I feel that in both movies Radio Days and Goodfellas, the family relationship is filled with quarrels and disagreements, but they still stick with each other. I find it interesting, and it is very realistic because this is how a family looks like in real life (like my parents). I also find it interesting that when Joe’s mother (Julie Kavner) says to the father that celebrity get divorce all time but we are together forever (even though they have disagreements all the time). Similarly, in the movie Goodfellas, Henry(Ray Liotta) and Karen (Lorraine Bracco) have quarrels so often and Karen even points a gun right on Henry’s head. However, they still live with each other no matter what happen.

The atmosphere in this film is apparently warmer than the one in Goodfellas. There is no murder in this film except slight domestic violence. Joe is smacked by his parents after they know Joe steals the money from the fund for a Jewish homeland in Palestine; he is also hit by his father after he ruins his mother’s coat. What’s more, we see normal lives in this film, opposite to the risky ones in Goodfellas. The family members are getting along well with each other besides some squabbles sometimes. Joe and his parents often go out and have fun together. For instance, they go to zoo together.

The radio is a tool through which the family connects to the rest of the world. They also get entertainment from the radio. The mother considers the radio as a distraction to Joe, but it is OK for her. Joe’s addiction to the Masked Avenger is understandable. Children always identify themselves with hero, prince, or princess. They tend to be attracted by the fantasy in the radio or other media. Other family members also have their own favorite program. Uncle Abe likes sports channel and his wife likes ventriloquist. Joe’s parents like to hear other normal people’s family issues. Through the radio, they connect themselves to the American culture in different dimension. The radio programs obviously are much more interesting than the traditional religious rituals. They are gradually being influenced by the American culture via the radio. Radio itself is also a represent the American culture. Listening to the radio becomes one of this Jewish family’s habits. The power of radio also disturbs their custom. This is indicated by the scene when this family is having “Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, the holiest day in Judaism, when Jews fast for their sins”, their praying is interrupted by the loud radio of their neighbor (Friedman and Desser 81).  The radio becomes a facilitator that catalyzes this family’s assimilation to American culture.

Other than entertainments, the radio also allows this family to gossip about the celebrities and feel pity for the sad news. For example, they huddle together after they hear sorrow news from the radio about a little girl falling into the well near Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania and unfortunately die.

Overall, a new invention will bring one thing while taking away the other. White getting more Americanized, they also lose some of their Jewish tradition.

Woody Allen is far from conventional—which is precisely why he is one of my favorite film directors. Allen has us huddled around the more technologically advanced campfire, the radio, listening to the nostalgic stories that characterized his childhood. Furthermore, he links every episode that occurs throughout the film to the radio, essentially creating an enormous and complete compound family. Much like the extended family we saw in Goodfellas (1991), Radio Days (1987) creates a communal family of listeners, unified in their pastime and subject to the same influence of their radio-listening neighbors. The ethnic family we were presented with in Goodfellas was certainly more centralized and functioned towards a certain end. In Radio Days, Allen presents us with two ethnic families—the central, nuclear family, that clearly takes on a Jewish-American identity, and the communal family that share in the radio broadcastings. The latter conglomerate is awfully diverse, as various scenes throughout the movie use successive shots to illustrate the many different people listening in on the radio.

The progressive tide of the nation, as it proceeds through history, is captured through the workings of the radio, as related by the omnipotent voice-over narrator, Allen himself. His narration is certainly necessary for the film, and serves as the authority that advances the movie from scene to scene, while also linking together discontinuous portions of the various subplots. The main family, of which Woody belongs to, revolves around the radio. Although the film certainly is biased toward illustrating the importance of the radio, it is astounding to count the number of scenes that are introduced as a result of something heard on the radio, or a motive with links to the radio. Certainly, the character Woody that functions within the realm of the motion picture—his life revolves around the various superhero programs, news reports, even holiday greetings that emanate from the voice box. Each and every character’s life is somehow affected by the radio, from Woody’s creative daydream that his parents belonged on a radio show for couples, to Bea’s obsession with marriage that is characterized by her obsessive dancing (to tunes from the radio), to Abe’s heart attack, brought on as holy retribution for his sin of eating food on Yom Kipper, which resulted from a visit next door to quiet the raucous of the neighboring radio.

While the identity of the nuclear family is well defined through memories linked to the radio, the identity of the nation was likewise defined. The radio united all Americans under its voice—those who listened in for news, radio shows, or simply to celebrate the New Year. The concluding scene, in which the story of a girl trapped in a well interrupted scheduled broadcasting to air live to all American, and the gripping, dedicated response of the listeners, only serves to reinforce the fact that the radio had a unifying effect, much like ethnicity does on the other urban groups we’ve studied this year.

I don’t think it comes as a surprise that one of the key elements of Radio Days (1987) deals with the power of the radio. The series of events in the film unfold through the recollection of different radio programs, songs, and talk shows. Joe’s mind recalls memories with the connection of radio. However, that’s only natural to connect a song with a certain memory. I would like to focus on how the radio has the power to bring folks together in the film, specifically with Joe’s family of course.

The scene that comes to mind first and foremost is the one where Joe’s mother is listening to the radio in the kitchen and the camera pans over to another location where the talk show hosts are living their lives of glamour (5:10). Joe’s family is consistently comparing their lives to those of the people who are on the other side of the radio. I think this is an important aspect of the family’s daily life, because these comparisons are what strike a lot of their discussions in the household. Radio has the power to control discussion.

The next scene that I find extremely interesting connects the family in a totally different way. Even when Joe recalls a radio show that only one of the family members listened to, other members would join in and it would create an occasion. When Joe’s cousin, Ruthie, is dancing to one of her favorite singers, she’s alone in her room, watching herself in the mirror (34:49). However, even though she was the only one that tuned into this show, Joe’s father and uncle, I believe he is, join in with her! This is my favorite scene, because it shows another power of radio. Radio has the power to connect family, even if the show only interests one of them.

Compared to Goodfellas (1990), Radio Days (1987) has a family style that is more genuine. What I mean by this is that the gangsters’ relationship is mainly run by fear. As I watched the film, it was disconcerting to know that violence was such a part of their daily lives. It made me feel that their relationships were artificial to an extent. However, in Radio Days, there is a clear family bond within the house. I think this is completely reasonable though. The idea of gathering around a radio to build relationships seems more realistic than bonding over a good ol’ murder. To throw in my opinion as a conclusion, I think that Radio Days is refreshing, because it shows positive relationships, even when there’s conflict. To end on my favorite scene, I’d like to point out the scene when the parents and the rabbi are arguing over who’s going to spank and discipline Joe (11:57). Even though they’re all hitting the boy, the scene maintains a light and humorous mood, because Joe knows that they mean well.

     Hello there, everyone! How is it going? Spring has finally arrived (yay!). I must say I actually enjoyed watching the film Radio Days because of its witty remarks and how it depicted each character’s viewpoint on a particular topic. When comparing the ethnic family in Goodfellas to that witnessed in Radio Days, we observe some salient differences. For example, in Goodfellas deception, violence, and unfaithfulness described the typical family. When Henry Hill cheats on his wife Karen in Goodfellas, we notice an act of infidelity. Also, the film did not center too much on the family as Radio Days did. I mean we definitely know that Henry tried to support his family, even though done illicitly and that Henry barely interacted with Karen’s family. In fact, Henry lost touch of his own family once he joined the gangster business and primarily focused on his illegal activities. On the other hand, Radio Days displayed a family that was close together. There were certainly problems and minor instances of violence in Joe’s (Seth Green) family, but not as much when compared to the family seen in Goodfellas. For example, we see a genuine family connection when Ruthie’s father and uncle join her in dancing and singing. Also, even though Joe’s father and mother were not too sure why they married each other in the first place, they were always there for one another. The parts of the film where we see the family having dinner together and the father teasing Aunt Bea about her love life reveals to us a close knit family.

In Radio Days, the ubiquitous presence of the radio plays a crucial role in the film. I say this because the radio provides each family member a cathartic release from the daily hassles of life. For instance, the frequent game shows, talks about celebrities, and broadcasts of sports legends allows each family member to open up a little more about how they feel about something. With Joe constantly listening to the radio about the Masked Avenger (secret decoder ring) rather than focusing on schoolwork, tells us the important role the radio played in this family. In addition, the radio was essential in those times because it was an important source of disseminating information to others besides the television. The radio also allowed the family to connect closely to one another. When a young girl named Polly Phelps falls into a well and perishes, families are seen close together feeling the pain of this tragedy vicariously. The father tightly clings onto his son and the depressing environment the radio broadcast generates shows us the profound family bond. In a sense, the radio provides the family with a sense of unity and enables them to express their thoughts better. With the Masked Avenger inspiring Joe, Ruthie dancing to music, and the broadcasting of the affluent and glamorous people on the radio, we can see that the radio has a large impact on this family.

Also, the community seems to be predominantly white and we learn about Joe’s adventures with his friends, his aunt’s desperate attempts to find a suitable partner, and the everyday arguments that occur in family households (especially, the arguments of the father and his wife over trivial matters). Another scene I would like to mention is the one where the mobster kidnaps the celebrity Sally White and takes her to his mother’s house. This scene was reminiscent of the scene in Goodfellas because it described the typical Italian household and Mafia business of violence. I found it interesting how the old woman was petrified when she saw a young woman smooching an African American man in Radio Days. The way she reacted illustrated how surprised she was to see a white woman with a black man. Alas, the shock claimed her life and this scene vaguely gave a racial feel, since it was atypical for a white woman to be with a black man during the 1940s.

Overall, I liked how the family in Radio Days showed support for one another, especially in encouraging Aunt Bea’s hope of finding a decent husband. It was funny how Aunt Bea’s first date left her due to the alien invasion hoax and how the Uncle drastically changed after visiting their neighbor’s house rather than succeeding in getting the neighbors to shut down their music. We see how the radio brings the family together and allows them to express their opinions more thoroughly. I was also glad when Joe finally found out his father’s occupation. What a coincidence! Finally, I enjoyed this movie  because it was comical and was not as solemn as the other movies watched in class.

Please turn on your radios and tune in on station 366.15 for Ebrahim’s Weekly Blogcast, “Talking Films with Ebby.”

Greetings Ladies and Gents!

Happy Spring to all and to all a happy Wednesday. If you’re just tuning in, today we’re going to talk about the film Radio Days by the director Woody Allen. Now last week we saw the intense film Goodfellas. One wouldn’t think an Italian mafia film and a Jewish family who loves the radio film would have anything in common. Well one would be wrong! The two come together through the motif of family. Although family plays a thematic role in both films that doesn’t necessarily mean they use or portray it in the same fashion. Quite the contrary, in Goodfellas the family doesn’t work as a collective group, a united family. Instead it consists of a string of selfish mafia dudes. There is betrayal, murder, etc. all within the family. Now, Radio Days also has some violence within the family and disagreements but they are closer and united compared to Goodfellas. Interestingly, in both films the culture and more importantly, food, bring the family together. In Goodfellas they are always going from one restaurant to another eating yummy spaghetti and meatballs. In Radio Days there were a few scenes of the family sitting together enjoying a meal together. And then there’s Uncle Abe Stole My Name who’s obsessed about fish even though there is the profound rule that fish are friends not food. Then again Uncle Stole My Name hasn’t seen Finding Nemo.

The radio is a magical and powerful device. Don’t believe me? Re-watch this film! Everyone in Joe’s family has their own favorite radio station. It allows them to connect with something, to live another life, to fantasize, to dream, etc. Moreover, as Woody (not the toy cowboy but the narrator) tells us stories about the stars of the radio, it is evident that the radio is also a vessel for the American dream. Miss Sally went from a cigarette vendor to a cigarette buyer (and with way better diction)! In terms of ethnicity and culture, classic Woody Allen doesn’t show that much diversity throughout the film. However, the radio allows Joe and his Jewish family to connect with the ethnic identity of white people as the powerful, elite, and rich.

Lastly, I know this film came out two years before Do The Right Thing but the whole time I kept on wishing Radio Raheem would make a cameo:

This is Ebby A and thank you for listening (ok reading) to “Talking Films with Ebby.” Tune in next week as we talk about my favorite street….Hester Sesame Street!

In both Radio Days and Goodfellas, I felt that the family members were not very kind or loving toward one another. There was a lot of yelling and complaining, and even violence among the family in both films. However, I believe that the difference between the two ethnic families was that in Radio Days, the family members actually cared about each other and couldn’t live without one another, whereas in Goodfellas, the family members betrayed and killed one another. Furthermore, Radio Days’ family was relatively happy with very little money, while the Goodfellas’ ethnic family seemed to be kept in tact largely by their common passion for money. The relationships between the family members in Radio Days and each person’s obsession with something was very interesting and entertaining.

I believe that each member of the family has a favorite radio station because of their own particular view on the American lifestyle and American dream. For example, the mom listens to Irene and Roger, who eat “their elegant breakfast over the air from their chic Manhattan townhouse,” while she stands over “dirty plates in Rockaway.” The radio hosts talk as they are having breakfast, giving the mother a chance to fantasize about the fancy, luxurious lifestyle that wealthy New Yorkers hold. The narrator listens to “The Masked Avenger” in order to fit in with the rest of American children, for it was a time period when comic books were popular. I believe Uncle Abe listens to sports because that’s his interpretation of the American lifestyle, and Aunt B listens to romantic music on the radio, fantasizing about her American dream of having the perfect husband, who would be her soulmate. I believe the radio is a means of each of the family members to feel American and have their own fantasies about being American, although they are limited in many ways. All of them are very far from what they fantasize about–the dish cleaning mother from elegant Irene and Roger, the narrator from the amazing Masked Avenger, the overweight Uncle from sports players, and picky Aunt B from romance and a husband–but they do not stop listening to the radio. Perhaps they still see a possibility, which is the beauty of New York, where anything can happen. Or perhaps they know that their dreams are too far, and all they can do is fantasize about them. I thought that a funny aspect of the film was that scenes of the family members sitting around and fantasizing about their dreams were juxtaposed by the story of Sally, who actually worked to fulfill the American dream, and went from a cigarette girl to one of the New York elites who bought cigarettes from the girls.

Let’s get this straight. I don’t like Woody Allen. At all. Okay, now that that’s off my chest, I’ll get started.

The main difference between Radio Days’ ethnic family and Goodfellas’ ethnic family is the dynamic. The family, whether it’s nuclear or communal, in Goodfellas isn’t exactly what one would call normal. Henry is a gangster with no regard for his family in the most simple of ways. However, Joe’s family in Radio Days is more like a family that you’d see at your local supermarket or even live next door too. The type of family that would argue over the music playing too loud or listening in on a phone call. My theory is that Goodfellas was more so about the communal idea of family than the nuclear one. The film focused more so around Henry and his fellow mobsters than his children or wife. However, Radio Days showed multiple examples of Joe sitting with his family at dinner or talking in their family room. My favorite scene is when Ruthie is dancing in her room and her father and uncle jump in and join her. If that isn’t a beautiful display of family, I don’t know what is. The one thing I did find in common between the two films is the amount of love that each family had for one another. Joe’s parents were constantly trying to better him and have him get a good education. Henry was “working” hard and cutting corners to have money for his family. Even if they’re in completely opposite ways, both families were there to look out for each other through thick and thin.

The radio is so important to every one in the film because it allows them to channel their true identities. Aunt Bea and Joe’s mother love the romantic broadcasts, while Joe loves the Masked Avenger. Uncle Abe likes the sports broadcasts and Aunt Ciel enjoys the ventriloquist. Through the radio, the film expressed the inner thoughts and desires of some characters through the radio broadcasts. The radio is also very important because it is how the people in the film get the news. Everything big or interesting is heard on the radio at the moment it is happening, true or not.

The problem with this film, as well as other Woody Allen films, is that there is no challenge of ethnicity. Every one is white. Sheesh, throw in a little variety.

In both films – Goodfellas (1990) and Radio Days (1987) – the viewer is presented with a close-knit ethnic family that seems to value tradition above all else. In the former film, the ethnic family in question is the Italian mafia. Cooking and eating traditional Italian food – e.g., spaghetti with homemade tomato sauce – and participating in illicit mob activities are the “ethnic” traditions in question. In the latter film, the (nuclear) ethnic family is a Jewish one. Eating the fish Uncle Abe (Josh Mostel) constantly brings home for dinner, celebrating Yom Kippur, and listening to the radio are the traditions they choose to uphold. Regardless of each of their respective set of traditions, though, both families are ethnically close-knit and neither family can be considered “white” – at least, not by Richard Dyer’s definition of the word.

The mafiosos in Goodfellas seem perfectly complacent in their non-whiteness. They do not want to be white, and they do not try to be white – and in the end, when Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) does becomes “white,” it is only out of a desire to preserve his own life rather than any real desire to embrace the values of the “norm.” On the other hand, while the Jewish family is not white, it is clear that they are not entirely committed to their non-whiteness. As the Friedman and Desser article suggests, they don’t fully understand their own traditions, and – as the character of Grandpa (William Magerman) clearly illustrates during his brief conversion to Communism on Yom Kippur – they are easily swayed away from those traditions.

The only thing in which the family’s faith remains unwavering is the radio – a religion unto itself. Used as both diegetic and non-diegetic sound throughout the film, the music and the dialogue that is transmitted through the radio serves both as a “mood-setter” in many of the scenes – e.g., non-diegetic music adds comedy to the actions that are depicted onscreen, such as, in the scene where Joe (portrayed by Seth Green but voiced by Woody Allen) discusses how he associates certain songs with certain memories from his childhood – and as something that adds to the identities of each of the individual characters – i.e., the types of things (popular music, sports, action adventure shows, etc.) the characters like to listen to on the radio define who they are.

Most importantly, though, the radio serves as a way into “whiteness” (or pseudo-whiteness, if you will) for the family. Maybe they cannot truly be white, but by tuning in every morning to shows like “Breakfast with Roger and Irene,” they can at least pretend to be. They can pretend that they don’t actually live in a cramped house, and that they are also at the fancy New Year’s Eve celebration. They can pretend that success stories like Sally White’s (Mia Farrow) are not as uncommon as they seem – that anyone can drop their vulgar New York accent, learn how to enunciate their “R’s,” and become a radio star. By tuning into the radio, the family can also connect itself to the people who are listening in the broader community and imagine that, despite the family’s ethnic identity, these people accept them as well. The radio offers hope.

In Woody Allen’s Radio Days the radio acts as a unifying force that brings together families, communities, and the world.  One scene that I immediately recognized as showing this connection perfectly is the scene where everyone is listening to the emergency radio broadcast about the girl who fell into a well and people were trying to rescue her.  Everyone came together to listen attentively and hope that the little girl was alright.  There was a common thought, feeling, and expression among all of these people from all different places.  Though they probably did not know each other, they were connected in their well wishing for a good outcome for this tragic event.  This connection was also evident throughout the film in the connection between the working class Jewish family from Rockaway and the rich and elegant people in Manhattan who’s lives were on the radio.  The radio formed a link between these two unrelated groups of people who probably would not otherwise be connected are now linked and crucial to each other’s lives: without the listeners, the radio stars would not have a job, and without the radio stars, the listeners would be deprived of a thing that brings so much joy and enrichment to, and a needed escape from, their lives.

There are some key similarities and differences between the “families” depicted in Radio Days and Goodfellas.  They are both a very close family that spends a lot of time talking to and associating with each other.  They are also very deeply set in tradition and culture.  Ethnicity and culture is very important to the mafia family portrayed in Goodfellas, as they only allow full Italians to rise higher within the family and live a life of privilege and highly value “respect.”  While these norms are often associated with Italian-ness, I don’t necessarily believe that they are completely representative of an global ethnicity, but rather just part of an individual constructed culture.  I think this is similar dynamic in Radio Days.  The family’s idea of family and tradition and how they interact could be classified as stereotypically Jewish, but I think that it is more than that.  While they are tight knit and told ethnic traditions such as fasting on holy days dear, they can bend their ideas to fit situations.  For example, while they are fasting, the father goes over to the “communist” neighbors who are listening to the radio and ends up being convinced to eat non-kosher food and break the fast.  However, I think that the family in Radio Days is different because even though they sometimes go away from tradition, they always seem to return, as this man is suddenly plagued by intense heartburn after talking to his family about what he has done.  Though the child steals from the collection can, he is reprimanded and punished by his parents and the rabbi. The culture and environment in which this family lives is molded by both the radio culture that they depend on as an escape from their mundane lives and the culture of the New York that they exist in.