Titled the first sound film, The Jazz Singer is the story of a Jewish American young man who defies the rules of his devout family and starts singing popular tunes in a pub. The punishments of the young man's father, a synagogue cantor, force him to run away from home. A few years later, after changing his name, the young singer successfully climbs the career ladder, but his professional ambitions soon clash again with the demands of his family. The lead role in the film is played by Eyzer Jeolson, a Lithuanian-born performer who became famous in the US as Al Jolson. For today's Lithuanian viewer, the film is also a reminder of the treasures of cultural potential that Lithuania has lost when its Jewish community was wiped out by the country's different political regimes.]