Sandy Koufax, Lenny Bruce, Bob Dylan, and Barbra Streisand first came to public attention in the early 1960s, a period Kaufman identifies as historically ripe for American Jews to reexamine their (Jewish) identities. All four achieved extraordinary success in their respective fields and became celebrities within an American context, while at the same time they were clearly identifiable as Jews--although they were perceived to be Jewish in very different ways.

Kaufman investigates these celebrities' rise to fame, the specific brand of Jewishness each one represented, and how their fans and...