Throwback Thursday Musical Showcase: Joel Grey Sings "Yankee Doodle Dandy" and "Grand Old Flag" in 1968

Today we turn the clock back to 1968 when Joel Grey and the cast of the Broadway musical George M performed two of the hit numbers from the show on The Ed Sullivan Show.

George M was based on the life of George M. Cohan and covered the period from the late 1880s until 1937. It focused on Cohan's life and show business career from his early days in vaudeville with his parents and sister to his later success as a Broadway singer, dancer, composer, lyricist, theatre director and producer.

Joel Grey, born Joel David Katz in 1932, and son of comedian and musician Mickey Katz, is an American actor, singer, dancer, photographer, and theatre director. He is best known for portraying the Master of Ceremonies in the musical Cabaret on Broadway and in Bob Fosse's 1972 film adaptation. He has won an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Tony Award for his performances in the Cabaret stage musical and film. He earned the Lifetime Achievement Tony Award at the 76th Tony Awards in 2023.

Enjoy!

Throwback Thursday Musical Showcase: Joel Grey Sings and Dances "Honey Bun" 72 Years Ago

Joel Grey has had many roles as actor, singer, dancer, director, and photographer. He is best known for portraying the Nazi Master of Ceremonies in the Kander & Ebb musical Cabaret, as well as in the 1972 film adaptation. He has won an Academy Award, Tony Award, and Golden Globe Award. 

Most recently he has won praise for his direction of the Yiddish version of Fiddler on the Roof. 

Today's Throwback Thursday musical showcase goes way, way back 72 years to 1952 when Joel Grey performed Honey Bun from South Pacific in a song and dance routine on The Ed Sullivan Show.

Enjoy!

Miracle of Miracles! Yiddish "Fiddler on the Roof" Returns to Off-Broadway for 7 Week Run

Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish is returning by popular demand for seven weeks only in an Off-Broadway limited engagement at New World Stages, directed by Academy Award and Tony Award winner Joel Grey and starring Steven Skybell as Tevye.

If you haven't seen the Yiddish version, produced by the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, here's a chance to experience the richness of a production that will have English and Russian supertitles. It will be playing from November 13 to January 1 at the New World Stages at 340 West 50th Street in Manhattan. The video (below) of the cast rehearsing the opening song Traditsye (Tradition) will give you a taste of this show.

Don’t miss the beloved story of a community and its struggle to balance traditions and desires in a changing world. The little town of Anatevka will bustle with the sounds of mame-loshn in this Yiddish language adaptation.

The production has been hailed as “a richer, deeper interpretation” by The Wall Street Journal, “a mitzvah” by Time Out New York, and AM New York gives it four stars, calling Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish “perfect.”

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.

Fiddler Cast Sings "God Bless America" in Yiddish

Lisa Fishman and Ben Liebert, members of the cast of the Off-Broadway hit, "Fiddler on the Roof" in Yiddish, conceived and co-produced a performance of "God Bless America" sung in Yiddish. It features the show's director, Academy and Tony Award-winning actor, Joel Grey, along with Steven Skybell, who starred as Tevye. Yiddish was one of the two native tongues of Irving Berlin, who wrote the iconic anthem.

“God Bless America” was originally written in 1918 for a musical revue by Irving Berlin, a Jewish immigrant born Israel Beilin, while Berlin was in the U.S. Army. Deciding the song didn’t fit the tone of the revue, the song was set aside. 

Twenty years later in 1938 with the rise of Adolf Hitler and fascism, Berlin revisited and revised the song and released it as a prayer for the country and a patriotic song of peace. “God Bless America” was introduced on an Armistice Day broadcast in 1938, sung by Kate Smith. 

The Yiddish version of the song being presented by the cast, entitled “Got Bentsh Amerike,” was originally translated by producer, musicologist, performer and Yiddish Radio Project co-creator, Henry Sapoznik, who worked on Yiddish translations for Mandy Patinkin’s album, Mamaloshen.  

The video features Steven Skybell, the award-winning actor who played Tevye in Fiddler in Yiddish, along with Jennifer Babiak, Samantha Hahn, Ben Liebert, Stephanie Lynne Mason, Rosie Jo Neddy, Raquel Nobile, Drew Seigla, and Rachel Zatcoff. The production also includes a special message by  Joel Grey. 

Additional Fiddler cast members appearing in the video (from both the Museum of Jewish Heritage production along with the Off-Broadway, Stage 42 production) include: Joanne Borts, Josh Dunn, Michael Einav, Lisa Fishman, Kirk Geritano, John Giesige, Lydia Gladstone, Abby Goldfarb, Mary Illes, Josh Kohane, Maya Jacobson, Moshe Lobel, Evan Mayer, Jonathan Quigley, Nick Raynor, Bruce Sabath, Kayleen Seidl, Adam B. Shapiro, Jodi Snyder, James Monroe Stevko, Ron Tal, Bobby Underwood, and Mikhl Yashinsky. 

The video also features Lauren Thomas, who played the titular role in Fiddler, on violin, along with the show’s clarinetist, Zisl Slepovitch, on piano. 

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 Stan Lieberman for bringing this video to our attention.

Joel Grey Talks About Being a Jewish Actor and Remembers His Bar Mitzvah

Joel Grey has had many roles as actor, singer, dancer, director, and photographer. He is best known for portraying the Nazi Master of Ceremonies in the Kander & Ebb musical Cabaret, as well as in the 1972 film adaptation. He has won an Academy Award, Tony Award, and Golden Globe Award. 

Most recently he has won praise for his direction of the Yiddish version of Fiddler on the Roof. 

Last week Joel Grey was inducted into the Manhattan Jewish Hall of Fame. Interviewed by Rabbi Mark Golub, he reflected on his role in Cabaret, and fondly recalled his Bar Mitzvah, even reciting the first few words of his Maftir.

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.

Fiddler on the Roof - in Yiddish ! Interview with Star Steven Skybell and Director Joel Grey

We saw the new Folksbiene production of Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish when it first came out last year. Since then we've been talking about it with friends who joined the crowds who trekked down to the tip of Manhattan to see the production that was extended many times.

Now it's moved to an off-Broadway location for an extended run through September 1.

In an interview with Laura Heywood than runs for 30 minutes, Steven Skybell, the actor who plays the lead role of Tevye, and Joel Grey, Oscar and Tony award winning actor and the show's director, sit down in front of a studio audience and tell their personal stories about the show and what it means to them.

It's a somewhat longer video than we usually post, but we think it's worth the time to watch.

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO IS NOT VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY.  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.