Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Comedy Flashback: Gilda Radner as Miss Emily Litella


The late great comedian Gilda Radner would have been 69 years old this week. We've been running video clips of some of her best routines and portrayals of characters such as Roseanne Roseannadanna and Judy Miller.

We found a clip of an on-stage performance where Gilda used her Emily Litella character in a classroom sketch directed in 1980 by Mike Nichols. We thought you'd like to reminisce with us as she becomes the character and delivers her funny lines with impeccable timing. 

Unlike the Saturday Night Live skits, this one gets close to being R-rated, but she saves the day with her classic line "Never mind."

Enjoy!

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Monday, June 29, 2015

A Joke to Start the Week - "The Penitent Parrot"

 
It's Monday again, so it's time to start the week with a new old joke. Once again our joke teller is Jerry Ostrov, founder of The reThink Israel Initiative, which operates the Facebook site From the Grapevine.
 
This site was created to provide a fresh perspective on Israel. From the land’s natural beauty to Tel Aviv's vibrant technology scene; from the global culinary world's focus on Israeli food and recipes to the innovative Israelis who are changing the world – FromTheGrapevine covers the bounty of what Israel is about today.

Here's the setup for today's joke: David gets a parrot for his Bar Mitzvah. This parrot is disgusting, it's vile, it's obnoxious, it won't do anything that he says. And then...
Enjoy!

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Sunday, June 28, 2015

Jewish Traces in Unexpected Places: The Talmud is a Best-Seller in South Korea


Last week The New Yorker published a fascinating article about the Talmud being a best-seller in South Korea, finding a place in most homes.

According to the author, Ross Arbes, who studied the Talmud in a day school in Atlanta, the Talmud's presence in Korea is attributable to Marvin Tokayer, a 78-year-old rabbi who lives in Great Neck, New York.

In 1962, Rabbi Tokayer served as an Air Force chaplain in Japan and South Korea, and returned to Tokyo in 1968 as the rabbi of the Jewish Community of Japan.

In the June 23 issue of The New Yorker, Arbes writes:
In 2011, the South Korean Ambassador to Israel at the time, Young-sam Ma, was interviewed on the Israeli public-television show “Culture Today.” “I wanted to show you this,” he told the host, straying briefly from the topic at hand, a Korean film showing in Tel Aviv.
It was a white paperback book with “Talmud” written in Korean and English on the cover, along with a cartoon sketch of a Biblical character with a robe and staff. “Each Korean family has at least one copy of the Talmud. Korean mothers want to know how so many Jewish people became geniuses.”
Looking up at the surprised host, he added, “Twenty-three per cent of Nobel Prize winners are Jewish people. Korean women want to know the secret. They found the secret in this book.”
Here is a clip from the interview:

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Friday, June 26, 2015

Adaptation of "The Rothschilds" Coming to Off-Broadway in October

 
Hal Linden as Mayer Rothschild in the Original Cast
If there was a Tony Award for Best Musical on a Jewish Theme, we would have given it to The Rothschilds, a 1970 Broadway show that ran for 505 performances. 

The words and music were written by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick, who wrote the words and music for Fiddler on the Roof. Hal Linden had the leading role as Mayer Rothschild. The musical was revived in an off-Broadway version featuring Mike Burstyn in 1980. But it hasn't been heard from since.

Now, 35 years later, it's returning in an adaptation called Rothschild and Sons. It will be performed at The York Theatre from October 6 through November 1 and tickets are already on sale for all performances.

As Andrew R. Chow wrote in The New York Times,
The new adaptation is being directed by Jeffrey Moss and was created with the involvement of Mr. Harnick, who wrote the lyrics, Sherman Yellen, who wrote the book, and the estate of Mr. Bock, who wrote the songs. The reconstructed story centers on the relationship between the Jewish banker Mayer Rothschild, played by Robert Cuccioli (“Jekyll and Hyde”), and his family. Mr. Cuccioli appeared in the 1990 revival of “The Rothschilds” as Mayer’s son, Nathan.
According to Mr. Moss, the idea to restructure the story stemmed from a comment made by Mr. Bock’s 12-year-old son after seeing the original for the first time. “I think there’s a story buried in this show that hasn’t been told yet,” Mr. Moss said. “This is a love story between a father and his sons.”
Songs from the original cast are hard to find today, but here is Sons, one of the best songs in the original show.

Enjoy!

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(A tip of the kippah to Eita Latkin for bringing this news to our attention.)

Thursday, June 25, 2015

Jackie Mason Musical Comes to Off-Broadway Stage in July and August


Here's something for Jackie Mason fans. We've posted many of Jackie's routines and shtick over the six years that Jewish Humor Central has been around.

We thought that we knew everything about the comedian, but were surprised to find out that there's a musical based on his life. 

It's coming to the Broadway Comedy Club in Manhattan in July, with performances on Wednesdays July 8, 15, and 22 at 2 pm.

Billed as "Both sides of a famous love affair with a hilarious twist," it was inspired by real events and portrayed by the real woman at the eye of the comedic storm, The Jackie Mason Musical takes you behind the scenes and introduces you a side of the comedian you’ve never seen before.

It begins at the bustling Rascal House delicatessen in Miami Beach, 1977. Jackie Mason (played by Ian Wehrle), spots Ginger sitting with her mother, Mrs. Olivier, among the pastrami platters and pickles, and sends his lackey over to her table. 

The overbearing mother is overjoyed to introduce her beautiful daughter to the much older comedian and the rest is the hilarious tale of the affair between Mason and bellydancing/playwright Ginger – featuring their real-life daughter - Comic Sheba Mason and a Cast of 8.

The back story: In real life, comedian Jackie Mason had a love affair with a belly dancer in Miami in the late 70s, resulting in the birth of a love child, a woman named Sheba Mason, who has grown up to be a comedienne in her own right.
 
The story on stage: Sheba’s mother, Ginger Reiter, has now composed, written and directed a new musical that stars her real-life daughter, Sheba. Playing both herself and her mom, Sheba is joined by a cast of actors, with Ian Wehrle as Jackie Mason.


The show includes such original songs as “Just An Ordinary Man,” “I Never Met This Yenta” and “Big Blue Eyes.” Hilarious, inspired and a thoroughly original take on a personality you thought you knew through and through, The Jackie Mason Musical is a must for fans of the comedian and anyone who loves a great, if complicated, love story.


Enjoy!

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Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Unexpected Traces in Jewish Places: Japanese Klezmer Band Jinta-la-Mvta Performs at KulturfestNYC


One of the most unusual bands to perform at KulturfestNYC, the week-long festival of Jewish music that ended its run on Sunday, was Jinta La-Mvta, a Japanese klezmer band. Yes, we said Japanese and klezmer in the same sentence.

The group was founded in 2004 by Ohkuma Wataru, clarinetist and bandleader of the groundbreaking Japanese experimental folk band Cicala Mvta and his partner and drummer Kogure Miwazo.

Considered as one of the few Klezmer experts in Japan, Wataru has also penned various pieces on Klezmer and Japanese liner notes of Klezmatics and Frank London.

We got a glimpse and sample of the band's music at the KulturfestNYC opening concert on June 14. The next day they performed at Joe's Pub at the Public.

We found a good sample of their Japanese klezmer style on YouTube and we're sharing it with you today.

Enjoy!

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Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Unexpected Traces in Jewish Places - Hasidim Play and Sing "Samba Set"


Wedding music at Hasidic weddings is pretty predictable. That is, until now. At a recent wedding in Lakewood, New Jersey, the Meshorerim Choir sang and Naftuli Moshe Schnitzler played a "Samba Set" on the keyboard.

We found the music to be infectious as we swayed and looked for a dance partner to launch into a set of Latin American dances. 

Do you think this will motivate Hasidic wedding guests to get out of their chairs and sweep across the dance floor? Will it lead to social dancing? Probably not, but who can predict what's next? The Rumba? Bossa Nova?  

Enjoy!

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Monday, June 22, 2015

A Joke to Start the Week - "Like Clockwork"


It's Monday again, and we know you've been looking forward to a joke to get your week off to a funny start, so here it is.

Today's joke teller is Bruce Sommers, a recently retired attorney.

Here's the setup: Morris and Abie are sitting around the pool in South Florida after they've retired, and they get into a conversation. Usually these conversations are about health. So Morris says to Abie "How're you doing?" And then...

Enjoy!

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Sunday, June 21, 2015

Actor Michael Douglas Receives Genesis Prize ("Jewish Nobel Prize") in Jerusalem


Actor Michael Douglas was in Israel last week to receive the Genesis Prize for achievement and Jewish commitment. 

Before the ceremony, he spoke to a large audience in Jerusalem and  reminisced about his 50-year film career, starting with his first on-screen role as an Israeli army jeep driver in Cast a Giant Shadow, which starred his father Kirk Douglas.

The prize, in the amount of $1 million – endowed by the Genesis Philanthropy Group and awarded annually by the Prime Minister of Israel to a single individual - is administered by a unique partnership, which includes the Office of the Prime Minister of the State of Israel, the Genesis Philanthropy Group, and the Office of the Chairman of the Executive of the Jewish Agency for Israel. Through this partnership and a worldwide nomination process, the goal of the Genesis Prize is to inspire unity throughout the global Jewish community.


As Jessica Steinberg wrote in The Times of Israel,
In a gray suit and open-necked pale pink shirt, the 70-year-old Douglas charmed a packed auditorium at the Jerusalem Cinematheque on Thursday afternoon. On Thursday evening, he was being presented with the $1 million Genesis Prize for his professional achievements and passion for his Jewish heritage and the Jewish state.
His Jewish heritage has gotten Douglas a lot of attention in the last couple of years, as Douglas and his wife Catherine Zeta-Jones celebrated their son Dylan’s bar mitzvah at home in Los Angeles and in Jerusalem last year. He’s also spoken publicly about his own feelings about his Jewishness, having both a non-Jewish mother and non-Jewish wife. And he has repeatedly thanked his son for bringing him back to Israel.
Enjoy!

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Friday, June 19, 2015

Comedian Rabbi Bob Alper on How Jokes Travel Around the World


We've been following the comedy career of Rabbi Bob Alper over the last five years, and we've posted seven video clips of him delivering stand-up performances on his own and in collaboration with comedians of different religious persuasions.

The funny reform rabbi has released a DVD of his performances and graciously gave us permission to share some of the material with you. 

Alper is a keen observer of the way humor travels from place to place and how what looks like a new joke can be an old joke that traveled from one country to another, picking up local nuances along the way.

In today's video clip, he tells an American Jewish joke and explains how it originated years earlier in Europe.

Enjoy!

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Thursday, June 18, 2015

Thousands Brave Weather in Central Park to See Yiddish Soul Concert


Photo by Shimon Gifter - VINnews.com
Thousands of concertgoers braved threatening skies to attend a lively concert of all types of Jewish music at Summerstage in Central Park on Monday night. 

The show was one of the 100 events that are taking over Manhattan all this week to celebrate KulturfestNYC, the 100th anniversary of the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene.

As the Vos Iz Neias website reported yesterday,
While the notion of Yiddish music and chazanus might seem to appeal only to the older set, concert goers of all ages were swept up by the music during the program, which ran over two and a half hours and was hosted by radio personality Nachum Segal.  Even the attire of the performers, from Malovany’s white dinner jacket to Schmeltzer’s white derby and colorful bow tie, seemed to echo the message of the night:  that Jewish music is alive and well with something to appeal to everyone.
Having five of Jewish music’s top performers taking the stage in the midst of the most visited urban park in the city and one of the most filmed locations in the world seemed surreal for some.
“Chazzanut in a park? Impossible,” said Chazan Yanky Lemmer. “Yiddish to young teenagers from across a wide spectrum of backgrounds? Impossible. Well that’s exactly what happened and from the reactions we know it was effective. Towards the end, the crowd was on fire! The blend of the two and the way the program kept escalating was superb.”
Enjoy!

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Wednesday, June 17, 2015

KulturfestNYC Opening Night Sets Tone for Week of 100 Jewish Cultural Events


Last Sunday evening more than a thousand people assembled in the Winter Garden atrium in the upscale shopping mall at Brookfield Place upscale in lower Manhattan for the opening concert of KulturfestNYC.

The two hour concert featured appearances by many of the stars of the Yiddish stage and films as a preview of the 100 events that are being performed this week up and down Manhattan to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene.

As Seth Rogovoy wrote in The Forward,
The event was held at at Brookfield Place, and if you’ve never seen a concert there, don’t feel the need to rectify the omission, because it’s actually a shopping mall atrium. Nevertheless, every seat was occupied, every inch of staircase was taken up by concertgoers, and the rest were left standing on the sidelines or hanging over the railings of the balcony level of retail stores.
The concert – functioning as a sampler or smorgasbord of all the musical artists who will be performing in the festival through next Sunday – included the obligatory rendition of “Rumenye”; a nod to the tradition historically embodied by Paul Robeson of African-Americans singing Yiddish through a lens of spirituals, here delivered by Elmore James; and a set-closing appearance by pop legend Neil Sedaka, who accompanied himself solo on the Steinway Grand with a poignant rendition of “My Yidishe Mame.”
We were among those hanging over the railings and managed to video a portion of the concert to share with you. Here's a clip of Bernard Hiller singing Rumania Rumania.

Enjoy!

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Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Unexpected Traces in Jewish Places: Amish and Mennonite Group Visits the Western Wall


A delegation of Amish/Mennonite communities visited Israel in November 2012 to express their commitment to Israel and the Jewish People.

The Jerusalem Post reported:
Although there is no shortage of extraordinary sights at the Wall, the visit by a group of 31 Amish people (29 Americans and 2 Canadians) had people staring in wonder as the group filled the air with their heartfelt hymns. The group came to Israel to apologize to the Jewish people for not previously recognizing the Jews as the chosen people and for not doing more to prevent persecution of the Jews in the past.
The group expressed the purpose of their visit: "We would like to meet and bless the people of Israel, to show our support, especially in the area of repentance, and acknowledgment of our errors, such as having rejected them as God's chosen people."

"We would like to meet with city officials and other leaders who would give us a few minutes of their time. We, the Amish and Anabaptist people turned away from Jewish nation, while they were in their darkest hour of need. We hardened our hearts against them, we left them - never lifting our voices in protest against the atrocities that were committed against them. We want to publicly repent of this and acknowledge our support of Israel."
This video shows the group united in song at the Western Wall.

Enjoy! 

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Monday, June 15, 2015

A Joke to Start the Week - "The Fortune Teller"


As you may have noticed last Monday, we're expanding the list of weekly joke tellers to include friends who have been good enough to volunteer their services to the cause of increasing laughter in the world.

Today's joke teller is retiree Norm Goldsmith. Here's the setup: At the clubhouse they've got somebody who's telling fortunes. The fortune teller is reading palms and interpreting the length of lines on hands. And then...

Enjoy!

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Sunday, June 14, 2015

Comedy Showcase: Joel Chasnoff on Bar Mitzvahs and Jewish Food


We've been fans of stand-up comedian Joel Chasnoff since 2010, when we started posting some of his funny routines about traveling, Jewish day school basketball, and Jewish holidays.

After graduating from Penn, Joel served as a tank gunner in the Israel Defense Forces. Joel’s memoir, The 188th Armored Brigade, is a brash and gritty depiction of his year in combat that Kirkus Reviews calls “Horrifyingly hilarious.” 



Joel’s comedy is a smart mix of personal anecdotes and keen observational humor, centered around the theme of the absurdity of modern American life. When he’s not on tour, Joel teaches stand-up comedy at the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan.



Here's Joel's funny take on Bar Mitzvahs and Friday night food.

Enjoy!

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Friday, June 12, 2015

Kosha Dillz Performs Carlebach Standard at Friday Night Live Service in L.A.


For the last five years, Rabbi David Wolpe and Craig Taubman have been leading a Friday Night Live service at Temple Sinai in Los Angeles, the largest Conservative congregation in the US.

In 2014, before passing the leadership baton for the service to a younger team, they invited Rami Matan Even-Esh, the rapper better known by his stage name Kosha Dillz, to perform on the bimah.

After singing an extended version of Shlomo Carlebach's Ki Ba Mo'ed with words from the service, the congregation joined Kosha Dills in placing Shabbat Shalom into the song.

Shabbat shalom to all!

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Thursday, June 11, 2015

Hevenu Shalom Aleichem Around the World - In an Irish Pub in Phoenix


We've been following the trail of the Hebrew song Hevenu Shalom Aleichem in its travels around the world. The song has made appearances in videos in many unexpected places like Germany, Australia, Korea, and Guatemala.

Last month we spotted a version by the group called Traveler who performed it in Seamus McCaffrey's, an Irish pub in Phoenix, Arizona.

Traveler is a multi-ethnic fusion ensemble. Drawing from their own personal backgrounds and borrowing from a wide variety of traditional music from a number of different cultures, Middle Eastern, Greek, Gypsy, Indian, Celtic, coupled with the incorporation of exotic instruments, Traveler’s sound is a fresh and new global sound, catering to people from all backgrounds. Based is Phoenix, Arizona, Traveler is well known for their entertaining the high energy live performances.

Enjoy!

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Wednesday, June 10, 2015

First International Festival of Jewish Performing Arts - 100 Events in NYC


The National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, now with a permanent home at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in Lower Manhattan, is celebrating its 100th anniversary this month. And what a celebration it will be!

KulturfestNYC will consist of 100 events all over Manhattan during the week of June 14-21, including theatre, concerts, film, dance, a symposium, lectures, and workshops.

Over 100 theatre actors, musicians, and scholars will particpate from Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Israel, Japan, Poland, Romania, Russia, South Africa, Spain, USA, and more countries.

Some of the events are free, and others have a $10 or $18 admission charge. Recognizing that many attendees will not understand Yiddish, all programs in Yiddish will have English subtitles projected on the screen.

One of the free events is Yiddish Soul: A Concert of Cantorial and Chassidic Music, to be performed at 7 pm on Tuesday, June 16, at Summerstage in Central Park. It will feature Avraham Fried, Netanel Hershtik, Yanky Lemmer, Joseph Malovany, and Lipa Shmeltzer

The five cantors made a TV appearance on New York's PIX11 and gave a preview of their concert. 

Enjoy!

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Tuesday, June 9, 2015

Comedian James Corden Takes a Shift in a Kosher Meat Market


James Corden, the British actor and comedian who was tapped to replace Craig Ferguson as the host of CBS TV's The Late Late Show, has been featuring a segment called Take a Break, in which he takes over the job of a retail store worker for part of his shift to give the worker a break.

Of course the real reason is to give Corden an excuse to engage in some spontaneous fun with customers and other store employees.

Last week, Corden took over the job of a cashier at a Los Angeles kosher market for awhile, resulting in a hilarioius six-minute video of the event.

As Sarene Leeds wrote in The Wall Street Journal,
Corden, decked out in a blue yarmulke and tossing off Yiddish-isms like “kvelling,” made himself right at home behind the counter at Western Kosher. Despite it being a Friday afternoon, traditionally a very busy time for kosher outlets (and Corden knew why, instantly making a reference to that evening’s “Shabbat dinner”), the “Late Late Show” host kept his cool, even staging an impromptu, klezmer-inspired song and dance with the Western Kosher employee keeping an eye on him.
He also found time to put the store’s meat slicer to productive use – Corden put his wife’s credit card in the automatic blade’s line of fire. But nothing beats watching the comic actor doing doughnuts in a forklift, with his Western Kosher mentor holding on for dear life.
Enjoy!

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)
 

Monday, June 8, 2015

A Joke to Start the Week - "The Golfer"


June is a great month for outdoor sports, and golf is a top choice for pros and amateurs alike. Unfortunately, not everyone has the skills to succeed at the game. 

Today's joke to start the week is about such an individual and the lengths he goes to in order to play well.

Today's joke teller is Jerry Ostrov, founder of The ReThink Israel Initiative, which operates the Facebook site From the Grapevine.

This site was created to provide a fresh perspective on Israel. From the land’s natural beauty to Tel Aviv's vibrant technology scene; from the global culinary world's focus on Israeli food and recipes to the innovative Israelis who are changing the world – FromTheGrapevine covers the bounty of what Israel is about today.

Here's the setup for today's joke: This non-Jew gets on the golf course. He is a crazy golfer. He loves golf more than anything in the world. So he looks out on the course and he sees there is a bunch of Hasidim on the course. And then...

Enjoy!

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Sunday, June 7, 2015

Comedy Showcase: Wayne Cotter Performs Stand-Up in Israel


Wayne Cotter attended the University of Pennsylvania where he studied electrical engineering. But after working as a computer engineer, he noticed similarities between engineering and comedy as he performed stand-up routines at night.  

He quit his day job and devoted himself to comedy full time, appearing on The Tonight Show, Late Show with David Letterman, and Politically Incorrect. From 1991 to 1994, he hosted Comic Strip Live, a stand-up comedy series on the Fox television network. 

Cotter was one of the comedians featured in The Aristocrats. He also had a small part in the film Spy Hard. He now performs at corporate events. Some of his routines focus on the connection between the thought processes that go into engineering design and the crafting of jokes.

A few years ago, Cotter was selected by Avi Lieberman to appear in one of his semi-annual Comedy for Koby tours in Israel. Here is a video clip of one of his performances on the tour.

Enjoy!

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(A tip of the kippah to Esther Kustanowitz for bringing this video to our attention.)

Friday, June 5, 2015

Musical Showcase: Meet the Y-Studs and Their Rendition of Hashem Melech on Broadway


In addition to introducing our readers to new comedians, from time to time we've been doing the same for new musical groups and highlighting some of their songs. 

Today we're showcasing the Y-Studs, Yeshiva University's a cappella group. Singing contemporary, Israeli, and of course Jewish music, The Y-Studs have performed before more than 1,000 people at YU's most notable events, and also sang throughout the United States and beyond.

But on Broadway? Really? Well, not in a Broadway theatre, but on Broadway (the street) itself. In this video, the ten members of the group sing a rousing version of Hashem Melech, while tourists watch them joined by Spiderman, one of the cartoon characters who walk around the pedestrian mall in New York City's theatre district.

Does the song sound familiar? It's been covered many times, and became very popular in Israel because of a recording by Beni and Gad Elbaz.

But it all started with Vivir mi Vida, a song in Spanish recorded by Marc Anthony in 2013. The song won a Latin Grammy award for Record of the Year. Below the Hashem Melech video you'll find a video of the original song performed by Marc Anthony in the street outside the studio of the Today Show in Rockefeller Plaza.

Enjoy and Shabbat shalom!

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)

 


Thursday, June 4, 2015

Comedy Flashback: Gilda Radner Gives Graduation Address as Roseanne Roseannadanna


One of Gilda Radner's most memorable characters was Roseanne Roseannadanna, who appeared on "Weekend Update" in the early seasons of Saturday Night Live, which aired on the NBC network. 

She was the segment's consumer affairs reporter who, like an earlier Radner character Emily Litella, editorialized on current issues. 

Unlike Litella's meek and apologetic character, Roseannadanna was brash and tactless. The character was based on Rose Ann Scamardella, a former anchorwoman on WABC-TV's Eyewitness News in New York City. The character also appeared later in Radner's live one-woman shows.

Today's video clip is a hilarious commencement speech Roseanne gave to the graduates of the Columbia School of Journalism.

Enjoy!

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.) 

Wednesday, June 3, 2015

Jerusalem Festival of Light Starts Today


Starting today, Wednesday, June 3, and running through next Thursday, June 11, the Old City of Jerusalem will be aglow with fantastic colorful lights as it has been for the past few summers.

No, it's not another Jewish holiday. But it's the Festival of Light, an extravaganza that will provide, through the use of light, a dramatic and artistic dimension to the Old City’s nights.

From the illumination of architecture to light statues, the festival will be a public and family oriented celebration that artists from different fields will partake in.

In the last three years artists from Israel and from abroad took part in the festival and used light in order to create statues, installations, performances and artwork. During each year, the festival brought 250,000 visitors to the Old City and succeeded in introducing a new trend in Jerusalem nightlife.
This year the festival has grown and will include ten international artists who will display the best artistic work in the field alongside dozens of performances, tours, artists, sites and more.

Here are a few video clips from previous festivals to give you an idea what to expect this week.

Enjoy!

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)








(A tip of the kippah to Elliot Greene for bringing the festival to our attention.)