This is the Borscht Belt: Resorts of the Jewish Catskills

Ninety years ago, Jewish resorts, large and small, started popping up in the Catskills an hour and a half from New York City. By the 1950s, over a million Jewish New Yorkers were flocking to the likes of Grossinger’s, Kutscher’s, the Concord and the Nevele to partake in the first “all-inclusive” vacations, where guests could get three Kosher meals a day, entertainment, childcare, and sports facilities, not to mention a knish to die for. Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Rodney Dangerfield, Woody Allen, and Jerry Seinfeld were just a few of the first-rate entertainers who made the rounds of the hotels. These institutions of the “Jewish Catskills” allowed Jews to become more American, while also introducing the American public to immigrant Jewish culture. Join our star storyteller, Justin Ferate, as we sing, dance, hike, play mahjong, kvetch and cavort through the long-lost memories of this singular experience.