Comedy Showcase: Actor/Comedian Paul Reiser on Lying About Our Age

Paul Reiser is an American actor, comedian, and writer. He comes from a Romanian Jewish family and attended the East Side Hebrew Institute, a Jewish Day School which merged with the Park East Synagogue in the early 1980s to become the Park East Day School.

He played the roles of Michael Taylor in the 1980s sitcom My Two Dads, Paul Buchman in the NBC sitcom Mad About You, Modell in the 1982 film Diner, and Detective Jeffrey Friedman in the Beverly Hills Cop franchise. He has gained recognition for his roles as Jim Neiman in the 2014 film Whiplash and Dr. Sam Owens in the Netflix series Stranger Things. 

Reiser is ranked 77th on Comedy Central's 2004 list of the "100 Greatest Stand-ups of All Time". The name of his production company, Nuance Productions, is inspired by one of his lines in the film Diner, where his character explains his discomfort with the word "nuance".  

In this excerpt from his first standup special in over 30 years, Reiser talks about the consequences of lying about our age as we get older.

Enjoy!

Wacky Wednesday Comedy Showcase: Allan Sherman Sings "Strange Things in My Soup"

Allan Sherman dominated the world of song parody during the 1960s and recorded eight albums, starting with My Son the Folksinger.  

Listening to or reading his lyrics is a crash course in pop culture of the 1960s, with Sherman taking satiric swipes at summer camp, psychiatry, fad diets, Hadassah ladies, school dropouts, and upward mobility.

The popularity of his parodies got him many guest appearances on TV variety shows. In this video clip, Sherman sings his take-off on Frank Sinatra's popular Strangers in the Night.

Enjoy!

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Comedy Showcase: Rita Rudner on What It's Like to be an Older Woman

We've been big fans of Rita Rudner ever since she started to appear on late night TV in the 1980s.

One of the hallmarks of her comedy is that it's clean, free from the vulgarity and shouting that many stand-up comics find necessary.  Her delivery is demure, tasteful, full of wry observations, and very funny.

Rudner started her career as a dancer, then switched to stand-up comedy about her dating experiences.  She married British producer Martin Bergman about 30 years ago and they have a daughter.  She is fond of Jewish humor but generally reserves it for when she performs for Jewish audiences.

Rita just released video clips of some recent performances. Today we're sharing her observations on what it's like to be an older woman.

 

Enjoy!

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Comedy Showcase: Elon Gold's Stand-Up Comedy

Today we came across an undated video clip of a stand-up comedy performance by Elon Gold. 

In it he does imitations of Jeff Goldblum and Jerry Seinfeld, reflects on the different head and neck motions of various ethnic groups, and the lack of Jewish astronauts and contestants on The Price is Right. 

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 Comedy Showcase: Dennis Wolfberg and "The Double Bris"

In the 1980s, stand-up comedian Dennis Wolfberg headlined at comedy clubs across the country as well as working in Las Vegas and Atlantic City on a regular basis. He was twice named America's top male comic in votes by clubgoers and owners nationwide. In 1990 he won an American Comedy Award as best male standup.

Wolfberg appeared twice on The Tonight Show. In addition, he was a frequent guest on The Merv Griffin Show, The Pat Sajak Show and The Arsenio Hall Show. He starred in his own half-hour comedy special on HBO in 1990.

His talented comedy career was cut short when he died of melanoma in 1994, at the age of 48. Though he battled cancer for at least two years, he continued to work through the end of August 1994. At the time of his death, he was negotiating a deal for his own TV show.

We're lucky to have some of his routines that were captured on video and posted on YouTube. Here is one of his appearances at Comic Strip Live in which he describes in graphic detail the bris of his twin sons who were born seven weeks before his performance.

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

Comedy Showcase: Canadian Actor and Comedian Robert Cait

Whenever we find a really funny Jewish comedian who tells clean jokes, we consider it a very good day. So today's a very good day since we came across the comedy of Robert Cait, a Canadian actor and comedian who is fluent in Hebrew and Yiddish and is very aware of the Jewish scene.
 
A graduate of The Associated Hebrew Day Schools Talmud Torah in Toronto, Cait has talents beyond stand-up comedy. You've  probably heard his voice in documentaries and TV commercials.

From the unaffordable, high cost of Jewish education, to what makes Israelis tick, to bizarre holiday foods, Cait connects with Jewish audiences at their deepest and most hysterical levels.
 
Audiences have enjoyed Cait on A&E’s Evening at the Improv and on MTV’s Half Hour Comedy Hour. He has played at The Laugh Factory and The Comedy Store and was the opening act for headliner Dennis Miller’s Las Vegas show.
 
In this stand-up segment, Cait touches on Bibi Netanyahu, the cost of day school, lashon hara, his bubbe, Hollywood casting, and the planet Mars.

Enjoy!
 
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The New Jewish Comedians: Meet Talia Reese, Standup Comic

We've been posting clips of Jewish comedians going back to the days of vaudeville and burlesque, from Jack Benny to Alan King, and including dozens more. We've posted many of them since we started Jewish Humor Central nine years ago. In March we gave a lecture at Florida Atlantic University on these old timers.

But a new generation of Jewish comedians is on the rise. And they're very funny. It's a rare one who can get through a routine without off-color words or phrases, but some are trying very hard to let the jokes and situations carry the day without resorting to outright foul language.

Some of the new comedians are only new to us, since we haven't been watching all the late night TV shows and comedy specials where they make their first appearances. But as we discover them, we'll share some of their video clips with you.

Today we're sharing a video clip by Talia Reese. The New York Post recently featured a nearly full-page article about her life and comedy entitled, "Orthodox Jewish Comic Finds Balance Between Raunch and Religion," and called her a "Hot Ticket". 

Talia attended law school and worked as a lawyer, is married to a fellow lawyer, and lives in Great Neck, New York. Her standup routines are sometimes risque, but she cleans up her act when she performs at synagogues like this routine at a Young Israel dinner.

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.











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Comedy Showcase: Elon Gold on the Late Late Show with James Corden

We've been following Elon Gold and posting some of his shtick on Jewish Humor Central for the last nine years. 

Elon is an American comedian, television actor, writer and producer. He starred in the television series Stacked.  He also starred in the short-lived sitcom In-Laws. 

 

Known for his impressions, including those of Jeff Goldblum, Howard Stern and Jay Leno, Gold was a judge on the ABC celebrity impersonation competition series The Next Best Thing. Gold was also in the movie Cheaper by the Dozen as a cameraman from the Oprah Winfrey show.

Gold attended the Westchester Day School in Mamaroneck, NY and the Marsha Stern Talmudical Academy (MTA)/Yeshiva University High School for Boys in Manhattan, NY. He is a practicing orthodox Jew.

 

Here's Elon in a recent appearance on The Late Late Show with James Corden. In this stand-up comedy routine he dives into the debate every Jewish person faces: food or money, and how sex is basically the same as parking. 

 

Enjoy!

 

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Throwback Thursday Comedy Special: Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca as The Hickenloopers - "The Joke"

With Passover behind us, we're getting back into the groove of dipping into the comedy archive every Thursday, and pulling out a beloved comedy sketch from such favorite TV programs as Your Show of Shows.

In this episode from the early 1950s, Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca take on the roles of Eddie and Doris Hickenlooper, a happily married couple who always seem to find something to bicker about.

As they get ready to go to bed (in single beds, which was the way the TV censors wanted it back then), Sid tells Imogene a joke that she doesn't get. And then the fun begins.

Enjoy!

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#Throwback Thursday   #TBT

Comedy Showcase: Jeffrey Ross Meets Larry the Toll Booth Operator

Jeff Ross (born Jeffrey Ross Lipschultz to a Jewish family in Springfield, New Jersey) is a stand-up comedian, actor, and author. His skill in doing high-profile celebrity roasts and his appearances in Comedy Central's Roasts, have led him to be dubbed "The Roastmaster General."

He has appeared in various film, television, and cartoon projects. He has made appearances at events for U.S. soldiers and directed a documentary film covering his experiences touring U.S. bases in Iraq.

Here's Jeff in a Comedy Central special when he asked for someone in the audience to come up to the stage to assist him in a comedy routine. He got more than he bargained for when Larry the Toll Booth Operator accepted his invitation.

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.)

Comedy Showcase: Elon Gold on How the Jews Built the Pyramids

Elon Gold is an American comedian, television actor, writer and producer. He starred in the television series Stacked.  He also starred in the short-lived sitcom In-Laws. Known for his impressions, including those of Jeff Goldblum, Howard Stern and Jay Leno, Gold was a judge on the ABC celebrity impersonation competition series The Next Best Thing. Gold was also in the movie Cheaper by the Dozen as a cameraman from the Oprah Winfrey show.

Gold attended the Westchester Day School in Mamaroneck, NY and the Marsha Stern Talmudical Academy (MTA)/Yeshiva University High School for Boys in Manhattan, NY. He is a practicing orthodox Jew.

Here is a funny clip on How the Jews Built the Pyramids from his Amazon hour-long video Elon Gold: Chosen and Taken.

Enjoy!

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New Comedian Showcase: Meet Standup Comic Mike Fine

With a sharp mix of an unpredictable demeanor, abstract observations and deadpan delivery, Mike Fine’s comedy styling is reminiscent of the classic Borscht Belt comedians. 

Always a crowd favorite, Mike’s adept ability to tailor his act for any audience keeps him in constant demand, making regular appearances at major clubs, colleges, and corporate events in the U.S. and abroad.

Whenever Mike performs, he always makes it a priority to give back. He actively volunteers for Veterans' causes, such as Wounded Warrior Project, Wheelers for The Wounded, Disabled Sports USA, He also dedicates time to other charitable oauses such as the Friars Sunshine Committee, Gilda’s Club, Police Athletic League, Fresh Air Fund, The Actors Temple, United Hatzalah, and many other non-profit organizations that he’s passionate about.

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.)