This Lecha Dodi was recorded earlier this month at a Jazz Festival Shabbat at New Orleans' Touro Synagogue. The singers are Touro's Cantor Kevin Margolius and Cantor Rebecca Garfein from nearby Temple Sinai.
Shabbat Shalom!
After a series of theatrical
film shorts, also titled Candid Microphone,
Funt's concept came to television on August 10, 1948, and continued
into the 1970s.
The show involved concealing cameras filming ordinary people being
confronted with unusual situations, sometimes involving trick props,
such as a desk with drawers that pop open when one is closed or a car
with a hidden extra gas tank. When the joke was revealed, victims would
be told the show's catchphrase, "Smile, you're on Candid Camera."
Peter Funt joined the show professionally in 1987 when he became a co-host with his father. During this time the show was being broadcast on the CBS television network. In 1993, Allen Funt had a serious stroke, from which he never fully recovered. This required Peter to host the show full-time.
The show went through a few revivals. During his time on the show Peter was a producer, host and acted on the show. He also produced and hosted over 200 episodes.
In this classic Candid Camera stunt, Peter plays the role of a car rental agent at Los Angeles International Airport and tries to convince customers to rent a car that runs on flashlight batteries.
Enjoy!
These foods that we eat every day are actually Jewish — 20 foods found in kitchens, delis, bakeries, and grocery stores worldwide that originated from Jewish culinary traditions, were popularized by Jewish immigrants, or were invented by Jewish food entrepreneurs.
Most people eat these daily without knowing the Jewish connection — from the bagel you had this morning to the pastrami on your sandwich to the seltzer in your fridge to the cheesecake on your dessert menu.
The "Bloodlines and Borders" YouTube channel posted a video identifying all 20 — what each food is, how it traces to Jewish origin, which Jewish immigrant communities brought them to America, how Jewish delis and bakeries turned regional foods into national staples, why New York deli culture is fundamentally Jewish, and which foods were adapted from Eastern European Ashkenazi tradition versus Sephardic or Mizrahi origin.
All except one are kosher, the exception being the Reuben sandwich which contains both corned beef and swiss cheese. But it still has two possible Jewish origin stories, having been created either by New York restaurateur Arnold Reuben or Reuben Kulakofsky, a Jewish grocer in Omaha, Nebraska.
Enjoy!
Rabbi Jacobson, an American Chabad rabbi from Monsey, New York, is one of the most sought after speakers in the Jewish world today, lecturing to Jewish and non-Jewish audiences on six continents and in forty states, and serving as teacher and mentor to thousands across the globe.
He is considered to be one of the most successful, passionate and mesmerizing communicators of Judaism today, culling his ideas from the entire spectrum of Jewish thought and making them relevant to contemporary audiences.
He served as editor-in-chief of the Algemeiner Journal, and as a choizer (transcriber) for Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson.
He also loves to tell jokes, and here's the setup: A grandpa sponsors his grandson David's Hebrew school experience. He wants to see how his grandson is doing. So one Sunday morning he visits David's Hebrew school located near a temple. And then...
Enjoy!
Fifty-eight years ago Joan Rivers had her own show called That Show. Each episode had a theme and Joan did an opening monologue based on the day's topic. The show also featured an expert on the subject and a celebrity guest.
Here's Joan in the first episode of That Show in 1968. Enjoy!
Here's a refresher from Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, offering six facts about the holiday, one of which we didn't know about until today.
We'll
be observing the two days of Shavuot tomorrow and on Shabbat, attending
classes, eating cheesecake, and reading the Megillah of Ruth
with new insight. We'll be back on Sunday with our usual mix.
Shabbat shalom and chag sameach!
After a series of theatrical
film shorts, also titled Candid Microphone,
Funt's concept came to television on August 10, 1948, and continued
into the 1970s.
The show involved concealing cameras filming ordinary people being
confronted with unusual situations, sometimes involving trick props,
such as a desk with drawers that pop open when one is closed or a car
with a hidden extra gas tank. When the joke was revealed, victims would
be told the show's catchphrase, "Smile, you're on Candid Camera."
Peter Funt joined the show professionally in 1987 when he became a co-host with his father. During this time the show was being broadcast on the CBS television network. In 1993, Allen Funt had a serious stroke, from which he never fully recovered. This required Peter to host the show full-time.
The show went through a few revivals. During his time on the show Peter was a producer, host and acted on the show. He also produced and hosted over 200 episodes.
In this Candid Camera classic stunt set in a California donut shop, Peter stands behind the counter of a nearly empty Winchell's doughnut shop, attempting to sell the final remaining treat to unsuspecting customers. As patrons arrive expecting a full selection, Peter offers creative explanations for the depleted stock to gauge how each person reacts to the limited inventory.
Enjoy!
The song that took second place was performed by Israel's Noam Bettan, who sang in Hebrew, French, and English.
As Amy Spiro wrote in The Times of Israel,
Saturday night’s achievement came after months of speculation, hand-wringing, allegations, and reforms surrounding the Eurovision voting process. Which begs the questions: How did Israel actually fare in the voting breakdown, and did the changes introduced this year affect the outcome?
Israel still did notably well in the voting from the public, coming in third place in the televote. But, bucking predictions, it was actually the jury votes that pushed Bettan to a second-place finish, after he picked up support from the majority of the professional panels at the grand final.
All 35 countries taking part in the Eurovision select a seven-member jury made up of music professionals, who each rank every performance, are instructed to vote solely based on artistic merit, and are forbidden from discussing or coordinating their votes with each other. Enforcement of those rules, of course, is largely impossible.
The European Broadcasting Union appeared to want the juries to have a cooling effect on the more volatile popular vote — bringing them back this year in the semifinal rounds after they were scrapped in 2023. But when it came to support for Israel, Bettan appeared to win over many on the juries with his smooth vocals, solid performance, and unwavering stage presence.
Last year, Raphael received only 60 votes from the juries, coming in a middling 14th, but she topped the televote to send Israel soaring to second overall. This year, Bettan received 123 points from the professional panels, putting Israel in eighth place after he received at least some jury points from 22 of the 34 voting countries. Last year, Raphael got jury points from only 14 of the 36 nations.
Here is a video of Bettan's performance in the Eurovision Grand Final.
Marshal (Mickey) Greenblatt received degrees from Columbia (BA and BS in Flight Sciences), a DC from Von Karman Institute (1963) and his PhD from Princeton in Aerospace Sciences. He worked as a researcher for NASA and the Naval Research Laboratory.
With four other scientists, he founded Fusion Systems Corporation, which invented microwave-powered UV lamps for drying coatings. He founded and served on the boards of technology companies and is active in volunteer work. He served on the executive committee of the Jewish Council for the Aging of Greater Washington for many years.
Mickey also loves Jewish jokes and sent us this one. Here's the setup: It was 1936. Morris had decided to flee his native Germany. He sold everything he had, took the cash, and converted it to gold. And then...
Enjoy!
Today we're sharing one of Victor Borge's early standup comedy routines (actually sitting down.)
Victor Borge (1909-2000) was a Danish comedian, conductor and pianist who achieved great popularity in radio and television in the United States and Europe. His blend of music and comedy earned him the nickname "The Clown Prince of Denmark","The Unmelancholy Dane", and "The Great Dane."
It is celebrated annually on 28 Iyar on the Hebrew calendar, and is marked officially throughout Israel with state ceremonies and memorial services.
Let's enjoy the day with a nostalgic look back at some scenes from the Old City 59 years ago accompanied by Meir Levy singing Naomi Shemer's Jerusalem of Gold.
Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!
His career spanned over seven decades, and he scored dozens of hits between the late-1930s and mid-1950s with songs such as Walk Hand in Hand, I Love Paris, Stranger in Paradise, and I Get Ideas. He was married to actress and dancer Cyd Charisse from 1948 until she died in 2008.
In this video clip from 1946, Martin sings Jerome Kern's All the Things You Are.
Enjoy!
Born in Queens with the name Rikhters to a Yiddish-speaking family, he began doing stand-up comedy performing in hotels in the Catskill Mountains in New York. He became known as an insult comedian by responding to his hecklers. The audience enjoyed these insults more than his prepared material, and he incorporated them into his act.
Rickles was a regular on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, appearing more than 100 times over the course of 30 years.
Today we're posting a compilation of some of Rickles' most hilarious insults and quick-witted comebacks ever captured on late-night television.
Enjoy!
Today we're sharing a video clip of Gold commenting on Jews doing construction projects from building the pyramids to hanging a mezuzah. It's just as funny today as it would have been if we posted it on Passover.
Enjoy!
In this week's Joke to Start the Week, we're sharing Brad's version of a Jewish mother's reaction to her son being sworn in as President of the United States.
Enjoy!
He has appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, The League, The Mindy Project, Conan, Roast Battle, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, the film Here Today with Billy Crystal and Tiffany Haddish, and has his own Half Hour Special on Comedy Central.
In this excerpt from his special, Hyperbolic, Matthew looks at antisemitism from his unique cultural perspective.
Enjoy!
This version of Yedid Nefesh was sung two weeks ago by a group of Chasidim at the grave of Rabbi Elazar Azikri in the Israeli city of Tzfat (Safed).
Shabbat shalom!
The Ed Sullivan Show was a television variety program that aired on CBS from 1948-1971. For 23 years it aired every Sunday night and played host to the world's greatest talents.
We
remember Eddie as a giant (although he was short) of the pop music
world after he was discovered by Eddie Cantor at Grossinger's in the
Catskills where he was working as a bus boy.
Fisher
was born in Philadelphia in 1928 and was the fourth of seven children.
He was the son of Russian-born Jewish immigrants, Gitte Winokur and
Joseph Tisch. His father's surname was changed to Fisher by the time of
the 1940 census.
He
was not an observant Jew, but returned many times to sing at
Grossinger's, and that's where he and Debbie Reynolds were married.
Enjoy!
The show involved concealed cameras filming ordinary people being confronted with unusual situations, sometimes involving trick props, such as a desk with drawers that pop open when one is closed or a car with a hidden extra gas tank. When the joke was revealed, victims were told the show's catchphrase, "Smile, you're on Candid Camera." The catchphrase became a song with music and lyrics by Sid Ramin.
In this classic episode the Candid Camera team rigged a mattress store with a Murphy bed that that swallows anyone who lies in it.
This Candid Camera episode took place 64 years ago in 1962.
Enjoy!
In 2020 the Forverts launched a daily series of
short informal video clips called Yiddish Word of the Day.
The series,
written and narrated by Forverts editor Rukhl Schaechter, aims to give
non-Yiddish speakers an introduction to familiar Yiddish words and phrases and
how they might be used in everyday situations.
Schaechter, who was appointed the new editor of the Forverts in 2016, is
the first woman to helm the paper in its 119-year history, its first
editor to have been born in the United States, and likely its first editor
who is shomeret Shabbat.
Today we look at how the Lag BaOmer holiday and some of its features are described in the Yiddish language.
It's another Monday and time for another Joke to Start the Week. Today Mickey Greenblatt is back with another good one.
Marshal (Mickey) Greenblatt received degrees from Columbia (BA and BS in Flight Sciences), a DC from Von Karman Institute (1963) and his PhD from Princeton in Aerospace Sciences. He worked as a researcher for NASA and the Naval Research Laboratory.
With four other scientists, he founded Fusion Systems Corporation, which invented microwave-powered UV lamps for drying coatings. He founded and served on the boards of technology companies and is active in volunteer work. He served on the executive committee of the Jewish Council for the Aging of Greater Washington for many years.
Mickey also loves Jewish jokes and sent us this one. Here's the setup: It was closing time at the bar The drunk was ready to leave. He invited the drunk next to him to come to his apartment. And then...
Enjoy!
Today we're sharing one of Alan King's early standup comedy routines, recorded 57 years ago on The Ed Sullivan Show. Let's turn the clock back to 1969 and watch Alan in his prime.
Enjoy!
Douglas was born Issur Danielovitch in Amsterdam, New York,
the son of Bryna "Bertha" and Herschel "Harry"
Danielovitch. His parents were Jewish immigrants from what is now Belarus, and the family spoke Yiddish at home.
His father's brother, who emigrated earlier, used the surname Demsky, which Douglas' family adopted in the United States. Douglas grew up as Izzy Demsky and legally changed his name to Kirk Douglas before entering the United States Navy during World War II.
But serious dramas were not his only acting roles. Douglas sang and danced a popular tune, A Whale of a Tale, in Walt Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, a 1954 American science fiction adventure film. Adapted from Jules Verne's 1870 novel, the film also starred James Mason, Paul Lukas, and Peter Lorre. Photographed in Technicolor, the film was one of the first feature-length motion pictures to be filmed in CinemaScope. It was also the first feature-length Disney film to be distributed by Buena Vista Distribution.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was a critical and commercial success, being especially remembered for the fight with a giant squid, as well as Mason's definitive performance as the charismatic anti-hero Captain Nemo. The film won two Academy Awards for its art direction and special effects.
Here is a video of Kirk Douglas singing A Whale of a Tale from the movie. The full movie is available to watch on YouTube. Enjoy!
After a series of theatrical
film shorts, also titled Candid Microphone,
Funt's concept came to television on August 10, 1948, and continued
into the 1970s.
The show involved concealing cameras filming ordinary people being
confronted with unusual situations, sometimes involving trick props,
such as a desk with drawers that pop open when one is closed or a car
with a hidden extra gas tank. When the joke was revealed, victims would
be told the show's catchphrase, "Smile, you're on Candid Camera."
Peter Funt joined the show professionally in 1987 when he became a co-host with his father. During this time the show was being broadcast on the CBS television network. In 1993, Allen Funt had a serious stroke, from which he never fully recovered. This required Peter to host the show full-time.
The show went through a few revivals. During his time on the show Peter was a producer, host and acted on the show. He also produced and hosted over 200 episodes.
In this Candid Camera classic stunt set in a gas station 24 years ago, customers pumping gas were informed by a loudspeaker announcement that the price was being increased by 14 cents a gallon while they were pumping. Watch their reactions!
Enjoy!
Born in Tel Aviv, Israel, Modi Rosenfeld moved to New
York City with his family when he was 7. Before entering comedy, he was a
Wall Street international banker. He now goes solely by the name Modi
and is known for creating accents and characters.
He has made many appearances at the Just for Laughs festival, an annual summer event in Montreal and at comedy clubs around the world.
Modi will be appearing this Thursday evening, April 30 at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.
In this video of his appearance on The Tonight Show earlier this month, Modi's standup routine focuses on getting advice from his fans and generational differences.
Enjoy!
Rabbi Jacobson, an American Chabad rabbi from Monsey, New York, is one of the most sought after speakers in the Jewish world today, lecturing to Jewish and non-Jewish audiences on six continents and in forty states, and serving as teacher and mentor to thousands across the globe.
He is considered to be one of the most successful, passionate and mesmerizing communicators of Judaism today, culling his ideas from the entire spectrum of Jewish thought and making them relevant to contemporary audiences.
He served as editor-in-chief of the Algemeiner Journal, and as a choizer (transcriber) for Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson.
He also loves to tell jokes, and here's the setup: This woman comes to see the rabbi. She needs to speak to him. They end up talking for three hours. And then...
Enjoy!
Today we're sharing one of Jackie Mason's early standup comedy routines, recorded in 1961. Let's turn the clock back 65 years and enjoy Jackie in his prime.
From humble comic beginnings in New York, the Borscht Belt, and comedy clubs around the country, Jackie Mason rose to be one the hottest comics in America in the early 1960's.
Born
in Sheboygan, Wisconsin as Yacov Moshe Maza, Jackie Mason was raised on
the Lower East Side of Manhattan surrounded by rabbis.
His
father, grandfather, great grandfather, and great, great-grandfather
were all rabbis, as are his three brothers. No surprise that at age 25,
Jackie Mason was ordained a rabbi.
Three years later, he quit his job in a synagogue to become a comedian
because, as he says, "Somebody in the family had to make a living."
Enjoy!
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