After watching Spring Grove featured on World's Greatest Cemeteries last October, Carrie Rhodus of the Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati decided to pitch the public TV series about returning here for another episode.
"We've got just as much history as Spring Grove," she told her boss.
And that's why host Roberto Mighty will feature stories about the Manischewitz, Glueck and other families interred in Cincinnati's Jewish cemeteries this fall.
"Cincinnati is a fascinating part of America. It is rich in history and stories. We're thrilled to include the history of Jewish settlement in this part of the USA," says Mighty, host and producer of World's Greatest Cemeteries.
The Boston-based filmmaker and educator filmed in late June and early July at Jewish cemeteries in Covedale, Price Hill, Evanston and the West End.
They shot stories about Dov Behr Manischewitz, who founded the Manischewitz company, a leader in matzo production; Civil War Medal of Honor winner David Urbansky; archeologist Nelson Glueck and his wife Helen, who discovered vitamin K deficiency in infants; and the Spanish Hebrew Society and Cincinnati's Sephardic community.
"I think our public television audience will be inspired by the story of David Urbansky, a soldier who was one of four Jews awarded the Medal of Honor for service during the Civil War. He is buried at Walnut Hills Cemetery," says Mighty, son of a World War II veteran. Mighty was born in New York and grew up in Queens. His mother, a Cincinnati native, met her future husband at Wilberforce College near Xenia.
"I spent most of my childhood in New York. Manischewitz religious food products — like matzo and wines — were ubiquitous. I was surprised to discover that the brand name 'Manischewitz' refers to an actual person, sort of like Heinz ketchup and Pillsbury breads. Rabbi Dov Behr Manischewitz, who is interred at Covedale Cemetery, was an innovative manufacturer with a fascinating background," Mighty says.
"Nelson Glueck — a rabbi, professor and archaeologist — was incredibly influential in the field of biblical archaeology. His work led to the discovery of thousands of ancient sites. He and his wife, Dr. Helen Glueck, are interred at Walnut Hills Cemetery.
"In the mid 1980s, I produced an audio-visual project in Israel. While there, I noticed many Jewish people of African, Middle Eastern and Spanish descent. My interview with Nemet Jerusalmi, a leader in Cincinnati's Spanish Hebrew community, helps shed light on the expulsion of Jews from Spain in 1492, the subsequent worldwide diaspora, and the rich heritage that these diverse people bring to America. There are other stories to tell in future episodes," he says.
Those future episodes also may include stories from Cincinnati's Black Union Baptist Cemetery at the suggestion of Rhodus and Lee Drake, the local Civil War re-enactor who portrayed soldier David Urbansky for Mighty.
When World's Greatest Cemeteries returns this fall (date to be announced),the series will air six episodes from Louisville; the Bronx; Philadelphia; New Orleans; Concord, Mass.; and Cincinnati.
The first season featured Hollywood Forever Cemetery; Brooklyn's Green-Wood Cemetery; London's Highgate Cemetery; Cincinnati's Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum; a Boston Revolutionary War graveyard; and the Chateau Monte Cristo near Paris.
The Spring Grove hour included feminist Frances Wright; abolitionist Levi Coffin; inventor and abolitionist Henry Boyd; landscape architect Adolph Strauch; 3-year-old scarlet fever victim “Chunkie” Singleton; the trees, waterfall, chapel and, yes, the cicadas.
