Cantor Rabinowitz wants his 13-year-old son, Jacob "Jakie" Rabinowitz, to carry on the generations-old family tradition and become a cantor at … See more

• "My Gal Sal" (music and lyrics by Paul Dresser; dubbed by unknown singer with Bobby Gordon onscreen)
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Concept and development
On April 25, 1917, Samson Raphaelson, a native of New York City's Lower East Side and a University of Illinois undergraduate, attended a … See more

The film developed into a major hit, demonstrating the profit potential of feature-length "talkies", but Donald Crafton has shown that the reputation the film later acquired … See more

• Al Jolson as Jacob “Jakie” Rabinowitz (Jack Robin), Son of Cantor Rabinowitz and Sara Rabinowitz, and a singer of jazz
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The premiere occurred on October 6, 1927, at Warner Bros.' flagship theater in New York City. In keeping with the film's theme of a conflict within a Jewish family, the film premiered after sunset on the eve of the Yom Kippur holiday. The buildup to the premiere was … See more

Jack Robin's use of blackface in his Broadway stage act—a common practice at the time, which is now widely condemned as … See more