Eli Eshed is an

Israeli Israeli may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel * Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel * Modern Hebrew, a language * ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008 * Guni Israeli ...

researcher of

popular culture Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...

Literary criticism

Eli Eshed writes about Israeli

pulp magazines Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 to the late 1950s. The term "pulp" derives from the cheap wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed. In contrast, magazine ...

and

paperbacks A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, lea ...

of the 1950s and 1960s with a special focus on the pirated

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adv ...

books popular among Israeli youth at the time which were published anonymously and without authorization from the estate of

Edgar Rice Burroughs Edgar Rice Burroughs (September 1, 1875 – March 19, 1950) was an American author, best known for his prolific output in the adventure, science fiction, and fantasy genres. Best-known for creating the characters Tarzan and John Carter, he ...

. In 2000, Eshed published a limited edition o
''Tarzan in the Holy Land''
a history of Tarzan in Hebrew with illustrations. In 2002, Eshed published ''From Tarzan to Zbeng'' about the pulp literature of Israel. This book became a best seller and earned Eshed the title "Writer of the Year" from

Maariv ''Maariv'' or ''Maʿariv'' (, ), also known as ''Arvit'' (, ), is a Jewish prayer service held in the evening or night. It consists primarily of the evening ''Shema'' and '' Amidah''. The service will often begin with two verses from Psalms, ...

. He also researched the adventures of pulp icons such as Patrick Kim, a fictional

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

agent who uses

karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...

against a variety of enemies worldwide. In 2003, Eshed co-published ''The Golem: A Story of an Israeli Comicbook'' with Israeli

comics a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate ...

artist Uri Fink. The Golem is a Hebrew

super-hero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, o ...

who works alongside a beautiful woman super-heroine, Lilith. The book traces the history of the series since the 1940s, when it was drawn by the young comics artist

Jack Kirby Jack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comic book artist, writer and editor, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He gr ...

(Jacob Kurtzberg in that alternative reality), who immigrated to Palestine. The Golem collaborates with real-life Israeli personalities like

Yitzhak Rabin Yitzhak Rabin (; he, יִצְחָק רַבִּין, ; 1 March 1922 – 4 November 1995) was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the fifth Prime Minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–77, and from 1992 until h ...

Moshe Dayan Moshe Dayan ( he, משה דיין; 20 May 1915 – 16 October 1981) was an Israeli military leader and politician. As commander of the Jerusalem front in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (1953–1958) du ...

and

Ariel Sharon Ariel Sharon (; ; ; also known by his diminutive Arik, , born Ariel Scheinermann, ; 26 February 1928 – 11 January 2014) was an Israeli general and politician who served as the 11th Prime Minister of Israel from March 2001 until April 2006. S ...

, as well as fictional characters like Tarzan and well-known Israeli fictional heroes like Danny Din the invisible boy. Gil Biderman created a song and an animated clip sung by award-winning artist Yasmin Even about the Golem’s adventures. Both imitate the style of the 1970s. Though imaginary, the book is based on real events and personalities in the world of Hebrew popular culture, featuring

Pinchas Sadeh Pinchas Sadeh, also Pinhas Sadeh, ( he, פנחס שדה, born in Lemberg, Poland 1929, died January 29, 1994, in Jerusalem, Israel) was a Polish-born Israeli novelist and poet. Biography Pinhas Feldman (later Sadeh) was born in Galicia (then pa ...

, Asher Dickstein, and

Etgar Keret Etgar Keret ( he, אתגר קרת, born August 20, 1967) is an Israeli writer known for his short stories, graphic novels, and scriptwriting for film and television. Personal life Keret was born in Ramat Gan, Israel in 1967. He is a third child ...

. Israeli literary critic Menachem Ben called it“a master work of Israeli mythology,“ and screenwriter and producer Alon Rozenblum called it "a must-have book in every home."

References

External links

The Golem comic-strip

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eshed, Eli Comics critics Israeli comics writers Living people Israeli literary critics Bar-Ilan University alumni Ben-Gurion University of the Negev alumni Year of birth missing (living people)