Deals with the intersection of gay and Jewish identity in American and Israeli film and theater, since the 1960s. This work looks at numerous plays and films that have gay-Jewish characters and themes, evaluating the ways in which Jewish playwrights and filmmakers have helped to invent a safe, public space for a discussion of gay issues.

Rainbow Jews looks at the intersection of gay and Jewish identity in American and Israeli film and theater from the 1960s to the present. Through a close reading of the texts of numerous American and Israeli plays and films, Friedman evaluates some of the key conventions that have been employed to construct, critique, and reflect the connection between Jewishness and gay identity in the United States and Israel. Friedman also explores ways in which gay-Jewish playwrights and filmmakers have progressed the reevaluation of sexual norms within Judaism over the past three decades, inspiring and integrating Jewish members of the GLBT community into the overall Jewish historical narrative.