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Adam Sandler’s Everlasting Shtick Adam Sandler’s Everlasting Shtick
(about 16 hours later)
We cruised down West Pico in Adam Sandler’s ride, a custom Chevy passenger van tricked out in the style of an orthopedic shoe. The cup holders jangled with suburban odds and ends — a pair of tiny glasses belonging to his daughter; a bottle of Dry-n-Clear ear drops. We were bound for Hillcrest Country Club, the oldest Jewish country club in Los Angeles. “You’re going to like this,” Sandler said. He whipped the van into the valet station. Alongside the row of town cars and coupes, it looked like an airport courtesy shuttle.We cruised down West Pico in Adam Sandler’s ride, a custom Chevy passenger van tricked out in the style of an orthopedic shoe. The cup holders jangled with suburban odds and ends — a pair of tiny glasses belonging to his daughter; a bottle of Dry-n-Clear ear drops. We were bound for Hillcrest Country Club, the oldest Jewish country club in Los Angeles. “You’re going to like this,” Sandler said. He whipped the van into the valet station. Alongside the row of town cars and coupes, it looked like an airport courtesy shuttle.
Hillcrest was founded in 1920, when Los Angeles’s Reform Jews started earning major cash and no country club appeared willing to let them spend it. Barred from joining the WASP establishment, they banded together to forge a simulacrum, a place where self-proclaimed “Jewish big shots” could unwind in semiassimilated fashion. Today Hillcrest is an upgraded Eden with 18 holes, a pool, tennis courts and an initiation fee of more than $200,000. The club’s dress code, a three-page document, betrays the legislative eagerness of a people only recently allowed to make the rules: Hat bills must face forward at all times; jeans will be worn only in the Men’s and Ladies’ Card Rooms. That day, Sandler was wearing cheap surf-shop shades, untied and toe-creased Jordans and capri-length silky basketball shorts. He vetted the outfit before the hostess’s stand.Hillcrest was founded in 1920, when Los Angeles’s Reform Jews started earning major cash and no country club appeared willing to let them spend it. Barred from joining the WASP establishment, they banded together to forge a simulacrum, a place where self-proclaimed “Jewish big shots” could unwind in semiassimilated fashion. Today Hillcrest is an upgraded Eden with 18 holes, a pool, tennis courts and an initiation fee of more than $200,000. The club’s dress code, a three-page document, betrays the legislative eagerness of a people only recently allowed to make the rules: Hat bills must face forward at all times; jeans will be worn only in the Men’s and Ladies’ Card Rooms. That day, Sandler was wearing cheap surf-shop shades, untied and toe-creased Jordans and capri-length silky basketball shorts. He vetted the outfit before the hostess’s stand.
“Hey, am I too disgusting?” he asked.“Hey, am I too disgusting?” he asked.
“You’re always welcome here,” the maître d’ replied.“You’re always welcome here,” the maître d’ replied.
Sandler stepped inside to consider the buffet, then quickly refocused himself on our mission. He’d taken us there to look at old photos of a group of Jewish comics called the Hillcrest Round Table, who met for a standing lunch throughout the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s. This overt gesture toward comedic lineage, done for a reporter’s benefit, was exactly the kind of stunt that Sandler had avoided for years. He last sat for a magazine profile in 1996, not long after his comic ur-text, “Billy Madison,” came out.Sandler stepped inside to consider the buffet, then quickly refocused himself on our mission. He’d taken us there to look at old photos of a group of Jewish comics called the Hillcrest Round Table, who met for a standing lunch throughout the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s. This overt gesture toward comedic lineage, done for a reporter’s benefit, was exactly the kind of stunt that Sandler had avoided for years. He last sat for a magazine profile in 1996, not long after his comic ur-text, “Billy Madison,” came out.
I started chasing Sandler in early 2017. His presence in my own childhood had been mythic — a Jewish cultural influence more imposing than anyone I’d ever learned about in Hebrew school. Thinking about the scope of his career, I was enchanted by the prospect of me, a person of modern and hardly coherent gender, grappling with America’s foremost man-child. I dispatched my editor to email his publicist. At night, from my apartment in Queens, I wondered if Sandman, from his mansion in the Pacific Palisades, was considering my offer.I started chasing Sandler in early 2017. His presence in my own childhood had been mythic — a Jewish cultural influence more imposing than anyone I’d ever learned about in Hebrew school. Thinking about the scope of his career, I was enchanted by the prospect of me, a person of modern and hardly coherent gender, grappling with America’s foremost man-child. I dispatched my editor to email his publicist. At night, from my apartment in Queens, I wondered if Sandman, from his mansion in the Pacific Palisades, was considering my offer.
We followed up. Time was marked by the arrival and deletion of my weekly “Adam Sandler” Google Alert, which detailed a still-persistent comedy career, achieved with infrequent engagement with the press. Soon he mocked me everywhere I went, his face staring down from the subway ads for his latest movie, “Sandy Wexler.” On Netflix, his new stand-up special debuted, and he did the late-night shows. I waited. Months turned to years. And just like that, the Google Alert started to spit out photos from a movie set: Sandler in a louche leather coat and diamond earrings, filming the indie thriller “Uncut Gems.”We followed up. Time was marked by the arrival and deletion of my weekly “Adam Sandler” Google Alert, which detailed a still-persistent comedy career, achieved with infrequent engagement with the press. Soon he mocked me everywhere I went, his face staring down from the subway ads for his latest movie, “Sandy Wexler.” On Netflix, his new stand-up special debuted, and he did the late-night shows. I waited. Months turned to years. And just like that, the Google Alert started to spit out photos from a movie set: Sandler in a louche leather coat and diamond earrings, filming the indie thriller “Uncut Gems.”
Sandler had taken dramatic roles before, most notably in Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2002 film, “Punch-Drunk Love.” Then, as now, a question emerged: If he was such a good actor — and he was — then why did he keep making dumb comedies? This was a question I had long since learned that he resented, and in my pursuit, I had been careful to avoid it. Now it seemed the precaution had paid off. By some act of God — or, more likely, behind-the-scenes arm-twisting — we found ourselves together at last, standing in his country club, staring down the gallery of early Hillcrest members.Sandler had taken dramatic roles before, most notably in Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2002 film, “Punch-Drunk Love.” Then, as now, a question emerged: If he was such a good actor — and he was — then why did he keep making dumb comedies? This was a question I had long since learned that he resented, and in my pursuit, I had been careful to avoid it. Now it seemed the precaution had paid off. By some act of God — or, more likely, behind-the-scenes arm-twisting — we found ourselves together at last, standing in his country club, staring down the gallery of early Hillcrest members.
Sandler has the vibe of an older, married uncle, smirking and good-natured, though not nearly so zany as his onscreen persona. He’s not a natural self-mythologizer, but that day he kindly stepped up to the plate. He pointed at a Marx Brothers portrait on the wall. “These guys were my favorite,” he said. “My father would wake me up, and I’d get to watch, you know, ‘Duck Soup’ or ‘A Night at the Opera.’ ”Sandler has the vibe of an older, married uncle, smirking and good-natured, though not nearly so zany as his onscreen persona. He’s not a natural self-mythologizer, but that day he kindly stepped up to the plate. He pointed at a Marx Brothers portrait on the wall. “These guys were my favorite,” he said. “My father would wake me up, and I’d get to watch, you know, ‘Duck Soup’ or ‘A Night at the Opera.’ ”
He stopped to consider a photo of George Burns, then jumped to a solo portrait of Harpo. “Yo, here — check this one out! This is really cool. I texted Pacino” — yes, that one — “and I said, ‘Did anyone ever tell you you look like Harpo?’ ”He stopped to consider a photo of George Burns, then jumped to a solo portrait of Harpo. “Yo, here — check this one out! This is really cool. I texted Pacino” — yes, that one — “and I said, ‘Did anyone ever tell you you look like Harpo?’ ”
We moved further into the bowels of the club, haunted by the eyes of a thousand bygone Jews. With each row of photos, the faces grew vaguer, but Sandler doubled down on his commitment to the cause: “Nixon used to hang out with … these guys? Pretty funny. Some cool ones here, so that’s pretty cool. That’s pretty cool! Right?”We moved further into the bowels of the club, haunted by the eyes of a thousand bygone Jews. With each row of photos, the faces grew vaguer, but Sandler doubled down on his commitment to the cause: “Nixon used to hang out with … these guys? Pretty funny. Some cool ones here, so that’s pretty cool. That’s pretty cool! Right?”
By the time we reached the end of the hall, our journey through time had digressed into a tour, with Sandler, like a leasing agent in a condo, showing me the Hillcrest fitness center, gesturing vaguely at its bank of gleaming elliptical machines. We stood like two bored kids on a school trip, and after a moment, he seemed satisfied. We returned to the dining room. Sandler placed an order for two black-cherry sodas and made his way through the buffet line, surveying the platters of borscht and guacamole. He stopped to make small talk with the omelet guy. The chandelier light caught the shine of his shorts. He ladled some matzo-ball soup into a bowl.By the time we reached the end of the hall, our journey through time had digressed into a tour, with Sandler, like a leasing agent in a condo, showing me the Hillcrest fitness center, gesturing vaguely at its bank of gleaming elliptical machines. We stood like two bored kids on a school trip, and after a moment, he seemed satisfied. We returned to the dining room. Sandler placed an order for two black-cherry sodas and made his way through the buffet line, surveying the platters of borscht and guacamole. He stopped to make small talk with the omelet guy. The chandelier light caught the shine of his shorts. He ladled some matzo-ball soup into a bowl.
“Uncut Gems,” which opens this month, begins in Ethiopia in the aftermath of a mining accident. A man’s skin-stripped tibia is presented to the camera. In the turmoil, the mine is evacuated, and two workers wrench a rare black opal from the seam. The camera zooms in on the surface of the stone, and soon we’re suspended in a swell of C.G.I. — pink-flecked shards of bewildering diffraction, a tunnel of blithe and kaleidoscopic light. Inside the gem, we’re going somewhere, across space and time, or maybe between worlds. The colors flush red; the texture gets wetter. By the time the shot retracts, the camera has reimagined itself as the clinical eye of an endoscope. Sandler, as Howard Ratner, lies unconscious, mouth-breathing his way through a colonoscopy. This is an image of middle-aged abjection, equally repulsive as the miner’s mangled leg. We see that Ratner’s fate and the stone’s are somehow linked — blessed and cursed in equal measure.“Uncut Gems,” which opens this month, begins in Ethiopia in the aftermath of a mining accident. A man’s skin-stripped tibia is presented to the camera. In the turmoil, the mine is evacuated, and two workers wrench a rare black opal from the seam. The camera zooms in on the surface of the stone, and soon we’re suspended in a swell of C.G.I. — pink-flecked shards of bewildering diffraction, a tunnel of blithe and kaleidoscopic light. Inside the gem, we’re going somewhere, across space and time, or maybe between worlds. The colors flush red; the texture gets wetter. By the time the shot retracts, the camera has reimagined itself as the clinical eye of an endoscope. Sandler, as Howard Ratner, lies unconscious, mouth-breathing his way through a colonoscopy. This is an image of middle-aged abjection, equally repulsive as the miner’s mangled leg. We see that Ratner’s fate and the stone’s are somehow linked — blessed and cursed in equal measure.
American Jews of a certain age are prone to a kind of revisionist nostalgia — a selective fantasy of a scrappy Jewish past when Jews did things like box, or play jazz, or engage in racketeering, or live in Newark. This particular imagining of cool, which turns on a fantasy of long-lost ethnic grit, exists in opposition to modern Jewish stereotypes. In media, Jews tend to adhere to a narrow band of ethnic tropes: the nebbish, the neurotic, the overbearing mother. Of course, these scripts often come from Jewish writers. When writing for a mainstream viewing public, however, concerns about respectability are bound to restrict the level of detail. To depict whatever rough edges survive among American Jews is to risk running headfirst into a shonda — a shame.American Jews of a certain age are prone to a kind of revisionist nostalgia — a selective fantasy of a scrappy Jewish past when Jews did things like box, or play jazz, or engage in racketeering, or live in Newark. This particular imagining of cool, which turns on a fantasy of long-lost ethnic grit, exists in opposition to modern Jewish stereotypes. In media, Jews tend to adhere to a narrow band of ethnic tropes: the nebbish, the neurotic, the overbearing mother. Of course, these scripts often come from Jewish writers. When writing for a mainstream viewing public, however, concerns about respectability are bound to restrict the level of detail. To depict whatever rough edges survive among American Jews is to risk running headfirst into a shonda — a shame.
It is this cultural tension that “Uncut Gems” steers directly into. Howard Ratner is a jeweler to the stars who earns his nut hawking diamond-studded novelties to rappers and pro ballers. Ratner is a middleman; his only role in life is to find small margins and exploit them. His world is the shtetl of the New York diamond district. The wealth he accrues is not a tasteful kind of wealth but the type of striving, transcultural excess that shows up all across the ethnic upper classes: track lighting, Lucite, Sub-Zero fridges, sectional sofas in bizarre configurations. Ratner runs all over town, wheedling bookies, flying off the handle, straining to keep a younger mistress. At home, he has a wife and three kids. At work, he is always one step behind himself, struggling to keep up with the hustles and scams that he runs to support his overleveraged lifestyle.It is this cultural tension that “Uncut Gems” steers directly into. Howard Ratner is a jeweler to the stars who earns his nut hawking diamond-studded novelties to rappers and pro ballers. Ratner is a middleman; his only role in life is to find small margins and exploit them. His world is the shtetl of the New York diamond district. The wealth he accrues is not a tasteful kind of wealth but the type of striving, transcultural excess that shows up all across the ethnic upper classes: track lighting, Lucite, Sub-Zero fridges, sectional sofas in bizarre configurations. Ratner runs all over town, wheedling bookies, flying off the handle, straining to keep a younger mistress. At home, he has a wife and three kids. At work, he is always one step behind himself, struggling to keep up with the hustles and scams that he runs to support his overleveraged lifestyle.
Ratner is in many ways a departure for Sandler, whose last big-screen role was in “Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation” and whose next starring credit will be in something called “Hubie Halloween.” From the very start of his career, he has carved out a niche playing overgrown children — men who find themselves behind the curve and set out to win the respect of their peers. These characters are underdogs, albeit oppressed by their own dumb decisions. They’re channeled from Sandler’s mind into ours through a collection of off-kilter tics — a scrunched-up voice, a hot temper or a weirdly jutted jaw. Somehow, they always remain sympathetic. This has to do in part with the plots of his movies, which tend to tell stories of redemption. Villains are defeated; unworthy bachelors shape up to get the girl. Beyond that, the rest is Sandler himself. He’s got a frat-boy face and a mama’s-boy demeanor. Even at 53, the contrast is endearing.Ratner is in many ways a departure for Sandler, whose last big-screen role was in “Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation” and whose next starring credit will be in something called “Hubie Halloween.” From the very start of his career, he has carved out a niche playing overgrown children — men who find themselves behind the curve and set out to win the respect of their peers. These characters are underdogs, albeit oppressed by their own dumb decisions. They’re channeled from Sandler’s mind into ours through a collection of off-kilter tics — a scrunched-up voice, a hot temper or a weirdly jutted jaw. Somehow, they always remain sympathetic. This has to do in part with the plots of his movies, which tend to tell stories of redemption. Villains are defeated; unworthy bachelors shape up to get the girl. Beyond that, the rest is Sandler himself. He’s got a frat-boy face and a mama’s-boy demeanor. Even at 53, the contrast is endearing.
The Adam Sandler comedy is its own genre, encompassing nearly 30 films and counting. He has churned out those movies out at an astonishing rate — about one per year for the last quarter-century. The first was “Billy Madison,” which tells the tale of a stunted rich kid who is forced to repeat Grades 1 through 12 if he wants to inherit the family business. Sandler wrote the movie in 1993 with his former college roommate Tim Herlihy, faxing 10 pages at time back and forth between New York and Los Angeles. On paper, it seems like a trust-fund parody, though here, as in any other Sandler comedy, you’d be remiss to search for social critique. Billy is an irreducible figure, grounded in the same sort of elemental silliness that keeps kids up at sleepover parties. Everyone believes they can pull off this kind of joke, but in practice it’s one of the hardest types of humor, because when it doesn’t work, there is nothing to fall back on — no subtext, no context, no wit, no easy point of reference to cling to. Critics, as a group, hate Sandler comedies, sometimes fairly, but just as often because the movies undermine the project of close reading altogether. If you don’t think a Sandler comedy is funny, no amount of thinking on the page is ever going to convince you otherwise. It either tickles your funny bone or it doesn’t. The Adam Sandler comedy is its own genre, encompassing nearly 30 films and counting. He has churned out those movies at an astonishing rate — about one per year for the last quarter-century. The first was “Billy Madison,” which tells the tale of a stunted rich kid who is forced to repeat Grades 1 through 12 if he wants to inherit the family business. Sandler wrote the movie in 1993 with his former college roommate Tim Herlihy, faxing 10 pages at a time back and forth between New York and Los Angeles. On paper, it seems like a trust-fund parody, though here, as in any other Sandler comedy, you’d be remiss to search for social critique. Billy is an irreducible figure, grounded in the same sort of elemental silliness that keeps kids up at sleepover parties. Everyone believes they can pull off this kind of joke, but in practice it’s one of the hardest types of humor, because when it doesn’t work, there is nothing to fall back on — no subtext, no context, no wit, no easy point of reference to cling to. Critics, as a group, hate Sandler comedies, sometimes fairly, but just as often because the movies undermine the project of close reading altogether. If you don’t think a Sandler comedy is funny, no amount of thinking on the page is ever going to convince you otherwise. It either tickles your funny bone or it doesn’t.
The structure to support Sandler’s relentless output dates back to 1998, when Sandler met Amy Pascal, then a Sony executive, at a promotional event for “The Wedding Singer,” his first rom-com with Drew Barrymore, which proved he had the range to play a sweetheart leading man. Sandler had two movies in theaters that year. The other was “The Waterboy,” more traditional Sandler fare about a Southern doofus whose years being bullied propel him into small-town football stardom. Pascal offered Sandler a script — working title: “Guy Gets Kid” — that Sandler punched up and released as “Big Daddy,” a 1999 smash hit that merged his two competing sides. After that, the pair agreed to work together on a more permanent basis. Sony offered Sandler a home to start a new company, Happy Madison Productions.The structure to support Sandler’s relentless output dates back to 1998, when Sandler met Amy Pascal, then a Sony executive, at a promotional event for “The Wedding Singer,” his first rom-com with Drew Barrymore, which proved he had the range to play a sweetheart leading man. Sandler had two movies in theaters that year. The other was “The Waterboy,” more traditional Sandler fare about a Southern doofus whose years being bullied propel him into small-town football stardom. Pascal offered Sandler a script — working title: “Guy Gets Kid” — that Sandler punched up and released as “Big Daddy,” a 1999 smash hit that merged his two competing sides. After that, the pair agreed to work together on a more permanent basis. Sony offered Sandler a home to start a new company, Happy Madison Productions.
According to Ben Fritz, author of “The Big Picture: The Fight for the Future of Movies,” Sandler’s Happy Madison deal was part of Sony’s broader strategy at the time. Studios hadn’t become so reliant on intellectual property — “Star Wars,” Marvel, “Harry Potter.” Sony banked on familiar faces, offering its most consistent stars lucrative payouts and lush corporate perks. For movies that Sandler made with the company, he typically earned either $20 million or 20 percent of the movie’s gross receipts — whichever was more. A basketball court on the Sony lot was christened Happy Madison Square Garden.According to Ben Fritz, author of “The Big Picture: The Fight for the Future of Movies,” Sandler’s Happy Madison deal was part of Sony’s broader strategy at the time. Studios hadn’t become so reliant on intellectual property — “Star Wars,” Marvel, “Harry Potter.” Sony banked on familiar faces, offering its most consistent stars lucrative payouts and lush corporate perks. For movies that Sandler made with the company, he typically earned either $20 million or 20 percent of the movie’s gross receipts — whichever was more. A basketball court on the Sony lot was christened Happy Madison Square Garden.
For a really long time, this expenditure was worth it. Between 1999 and 2011, from “Big Daddy” to the Jennifer Aniston rom-com “Just Go With It,” Adam Sandler would star in 12 of his own live-action comedies. All but “Little Nicky” — a hellish version of “King Lear,” in which Sandler plays the Devil’s dullard son — would go on to earn more than $100 million. This was a remarkable run of dominance spanning the rise of the internet, three presidencies and the mainstreaming of several more nuanced comedic sensibilities. It would make Sandler one of the world’s highest-paid actors, but beyond that, having a production company provided the luxury of control. To this day, the company functions as a shelter for the Sandler aesthetic and its defenders. Its world is populated by old “Saturday Night Live” buddies and a motley collection of people, mostly men, picked up from all corners of the entertainment world. Anyone who shares one credit with Sandler is inordinately likely to lay claim to two or more. Shaquille O’Neal has five. Dave Matthews has three. Sandler’s wife, Jackie, and his daughters, Sadie and Sunny, have 25, 17 and 15, respectively.For a really long time, this expenditure was worth it. Between 1999 and 2011, from “Big Daddy” to the Jennifer Aniston rom-com “Just Go With It,” Adam Sandler would star in 12 of his own live-action comedies. All but “Little Nicky” — a hellish version of “King Lear,” in which Sandler plays the Devil’s dullard son — would go on to earn more than $100 million. This was a remarkable run of dominance spanning the rise of the internet, three presidencies and the mainstreaming of several more nuanced comedic sensibilities. It would make Sandler one of the world’s highest-paid actors, but beyond that, having a production company provided the luxury of control. To this day, the company functions as a shelter for the Sandler aesthetic and its defenders. Its world is populated by old “Saturday Night Live” buddies and a motley collection of people, mostly men, picked up from all corners of the entertainment world. Anyone who shares one credit with Sandler is inordinately likely to lay claim to two or more. Shaquille O’Neal has five. Dave Matthews has three. Sandler’s wife, Jackie, and his daughters, Sadie and Sunny, have 25, 17 and 15, respectively.
A core group of guys shows up over and over: Kevin James (15), Steve Buscemi (15), David Spade (17) and Allen Covert (37). The onscreen record-holder is Jonathan Loughran, Sandler’s longtime friend and assistant, who has at least 40 credits with Sandler to his name. The sportscaster Dan Patrick (15) describes his initiation this way: “Rob Schneider said, ‘Hey, once you’re in, you’re in.’ And I go, ‘What do you mean?’ And he goes, ‘You’ll see.’ And then, I think it was like five movies later, Schneider goes: ‘I told you! Once you’re in, you’re in!’ ”A core group of guys shows up over and over: Kevin James (15), Steve Buscemi (15), David Spade (17) and Allen Covert (37). The onscreen record-holder is Jonathan Loughran, Sandler’s longtime friend and assistant, who has at least 40 credits with Sandler to his name. The sportscaster Dan Patrick (15) describes his initiation this way: “Rob Schneider said, ‘Hey, once you’re in, you’re in.’ And I go, ‘What do you mean?’ And he goes, ‘You’ll see.’ And then, I think it was like five movies later, Schneider goes: ‘I told you! Once you’re in, you’re in!’ ”
As far as I can tell, no one has any qualms about being a minor star in Sandler’s orbit. “The funnest part of my career is standing next to him,” says Schneider (21). And besides, there are perks to being in the greater Sandlerverse. At the highest level, he might help produce your movie (“Paul Blart: Mall Cop,” “The Master of Disguise”), or book you to open on his stadium tour. Lower down the scale he might give you a Maserati, the way he did for three of his “Grown Ups” co-stars. (The fourth, Schneider, got a Tesla.) Even a simple Sandler affiliation is likely to draw eyeballs toward your solo career. “I just did ‘Father of the Year,’ and it did well on Netflix, probably because I’m on some algorithm with Adam,” Spade told me.As far as I can tell, no one has any qualms about being a minor star in Sandler’s orbit. “The funnest part of my career is standing next to him,” says Schneider (21). And besides, there are perks to being in the greater Sandlerverse. At the highest level, he might help produce your movie (“Paul Blart: Mall Cop,” “The Master of Disguise”), or book you to open on his stadium tour. Lower down the scale he might give you a Maserati, the way he did for three of his “Grown Ups” co-stars. (The fourth, Schneider, got a Tesla.) Even a simple Sandler affiliation is likely to draw eyeballs toward your solo career. “I just did ‘Father of the Year,’ and it did well on Netflix, probably because I’m on some algorithm with Adam,” Spade told me.
The Sandler clique is so incestuous that it’s sometimes the subject of fevered speculation suggesting that Happy Madison is a grift to keep Sandler’s mediocre friends in the money. When I put this to Sandler, he was adamant that his work is never lazy. He works with his friends because it’s fun — and who could blame him? Still, what is a conspiracy if not a group tightly aligned in common cause? Sandler has amassed a huge amount of power, and he gets to control who reaps the benefits. When he wants something to happen, it usually does, and this, I suspect, has something to do with why all his friends would make the time to call me up and talk about him.The Sandler clique is so incestuous that it’s sometimes the subject of fevered speculation suggesting that Happy Madison is a grift to keep Sandler’s mediocre friends in the money. When I put this to Sandler, he was adamant that his work is never lazy. He works with his friends because it’s fun — and who could blame him? Still, what is a conspiracy if not a group tightly aligned in common cause? Sandler has amassed a huge amount of power, and he gets to control who reaps the benefits. When he wants something to happen, it usually does, and this, I suspect, has something to do with why all his friends would make the time to call me up and talk about him.
“I would lead with ‘Loyalty is his motto’ ” (Aniston). “Sandler is a very loyal guy to his friends” (Kevin Nealon). “I have enormous, enormous affection for him” (the producer Scott Rudin). “Such a menschy, sweet person” (Judd Apatow). “Really down to earth” (Nick Swardson). “He’s a great guy” (Spade). “I love, love, love him!” (Paul Thomas Anderson). “He really cares about people” (Kevin James). “Very generous with his own praise and support” (Robert Smigel). “He’s very loyal” (Herlihy). “Incredibly loyal and nice” (Conan O’Brien). “His level of loyalty is unparalleled” (Netflix’s chief content officer, Ted Sarandos). “If he goes somewhere, I’ll go with him, no matter where” (Schneider). “If you want to text or email for any little thing that comes up, please feel free to bother me. Anything for Adam” (Barrymore).“I would lead with ‘Loyalty is his motto’ ” (Aniston). “Sandler is a very loyal guy to his friends” (Kevin Nealon). “I have enormous, enormous affection for him” (the producer Scott Rudin). “Such a menschy, sweet person” (Judd Apatow). “Really down to earth” (Nick Swardson). “He’s a great guy” (Spade). “I love, love, love him!” (Paul Thomas Anderson). “He really cares about people” (Kevin James). “Very generous with his own praise and support” (Robert Smigel). “He’s very loyal” (Herlihy). “Incredibly loyal and nice” (Conan O’Brien). “His level of loyalty is unparalleled” (Netflix’s chief content officer, Ted Sarandos). “If he goes somewhere, I’ll go with him, no matter where” (Schneider). “If you want to text or email for any little thing that comes up, please feel free to bother me. Anything for Adam” (Barrymore).
Walking in October near Central Park with Sandler, I saw New York City upend itself. The fountain outside the Plaza Hotel became a deleted scene from “Big Daddy”; a giant block of schist casting shadows on the Pond transformed into the portal to hell in “Little Nicky.” Pedicab drivers, passengers forgotten, lurched out of their saddles and careened over the curb:Walking in October near Central Park with Sandler, I saw New York City upend itself. The fountain outside the Plaza Hotel became a deleted scene from “Big Daddy”; a giant block of schist casting shadows on the Pond transformed into the portal to hell in “Little Nicky.” Pedicab drivers, passengers forgotten, lurched out of their saddles and careened over the curb:
“Adam Sandler! I like you, boss! Every day I talk to my customers about you, boss!”“Adam Sandler! I like you, boss! Every day I talk to my customers about you, boss!”
“Yeah, hi, buddy,” Sandler said. “Thank you.”“Yeah, hi, buddy,” Sandler said. “Thank you.”
“You are the nice person, boss. I’m not American, but I like your movies, boss.”“You are the nice person, boss. I’m not American, but I like your movies, boss.”
Heads turned. Sandler kept on moving. After 30 years of fame, he was used to the world rearranging itself. “It certainly slows you down walking in New York,” he said. “But it’s hard to say no when people are nice.”Heads turned. Sandler kept on moving. After 30 years of fame, he was used to the world rearranging itself. “It certainly slows you down walking in New York,” he said. “But it’s hard to say no when people are nice.”
A fan waved a camera. “Sir, please?”A fan waved a camera. “Sir, please?”
“Yes, go ahead, bro.”“Yes, go ahead, bro.”
To Sandler, everyone is “bro” or “buddy,” except for me; I was “kid.” Crossing the busy street that cut through the park, he rested a fatherly hand on my shoulder, then yanked it away, as if weighing the optics of touching a young stranger versus letting that same stranger be run over by a car. Away from the street, we came across a guy absolutely shredding on the erhu. Sandler, who busked in the subway during college, stopped to throw some money in his hat, and I noticed the ease with which $20 seemed to float right out of his hand. I reckoned in that moment that a 20 to Sandler was probably something like $1 to me. Later, using dubious-but-still-plausible figures from CelebrityNetWorth.com, I calculated that his $20 was closer to my one one-thousandth of a cent.To Sandler, everyone is “bro” or “buddy,” except for me; I was “kid.” Crossing the busy street that cut through the park, he rested a fatherly hand on my shoulder, then yanked it away, as if weighing the optics of touching a young stranger versus letting that same stranger be run over by a car. Away from the street, we came across a guy absolutely shredding on the erhu. Sandler, who busked in the subway during college, stopped to throw some money in his hat, and I noticed the ease with which $20 seemed to float right out of his hand. I reckoned in that moment that a 20 to Sandler was probably something like $1 to me. Later, using dubious-but-still-plausible figures from CelebrityNetWorth.com, I calculated that his $20 was closer to my one one-thousandth of a cent.
But no time for class war: A family on bikes had rammed right through our conversation.But no time for class war: A family on bikes had rammed right through our conversation.
“I am from Brazil!” the father said. “Can I take a picture with you?”“I am from Brazil!” the father said. “Can I take a picture with you?”
The mother popped her kickstand onto the grass, which, by the frantic force of her foot, knocked the whole bike to the ground. Poland Spring bottles exploded from the basket, bouncing on the asphalt and rolling down a hill. The couple’s kid, who did not speak English, watched with confusion as the whole scene unfolded.The mother popped her kickstand onto the grass, which, by the frantic force of her foot, knocked the whole bike to the ground. Poland Spring bottles exploded from the basket, bouncing on the asphalt and rolling down a hill. The couple’s kid, who did not speak English, watched with confusion as the whole scene unfolded.
Sandler is wildly popular in Latin America. In the early 2010s, as his gigantic run of hits came to an end, his new comedies, largely domestic flops, continued to rake in profits overseas. “Blended,” his third rom-com with Barrymore, did more than 60 percent of its ticket sales internationally, with major returns in Mexico, Brazil and Venezuela. “Jack and Jill,” a 2011 gender-swap flick with a 3 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, earned nearly a tenth of its overall gross in Brazilian theaters.Sandler is wildly popular in Latin America. In the early 2010s, as his gigantic run of hits came to an end, his new comedies, largely domestic flops, continued to rake in profits overseas. “Blended,” his third rom-com with Barrymore, did more than 60 percent of its ticket sales internationally, with major returns in Mexico, Brazil and Venezuela. “Jack and Jill,” a 2011 gender-swap flick with a 3 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, earned nearly a tenth of its overall gross in Brazilian theaters.
Like Sandler’s earlier work, “Jack and Jill” is a broad comedy — slapstick, fart jokes, mockery of difference — a time-tested shtick that endures for more people than you’d think. I watched it while taking notes in a spreadsheet, which is not how it’s designed to be consumed. Sandler makes movies for people to watch when they’re tired from work, or stoned, or 13. And over the years, as he has garnered control, the most recessive traits of his filmmaking style have begun to combine in more flagrant disorder.Like Sandler’s earlier work, “Jack and Jill” is a broad comedy — slapstick, fart jokes, mockery of difference — a time-tested shtick that endures for more people than you’d think. I watched it while taking notes in a spreadsheet, which is not how it’s designed to be consumed. Sandler makes movies for people to watch when they’re tired from work, or stoned, or 13. And over the years, as he has garnered control, the most recessive traits of his filmmaking style have begun to combine in more flagrant disorder.
This becomes clear if you compare a classic Sandler film like “The Waterboy” with a baroque late-period work like “Jack and Jill.” The first is plenty idiosyncratic: A stunted Cajun “water distribution engineer” embraces his hidden talent as a linebacker and carries the South Central Louisiana State University Mud Dogs to win the Bourbon Bowl. In the other, the plot is slightly more grounded and yet at the same time more adrift in the Sandlerverse: Sandler plays Jack, an ad executive tasked with persuading Al Pacino to star in a commercial for the Dunkin’ Donuts Dunkaccino. (The joke here turns on the suffix “-cino.”) The only way that Pacino will agree is if Jack can get him a date with his twin — a woman named Jill, who is also played by Sandler. As the Sandlers increase, so does the entropy: There’s an adopted Indian son with a bizarre Scotch-tape obsession; there are cameos by Johnny Depp, Regis Philbin, Shaquille O’Neal, Drew Carey, Caitlyn Jenner, “the ShamWow guy” and the Subway spokesperv Jared Fogle. The movie somehow cost $79 million to make — or nearly as much the Brad Pitt vehicle “Ad Astra,” which is set in outer space. In the end, it doubled its money.This becomes clear if you compare a classic Sandler film like “The Waterboy” with a baroque late-period work like “Jack and Jill.” The first is plenty idiosyncratic: A stunted Cajun “water distribution engineer” embraces his hidden talent as a linebacker and carries the South Central Louisiana State University Mud Dogs to win the Bourbon Bowl. In the other, the plot is slightly more grounded and yet at the same time more adrift in the Sandlerverse: Sandler plays Jack, an ad executive tasked with persuading Al Pacino to star in a commercial for the Dunkin’ Donuts Dunkaccino. (The joke here turns on the suffix “-cino.”) The only way that Pacino will agree is if Jack can get him a date with his twin — a woman named Jill, who is also played by Sandler. As the Sandlers increase, so does the entropy: There’s an adopted Indian son with a bizarre Scotch-tape obsession; there are cameos by Johnny Depp, Regis Philbin, Shaquille O’Neal, Drew Carey, Caitlyn Jenner, “the ShamWow guy” and the Subway spokesperv Jared Fogle. The movie somehow cost $79 million to make — or nearly as much the Brad Pitt vehicle “Ad Astra,” which is set in outer space. In the end, it doubled its money.
Ted Sarandos, chief content officer at Netflix, told me that Sandler’s international appeal was part of why in 2014 he signed him to the company’s first-ever multifilm production deal. “Whenever we licensed his past movies,” Sarandos says, “anywhere in the world, they would always perform well. There’s this bizarre kind of conventional wisdom in the movie business that comedy doesn’t travel, but Adam’s work travels beautifully.” While movie theaters depend on ticket sales, Netflix cares more about how long you spend watching. The company owes some of its success to its endless trove of reliable B-content, which viewers can veg to for hours at a time. In this way, Sandler is a perfect Netflix star — familiar, undemanding and prolific. “The repeatability of his material is very high,” Sarandos says. Since Netflix signed Sandler to the multifilm deal, its users have streamed well over 500 million hours of his content.Ted Sarandos, chief content officer at Netflix, told me that Sandler’s international appeal was part of why in 2014 he signed him to the company’s first-ever multifilm production deal. “Whenever we licensed his past movies,” Sarandos says, “anywhere in the world, they would always perform well. There’s this bizarre kind of conventional wisdom in the movie business that comedy doesn’t travel, but Adam’s work travels beautifully.” While movie theaters depend on ticket sales, Netflix cares more about how long you spend watching. The company owes some of its success to its endless trove of reliable B-content, which viewers can veg to for hours at a time. In this way, Sandler is a perfect Netflix star — familiar, undemanding and prolific. “The repeatability of his material is very high,” Sarandos says. Since Netflix signed Sandler to the multifilm deal, its users have streamed well over 500 million hours of his content.
Back in Central Park, Sandler righted the bike and posed for a selfie with the family from Brazil. By now, a backlog of tourists had accrued. They waved their camera phones with desperation. “O.K., O.K.” Sandler said, “come on in.” He moved through the line, taking selfie after selfie, like Pac-Man swiftly chomping through a queue of blinking ghosts. Back in Central Park, Sandler righted the bike and posed for a selfie with the family from Brazil. By now, a backlog of tourists had accrued. They waved their camera phones with desperation. “O.K., O.K,” Sandler said, “come on in.” He moved through the line, taking selfie after selfie, like Pac-Man swiftly chomping through a queue of blinking ghosts.
We broke for the shade of a Popsicle cart. Sandler admitted that he had not had a Popsicle in a while. He studied the menu of frozen delights with the unhinged joy of a man who, at a later meal together, would force himself to order three scrambled egg whites, a bunless hamburger and pickles. As a middle-aged man, he’s concerned about his health. Being rich, he told me later, can buy you a chef or a personal trainer, but it cannot buy the self-control to not pound a whole thing of ice cream on the weekend.We broke for the shade of a Popsicle cart. Sandler admitted that he had not had a Popsicle in a while. He studied the menu of frozen delights with the unhinged joy of a man who, at a later meal together, would force himself to order three scrambled egg whites, a bunless hamburger and pickles. As a middle-aged man, he’s concerned about his health. Being rich, he told me later, can buy you a chef or a personal trainer, but it cannot buy the self-control to not pound a whole thing of ice cream on the weekend.
Treats in hand, we settled on some bleachers. The air that day was more than 90 degrees, and our Popsicles were not long for this world. He licked top-down; I licked base-up. Rainbow juice drew trails along our arms. We threatened to get up and grab each other napkins.Treats in hand, we settled on some bleachers. The air that day was more than 90 degrees, and our Popsicles were not long for this world. He licked top-down; I licked base-up. Rainbow juice drew trails along our arms. We threatened to get up and grab each other napkins.
“They don’t give you a lot of stick on this,” I said.“They don’t give you a lot of stick on this,” I said.
“Yeah, that’s a short stick. That’s a melting problem. That’s why you got to go like this.” He slouched the wrapper down around the stick.“Yeah, that’s a short stick. That’s a melting problem. That’s why you got to go like this.” He slouched the wrapper down around the stick.
I defaulted to the kind of small-talk schlock that generally flops with bus drivers and baristas. “It’s my first day here on Earth.”I defaulted to the kind of small-talk schlock that generally flops with bus drivers and baristas. “It’s my first day here on Earth.”
Sandler set forth a perfect laugh in four beats — Huh! Huh! Huh! Huh! It was a warm, domestic sound like a sputtering lawn mower. I wanted to hug him. I wanted to spoon-feed him. I wanted to give him a hundred million dollars.Sandler set forth a perfect laugh in four beats — Huh! Huh! Huh! Huh! It was a warm, domestic sound like a sputtering lawn mower. I wanted to hug him. I wanted to spoon-feed him. I wanted to give him a hundred million dollars.
Growing up in Manchester, N.H., Sandler was almost pathologically well-adjusted, lacking a formative wound of the type that leads people to get up onstage and beg for the adulation of crowds. At 17, he barely knew what stand-up was. He had watched “Saturday Night Live” and listened to Rodney Dangerfield records, but he had only ever seen comedy once, on a family trip to a Catskills resort. As high school wound down, he thought he might try college, if only because his three siblings had gone. His brother suggested that he become an actor and signed him up for an open-mic spot at a Boston comedy club called Stitches. At dinner, his parents asked about his plans. “They were like, ‘What are you going to say up there?’ ” he recalls. “And I said: ‘I dunno. I dunno. I’ll figure it out.’ ” On the ride to the club he turned to his brother. “What do the other guys talk about?” he asked.Growing up in Manchester, N.H., Sandler was almost pathologically well-adjusted, lacking a formative wound of the type that leads people to get up onstage and beg for the adulation of crowds. At 17, he barely knew what stand-up was. He had watched “Saturday Night Live” and listened to Rodney Dangerfield records, but he had only ever seen comedy once, on a family trip to a Catskills resort. As high school wound down, he thought he might try college, if only because his three siblings had gone. His brother suggested that he become an actor and signed him up for an open-mic spot at a Boston comedy club called Stitches. At dinner, his parents asked about his plans. “They were like, ‘What are you going to say up there?’ ” he recalls. “And I said: ‘I dunno. I dunno. I’ll figure it out.’ ” On the ride to the club he turned to his brother. “What do the other guys talk about?” he asked.
The gig went about as well as you’d expect. (One man heckled him for wearing a retainer.) Still, Sandler found himself drawn to the club, the other comics’ energy, “the whole vibe.” That fall, he wound up at N.Y.U.’s Tisch School of the Arts, a “Caddyshack” fan among “The Bicycle Thief” types. He started doing stand-up as often as he could: character work, bootleg Bobcat Goldthwait and the even-weirder voices that would go on to form the DNA of his movie roles. By the fall of his junior year, he was performing as many as five nights a week, venturing as far as Long Island or New Jersey. What he still lacked in talent, he made up in confidence. “I became addicted,” Sandler says. “Trying to get good. I was addicted to that.”The gig went about as well as you’d expect. (One man heckled him for wearing a retainer.) Still, Sandler found himself drawn to the club, the other comics’ energy, “the whole vibe.” That fall, he wound up at N.Y.U.’s Tisch School of the Arts, a “Caddyshack” fan among “The Bicycle Thief” types. He started doing stand-up as often as he could: character work, bootleg Bobcat Goldthwait and the even-weirder voices that would go on to form the DNA of his movie roles. By the fall of his junior year, he was performing as many as five nights a week, venturing as far as Long Island or New Jersey. What he still lacked in talent, he made up in confidence. “I became addicted,” Sandler says. “Trying to get good. I was addicted to that.”
Still, a lot of people are committed. A lot of people are talented, even, but most do not become Adam Sandler. Adam Sandler, of course, did, and even with the benefit of hindsight, he struggled to explain to me how his life turned out so good. Hard work was part of it, he says. Luck, he admits, had something to do with it, too — though Sandler’s kind of luck transcends even the stock fantasy of the big break. His kind of luck was cosmic and compounding. It started, very likely, before he was born, with two peasants in Eastern Europe getting horny at the exact right moment so that generations later, their great-great-great-great-grandson would come of age as America was yearning for a soft-edged Gen X slacker.Still, a lot of people are committed. A lot of people are talented, even, but most do not become Adam Sandler. Adam Sandler, of course, did, and even with the benefit of hindsight, he struggled to explain to me how his life turned out so good. Hard work was part of it, he says. Luck, he admits, had something to do with it, too — though Sandler’s kind of luck transcends even the stock fantasy of the big break. His kind of luck was cosmic and compounding. It started, very likely, before he was born, with two peasants in Eastern Europe getting horny at the exact right moment so that generations later, their great-great-great-great-grandson would come of age as America was yearning for a soft-edged Gen X slacker.
Sandler, a nice assimilated Jewish boy, was in many ways the right man for his time, but beyond that he had a sense of intuition. Time and again, he would wind up in the room with the guy who knew the guy, or the guy who knew that guy, or the guy who knew that guy who knew that guy who knew that guy. Some might call it kismet. Others might call it a freak accident, or the most privileged form of sheer coincidence. Whatever you call it, he had it — and had it over and over and over again.Sandler, a nice assimilated Jewish boy, was in many ways the right man for his time, but beyond that he had a sense of intuition. Time and again, he would wind up in the room with the guy who knew the guy, or the guy who knew that guy, or the guy who knew that guy who knew that guy who knew that guy. Some might call it kismet. Others might call it a freak accident, or the most privileged form of sheer coincidence. Whatever you call it, he had it — and had it over and over and over again.
For instance: One night at Catch a Rising Star, a now-defunct comedy club in Manhattan, Sandler got onstage to do his stand-up set; when he got off, Budd Friedman, founder of the legendary Hell’s Kitchen club the Improv, invited him to a regular gig at his newer Los Angeles branch. Sandler arrived in North Hollywood sometime in 1988, and there he linked up with another string of kismet: a roommate in the form of Judd Apatow, an apartment across the street from Rob Schneider, a friend who ended up becoming Jennifer Aniston. He started doing stand-up at the Improv. Following one set, Lorne Michaels called him to ask him to audition for “Saturday Night Live.” “I got on ‘S.N.L.’ when I was 23,” Sandler says. “It was too easy.”For instance: One night at Catch a Rising Star, a now-defunct comedy club in Manhattan, Sandler got onstage to do his stand-up set; when he got off, Budd Friedman, founder of the legendary Hell’s Kitchen club the Improv, invited him to a regular gig at his newer Los Angeles branch. Sandler arrived in North Hollywood sometime in 1988, and there he linked up with another string of kismet: a roommate in the form of Judd Apatow, an apartment across the street from Rob Schneider, a friend who ended up becoming Jennifer Aniston. He started doing stand-up at the Improv. Following one set, Lorne Michaels called him to ask him to audition for “Saturday Night Live.” “I got on ‘S.N.L.’ when I was 23,” Sandler says. “It was too easy.”
At first, Sandler was hired as a writer. His tenure began in November 1990, and he wouldn’t appear onscreen until February 1991. Soon, Michaels made him a full cast member, and he stayed on “S.N.L.” until 1995, overlapping with what is widely regarded as a low point in its history. In March ’95 New York Magazine ran an 11-page feature calling the show “disastrous” and describing a workplace plagued by hierarchy, generational conflict and anally fixated humor. Sandler, for better or worse, played the game, following Eddie Murphy’s tactics. He took on characters that viewers requested by name.At first, Sandler was hired as a writer. His tenure began in November 1990, and he wouldn’t appear onscreen until February 1991. Soon, Michaels made him a full cast member, and he stayed on “S.N.L.” until 1995, overlapping with what is widely regarded as a low point in its history. In March ’95 New York Magazine ran an 11-page feature calling the show “disastrous” and describing a workplace plagued by hierarchy, generational conflict and anally fixated humor. Sandler, for better or worse, played the game, following Eddie Murphy’s tactics. He took on characters that viewers requested by name.
One of these was Canteen Boy, who made his debut in March of 1993. Canteen Boy is a neighborhood pariah of indeterminate age — a pedantic boy scout old enough to walk around the neighborhood alone but naïve enough to not realize he is the butt of every joke. The shtick begins with a thick-tongued, high-pitched voice, an affect that appears in many Sandler characters and is so bizarre that you have to wonder if he is parodying a type. Is Canteen Boy an archetypal nerd? A developmentally delayed adult? The character’s interests won’t clarify things: He’s a snake charmer; he watches “seaQuest DSV”; he salivates over the model Cheryl Tiegs. It was only after a controversial sketch in which Alec Baldwin, playing a scout master, tries to seduce Canteen Boy that “S.N.L.” felt compelled to state canonically that Canteen Boy was 27.One of these was Canteen Boy, who made his debut in March of 1993. Canteen Boy is a neighborhood pariah of indeterminate age — a pedantic boy scout old enough to walk around the neighborhood alone but naïve enough to not realize he is the butt of every joke. The shtick begins with a thick-tongued, high-pitched voice, an affect that appears in many Sandler characters and is so bizarre that you have to wonder if he is parodying a type. Is Canteen Boy an archetypal nerd? A developmentally delayed adult? The character’s interests won’t clarify things: He’s a snake charmer; he watches “seaQuest DSV”; he salivates over the model Cheryl Tiegs. It was only after a controversial sketch in which Alec Baldwin, playing a scout master, tries to seduce Canteen Boy that “S.N.L.” felt compelled to state canonically that Canteen Boy was 27.
Because Sandler’s comedy is so resistant to interpretation, and because his recent cinematic output rarely finds itself at the center of debate, he has largely sidestepped our current conversations about who gets to joke about what and how. The closest he came was in 2015, when about a dozen Native American actors, as well as a Native cultural adviser, walked off the set of his Western spoof, “The Ridiculous 6.” The actors reportedly felt disrespected by his portrayals of Native women, which included faux-tribal names like Beaver’s Breath and No Bra. Jokes like these, based on exaggerated depictions of minorities, appear pretty often in Sandler comedies — if not as the main conceit, then in the gags.Because Sandler’s comedy is so resistant to interpretation, and because his recent cinematic output rarely finds itself at the center of debate, he has largely sidestepped our current conversations about who gets to joke about what and how. The closest he came was in 2015, when about a dozen Native American actors, as well as a Native cultural adviser, walked off the set of his Western spoof, “The Ridiculous 6.” The actors reportedly felt disrespected by his portrayals of Native women, which included faux-tribal names like Beaver’s Breath and No Bra. Jokes like these, based on exaggerated depictions of minorities, appear pretty often in Sandler comedies — if not as the main conceit, then in the gags.
“I try not to hurt anybody along the way, but ultimately I’m sure I’ve made a lot of mistakes over the years,” Sandler says. Still, he says he believes that his comedy is harmless, because he himself is the butt of the joke and because he doesn’t intend a deeper meaning. “Everything has the potential to be funny,” he told me. This is an attractive worldview, albeit a bit out of step with our time. Still, what reason does he have to change? No matter what he does, the movies are still made, the viewers still keep watching and — most important — he still laughs.“I try not to hurt anybody along the way, but ultimately I’m sure I’ve made a lot of mistakes over the years,” Sandler says. Still, he says he believes that his comedy is harmless, because he himself is the butt of the joke and because he doesn’t intend a deeper meaning. “Everything has the potential to be funny,” he told me. This is an attractive worldview, albeit a bit out of step with our time. Still, what reason does he have to change? No matter what he does, the movies are still made, the viewers still keep watching and — most important — he still laughs.
Nearly every Adam Sandler character is Jewish, though if you aren’t Jewish, you might not even notice. Sometimes it’s overt, as in “Eight Crazy Nights,” but more often it’s done quietly — a huppah in a wedding scene, Hanukkah decorations where the Christmas tree would be. Like Sandler’s other creative inclinations — the vocal tics, the fits of rage — the Jewishness can seem sort of random, barely exerting influence on the plot. Here, a Jew is just a thing a guy can be. I don’t think Sandler set out to create the world’s most broadly consumed depictions of friendly, deracinated Jewish people, but then again, even in Hollywood, a character does not become Jewish by accident.Nearly every Adam Sandler character is Jewish, though if you aren’t Jewish, you might not even notice. Sometimes it’s overt, as in “Eight Crazy Nights,” but more often it’s done quietly — a huppah in a wedding scene, Hanukkah decorations where the Christmas tree would be. Like Sandler’s other creative inclinations — the vocal tics, the fits of rage — the Jewishness can seem sort of random, barely exerting influence on the plot. Here, a Jew is just a thing a guy can be. I don’t think Sandler set out to create the world’s most broadly consumed depictions of friendly, deracinated Jewish people, but then again, even in Hollywood, a character does not become Jewish by accident.
Sandler is a very Jewish guy, and I don’t mean to suggest that he’s religious. When you get him going on the subject, it becomes clear that Judaism is to him less a faith than a culture — a word to describe a certain way that things are done. Sandler’s Jewish lineage begins somewhat vaguely in some Russo-Polish shtetl, followed by a half-forgotten schlep across the sea. His grandparents were born and raised in Brooklyn and made their livings in standard Jewish ways: One grandpa worked in the “schmatta industry,” selling clothes at Alexander’s department store. The other drove a cab until the last day of his life, pulled into the hospital, had a heart attack and died.Sandler is a very Jewish guy, and I don’t mean to suggest that he’s religious. When you get him going on the subject, it becomes clear that Judaism is to him less a faith than a culture — a word to describe a certain way that things are done. Sandler’s Jewish lineage begins somewhat vaguely in some Russo-Polish shtetl, followed by a half-forgotten schlep across the sea. His grandparents were born and raised in Brooklyn and made their livings in standard Jewish ways: One grandpa worked in the “schmatta industry,” selling clothes at Alexander’s department store. The other drove a cab until the last day of his life, pulled into the hospital, had a heart attack and died.
Sandler’s parents, Judy and Stan, met on a double date and eloped, tracing a well-trod path of Jewish class ascension, first from Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, to Long Island, and then to hardly Jewish Manchester, N.H. Sandler was one of two Jews in his class, but otherwise he lived the closest thing there is to a standard Jewish-American upbringing: Hebrew school, J.C.C. basketball, a bar mitzvah. Today, as a father, he strives to pass this on, though he admits the scale is different. His bar mitzvah party took place in the basement of his childhood home. His older daughter’s bat mitzvah was held at Hillcrest. Entertainment was provided by Adam Levine of Maroon 5.Sandler’s parents, Judy and Stan, met on a double date and eloped, tracing a well-trod path of Jewish class ascension, first from Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, to Long Island, and then to hardly Jewish Manchester, N.H. Sandler was one of two Jews in his class, but otherwise he lived the closest thing there is to a standard Jewish-American upbringing: Hebrew school, J.C.C. basketball, a bar mitzvah. Today, as a father, he strives to pass this on, though he admits the scale is different. His bar mitzvah party took place in the basement of his childhood home. His older daughter’s bat mitzvah was held at Hillcrest. Entertainment was provided by Adam Levine of Maroon 5.
“It’s more about tradition,” Sandler says. “Remembering history, making sure that you have pride.”“It’s more about tradition,” Sandler says. “Remembering history, making sure that you have pride.”
The impetus to carry on tradition no doubt has to do with his own father, who died from cancer in 2003 but continues to affect every facet of his life, including his car-buying preferences (American) and the way he spends money (somewhat conservatively, by multimillionaire standards). Stan was a ceaseless Adam Sandler fan who taped his son’s every TV appearance. Once, when I said I’d read somewhere that “Uncut Gems” could win an Oscar, Sandler said, with total earnestness, “My dad must be happy hearing stuff like that.” Family, above and beyond humor, is Sandler’s guiding value in the world, one that steers him away from darker work for fear of upsetting the people he loves.The impetus to carry on tradition no doubt has to do with his own father, who died from cancer in 2003 but continues to affect every facet of his life, including his car-buying preferences (American) and the way he spends money (somewhat conservatively, by multimillionaire standards). Stan was a ceaseless Adam Sandler fan who taped his son’s every TV appearance. Once, when I said I’d read somewhere that “Uncut Gems” could win an Oscar, Sandler said, with total earnestness, “My dad must be happy hearing stuff like that.” Family, above and beyond humor, is Sandler’s guiding value in the world, one that steers him away from darker work for fear of upsetting the people he loves.
After the drama “Punch-Drunk Love” — the indie hit that first had people asking, “Why doesn’t Sandler do more serious acting?” — came out, his sister Valerie, concerned, called to ask if he was doing O.K. “They know my goofy movies — they grew up with that guy,” Sandler explains. “They didn’t grow up with the guy who does some serious movies on occasion.”After the drama “Punch-Drunk Love” — the indie hit that first had people asking, “Why doesn’t Sandler do more serious acting?” — came out, his sister Valerie, concerned, called to ask if he was doing O.K. “They know my goofy movies — they grew up with that guy,” Sandler explains. “They didn’t grow up with the guy who does some serious movies on occasion.”
When Sandler first read the script for “Uncut Gems,” his instinct was to turn it down. From a critical perspective, he knows it’s insane that a midcareer Jewish actor with his résumé would even consider declining a role in a cool Jewish thriller by two hot Jewish directors. Sandler could only think about his children and how they might feel someday watching the film. And indeed, seeing Sandler transformed into Howard Ratner is unmooring for anyone who has spent enough time around him, onscreen or off. Most of Sandler’s comedic characters have the frustrated horndog libidos of the teenage boys who love them. It’s disturbing, in an almost-Freudian way, to see him as Ratner crawl into bed with a beautiful woman two decades his junior.When Sandler first read the script for “Uncut Gems,” his instinct was to turn it down. From a critical perspective, he knows it’s insane that a midcareer Jewish actor with his résumé would even consider declining a role in a cool Jewish thriller by two hot Jewish directors. Sandler could only think about his children and how they might feel someday watching the film. And indeed, seeing Sandler transformed into Howard Ratner is unmooring for anyone who has spent enough time around him, onscreen or off. Most of Sandler’s comedic characters have the frustrated horndog libidos of the teenage boys who love them. It’s disturbing, in an almost-Freudian way, to see him as Ratner crawl into bed with a beautiful woman two decades his junior.
The “Uncut Gems” creators, Josh and Benny Safdie, are known for their merciless filmmaking style, made up of seedy underworlds and populated with first-time actors cast off the street. Howard Ratner is a composite character, partly based on the directors’ father, but reimagined with the same first name as his boss at a diamond business on West 47th Street. The Safdie brothers’ own childhood was worlds away from Sandler’s Jewish “Leave It to Beaver.” Josh describes his father, a Sephardic Jewish emigrant from France, as a “squeezed bohemian” with better intentions than decision-making skills. Often, his parenting style led the brothers into the kinds of situations that make great artists rather than well-adjusted children. In one minor infraction, in 1993, he gave them “They’re All Gonna Laugh at You!” — Sandler’s first comedy album and a masterwork in the genre of art that’s not exactly meant for kids but that is also perfectly attuned to their worldview. One sketch, titled “The Longest Pee,” is a Foley-arts extravaganza over two minutes long devoted to the sound of a urine stream hitting water. In another, “Toll Booth Willie,” Sandler plays an affable Mass Pike worker who, for reasons that go totally unexplained, is gratuitously insulted by every single motorist passing through Worcester. Benny and Josh, then 7 and 9, would listen to the album for hours at a time, splitting a pair of headphones between them.The “Uncut Gems” creators, Josh and Benny Safdie, are known for their merciless filmmaking style, made up of seedy underworlds and populated with first-time actors cast off the street. Howard Ratner is a composite character, partly based on the directors’ father, but reimagined with the same first name as his boss at a diamond business on West 47th Street. The Safdie brothers’ own childhood was worlds away from Sandler’s Jewish “Leave It to Beaver.” Josh describes his father, a Sephardic Jewish emigrant from France, as a “squeezed bohemian” with better intentions than decision-making skills. Often, his parenting style led the brothers into the kinds of situations that make great artists rather than well-adjusted children. In one minor infraction, in 1993, he gave them “They’re All Gonna Laugh at You!” — Sandler’s first comedy album and a masterwork in the genre of art that’s not exactly meant for kids but that is also perfectly attuned to their worldview. One sketch, titled “The Longest Pee,” is a Foley-arts extravaganza over two minutes long devoted to the sound of a urine stream hitting water. In another, “Toll Booth Willie,” Sandler plays an affable Mass Pike worker who, for reasons that go totally unexplained, is gratuitously insulted by every single motorist passing through Worcester. Benny and Josh, then 7 and 9, would listen to the album for hours at a time, splitting a pair of headphones between them.
“They’re movies on CD,” Josh says.“They’re movies on CD,” Josh says.
“They’re not just comedy records,” Benny says. “They’re worlds.”“They’re not just comedy records,” Benny says. “They’re worlds.”
When the brothers set out to make “Uncut Gems,” an arduous process that spanned about a decade, they knew from the start they needed Sandler to play Ratner. The character was a bad decision maker — a protagonist so rash he fell short of antihero — but he wasn’t meant to be an unsympathetic guy. “We wanted you to root for him to win,” Benny says. “Sandler, we knew, could bring that out of him.” Sandler has an almost singular finesse for making audiences love insufferable guys. (The Safdies were never quite sure that they would get him. At various points in preproduction, Sacha Baron Cohen and Jonah Hill were attached.)When the brothers set out to make “Uncut Gems,” an arduous process that spanned about a decade, they knew from the start they needed Sandler to play Ratner. The character was a bad decision maker — a protagonist so rash he fell short of antihero — but he wasn’t meant to be an unsympathetic guy. “We wanted you to root for him to win,” Benny says. “Sandler, we knew, could bring that out of him.” Sandler has an almost singular finesse for making audiences love insufferable guys. (The Safdies were never quite sure that they would get him. At various points in preproduction, Sacha Baron Cohen and Jonah Hill were attached.)
Sandler isn’t easily persuaded to step out of his own well-controlled domain. More than just creative control, Happy Madison permits Sandler a calm, suburban life, even as one of the world’s most famous people. Movies shoot in summer, so he can bring his kids to set. During the year, the workday is arranged to allow him to drop them off at school and pick them up. For most parents, this is a fantasy arrangement, and Sandler knows it is something worth defending. Entering another filmmaker’s world upends the whole structure for months at a time and often entails taking huge creative risks alongside new and unfamiliar people. When the brothers finally got Sandler in a room, they quickly discovered that working together would involve arriving at a version of Ratner that Sandler would feel that he could play. “He’s a family man,” Benny says. “He would say things like, ‘Yeah, that’s going to be very hard for me to do.’ ”Sandler isn’t easily persuaded to step out of his own well-controlled domain. More than just creative control, Happy Madison permits Sandler a calm, suburban life, even as one of the world’s most famous people. Movies shoot in summer, so he can bring his kids to set. During the year, the workday is arranged to allow him to drop them off at school and pick them up. For most parents, this is a fantasy arrangement, and Sandler knows it is something worth defending. Entering another filmmaker’s world upends the whole structure for months at a time and often entails taking huge creative risks alongside new and unfamiliar people. When the brothers finally got Sandler in a room, they quickly discovered that working together would involve arriving at a version of Ratner that Sandler would feel that he could play. “He’s a family man,” Benny says. “He would say things like, ‘Yeah, that’s going to be very hard for me to do.’ ”
The Safdies, who admit they “don’t have the greatest imagination,” write scripts through a kind of pseudojournalism, studying the textures of real life and reproducing them over and over until a fictional version comes naturally. Once the basic profile of Ratner was formed, they sent Sandler to the diamond district, where he spent several weeks absorbing microgestures — how a jeweler handles a phone, the particular way his voice might shift as he moves out of casual conversation into sales mode.The Safdies, who admit they “don’t have the greatest imagination,” write scripts through a kind of pseudojournalism, studying the textures of real life and reproducing them over and over until a fictional version comes naturally. Once the basic profile of Ratner was formed, they sent Sandler to the diamond district, where he spent several weeks absorbing microgestures — how a jeweler handles a phone, the particular way his voice might shift as he moves out of casual conversation into sales mode.
From there, the Safdies constructed microcosms in which Sandler could practice these skills. In one instance, they sneaked into a Barneys dressing room and staged an improvisational shopping scene with Ratner and his mistress, played by the fashion-designer-turned-actress Julia Fox. In another, they invited an odd mix of people — including a real-life jeweler who showed up with Liam Payne of One Direction — to a karaoke bar where Sandler, as Ratner, delivered a cocksure rendition of “Break On Through (to the Other Side).” “Adam, I think, was smart and brave to trust them in the way he did,” the producer Scott Rudin says. “He quickly realized that his innate caution was not going to be helpful to him in this movie, and whatever anxiety he felt about playing this guy, he managed himself out of. That takes an enormous amount of self-knowledge.”From there, the Safdies constructed microcosms in which Sandler could practice these skills. In one instance, they sneaked into a Barneys dressing room and staged an improvisational shopping scene with Ratner and his mistress, played by the fashion-designer-turned-actress Julia Fox. In another, they invited an odd mix of people — including a real-life jeweler who showed up with Liam Payne of One Direction — to a karaoke bar where Sandler, as Ratner, delivered a cocksure rendition of “Break On Through (to the Other Side).” “Adam, I think, was smart and brave to trust them in the way he did,” the producer Scott Rudin says. “He quickly realized that his innate caution was not going to be helpful to him in this movie, and whatever anxiety he felt about playing this guy, he managed himself out of. That takes an enormous amount of self-knowledge.”
When I asked Sandler to talk about this work, he expressed a kind of sheepish frustration that he wasn’t more articulate about his process. The costume — the false teeth, the diamond earrings, the cheesy transition lenses — was a big part of it, he said, because it allowed him to step into Ratner’s persona and forget about what his own family might think. “There was something about that outfit that made me feel a little more confident as a guy, a little more cocky and in control,” he told me. “I miss being that guy. I remember when we wrapped, and I was done with the leather jacket and the pinkie ring, I was like, ‘Oh, I’ll never have a reason to wear that again.’ ”When I asked Sandler to talk about this work, he expressed a kind of sheepish frustration that he wasn’t more articulate about his process. The costume — the false teeth, the diamond earrings, the cheesy transition lenses — was a big part of it, he said, because it allowed him to step into Ratner’s persona and forget about what his own family might think. “There was something about that outfit that made me feel a little more confident as a guy, a little more cocky and in control,” he told me. “I miss being that guy. I remember when we wrapped, and I was done with the leather jacket and the pinkie ring, I was like, ‘Oh, I’ll never have a reason to wear that again.’ ”
Critics tend to think of Sandler’s so-called serious acting as an anomaly within his comedy career, but inside his “Uncut Gems” performance, you’ll find all the parts of Billy Madison intact. His voice remains stilted. Beneath that stupid, pleading smile strains the tripwire of anger ready to explode. Sandler projects deranged optimism, pushing his luck with such a desperate lack of shame that Ratner feels both real and dislocated — as absurd as any Sandler character, but now with all the randomness grounded in the peculiar Jewish world of the diamond district. Sandler plays Ratner at a breakneck pace, entombing himself in a dungeon of his own bad decisions. It is — and I mean this as the highest compliment — the kind of performance that makes you want to pick your skin. When I asked if he was looking forward to the premiere, Sandler told me he was mainly worried about what his mother would think. Already, he’d spoiled the ending for her in hopes of softening the most brutal scene.Critics tend to think of Sandler’s so-called serious acting as an anomaly within his comedy career, but inside his “Uncut Gems” performance, you’ll find all the parts of Billy Madison intact. His voice remains stilted. Beneath that stupid, pleading smile strains the tripwire of anger ready to explode. Sandler projects deranged optimism, pushing his luck with such a desperate lack of shame that Ratner feels both real and dislocated — as absurd as any Sandler character, but now with all the randomness grounded in the peculiar Jewish world of the diamond district. Sandler plays Ratner at a breakneck pace, entombing himself in a dungeon of his own bad decisions. It is — and I mean this as the highest compliment — the kind of performance that makes you want to pick your skin. When I asked if he was looking forward to the premiere, Sandler told me he was mainly worried about what his mother would think. Already, he’d spoiled the ending for her in hopes of softening the most brutal scene.
“I said, you know, ‘If I wasn’t in it, you’d love it, but it’s going to be weird for you to see me like this.’ ”“I said, you know, ‘If I wasn’t in it, you’d love it, but it’s going to be weird for you to see me like this.’ ”
The after-party would have eclipsed the main event, had the event not been the “Uncut Gems” premiere. Ubers pulled up at Katz’s Delicatessen on the Lower East Side and deposited what Central Casting wished it could: old Jews, rappers, downtown model types, guys who looked as if they still bought their porn in print. Waiters circulated with hors d’oeuvres — miniknishes and pastrami-sandwich bites. Anyone who was hoping to fit in would have struggled to come up with a standard way of being. It was, in other words, an ideal party.The after-party would have eclipsed the main event, had the event not been the “Uncut Gems” premiere. Ubers pulled up at Katz’s Delicatessen on the Lower East Side and deposited what Central Casting wished it could: old Jews, rappers, downtown model types, guys who looked as if they still bought their porn in print. Waiters circulated with hors d’oeuvres — miniknishes and pastrami-sandwich bites. Anyone who was hoping to fit in would have struggled to come up with a standard way of being. It was, in other words, an ideal party.
Sandler stood at the center of the room wearing a bad suit and talking to Rudin. I hovered alone at the edge of the group, overcome with irrational fear — what if Sandler didn’t recognize me? We had, at that point, spent two full days together, but something about proximity to fame will warp your sense of familiarity. Or at least, this was true for me, but not for Sandler. He shouted my name over Rudin’s head and pulled me in close for a backslapping hug. It’s possible here that I was being suckered — being played by the game’s most formidable player — but in that moment I knew how it felt to be let inside the Sandlerverse.Sandler stood at the center of the room wearing a bad suit and talking to Rudin. I hovered alone at the edge of the group, overcome with irrational fear — what if Sandler didn’t recognize me? We had, at that point, spent two full days together, but something about proximity to fame will warp your sense of familiarity. Or at least, this was true for me, but not for Sandler. He shouted my name over Rudin’s head and pulled me in close for a backslapping hug. It’s possible here that I was being suckered — being played by the game’s most formidable player — but in that moment I knew how it felt to be let inside the Sandlerverse.
If you could have seen the party from above, it would have appeared as a swirling solar system, with one bright star pulsating at the center and the rest of the room in a distant, pining spin. Friends and associates orbited by, said their quick congratulations and shot off into the distance. I paced the room. I ate a kosher pickle. After 30 minutes, he was gone — back to his hotel room, his wife and kids.If you could have seen the party from above, it would have appeared as a swirling solar system, with one bright star pulsating at the center and the rest of the room in a distant, pining spin. Friends and associates orbited by, said their quick congratulations and shot off into the distance. I paced the room. I ate a kosher pickle. After 30 minutes, he was gone — back to his hotel room, his wife and kids.
Jamie Lauren Keiles is a writer who lives in Ridgewood, Queens. They last wrote about podcast fandoms for the magazine’s Tech & Design Issue. Zachary Scott is a photographer known for his humorous and highly stylized work. He last photographed Rick Steves for the magazine’s Spring Voyages issue.Jamie Lauren Keiles is a writer who lives in Ridgewood, Queens. They last wrote about podcast fandoms for the magazine’s Tech & Design Issue. Zachary Scott is a photographer known for his humorous and highly stylized work. He last photographed Rick Steves for the magazine’s Spring Voyages issue.