-winning director (Jewish father)
• John Frankenheimer, director (Jewish father)
• William Friedkin, Oscar-winning director
• Samuel Fuller, director
• Charles Guggenheim, Oscar-winning documentary director
• Todd Haynes, director (Jewish mother)
• Amy Heckerling, director
• Peter Hyams, director
• Spike Jonze, director
• Phil Karlson, director (Jewish father)
• Garson Kanin, director, screenwriter and playwright
• Lawrence Kasdan, director
• Jeffrey Katzenberg, producer and director
• Philip Kaufman, director, screenwriter
• Irvin Kershner, director
• Zalman King, director
• Harmony Korine, director, screenwriter (Jewish father)
• Henry Koster, director
• Stanley Kramer, director
• Stanley Kubrick, director
• John Landis, director
• Fritz Lang, Austrian-born director (Jewish mother, raised Catholic)
• Norman Lear, director, producer and screenwriter
• Mimi Leder, director
• Mervyn LeRoy, director and producer
• Richard Lester, director
• Barry Levinson, Oscar-winning director
• Jerry Lewis, director, comic actor and producer
• Joseph H. Lewis, director
• Anatole Litvak, Russian-born director
• Siegmund Lubin, director
• Ernst Lubitsch, director
• Sidney Lumet, director
• Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Oscar-winning director
• Tom Mankiewicz, director and screenwriter; son of Joseph L. Mankiewicz
• Daniel Mann, director
• Michael Mann, director
• Stuart Margolin, director and actor
• Elaine May, director, actress and screenwriter
• Paul Mazursky, director, producer and screenwriter
• Albert & David Maysles, documentary filmmakers
• Nancy Meyers, director, screenwriter
• Lewis Milestone, Oscar-winning director
• Bennett Miller, Oscar-nominated director ("Capote")
• Paul Newman, director, actor and producer (Jewish father)
• Mike Nichols, Oscar-winning director
• Leonard Nimoy, actor and director
• Marcel Ophüls, director; son of director Max Ophüls
• Richard Oswald, German-born director and producer
• Frank Oz, director (Jewish father)
• Alan J. Pakula, Oscar-winning director, producer
• Norman Panama, director, producer and screenwriter
• Arthur Penn, director
• Leo Penn, director
• Abraham Polonsky, director
• Sydney Pollack, Oscar-winning director, actor, producer
• Otto Preminger, director
• Sam Raimi, director
• Harold Ramis, director
• Brett Ratner, director
• Carl Reiner, director and actor; father of Rob Reiner
• Rob Reiner, director, actor
• Martin Ritt, director
• Jay Roach, director
• Jerome Robbins, Oscar-winning director, choreographer
• Herbert Ross, director
• Robert Rossen, director, screenwriter
• Joe Roth, director, producer and executive
• David O. Russell, director, screenwriter (Jewish father)
• Joel Schumacher, director
• Susan Seidelman, director
• Adam Shankman, director, choreographer
• George Sidney, director
• Don Siegel, director
• Frank Silvera, founder of Theatre of Being (Jewish father)
• Bryan Singer, director
• Robert Siodmak, German-born director
• Todd Solondz, director
• Barry Sonnenfeld, director
• Steven Spielberg, Oscar-winning director, producer
• Josef von Sternberg, Austrian-born director (M; Metropolis)
• Oliver Stone, Oscar-winning director (Jewish father)
• Paul Strand, documentary director
• Barbra Streisand, director, actress and singer
• Joseph Strick, director, producer and screenwriter
• Erich von Stroheim, director, actor
• James Toback, director, screenwriter and producer
• Edgar G. Ulmer, director
• Paul & Chris Weitz, directors
• Billy Wilder, Austrian-born Oscar-winning director, screenwriter and producer
• Irwin Winkler, director
• Frederick Wiseman, documentary director
• William Wyler, Oscar-winning director
• Boaz Yakin, director
• Fred Zinnemann, Austrian-born Oscar-winning director
• David Zucker & Jerry Zucker, parody directors, producers
• Edward Zwick, director, producer
• Terry Zwigoff, director

Magicians

• David Blaine, stunt performer (Jewish single mother)
• David Copperfield, illusionist
• Harry Houdini, escape artist
• Max Maven, mentalist
• Ricky Jay, card tricks
• Shari Lewis, ventriloquist
• (Raymond) Teller , half of Penn and Teller (Jewish father)

Models and beauties

• Hannah Aronshtein, American performer
• Barbi Benton, American model, actress
• Jeremy Bloom, model, Olympic skier
• Caprice Bourret, American model
• Brooke Burke [1] "Brooke Burke (whose mother is Jewish), will spiel about how hip it is to be Jewish..."
• Cindy Margolis, American model
• Bess Myerson, Miss America 1945
• Simon Rex, American model, actor, MTV VJ
• Lindsey Vuolo, American model
• Nikki Schieler Ziering, American model and actress

Producers and creators (film and television)

• Irwin Allen, producer & director
• Judd Apatow, screenwriter
• Samuel Z. Arkoff, film producer
• George Axelrod, screenwriter
• David Benioff, screenwriter
• Steven Bochco, creator of LA Law, Murder One
• Jerry Bruckheimer, producer
• James Burrows, director Will and Grace , Laverne & Shirley , created Cheers
• Paddy Chayefsky, screenwriter
• Bruce Cohen, Oscar-winning producer
• Norman Corwin, radio writer, producer
• David Crane, screenwriter, producer, co-creator of Friends
• Robert Evans, producer, studio executive, produced The Godfather
• Lowell Ganz, writer, producer on The Odd Couple, Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley , screenwriter for Parenthood, City Slickers, A League of Their Own
• William Goetz, producer
• Leonard Goldberg, producer
• Akiva Goldsman, Oscar-winning screenwriter, producer
• Carl Gottlieb, screenwriter
• Ben Hecht, screenwriter
• Don Hewitt, executive producer of 60 minutes
• Mitchell Hurwitz, executive producer and creator of Arrested Development
• Lawrence Kasdan, screenwriter and director
• Jeffrey Katzenberg, producer
• Marta Kauffman, producer, screenwriter, co-creator of Friends
• Charlie Kaufman, screenwriter
• David Kohan, executive producer of Will & Grace, Good Morning Miami, Twins, Four Kings, screenwriter of The Wonder Years
• Jenji Kohan, screenwriter, creator of Weeds
• Ernest Lehman, screenwriter
• Bill Maher, creator and host of "Real Time" (Jewish mother, raised Catholic; agnostic)
• Max Mutchnick, executive producer of Will & Grace, Good Morning Miami, Twins, Four Kings, screenwriter of The Wonder Years
• Marc Platt, producer
• Sydney Pollack, Oscar-winning director
• Nikki Reed [2] "“You know, they’re both Jewish,” says the director of Nikki, who portrays Evie, and co-star Evan Rachel Wood, who plays Tracy... What Nikki didn’t do was have a Bat Mitzvah, although her brother had his religious rite of passage. “She grew up in an atmosphere where her father showed a lot of interest in being Jewish. She grew up knowing about Jewish folk dances." [3] "Nikki is Jewish on her dad’s side and Cherokee-Italian on her mother’s." [4]
• Carl Reiner, comedian, creator of The Dick Van Dyke Show
• Joe Roth, film producer, director
• Leon Schlesinger, producer
• Josh Schwartz, screenwriter, creator of The OC
• Sherwood Schwartz, creator of Gilligan's Island, Brady Bunch
• David Selznick, producer
• Rod Serling, creator of The Twilight Zone
• Amy Sherman-Palladino, writer for Gilmore Girls, Over the Top, Veronica’s Closet, Love and Marriage, Roseanne, director for and creator of Gilmore Girls
• Joel Silver, producer and co-inventor of Ultimate Frisbee
• Aaron Sorkin, creator of West Wing
• Aaron Spelling, producer, Starsky & Hutch, Charlie's Angels, Beverly Hills, 90210, Vega$, Family, Dynasty, Melrose Place, Charmed, 7th Heaven, Summerland
• Darren Star, creator of Beverly Hills 90210, Melrose Place, Sex and the City
• Matt Stone, creator of South Park (Jewish mother)
• Irving Thalberg, Oscar-winning producer

Professional Wrestlers

• Bill Goldberg, wrestler, WWE, WCW
• Paul Heyman, wrestler, manager, ECW, WWF/WWE, WCW
• Barry Horowitz, wrestler, WWF, WCW
• Scott Levy, wrestler, ECW, WCW, WWE, TNA
• Dallas Page, wrestler, WCW, WWF
• Dean Simon, wrestler, ECW, WCW, WWF

TV and radio presenters

• Dan Abrams, MSNBC anchor
• Marv Albert, sportscaster
• Mel Allen, radio sportscaster
• Chuck Barris, presenter of Dating Game, Gong Show
• Wolf Blitzer, CNN reporter
• Kitty Carlisle, panelist on To Tell the Truth, arts advocate
• Connie Chung, news anchor (converted)
• Liz Claman, host of CNBC Morning Call
• Howard Cosell, sportscaster
• Katie Couric, presenter of The Today Show (Jewish mother)
• Jim Cramer, tv reporter
• Don Francisco, presenter of Sabado Gigante
• Joe Frank, radio personality
• Allen Funt, presenter of Candid Camera
• Ira Glass, presenter of This American Life
• Amy Goodman, presenter of Democracy Now
• Daryn Kagan, host of CNN Live Today
• Larry King, CNN reporter, host of Larry King Live
• Ted Koppel, presenter of Nightline
• Ricki Lake, presenter of Ricki
• Dave Lieberman, presenter of Good Deal with Dave Lieberman
• Bill Maher, ex-presenter of Politically Incorrect (Jewish mother, raised Catholic, agnostic)
• Al Michaels, sportscaster
• Bill Nye, presenter of Bill Nye, the Science Guy
• Maury Povich, talk-show host
• Geraldo Rivera, news reporter (Jewish mother)
• Michael Savage, KNEW radio host
• Laura Schlessinger, radio talk-show host of Dr. Laura
• Daniel Schorr, tv reporter
• Elliot Segal, host of popular radio show, Elliot in the Morning
• Dinah Shore, television host, singer
• Richard Simmons, fitness guru, host of Lighten Up with Richard Simmons
• Dave Spector, personality and commentator
• Herb Stempel, quiz show contestant
• Bill Stern, radio sportscaster
• Howard Stern, radio shock jock
• Jon Stewart, comedian, presenter of The Daily Show
• Mike Wallace, correspondent for 60 Minutes
• Barbara Walters, presenter of Today Show, 20/20

Theater

Persons listed with a double asteriks (**) are producers who have won the Tony Award for Best Musical and/or the Tony Award for Best Play. Those listed with a triple asteriks (***) have won the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical and/or Play. Those listed with a quadruple asteriks (****) have won the Tony Award for Best Actor or Best Actress in a Musical or Play.

• Jacob Pavlovitch Adler, actor
• Bud Abbott, actor (Jewish mother)
• Stella Adler, acting teacher & actress
• Woody Allen, actor
• Herb Alpert, producer *
• Morey Amsterdam, actor
• Boris Aronson, set designer, costume designer and lighting designer
• George Axelrod, producer & director
• Shoshana Bean, actress
• Julian Beck & Judith Malina, founders of Living Theatre
• David Belasco, producer & director
• Michael Bennett, director & producer (Jewish mother) **
• Jack Benny, actor
• Milton Berle, producer & actor
• Shelley Berman, actress
• Sarah Bernhardt, legendary French thespian (Jewish mother)
• Theodore Bikel, actor
• Rudolf Bing, opera impresario
• Victor Borge, actor & writer
• Fanny Brice, actress
• Mel Brooks, producer **
• Abe Burrows, director ***
• Red Buttons, actor
• George Burns, actor
• Sid Caesar, actor
• Eddie Cantor, actor & producer
• Kitty Carlisle, actress
• Joseph Chaikin & Peter Feldman, founders of Open Theatre
• Paddy Chayefsky, director
• Heinrich Conried, theatre owner/operator & producer
• Norman Corwin, director
• Billy Crystal, actor & writer
• Rodney Dangerfield, actor
• Clive Davis, producer
• Sammy Davis, Jr., actor (convert)
• Robert Evans, actor
• Cy Feuer, producer, director & theatre owner/operator **
• Ron Field, director ***
• Larry Fine, actor
• David Geffen, producer **
• Leonard Goldberg, producer
• Gilbert Gottfried, actor
• Charles Grodin, producer, director & actor
• Buddy Hackett, actor & producer
• Arthur Hammerstein, producer & director (uncle of Oscar Hammerstein II)
• Oscar Hammerstein I, producer & theater director/operator (grandfather of Oscar Hammerstein II)
• Oscar Hammerstein II, producer & director
• Ben Hecht, director
• Anna Held, stage performer
• Curly Howard, actor
• Moe Howard, actor
• Shemp Howard, actor
• Sidney Howard, producer & director
• George Jessel, producer and actor
• Al Jolson, performer & producer
• Mickey Katz, actor & director
• Andy Kaufman, actor
• George S. Kaufman, producer, director, and theater owner/operator
• Danny Kaye, actor
• Larry Kert, actor & singer
• Michael Kidd, director & producer
• Alan King, actor & producer
• Robert Klein, actor
• Richard Kline, actor
• Lisa Kron, actress
• Judy Kuhn, actress & singer
• Bert Lahr, actor ****
• James Lapine, director & librettist
• Norman Lear, producer
• Ernest Lehman, producer
• Sam Levene, director & actor
• Jerry Lewis, actor
• Judith Light, actress
• Lucille Lortel, Off-Broadway producer, Lucille Lortel Theatre named after her
• Craig Lucas, actor
• Joshua Malina, actor
• Ross Martin, actor
• The Marx Brothers, (Chico, Harpo, Groucho, Gummo), actors
• Jackie Mason, actor
• Sanford Meisner, founder of Neighbourhood Playhouse
• Ed Metzger, actor and writer
• Idina Menzel, actress, singer & songwriter
• David Merrick, producer & director **
• Lorne Michaels, producer & director
• Arthur Miller, playwright
• Mitch Miller, producer
• Minskoff family, producers & theater owners
• Isaac Mizrahi, costume designer
• Howard Morris, actor
• Zero Mostel, actor ****
• Alla Nazimova, actress
• Nederlander family, producers & theater owners **
• Bebe Neuwirth, actress ****
• Mike Nichols, producer & director **, ***
• Joseph Papp a.k.a Joe Papp, founded the non-profit NYC Public Theater **
• Adam Pascal, actor
• Mandy Patinkin, actor & singer ****
• Jan Peerce, actor
• Marc Platt, producer
• Sydney Pollack, actor
• Harold Prince, director **, ***
• Gilda Radner, actress
• Tony Randall, actor, founder of National Actors Theatre
• Carl Reiner, director & actor
• Rob Reiner, actor
• Max Reinhardt, director
• Elmer Rice, director & producer
• Joan Rivers, actress & writer
• Jerome Robbins, producer & director ***
• Edward G. Robinson, actor & playwright
• Billy Rose, director, producer, & theater operator
• Rita Rudner, actress
• Morrie Ryskind, director
• Rebecca Schull, actress
• Maurice Schwartz, producer, director and actor
• Jerry Seinfeld, actor & writer
• Wallace Shawn, actor
• Al Shean, actor
• Shubert family, producers & theater owners **
• Leigh Silverman, director
• Anna Sokolow, director
• Ben Stiller, actor
• Jerry Stiller, actor
• Lee Strasberg & Harold Clurman, co-founders of Group Theatre
• Barbra Streisand, actress
• Julie Taymor, director ***
• Bessie Thomashefsky, actress
• Boris Thomashefsky, actor
• Sophie Tucker, actress
• Mike Wallace, actor
• Barbara Walters, actress
• Lesley Ann Warren, actress
• Steven Weber, actor
• Bob Weinstein, producer
• Harvey Weinstein, producer
• Barry Weissler, producer
• Fran Weissler, producer
• Louis Wolheim, actor
• Ed Wynn, producer, director, actor, and librettist
• Henny Youngman, actor
• Harris Yulin, actor
• Florenz Ziegfeld, director and producer
• Efrem Zimbalist Jr., actor and producer
• David Zippel, director

Donate to Wikimedia