Max Wallace will give a lively presentation about the Yiddish legacy of MICKEY KATZ, the great musician and humorist whose musical parodies helped keep Yiddish culture alive in America at a time when it was under siege from assimilation and snobbery. Today, Katz is best known as the father of Oscar-winning actor Joel Grey and the grandfather of Dirty Dancing star Jennifer Grey but at one time he was the undisputed superstar of Jewish radio and widely beloved by many gentiles.

WALLACE is a New York Times-bestselling author and Gemini-nominated filmmaker. His feature documentary Schmelvis, about the Jewish roots of Elvis Presley, was the opening gala film at the 2003 Toronto Jewish Film Festival. His book Muhammad Ali's Greatest Fight, about Ali's battle with the US government over the Vietnam War, was turned into a Hollywood film directed by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Stephen Frears. His newest book, In the Name of Humanity, The Secret Deal to end the Holocaust, will be published by Penguin Random House next month. Most recently, Max spearheaded UJPO's new Yiddish-oriented choir, Zing! Zing! Zing!