The Catskills

Our return to the Catskills prompted us to bring in several of the most renowned scholars of this history rich region. Our old friend Phil Brown, director of the Catskill Institute, joins us again to share his knowledge and insights and, in a set of parallel lectures, we welcome KlezKamp newcomer author/historian Irwin Richman.

Phil Brown/AM1

1. The Origins and History of the Jewish Catskills (Wednesday)
   This is an overview of the history of the Catskills — from the farms and boarding houses at the turn of the 20th century through the kuchaleyns, bungalow colonies, and hotels — and their great significance in American Jewish life.
2. Hotel Culture (Thursday)
   This session presents a walk-through of the daily life in a Catskills hotel, tracing the course of a day in the eyes of workers, guests, and owners. This session also includes a reading of Phil’s story “The Make-Believe Hotel.”
3. Memorialization (Friday)
   This session explores the ways people remember and memorialize the Catskills, including personal searches for friends and family, and reunions of hotels, bungalow colonies, and summer camps. Class concludes with a discussion of why the Catskills continues to resonate so powerfully.
4. Catskill Memories (Sunday)
   Irwin Richman and Phil Brown co-host a wrap-up of the week by inviting KlezKampers to share memories of their hotel/bungalow colony/summer camp Catskills experiences.

Phil Brown/AM2

1. Writing the Catskills: Portrayals in Novels and Short Stories (Wednesday)
   This session looks at how writers have treated the Catskills, covering nearly a century of fiction. For a complete reading list of works to be discussed in class, see above.
2. Showtime in the Casino: Entertainment in the Catskills (Thursday)
   This class examines that aspect of Catskills culture that became mainstream, including professional comics and singers, amateur entertainment such as guest talent shows and mock weddings, as well as sports and Latin music.
3. Hollywood in the Catskills: Portrayals in Feature Films (Friday)
   This class will explore the way four feature films have dealt with the Catskills: “Marjorie Morningstar,” “Dirty Dancing,” “Sweet Lorraine,” and “A Walk on the Moon.” This session will include clips from the films discussed; the full films will be shown in PM2 (see below).
4. Culture, Yiddishkayt, and Politics in the Catskills (Sunday)
   This session will examine a variety of specialized cultural aspects of the Catskills, such as Yiddishist bungalow colonies; leftist, union, and progressive hotels, where activists like Paul Robeson sang; and local farmer coops, fire insurance coops, Workmen’s Circle branches, and labor Zionist camps. Other topics include labor organizing in the hotels, and Catskill residents’ support for the Rosenbergs, the Peekskill rally, and the Henry Wallace campaign.

Irwin Richman/PM1

1. The Catskills in Art and Literature
   An overview of the Catskill region, with emphasis on the 18th century writings of Washington Irving and the works of the Hudson River School artists including Thomas Cole, Frederick Church, and Jasper Cropsey.
2. Catskill Hotels
   To know the story of the Catskills is to know the stories of its many hotels. Topics will include: “The Northern Catskills,” “Castles on the Mountaintops,” and the “Silver and Golden Ages of Sullivan County.”
3. The Bungalow Colonies, “Kuchaleyns”
   The bungalow colony of old, the “kuchaleyn” (literally: “Cook it yourself!”) was the quintessential do-it-yourself Borscht Belt resort. Learn about the rise and demi-demise (they still thrive among the Ultra-Orthodox today) of this most egalitarian of leisure venues.
4. Catskill Home Movies
   The jittery, faded old 8mm home movies of Catskill vacationers can now tell us more about that time than anyone could then have imagined. Irwin Richman will screen, and together, participants will ponder the meaning and interpretation of these rare, funny, sweet and evocative home movies.

Hollywood in the Catskills: The Films/PM2

For those who are planning to attend Phil Brown’s afternoon session on Friday, and for who would just enjoy sitting back and watching a film, we will be screening the following during the PM2 period:

1. Marjorie Morningstar (Wednesday) – Please note: this film will extend about half an hour into the Forshpayz period.
2. Dirty Dancing (Thursday)
3. Sweet Lorraine (Saturday)
4. A Walk on the Moon (Sunday)

Suggested Readings

	Boris, Martin	Woodridge, 1946
	Brown, Phil	Catskill Culture (Temple)
	Cahan, Abraham	The Rise of David Levinsky
	Calisher , Hortense	"Old Stock"
	Goodman, Allegra	Kaaterskill Falls
	Jacobs, Harvey	Summer on a Mountain of Spices
	Kay, Terry	Shadow Song
	Offit, Sidney	He Had it Made
	Pollack, Eileen	Paradise, New York
		The Rabbi in the Attic
	Richman, Irwin	Catskill Hotels (Arcadia)
		Sullivan County Borscht Belt (Arcadia)
		Borscht Belt Bungalows (Temple)
	Rosenbaum, Thane	"Bingo by the Bungalow"
	Sandberg, Sarah	Mama Made Minks
	Singer, Isaac Bashevis	"Enemies: A Love Story"
		"The Yearning Heifer.
	Stern, Steve	"The Wedding Jester"
	Wallenrod, Reuben	Dusk in the Catskills
	Wouk, Herman	Marjorie Morningstar