Celebrating Our 4,000th Post in 13+ Years of Jewish Humor Central

Jewish Humor Central made its first appearance on the Internet on Sunday, October 4, 2009. In the following 13+ years we have posted video clips to fulfill the mission that we established at the beginning -- an objective that has appeared as the header on our home page ever since.

We posted Jewish humor items in the following categories: Jokes,  stories, parodies, satire, legends, books, films, Unbelievable But True, and In the News. Some were new, and some were classics. Occasionally some were not really funny, but thought-provoking.We included our own comments, but generally relied on the links to tell their own story.

We included items from religious and secular sources of all Jewish denominations, and we tried to keep the site family-friendly. Any perceived slight to any group or subgroup has been unintentional, and we trusted that people without a sense of humor would not be offended by anything we posted or linked to.

 

So for today's 4,000th post, we are looking back over the years and repeating the five most viewed posts since Jewish Humor Central began. We hope you enjoy seeing them again and understand why they have been so popular. 

#1 - Barbra Streisand Performs Avinu Malkeinu at Shimon Peres' 90th Birthday Celebration in Jerusalem.

http://www.jewishhumorcentral.com/2013/06/barbra-streisand-performs-in-hebrew-and.html

#2 - Alan King Explains All the Middle East Conflicts

http://www.jewishhumorcentral.com/2015/12/a-rare-comedy-find-alan-king-explains_3.html

 

#3 - Ivanka Trump Goes to Shul on Sukkot and the Media Doesn't Get It

http://www.jewishhumorcentral.com/2011/10/ivanka-trump-goes-to-shul-on-sukkot-and.html

 

#4 - I Could be Jewish For You

http://www.jewishhumorcentral.com/2014/07/i-could-be-jewish-for-you-from-songs-by.html

 

#5 - Yiddishology - How Good Is Your Yiddish - "Shtipper" or "Shtupper"?

http://www.jewishhumorcentral.com/2010/04/yiddishology-how-good-is-your-yiddish.html

 

Enjoy them all!

 

Thanks to all of our subscribers and casual readers for your feedback, encouragement, and loyalty through the years. We look forward to more postings to keep you smiling always. We'll be back with more posts tomorrow starting with our weekly Welcoming Shabbat video.

Throwback Thursday at the Movies: Barbra Streisand as Fanny Brice in Swan Lake Ballet from "Funny Girl"

The Forward has published a list of the 125 Greatest Jewish Movie Scenes of All Time. Compiled by Forward cultural reporter PJ Grisar and a panel of experts, the list includes scenes from a very wide range of films. 

As Grisar wrote in the introduction to the list,

If you were to edit the greatest Jewish scenes into a montage, how long would it last? Perhaps not the whole Parsha cycle, but it would be a real commitment to watch the entire thing. This list, which features some surprises, many obvious choices and surely just as many accidental omissions, is an attempt to capture the diversity and scope of Jewish moments in the film canon. Some highlight ritual, others language and still others a worldview or perspective that resonates with the shul-going, shiva-sitting, saw-you-at-Zabar’s set that’s been kicking around since Sinai.

In the coming weeks, we'll be using our Throwback Thursday posting to share some of these iconic, nostalgic scenes from films that resonated with us through the years. 

Today we take you back to 1968 when Barbra Streisand played the role of Fanny Brice in the movie version of Funny Girl. In a scene from the film, Streisand was dressed as a ballerina performing in a parody of the Swan Lake ballet.

As film critic Carrie Rickey described the scene, 

An exalted version of the ugly duckling. Barbra Streisand’s debut film reprises her stage blockbuster about vaudeville star Fanny Brice. In a scene highlighting Streisand’s triple-threat talents as a singer/dancer/comedian, she demonstrates that she is more than a swan. Behold the bird of paradise.

The lyrics that Barbra sings appear below the video clip.

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.

  

 #Throwback Thursday      #TBT

FANNY BRICE
What are ya gonna do? Shoot da swans? These lovelies? My swans girls?
Can't you see when you look at me
What a lovely creature is a swan- yoo-hoo!!
I'm all over fluffy white.
I wouldn't peck at you or bite
And have tiny twinkle toes to dance upon-
Oh was that good?

So you just gotta have a swan
Well you're out of luck
‘Cause a chicken wouldn't do,
It Would only cluck
And besides you couldn't say
"I saw a Chicken Lake ballet"
They would think you don't know nothin'
You are missing here a button
‘Cause a chicken's only good for consomme
Where upon, where upon,
Where upon where upon
A chicken or a duck is a mistake
When you do Swan Lake Ballet...

Throwback Thursday Comedy Showcase: SNL Coffee Talk with Mike Myers, Madonna, and Barbra Streisand

One of Saturday Night Live's most popular recurring features was the Coffee Talk series featuring Mike Myers as his former mother-in-law Linda Richman.

In this episode Linda Richman (Mike Myers), her best friend Liz Rosenberg (Madonna) and Liz's mom (Roseanne Barr) are huge Barbra Streisand fans and discuss Prince of Tides until Barbra makes a surprise appearance. The show was aired in 1992 during SNL's 17th season.

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.

 

#Throwback Thursday    #TBT

Evolution of a Song: From Second Hand Rose (Brice) to Second Hand Rose (Streisand) to Second Hand Nose (Sherman)

In doing research for our upcoming lectures on The Great Jewish Comedians and The Great Jewish Entertainers, we sometimes find interesting and funny variations on popular and classic comedy routines, jokes, and songs. 
 
The song Second Hand Rose, which most people associate with its performance by Barbra Streisand in the 1968 movie Funny Girl, was first performed by comedian Fanny Brice (Fanny Borach) in the 1921 Ziegfeld Follies.

In playing both versions of the song, we noted one difference. In the original Brice version, there's a line that goes "Even Jakie Cohen he's the man I adore, He had the nerve to tell me he's been married before". But the Streisand version changes Jakie Cohen to Jake the Plumber. Why? Was it to make the character more universal in a nationally distributed movie? We can only guess. The song became fodder for Allan Sherman, who recorded so many parodies of popular songs, and turned it into Second Hand Nose.

Here are all three versions. 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 Comedy Gem: Barbra Streisand and Linda Richman (Mike Myers) Get Farklempt on Stage - and It's Like Buttah

In the middle of a 1993/94 New Year's Eve concert in Las Vegas, an audience member starts up with Barbra Streisand. Who is it? Linda Richman, the character played by comedian Mike Myers in the Coffee Talk sketch on Saturday Night Live.

Wikipedia has an entry for Coffee Talk, explaining that in the sketch, Myers plays a stereotypical Jewish middle-aged woman named Linda Richman with an exaggerated New York accent who sports long, painted fake nails, lots of gold jewelry,  gaudy sweaters,  large dark glasses, and big hair, which she constantly adjusts. 

This character was a spoof on his real-life mother-in-law, Linda Richman. 

Of course it's a set-up, but the dialogue is funny, especially if you're a fan of Barbra or Linda/Mike.

Enjoy, and discuss among yourselves.

(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.)

Barbra Streisand Sings Hatikvah in Tel Aviv Concert

Last week we posted a video of Barbra Streisand singing Avinu Malkeinu in Jerusalem to honor Israeli Preisident Shimon Peres on his 90th birthday. That post had the second highest number of page views since we started Jewish Humor Central in October 2009. 

From Jerusalem she went to Tel Aviv to give a concert that included some of her greatest hit songs from her long singing career. We thought that we just had to follow up the Avinu Malkeinu video with Barbra's rendition of Hatikva at the Tel Aviv concert. Let's see if this one rivals or beats the Avinu Malkeinu video in views.

And thanks to Barry Shaw, who posted it on YouTube for all of us to see.

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.) 

Barbra Streisand Performs in Hebrew at Shimon Peres' 90th Birthday Bash

(Photo: Kobi Gideon/GPO/FLASH90)

Israeli President Shimon Peres was guest of honor at a spectacular 90th birthday party in Jerusalem this week. The party was part of the fifth annual Presidential Conference hosted by Peres.

The conference, titled Facing Tomorrow 2013 took place from June 18-20, 2013 at Jerusalem's International Convention Center. It was organized in partnership with Hebrew University. More than 5,000 participants attended this year’s event, including Jewish Humor Central's Los Angeles Bureau Chief Esther Kustanowitz.

As Tia Goldenberg wrote for the Associated Press Wednesday,

Scattered in the audience among Israeli Cabinet ministers and local clergy sat actors Robert De Niro and Sharon Stone. Rwandan President Paul Kagame sat in the front row beside former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, now an international envoy to the Middle East.

(Photo: Kobi Gideon/GPO/FLASH90)

The star of the night was Streisand, dressed in a flowing black dress accented with gold jewelry. Streisand sang the Jewish prayer "Avinu Malkeinu," which Peres called "heavenly" and gave her a long embrace and two kisses on the cheek. The prayer, which means "our Father, our King" is recited on the Jewish New Year and Yom Kippur, a day of fasting and reflection. Streisand said the prayer was meant to "cause all hate and oppression to vanish from the earth."

Peres, who serves in a largely ceremonial position, was serenaded by local musicians and entertained by dance troupes, one of which intercut its music with inspirational quotes from the nonagenarian leader.

Here's the video of Barbra Streisand singing Avinu Malkeinu at the event.

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.)

(A tip of the kippah to Dan Mosenkis for bringing the video to our attention.)