Jonathan Goldstein (born August 22, 1969) is an American-Canadian author,

humorist A humorist (American) or humourist (British spelling) is an intellectual who uses humor, or wit, in writing or public speaking, but is not an artist who seeks only to elicit laughs. Humorists are distinct from comedians, who are show business e ...

and radio producer. Goldstein has worked on radio programs and podcasts such as ''

Heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the Wo ...

'', ''

This American Life ''This American Life'' (''TAL'') is an American monthly hour-long radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internation ...

,'' and '' WireTap''. Goldstein's work has been academically examined as representative of "the positioning of Jews and Canadians as potentially overlooked minorities in the late-twentieth- and early twenty-first-century United States".

Early life

Goldstein was born to Buzz and Dina Goldstein in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, where he spent the first four years of his life before the family moved to

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, his mother's hometown. The family settled in the suburb of

Laval Laval means ''The Valley'' in old French and is the name of: People * House of Laval, a French noble family originating from the town of Laval, Mayenne * Laval (surname) Places Belgium * Laval, a village in the municipality of Sainte-Ode, Luxem ...

. Goldstein attended

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

and later completed a master's program in creative writing at

Concordia University Concordia University ( French: ''Université Concordia'') is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College and Sir George Williams University, Concordia is one of the t ...

Career

After graduation, Goldstein supported himself by working in the telemarketing industry for ten years while continuing to write and attend readings. He talked about this time on the This American Life program 'Plan B'.

Radio/audio

He hosted the CBC summer radio program ''Road Dot Trip'' in 2000 and has contributed to shows like '' Dispatches'' and ''Outfront''. In 2000, his career received a boost after he was selected to work on Ira Glass' popular

public radio Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...

program ''

''. Goldstein relocated to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

to work as a producer on the show. Many of Goldstein's pieces have been featured on ''This American Life'' where he is a contributing editor. From 2000 to 2002 he was also a producer of the show. In 2002, Goldstein returned to Montreal and started work on several projects for CBC Radio One. He hosted '' WireTap'', which debuted in 2004 and ended in 2015. The program featured stories told over the phone. In May 2014, Goldstein played an " expert witness" in humorist

John Hodgman John Kellogg Hodgman (born June 3, 1971) is an American author, actor, and humorist. In addition to his published written works, such as '' The Areas of My Expertise'', ''More Information Than You Require'', and '' That Is All'', he is known for ...

's comedy/court show podcast '' Judge John Hodgman''. In September 2016, Goldstein began a new podcast, ''Heavyweight'', with podcast network Gimlet Media. Goldstein is a member of the Public Radio Exchange editorial board.

Writing

In 2001, Goldstein's debut novel, ''

Lenny Bruce Is Dead ''Lenny Bruce is Dead'' is the first book by author and radio presenter Jonathan Goldstein. The story follows a lead character, Josh, through various events in his life, including a death in the family and his exploration of sexuality. The novel ...

'', was published by Coach House Books. Goldstein also co-authored ''Schmelvis: In Search of Elvis Presley's Jewish Roots'

with

Max Wallace Max Wallace is a New York Times-bestselling author and historian specializing in the Holocaust, human rights in sport, and popular culture. He is also an award-winning filmmaker, and long-time disability advocate. Literary works In the Name of ...

, an account of a

Hasidic Hasidism, sometimes spelled Chassidism, and also known as Hasidic Judaism (Ashkenazi Hebrew: חסידות ''Ḥăsīdus'', ; originally, "piety"), is a Jewish religious group that arose as a spiritual revival movement in the territory of contem ...

Elvis impersonator and

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

's quest to trace the Jewish roots of

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

. Goldstein has also been published in ''

The New York Times Magazine ''The New York Times Magazine'' is an American Sunday magazine Supplement (publishing), supplement included with the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times''. It features articles longer than those typically in the newspaper and has attracted man ...

'', '' Saturday Night'', ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', '' The Walrus'', '' GQ'', the '' Journey Prize Anthology'' and the ''

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...

''. He has also self-produced a number of small publications, most notably ''carwash the size of a peach''.

Other

In September 2007, ''WireTap'' producer

Mira Burt-Wintonick Mira Burt-Wintonick (born July 8, 1984) is a Canadian radio and film producer best known for her audio pieces and work on the CBC radio program ''WireTap''. Trained as a classical musician, Burt-Wintonick pursued a Communications degree from Con ...

released "Superstar of the Netherlands", a short film featuring Goldstein and ''WireTap'' regular Gregor Ehrlich, on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

. In February 2008, Goldstein debuted the internet project ''CBC Web 3.0'' which features the short "The Future is Yesterday", a comedic take on the impersonal nature of the Internet.

Personal life

Goldstein has resided in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, and

, and he now lives in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

. Goldstein was in a relationship with the author

Heather O'Neill Heather O'Neill (born 1973) is a Canadian novelist, poet, short story writer, screenwriter and journalist, who published her debut novel, '' Lullabies for Little Criminals'', in 2006. The novel was subsequently selected for the 2007 edition of ' ...

that ended in 2007. Goldstein married fellow radio producer Emily Condon in 2015, having been introduced by Sean Cole in 2013.

Bibliography

Books

* ''

'' (, 2001) * '' Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bible!'' (, 2009) * ''I'll Seize the Day Tomorrow'' (, 2012) * '' Schmelv

In Search of Elvis Presley's Jewish Roots'' (with

) (, 2002)

Essays and reporting

Awards

* ReLit Award (Regarding Literature Award) (2001) * Third Coast International Audio Festival: Gold Prize (2002) *Canadian National Magazine Awards: Silver Award for Humour (2004) * The New York Festivals: Gold World Medal for Best Regularly Scheduled Comedy Program (2006) for '' WireTap''

References

External links

Transom.org bio page, including links to This American Life stories he has producedPublic Radio Exchange member page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goldstein, Jonathan 21st-century American novelists American humorists American male novelists American radio personalities American radio producers Anglophone Quebec people Canadian humorists Canadian male novelists Canadian people of American-Jewish descent Concordia University alumni Jewish American writers Jewish Canadian writers McGill University alumni Writers from Brooklyn People from Laval, Quebec Writers from Montreal 1969 births Living people CBC Radio hosts This American Life people 21st-century Canadian male writers Novelists from New York (state) 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American Jews