"Funny, she doesn't LOOK Druish!"

This is a quote that is in what I believe to be one of the funniest movies of all time--Mel Brooks' "Spaceballs." The movie was written and directed by a Jewish guy and I think that him placing a quote like that in the film addresses Jewish appearance stereotypes. I have been thinking a lot about our discussion over a movie we watched in class called "The Tribe." Throughout the film (which was basically a commentary on Jewish identity) was this whole issue of Barbie. The reason this was such a big deal is because people argue that Barbie is a representation of the times and portrays in a stereotypical way certain aspects of American life like lifestyles, cultures, and careers. One issue that members of the Jewish community had with Barbie was the fact that even though she was created by a Jewish woman, the doll doesn't look very Jewish. As a matter of fact, the only way I was able to tell that the inventor of Barbie was Jewish was because Dr. Cohen told us in class. I must not have any idea what a Jew is supposed to look like. I have heard about certain stereotypes about Jewish appearance but I think that they are stupid. Here's the main issue for me though. No group of people want to be stereotyped or pinned down to others expectations as far as actions or looks go, yet some people are complaining because the appearance of Barbie doesn't represent a group of people well enough. To me, this almost sounds like those concerned are kind of ASKING to be stereotyped. What does it mean to look Jewish, or Christian, or American, or Peruvian, or Alaskan, etc...? Does it mean anything?