Take the Yiddish Word Quiz with Amy Walker

How's your Yiddish? Well, BimBam, the nonprofit website that sparks connections to Judaism through digital storytelling for learners of all ages, went to Los Angeles to meet fellow YouTuber Amy Walker. They developed this gameshow-like video that teaches you popular Yiddish words.

We've always been surprised at how many Jews of all ages have a limited familiarity with the Yiddish language, so we're supporting websites, theatre, film, and other cultural venues that increase exposure to this rich and often funny language.

Amy Walker is an actress, singer and voiceover artist. She's been featured on TEDx, the TODAY Show, NPR, Inside Edition, and more. Her online videos have garnered over 40 million views on YouTube and beyond, from the viral "21 Accents", to memorable characters, songs, and inspirational insights.

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.

Kommon Kiruv Kwestions: A Guide to Hosting Guests on Shabbat

First of all, let's understand that today's video is parody, spoof, satire. If you can tolerate it, there is a payoff at the end. This is one in a series of sketches aimed at sharing the Shabbat experience with guests who don't observe Shabbat regularly.

It's an exaggerated case of kiruv, a word that signifies outreach, usually from the Orthodox Jewish perspective. In this sketch the MC is standup comedian Modi Rosenfeld, who introduces the "annoyingly friendly host" Kloynimus Kakelstein.

It's in the format of a TV game show, with the contestants asked to answer the question "What do I say if my guest asks me why we make a blessing on two loaves of challah? You'll recognize one of the contestants as Menashe Lustig, the chassidic actor-comedian who recently starred in the acclaimed film Menashe.

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.

Jimmy Kimmel Plays "Hipster or Hasidic" Game With His Audience Again

Back in November 2012, late night show host Jimmy Kimmel introduced a new audience participation game show called "Hipster or Hasidic." We called our readers' attention to it then, but it has since been purged from YouTube. So we were happy to see that Kimmel played the game again with his studio audience last Thursday and posted it to YouTube.

Why "Hipster or Hasidic?" Because the Hasidic enclave of Williamsburg in Brooklyn has in recent years seen an influx of artists and musicians who tend to have a hipster look. What the men in both groups share is the avoidance of cutting their facial hair.

Shooting video closeups of faces of Brooklyn residents, focusing on the beard and mustache, and then panning out to see the whole person, Kimmel asked whether the audience thought the subject was a hipster or a Hasidic Jew.

It was all in good clean fun, and the hipsters and Hasidim seemed to be enjoying themselves. One bearded participant turned out to be a little of both hipster and Hasidic, and one surprised the audience by being in a third category. 

 
We played the game, and got half of the eight right. One really fooled us.
So try your luck and play the game. How many did you get right?

 
(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.) 

Oldie But Goodie: Allan Sherman's Mystery Guest Appearance on What's My Line?

This year we've been giving a lot of attention to Allan Sherman, whose Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah parody of life in sleepaway camp was released 50 years ago. We've posted a few rare unreleased recordings collected by Mark Cohen, who just published Overweight Sensation, his biography of the singer and parodist.

We're not finished with the unreleased recordings -- there are still a few waiting in the wings -- but today we thought you'd like to see an episode of What's My Line?, the long-running TV panel game show, the day that Allan Sherman was the mystery guest. This was made possible because a YouTube member known only as romeman01 posted 121 What's My Line? episodes last week, for which we thank him.

Sherman was the mystery guest on the March 15, 1964, episode of the popular panel program, hosted by John Daly, than ran for 17 years (1950-1967) on CBS. The panelists who try to guess his identity are Dorothy Kilgallen, Steve Lawrence, Arlene Francis, and Robert Q. Lewis. The voice that Sherman parodies for most of the appearance was that adopted by Frankie Fontaine, himself a noted comedian who worked in radio with Jack Benny and in television with Jackie Gleason. In the end, even though Sherman uses his own voice in order to give himself away, he still manages to create a warm, delightful moment as a befuddled panel gains a sudden moment of clarity. 

Besides the fun of Sherman's appearance, the episode is a rare look back at what television was like in the 1950s and 1960s. We were surprised to see the low stakes as every wrong guess added $5 (yes, five dollars) to the amount the guest received. Also, we wonder if the parting kiss on the cheek given to the female panelists (they all shook hands) would fly today.

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.)