Yoo-hoo, Mrs. Goldberg (2009)

Synopsis: For more than 25 years, Gertrude Berg was one of the most beloved figures in American pop culture as the creator, writer, producer, and star of THE GOLDBERGS--first on radio (where it was... For more than 25 years, Gertrude Berg was one of the most beloved figures in American pop culture as the creator, writer, producer, and star of THE GOLDBERGS--first on radio (where it was originally known as THE RISE OF THE GOLDBERGS) and then on television. Berg, who was best known to the public in the identity of her character, Molly Goldberg, occupied a unique niche in the fabric of American life: throughout the 1930s, she and Eleanor Roosevelt competed annually in polls for the title of most prominent woman in America. Berg was called The First Lady of Radio at a time when radio was king; later on, in the television era, she invented the family sitcom as we came to know it, and did battle against the Red Scare and the Hollywood blacklist. Director Aviva Kempner's documentary gives an intimate and detailed a look at the life of Berg, who died in 1966 virtually forgotten by the executives of the industry that she helped build. In the process, Kempner explains how this woman--an articulate and intelligent first-generation Jewish-American with little formal background in writing and no knowledge of the media--rose to such success in just a few years, and why she was forgotten and swept aside almost as quickly at the other end of her career. Participants and interviewees include such admirers as producer Norman Lear, actor Edward Asner, and United States Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. [More]

Director: Aviva Kempner

Director: Aviva Kempner
Studio: International Film Circuit Inc.