This is a list of Jewish American show business figures.

This page is part of the List of Jewish Americans series.

Film directors

• Woody Allen, Oscar-winning director, actor
• Jack Arnold, director
• Darren Aronofsky, director
• Peter Bogdanovich, director (Jewish mother)
• James L. Brooks, Oscar-winning director, producer
• Mel Brooks, director
• Richard Brooks, director
• William Castle, director
• Coen Brothers, directors
• Rob Cohen, director, producer
• George Cukor, Oscar-winning director
• Michael Curtiz, Oscar-winning director
• Jules Dassin, director
• Cecil B. DeMille, director (Jewish mother, raised Episcopalian)
• Maya Deren, director
• Stanley Donen, director, choreographer
• Nora Ephron, director
• Milos Forman, Oscar-winning director (Jewish father)
• John Frankenheimer, director
• William Friedkin, Oscar-winning director
• Samuel Fuller, director
• Charles Guggenheim, Oscar-winning documentary director
• Todd Haynes, director (Jewish mother)
• Amy Heckerling, director
• Peter Hyams, director
• Spike Jonze, director (Jewish father)
• Philip Kaufman, director, screenwriter
• Irvin Kershner, director
• Harmony Korine, director, screenwriter
• Stanley Kubrick, director
• John Landis, director
• Fritz Lang, director (Jewish mother)
• Barry Levinson, Oscar-winning director
• Ernst Lubitsch, director
• Sidney Lumet, director
• Michael Mann, director
• Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Oscar-winning director
• Nancy Meyers, director, screenwriter
• Lewis Milestone, Oscar-winning director
• Mike Nichols, Oscar-winning director
• Frank Oz, director (Jewish father)
• Roman Polanski, Oscar-winning director
• Sydney Pollack, Oscar-winning director, actor, producer
• Otto Preminger, director
• Sam Raimi, director
• Harold Ramis, director
• Brett Ratner, director
• Rob Reiner, director
• Martin Ritt, director
• Jay Roach, director
• Jerome Robbins, Oscar-winning director, choreographer
• Herbert Ross, director
• Robert Rossen, director, screenwriter
• David O. Russell, director, screenwriter (Jewish father)
• Don Siegel, director
• Bryan Singer, director
• Robert Siodmak, director
• Todd Solondz, director
• Barry Sonnenfeld, director
• Stephen Spielberg, Oscar-winning director, producer
• Josef von Sternberg, director
• Oliver Stone, Oscar-winning director (Jewish father)
• Edgar G. Ulmer, director
• Paul & Chris Weitz, directors
• Billy Wilder, Oscar-winning director
• Frederick Wiseman, documentary director
• William Wyler, Oscar-winning director
• Boaz Yakin, director
• Fred Zinnemann, Oscar-winning director
• Zucker, Zucker & Abrahams, directors
• Edward Zwick, director
• Terry Zwigoff, director

Film actors

• Jack Albertson, Oscar-winning actor
• Woody Allen, actor, director
• Alan Arkin, actor
• David, Patricia & Rosanna Arquette, actors (Jewish mother)
• Lauren Bacall, actress
• Barbara Bach, actress, model (Jewish father)
• Martin Balsam, Oscar-winning actor
• Theda Bara, actress, vamp
• Ellen Barkin, actress
• Joey Bishop, actor, member of the Rat Pack
• Jack Black, actor, rock musician
• Mel Blanc, cartoon voice actor
• Selma Blair, actress
• Matthew Broderick actor (Jewish mother)
• Adrien Brody, Oscar-winning actor
• George Burns, Oscar-winning actor, comedian
• Red Buttons, Oscar-winning actor
• Amanda Bynes, actress (half Jewish)
• James Caan, actor
• Dyan Cannon, actress (Jewish mother)
• Kate Capshaw, actress (converted)
• Phoebe Cates, actress
• Jill Clayburgh, actress
• Jennifer Connelly, Oscar-winning actress (Jewish mother)
• Billy Crystal, actor
• Jamie Lee Curtis, actress (Jewish father)
• Tony Curtis, actor
• Sammy Davis Jr., all-around entertainer (converted)
• Kirk Douglas, actor
• Melvyn Douglas, Oscar-winning actor
• Michael Douglas, Oscar-winning actor (Jewish father)
• Richard Dreyfuss, Oscar-winning actor
• Jon Favreau, actor, director (Jewish mother)
• Carrie Fisher, actress (Jewish father)
• Harrison Ford, actor (Jewish mother)
• Paul Frees, cartoon voice actor
• Sarah Michelle Gellar, actress
• Gina Gershon, actress
• Jeff Goldblum, actor
• Christopher Guest, actor (Jewish mother)
• Lee Grant, Oscar-winning actress
• Jennifer Grey, actress
• Joel Grey, Oscar-winning actor
• Steve Guttenberg, actor
• Maggie & Jake Gyllenhaal, actors (Jewish mother)
• Nina Hartley, erotic actress
• Goldie Hawn, Oscar-winning actress (Jewish mother)
• Barbara Hershey, actress (Jewish father)
• Dustin Hoffman, Oscar-winning actor
• Judy Holliday, Oscar-winning actress
• John Houseman, Oscar-winning actor
• Kate Hudson, actress (Jewish mother)
• Amy Irving, actress (Jewish father)
• Ron Jeremy, erotic actor
• Scarlett Johansson, actress (unconfirmed Jewish mother)
• Al Jolson, singer, actor, early sound film star
• Madeline Kahn, actress
• Harvey Keitel, actor
• Kevin Kline, Oscar-winning actor (Jewish father)
• Hedy Lamarr, actress, inventor
• Martin Landau, Oscar-winning actor
• Piper Laurie, actress
• Jennifer Jason Leigh, actress
• Gloria Leonard, erotic actress
• Peter Lorre, actor
• Paul Lukas, Oscar-winning actor
• Natasha Lyonne, actress
• Marx Brothers, actors
• Marlee Matlin, Oscar-winning actress
• Walter Matthau, Oscar-winning actor
• Marilyn Monroe, actress (converted)
• Paul Muni, Oscar-winning actor
• Judd Nelson, actor, member of the Brat Pack
• Paul Newman, Oscar-winning actor (Jewish father)
• Gwyneth Paltrow, Oscar-winning actress (Jewish father)
• Estelle Parsons, Oscar-winning actress
• Amanda Peet, actress
• Sean Penn, Oscar-winning actor (Jewish father)
• Joaquin, River & Summer Phoenix, actors (Jewish mother)
• Kevin Pollak, actor
• Natalie Portman, actress
• Luise Rainer, Oscar-winning actress
• Edward G. Robinson, actor
• Emmy Rossum, actress
• Winona Ryder, actress
• Adam Sandler, actor, comedian
• Joseph Schildkraut, Oscar-winning actor
• Liev Schreiber, actor
• Jason Schwartzman, actor (Jewish father)
• Norma Shearer, Oscar-winning actress (converted)
• Ally Sheedy, actress (Jewish mother)
• Alicia Silverstone, actress
• Annie Sprinkle, erotic actress
• Ben Stiller, actor
• Barbra Streisand, Oscar-winning actress, singer, director
• Elizabeth Taylor, Oscar-winning actress (converted)
• Eli Wallach, actor
• Gene Wilder, actor
• Debra Winger, actress
• Shelley Winters, Oscar-winning actress
• Evan Rachel Wood, actress

Television actors

Arranged by television show:

• The Addams Family - Carolyn Jones (converted)
• Alice - Linda Lavin
• Arrested Development - Jeffrey Tambor, Jessica Walter, David Cross
• Babylon 5 - Mira Furlan, Stephen Furst
• Battlestar Galactica - Lorne Greene
• Baywatch - Yasmine Bleeth (half Jewish)
• Beverly Hills 90210 - Tori Spelling, Ian Ziering, Gabrielle Carteris
• The Bob Newhart Show - Suzanne Pleshette
• Bonanza - Lorne Greene, Michael Landon (Landon half Jewish)
• Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Sarah Michelle Gellar, Seth Green, Amber Benson (Benson half Jewish)
• Charlie's Angels - Tanya Roberts, Jaclyn Smith (both half Jewish)
• Cheers - Rhea Perlman, Bebe Neuwirth
• Columbo - Peter Falk
• The Cosby Show - Lisa Bonet (half Jewish)
• The Critic - Jon Lovitz
• Curb Your Enthusiasm - Larry David
• Dukes of Hazzard - Sorrell Booke
• ER - Noah Wyle, Julianna Margulies (both half Jewish)
• Everybody Loves Raymond - Doris Roberts, Brad Garrett
• The Facts of Life - Charlotte Rae, Mindy Cohn
• Family Guy - Alex Borstein, Mila Kunis, Seth Green
• Friends - Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer
• Full House - Bob Saget, Scott Weinger, Marla Sokoloff
• Futurama - Katey Sagal (half Jewish)
• Get Smart - Don Adams, Bernie Kopell (Adams half Jewish)
• Gilligan's Island - Tina Louise, Natalie Schafer
• Gimme a Break! - Nell Carter (converted)
• The Golden Girls - Bea Arthur, Estelle Getty
• Happy Days - Henry Winkler, Tom Bosley
• Homicide: Life on the Street - Yaphet Kotto, Richard Belzer
• Hogan's Heroes - Leon Askin, Werner Klemperer, John Banner, Robert Clary (Klemperer half Jewish)
• The Larry Sanders Show - Garry Shandling, Jeffrey Tambor
• Law & Order - Jerry Orbach, Steven Hill (Orbach half Jewish)
• Little House on the Prairie - Michael Landon, Melissa Gilbert (Landon half Jewish)
• Lost In Space - Jonathan Harris
• Lou Grant - Ed Asner
• Mad About You - Paul Reiser
• Married with Children - Katey Sagal (half Jewish)
• Maude - Bea Arthur, Bill Macy
• Mission Impossible - Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Steven Hill
• The Munsters - Al Lewis
• The Nanny - Fran Drescher
• Northern Exposure - Rob Morrow
• The O.C. - Adam Brody
• One Day at a Time - Bonnie Franklin
• Party of Five - Scott Wolf (half Jewish)
• The Phil Silvers Show - Phil Silvers
• Roseanne - Roseanne Barr, Sara Gilbert, Tom Arnold (Arnold converted)
• Roswell - Shiri Appleby
• Saved by the Bell - Elizabeth Berkley, Dustin Diamond
• Scrubs - Zach Braff
• Seinfeld - Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander
• Sex and the City - Sara Jessica Parker (half Jewish)
• The Simpsons - Hank Azaria, Julie Kavner, Harry Shearer
• The Sopranos - Jamie-Lynn DiScala
• South Park - Matt Stone, Mary Kay Bergman, Eliza Schneider (Stone half Jewish)
• Space: 1999 - Martin Landau, Barbara Bain
• Starsky and Hutch - Paul Michael Glaser
• Star Trek: The Original Series - William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Walter Koenig
• Star Trek: The Next Generation - Brent Spiner
• Star Trek: Deep Space 9 - Armin Shimerman
• Taxi - Judd Hirsch, Carol Kane, Andy Kaufman
• That '70s Show - Mila Kunis, Laura Prepon, Tanya Roberts
• thirtysomething - Ken Olin, Melanie Mayron
• The West Wing - Richard Schiff, Joshua Malina
• Who's the Boss? - Judith Light
• Will & Grace - Debra Messing
• The Wonder Years - Fred Savage
• The X-Files - David Duchovny (half Jewish)

TV and radio presenters

• Marv Albert, sportscaster
• Mel Allen, radio sportscaster
• Chuck Barris, presenter of Dating Game, Gong Show
• Wolf Blitzer, CNN reporter
• Kitty Carlisle, panelist on To Tell the Truth, arts advocate
• Howard Cosell, sportscaster
• Katie Couric, presenter of The Today Show (half Jewish)
• Don Francisco, presenter of Sabado Gigante
• Allen Funt, presenter of Candid Camera
• Ira Glass, presenter of This American Life
• Amy Goodman, presenter of Democracy Now
• Larry King, CNN reporter
• Ted Koppel, presenter of Nightline
• Ricki Lake, presenter of Ricki
• Bill Maher, ex-presenter of Politically Incorrect (half Jewish)
• Al Michaels, sportscaster
• Daniel Schorr, tv reporter
• Dinah Shore, television host, singer
• Herb Stempel, quiz show contestant
• Bill Stern, radio sportscaster
• Howard Stern, radio shock jock
• Jon Stewart, comedian, presenter of The Daily Show
• Barbara Walters, presenter of Today Show, 20/20

Producers and creators

• Irwin Allen, producer & director
• George Axelrod, screenwriter
• Steven Bochco, creator of LA Law, Murder One
• Jerry Bruckheimer, producer
• Paddy Chayefsky, screenwriter
• Norman Corwin, radio writer, producer
• Robert Evans, producer, studio executive
• Ben Hecht, screenwriter
• Lawrence Kasdan, screenwriter
• Charlie Kaufman, screenwriter
• Ernest Lehman, screenwriter
• Carl Reiner, comedian, creator of The Dick Van Dyke Show
• Leon Schlesinger, producer
• Sherwood Schwartz, creator of Gilligan's Island, Brady Bunch
• Rod Serling, creator of The Twilight Zone
• Joel Silver, producer and co-inventor of Ultimate Frisbee
• Aaron Sorkin, creator of West Wing
• Aaron Spelling, producer
• Darren Star, creator of Beverly Hills 90210, Melrose Place, Sex and the City
• Matt Stone, creator of South Park (half Jewish)

Comedians

• Bud Abbott, half of Abbott & Costello (half Jewish)
• Woody Allen, comedian, director, actor
• Dave Attell, comedian
• Roseanne Barr, comedian
• Jack Benny, entertainer
• Milton Berle, entertainer, actor
• Shelley Berman, comedian
• Sandra Bernhard, comedian
• Lewis Black, comedian
• Victor Borge, comedian, pianist
• Fanny Brice, entertainer
• Albert Brooks, comedian, actor
• Lenny Bruce, comedian
• George Burns, entertainer, actor
• Eddie Cantor, entertainer, actor
• Sid Caesar, actor, writer
• Andrew Dice Clay, comedian
• David Cross, comedian, actor
• Rodney Dangerfield, comedian
• Larry Fine, the Three Stooges
• Al Franken, comedian, activist
• Gilbert Gottfried, comedian, actor
• Buddy Hackett, comedian
• Moe, Shemp & Curly Howard, the Three Stooges
• Andy Kaufman, comedian, actor
• Danny Kaye, entertainer, actor
• Alan King, comedian
• Robert Klein, comedian
• Tom Lehrer, satirist, musician
• Jerry Lewis, comedian, actor
• Richard Lewis, comedian
• Jackie Mason, comedian
• Lorne Michaels, creator of Saturday Night Live
• Freddie Prinze, comedian, actor (Jewish father)
• Gilda Radner, comic actress
• Don Rickles, comedian, actor
• Joan Rivers, comedienne
• Rita Rudner, comedian
• Robert Schimmel, comedian
• Jerry Seinfeld, comedian, actor
• Allan Sherman, satirist, musician
• Pauly Shore, comedian
• Sarah Silverman, comic
• Henny Youngman, comedian

Theatre

• Stella Adler, acting teacher
• Julian Beck & Judith Malina, founders of Living Theatre
• Joseph Chaikin & Peter Feldman, founders of Open Theatre
• Anna Held, stage performer
• Judy Kaye, actress & singer
• Larry Kert, actor & singer
• Judy Kuhn, actress & singer
• James Lapine, director & librettist
• Sanford Meisner, founder of Neighbourhood Playhouse
• Idina Menzel, actress, singer and songwriter
• David Merrick, producer & director
• Zero Mostel, actor
• Alla Nazimova, actress
• Bebe Neuwirth, actress
• Mandy Patinkin, actor & singer
• Harold Prince, director
• Tony Randall, actor, founder of National Actors Theatre
• Max Reinhardt, director
• Frank Silvera, founder of Theatre of Being (half Jewish)
• Lee Strasberg & Harold Clurman, co-founders of Group Theatre
• Julie Taymor, director

Magicians

• David Blaine, stunt performer (Jewish single mother)
• David Copperfield, illusionist
• Horace Goldin, illusionist
• Harry Houdini, escape artist
• Max Maven, mentalist
• Ricky Jay, card tricks
• Shari Lewis, ventriloquist
• Raymond Teller, half of Pen and Teller (half Jewish)

Dance

• Michael Bennett, choreographer (half Jewish)
• Eliot Feld, dancer & choreographer
• Ron Field, director & choreographer
• Anna Halprin, dancer, choreographer & teacher
• Michael Kidd, choreographer
• Lincoln Kirstein, dance impressario
• Liz Lerman, choreographer & activist
• Arthur Murray, dance instructor
• Jerome Robbins, director & choreographer
• Anna Sokolow, dancer & choreographer

Models

• Barbi Benton, model, actress
• Caprice Bourret, model
• Brooke Burke, model (Jewish mother, identifies)
• Cindy Margolis, model
• Bess Myerson, Miss America
• Nikki Schieler Ziering, model (converted)