Tag Archives: Hollywood

Hidden Hollywood: Jorjett Strumme, Ten Years With Elizabeth Taylor

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: October 17, 2018

Jorjett Strumme had a fascinating life and career in Hollywood. I first met Jorjett when I discovered that she worked as an assistant to the great costume designer Helen Rose from 1981-1985, which I wrote about here. Jorjett went on to work with costume designer Nolan Miller from 1982-1985. And then, Jorjett was Personal Assistant […]

Posted in Costume Design, Elizabeth Taylor, Glamour, Helen Rose, Hidden Hollywood, Hollywood, Hollywood Stars, Jorjett Strumme | Also tagged Aaron Spelling, Elizabeth Taylor, Jorjett Strumme, Jose Eber, Nolan Miller, Seaside Oregon, Sydney Guilaroff | 3 Responses

Independence Day: Once Upon A Time Hollywood Loved America

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: July 4, 2018

A long time ago, in a universe far far away, in a place called Hollywood, the movie studios and the actors who flourished in those dream factories, celebrated their love of America and enthusiastically indulged in overt displays of patriotism. L.B. Mayer (b. Lazar Meir) the powerful head of MGM, was a pioneer of the […]

Posted in Ann Blyth, Ava Gardner, Bette Davis, Betty Grable, Debbie Reynolds, Elizabeth Taylor, Helen Twelvetrees, Hollywood, Hollywood Stars, Hollywood Still Photography, Jean Harlow, Joan Crawford, July 4th, Lana Turner, Madge Evans, Marilyn Monroe, Movies, Photography, Rita Hayworth | Also tagged America, Anita Page, Ann Blythe, Ava Gardner, Betty, Betty Compson, Colleen Moore, Debbie Reynolds, Elizabeth Taylor, Helen Twelvetrees, Independence Day, Jean Harlow, Joan Crawford, July 4th, L.B. Mayer, Lana Turner, Leila Hyams, Ma'ayan Ariel, Madge Evans, Marian Marsh, Marilyn Monroe, Mary Doran, Patriotism, Rita Hayworth | 4 Responses

The Tragedy of Hollywood Star Lupe Velez

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: June 5, 2018

The lives of Hollywood stars are too frequently tragic tales of absent fathers, cruelly ambitious mothers, and madly dysfunctional families. Mexican-American actress, Lupe Velez (July 18, 1908 – December 13, 1944) “The Mexican Spitfire” was a beautiful, passionate, emotionally fragile woman best known for a series of 1930’s B movies in which she plays a […]

Posted in Esther Ralston, Hollywood, Lupe Velez, Silent Movies | Also tagged Abortion, Douglas Fairbanks, Esther Ralston, Gary Cooper, Johnny Weissmuller, Lupe Velez, Mexican Spitfire, The Gaucho, Victor Fleming | 2 Responses

Walt Disney: American Dreamer

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: May 7, 2018

Walt Disney was the twentieth century’s prime example of American ingenuity. How did he do it? In this video, Glenn Beck, best-selling author and host of The Glenn Beck Program, explains how Disney became a household name, and how he proved that in America, the only limit to your ambition is your own imagination.

Posted in America, Capitalism, Hollywood | Also tagged Ambition, Animation, Glenn Beck, Walt Disney | 3 Responses

Jew Without a Gun: 25 Years Ago, the LA Riots

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: April 27, 2017

This coming Saturday marks the 25the anniversary of the Los Angeles Riots. Thus, I am republishing my three-part series about the riots of 1992 in which Karen and I and the children were trapped for several frightening hours. We were unarmed, helpless save for our wits. The police were conspicuously absent and the bad guys—frequently […]

Posted in America, Family, Hollywood, Jew Without A Gun, Los Angeles Riots, Second Amendment | Also tagged Democrat Facism, Fidel Lopez, Gun Control, Karen Singer Avrech, LA Riots, LA Riots of '92, Reginald Denny, Robert J. Avrech, Rodney King, Second Amendment | 2 Responses

Anna May Wong Dreams of Becoming a Hollywood Star

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: February 2, 2017

A girl dreamed of movie stardom. Literally dreamed, as she told it years later. “There is a man with short sleeves and a big horn in front of his mouth, shouting, ‘Anna May Wong, now you come downstairs and look like the prince was already approaching — we do a closeup of that!’ … and […]

Posted in Anna May Wong, Hollywood, Hollywood Stars, Hollywood Still Photography, Movies | Also tagged Anna May Wong, Richard Corliss | Leave a comment

Americans Spend More on Taxes Than Food, Clothing, Housing Combined

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: April 7, 2016

As law-abiding citizens, Karen and I collected our tax statements, itemized charitable deductions, carefully listed our business expenses, and sent them to our accountant a few weeks ago. There is a kind of horror that sets in when you are confronted with just how much of your hard-earned income goes to state and federal governments […]

Posted in America, Hollywood, IRS | Also tagged California, Climate Change, taxes | 7 Responses

New Year, Old Hollywood

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: December 31, 2015

Here at Seraphic Secret we try to maintain an optimistic demeanor. However, after seven years of Obama, this becomes increasingly difficult, if not downright impossible. Cognitive dissonance is not our style. IslamoNazis are on the march all across the globe. In Israel, the murder of Jews by IslamoNazis who call themselves Palestinians—a faux nationality invented by […]

Posted in America, Holidays, Hollywood, Hollywood Stars, Hollywood Still Photography, Islam, Islam Denial, Islamic State, Islamic Terror, IslamoNazis, Israel, Movies, Obama Watch | Also tagged Alicia Vikander, Ex Machina, New Years, Rashomon, Stalin, The Big Short, Trumbo, Truth, Waterloo Bridge | 16 Responses

A Hollywood Tale About a Gun-Free Zone

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: November 4, 2015

A few years ago I was talking with a Hollywood friend about guns. She was unhappy that I’m a gun owner. Honest—unlike most lefties—my friend told me that the Second Amendment was “out of date and should no longer be valid.” She wanted guns to be confiscated. “Do you think the gangs in LA or […]

Posted in Gun Control, Hollywood, Second Amendment | Also tagged Buying Guns, Gun Control, Gun Rights, Gun-Free Zones, Guns, Hollwood Liberals, Margaret Thatcher | 18 Responses

Friday Photos: There Ought To Be a Law

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: June 12, 2015

Posted in Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor, Family, Grace Kelly, Hollywood, Hollywood Stars, Hollywood Still Photography, Hollywood: Then and Now, Jean Harlow, Marilyn Monroe, Myrna Loy, Rudolph Valentino | Also tagged Alice Terry, Allan Dwan, Anna Christie, Anthony Perkins, Bernard Herrmann, Blonde Venus, Busby Berkeley, Dorothy Dandridge, Douglas Fairbanks, Exodus, Garbo, Grace Kelly, Herbert Brenon, Jeanne Eagels, Jimmy Stewart, Joanne Woodward, Last Summer, Lielle Meital, Ma'ayan Ariel, Mervyn LeRoy, Orson Welles, Paul Newman, Peter Pan, Rear Window, Red Dust, Robin Hood ('22), Suddenly, Sylvia Sidney, The Day the Earth Stood Still, The Golem, The Letter, The Trial, Theda Bara | 7 Responses

Fay Wray: Beauty and the Beasts, Part III

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: January 10, 2013

In her disarmingly modest, and revealing autobiography, On the Other Hand, film actress Fay Wray (September 15, 1907–August 8, 2004), best known for her role as Ann Darrow in the classic film King Kong, unravels her life in a lovely, impressionist style. As Seraphic Secret wrote in Part I, Wray, a fatherless young beauty from […]

Posted in Fay Wray, Hollywood | Also tagged Hollywood Marriages, John Monk Saunders, King Kong, Robert Riskin | 12 Responses

Hollywood is Burning, or: Jew Without Gun

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: August 17, 2011

In light of yesterday’s post about Jews and guns and the vigorous, articulate comments from our readers I am republishing my three-part series about the LA Riots of 1992 in which Karen and I and the children were caught. We were unarmed. The police were, um, absent, and the bad guys owned the streets. It […]

Posted in Jews & Guns, Los Angeles Riots | Also tagged Guns, Los Angeles, Right to Bear Arms, Rodney King, Straw Dogs | 18 Responses

Mossad Responsible for Norwegian Terrorism

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: August 1, 2011

As Seraphic Secret predicted, the Norwegian massacre is being blamed on Israel by various elements in the Muslim world. Before too long this delusional narrative will gain traction and become another blood libel against the Jewish people set in stone. At this very moment Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad is mowing down his own citizens in […]

Posted in Jihad Watch, Norway | Also tagged Bashar Assad, Blood Libel, Hafez al-Assad, Hama, Human Rights, Miral, Mossad, Norwegian Massacre, Weinstein Brothers | 5 Responses

Lone Stars: Texas and Israel

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: July 10, 2011

Several years ago I visited Texas, researching a film I was writing for a Hollywood studio. I had never been in the Lone Star State before and I did not know what to expect. My guide, a young Texas lady, greeted me warmly at the airport. We chatted amiably in her gigantic Mercedes on the […]

Posted in Israel | Also tagged Jihad, Obama, Texas | 9 Responses

Fourth of July Movie: Raid on Entebbe

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: July 4, 2011

July 4th is Independence Day. It is also the 35th anniversary of the Israeli Raid on Entebbe, July 4, 1976, in which the IDF planned and carried out one of the most audacious, innovative, and courageous rescue operations in military history. To the jihadists America is the Big Satan and Israel is the Little Satan […]

Posted in Fourth of July | Also tagged Edgar J. Scherick, IslamoNazis, Israel, Movies, Raid on Entebbe, Yoni Netanyahu | 9 Responses

Four Movies for the Fourth of July

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: July 3, 2011

Family, friends, backyard barbecue. You’re going to load up on burgers, hot dogs and french fries. Naturally, you will be exhausted from celebrating Independence Day. Time to heave your starch-laden body into a club chair and enjoy some rousing entertainment. Here are Seraphic Secret’s suggestions: four spectacular movies that are uniquely appropriate for this great […]

Posted in Fourth of July | Also tagged Akira Kurosawa, Ava Gardner, George C. Scott, Jeff Daniels, Mel Gibson, Movies, Patton, Seven Samurai, Terrorism, The Crossing, The Patriot | 32 Responses

Michele Bachmann: Israel & The Glamour Quotient

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: June 28, 2011

Michele Bachmann (Republican, MN) is running for the GOP Presidential nomination. Karen and I have long been supporters of Representative Bachmann, proudly contributing to her campaigns. She is the anti-Obama when it comes to fiscal and social policy and especially in regard to America and Israel. Bachman was raised in a conservative Christian home where […]

Posted in Michele Bachmann | Also tagged Glamour, Israel, Jeremiah Wright, Jew-hatred, Obama, Sarah Palin, Vogue | 7 Responses

Haunted Hollywood

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: June 26, 2011

In Seraphic Secret’s move to WordPress last week, this post was, for a while, lost in cyberspace. Due to the kindness and tech know-how of our faithful reader Alter Ben-Zion, we have been able to snatch this blog out of its spectral prison. Alter also sent all the comments and they are included. In 1925, […]

Posted in Joan Crawford | Also tagged Esther Williams, Joan Crawford, MGM, Movies | 21 Responses

Economic Smackdown: Paul Ryan vs. Barack Obama

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: June 20, 2011

Hey, did you know that there’s a statue of Brigitte Bardot in Buzios, Brazil? And what does this have to do with economic theory? It’s just that yesterday Karen and I took a walk in Beverly Hills and we were totally grossed out by a hunk of public sculpture in a bank plaza on Wilshire […]

Posted in Obamacare | Also tagged Ariel, Brigitte Bardot, Economic Freedom, Paul Ryan, Socialism, Yossi Klein Halevi | 6 Responses

Hollywood For Sale

By Robert J. Avrech | Published: June 17, 2011

Tweet Debbie Reynolds The Auction tomorrow, June 18, 2011, is your chance to own a slice of Hollywood history. Hollywood’s Golden Age is over. The great stars exist only as silvery shadows on the screen. But some of the most important movie costumes and props, collected and preserved by actress Debbie Reynolds, are […]

Posted in Debbie Reynolds | Also tagged Auction, Audrey Hepburn, Brigitte Bardot, Charlie Chaplin, Classic Movies, Costume Design, Elizabeth Taylor, Marilyn Monroe, Walter Plunkett | 11 Responses

How I Married Karen

The new book
by Robert J. Avrech

Available in All Major Book Stores

Adobe Digital Edition's version is available through the Lulu store!
About Me
Robert J. Avrech
Los Angeles, California
I'm an Emmy Award winning screenwriter. I'm also an observant Jew, a religious Zionist, a conservative Republican, and a member of the NRA. I've been writing and producing in Hollywood for over twenty-five years. But the focus of my life is my family: my radiant wife, Karen—with whom I have been in love with since I was nine years-old—and my two daughters, who, thankfully, look like Karen. Not too long ago, we had three children. But our son, Ariel, died at the age of twenty-two from cancer. We miss him terribly. We think about him practically every minute of every day. People tell us that time heals, but Karen and I know this is not true. Time grinds away doing its terrible work. Ariel is gone. Yet absence becomes presence.

Ariel Chaim Avrech, ZT'L, May His Righteous Memory be a Blessing.
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Annual Ariel Avrech
Memorial Lectures
Young Israel of Century City
NOTE: Click on video titles inside the thumbnail images, below, to open that video in YouTube

Fifteenth: June 10, 2018
Jackie Danicki: “Confessions of a Convert: A Humbling, Joyful Journey to Judaism.”

Blog Post | Audio: (94 MB)

Fourteenth: June 11, 2017
Daniel Greenfield: “Fighting Anti-Semitism and Defending Israel in the Age of BDS.”

Blog Post | Audio: (100 MB)

Thirteenth: May 22, 2016Ben Shapiro: “How You Can Save Israel”

Blog Post | Audio: (70 MB)

Twelfth: June 7, 2015
Larry Elder: “The New Black Anti-Semitism”

Blog Post | Audio: (100 MB)

Eleventh: June 8, 2014
Michael Medved: “Shifting Alliances: Why Liberals No Longer Reliably Support Israel — And Conservatives Do.”

Blog Post | Audio: (97MB)

Tenth: June 9, 2013
David Horowitz: “The War Against Judaism on the University Campus.”

Blog Post | Audio: (16MB)

Ninth: June 3, 2012
Joel B. Pollak: “The Mainstream Media’s Betrayal of Israel.”

Blog Post | Audio: (15MB)

Eighth: June 5, 2011
Yossi Klein Halevi: “What is Expected of a Survivor People: Lessons My Father Taught Me.”

Blog Post | Audio: (18MB)

Seventh: June 13, 2010
Dennis Prager: “Happiness is a Mitzvah, Not an Emotion.”

Blog Post | Audio: (80MB)

Sixth: June 21, 2009
Rabbi Steven Pruzansky: “Conformity in Jewish Life: Vice, Virtue or Affectation?”

Blog Post | Audio: (64MB)

Fifth: June 15, 2008
Rabbi Dr. Gil S. Perl: “What Was the Rosh Yeshiva Reading: Intellectual Openness in 19th Century Lithuania.”

Blog Post | Audio: (70MB)
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