Anna Held was a performer with a flamboyant reputation for bathing in milk and champagne. As an actor in numerous farces, comedies, and musical comedies, she led a life of showmanship that prevents bibliographical certainty. Held was best known for her relationship with Florenz Ziegfeld, and some credit her with helping him create his famous Follies.

Born in Tel Aviv, Ofra Haza was an international singing sensation who performed across Europe, America, and Israel. Known for combining traditional Yemenite music with electronic pop sounds, Haza performed in the film Shlagger and in 1983 she placed second in the Eurovision competition. In 1998 Haza collaborated with many world-renowned artists and performed Naomi Shemer’s “Jerusalem of Gold” at the official ceremony marking Israel’s fiftieth anniversary.

Jennie Goldstein was one of the foremost Yiddish theater tragediennes, beloved by the public and acclaimed by critics for her acting skills and outstanding voice. During the 1940s, as opportunities in the Yiddish theater waned, Goldstein transformed herself into a comedian.

Focusing on difficult roles written for older women, Therese Giehse earned a reputation as a talented actress who brought Bertolt Brecht’s works to life. She co-founded an anti-Nazi literary cabaret called The Peppermill in 1933 and was known for touring successful anti-fascist theaterical works. She had a long collaboration with Brecht and developed a reputation as an “intellectual popular actress.”

Humorous composer Sylvia Fine created unique and influential music in her partnership with Danny Kaye. Fine wrote over 100 songs for Kaye to perform, including the music for The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The Inspector General, and On the Riviera. She taught musical comedy at the University of Southern California and Yale and made philanthropic contributions to universities and Jewish organizations.

The substantial success of many European Jewish women filmmakers attests to their abilities to preserve or imagine what was lost as a community. The films of those born in Central Europe are reflective of the Jewish experience of loss, outsider-ness, and memory; others explore courage and individual acts of resistance during World War II. Western European directors re-tell personal stories of friendship and betrayal in a historical context of Europe without its Jews. A strong body of work from North African-born filmmakers reflects the relationship between Arabs and Jews.

Louise Dresser was a celebrated singer in vaudeville and musical comedy, as well as a star in early motion pictures. Known largely for her rendition of Paul Dresser’s song “My Gal Sal,” she also sang his “On the Banks of the Wabash.” After vaudeville, Louise Dresser found success on Broadway, before moving to Hollywood to star in films opposite Will Rogers. 

Maya Deren pursued an ambitious career as a writer, publishing poetry, essays, and newspaper articles. She was also one of the most important avant-garde filmmakers of her time for her use of experimental editing techniques and her fascination with ecstatic religious dances. In 1946 she used a Guggenheim Fellowship to photograph Haitian dance.

Opera in Israel owes its creation primarily to singer, director, producer, and impresario Edis De Philippe. De Philippe made her New York opera debut in 1935 before performing with the Paris Opera and touring Europe and South America. She then founded the Israel National Opera Company in 1947 and ran it until her death in 1979.

Lili Darvas was an internationally acclaimed actress, known on the stage and screen in Europe and the United States. Born in Budapest in 1902, as an actress Darvas combined the fetching qualities of an ingenue with the depth and mature allure of an experienced woman of the world, which led to her rise to fame in New York, Germany, and Hungary. 

Shoshana Damari’s lush voice and her fusion of Eastern and Western musical aesthetics made her the voice of a generation in Israeli music, recording dozens of albums in her career. She made several movies, was known for her song “Kalaniyot” (Poppies), and was awarded the Israel Prize in 1988 for her contributions to Israeli music and culture.

Vera Caspary was a prolific novelist, playwright, and screenwriter, best-known for her book, Laura, a murder mystery adapted into the 1944 film of the same name, now considered a classic. The female characters in Caspary’s novels and plays are strong, emancipated women, and her own concern with issues of prejudice and class consciousness are reflected in her works.

One of America’s great clowns, Fanny Brice built her career on a Yiddish accent and a flair for zany parody. Brice earned a reputation as a vaudeville star before creating some of her best-loved comedic personae for radio.

Born in San Francisco in 1897, Madeline Brandeis was a noted children’s book author and pioneer filmmaker, who produced films outside the mainstream Hollywood studios. Until her untimely death in 1937, Brandeis traveled the world in search of stories to tell, while aiming the lens of her camera at the lives of her characters.