The American Way

The co-author's grandfather Jules saw Marilyn Monroe's famous 1955 subway grate scene from The Seven Year Itch being filmed, and captured the moment on his home videocamera. From this extremely minor claim to fame, The American Way widens its scope to incorporate:
Jules' dramatic 1938 escape from Nazi Germany just ahead of Kristallnacht ;The tragic story of Julies' family members left behind in Europe;
The shady, licentious magazine publisher who sponsored Jules' immigration to the US; The two shlemeils who created “Superman,” then sold the character to the publisher and lost out on millions of dollars;
Marilyn Monroe, who once posed nude for the publisher's skin magazine; and Billy Wilder, another Jewish immigrant who directed The Seven Year Itch.

It reads quickly and smoothly, but I finished wondering why The American Way had to exist. There are other books that provide a more comprehensive history of the Holocaust, not to mention countless biographies of Monroe. Perhaps the authors wanted to portray the story of a real mensch whose long life was a testimony to the American Dream, and show how seven degrees of separation tied him to everyone from Holocaust victims to movie stars. But it felt at times like a random assortment of biographies that didn't quite fit together.