In Your Dreams: The Kabbalah of Inception

It turns out that my mundane reality of morning school runs and chai tea lattes on the way to the office may not be as real as I thought, at least according to a new hit movie.

Directed by Hollywood hotshot Christopher Nolan (of The Dark Knight fame), the movie Inception stars Leonardo DiCaprio, and turns out to be that rarest of things: a big screen blockbuster with brains.

This complex, visually innovative science fiction/ heist film explores the phenomenon of lucid dreaming. We’ve probably all experienced uncanny moments of self-awareness during REM sleep – knowing that we’re dreaming while we’re dreaming, and maybe even trying to control the narrative. Inception depicts what you might call “lucid dreaming on steroids.”

DiCaprio plays Dom Cobb, a veteran “extractor” who enters the dreams of others to obtain otherwise inaccessible information. Not surprisingly, he’s handsomely rewarded for this ability, but this arduous avocation has also cost Cobb the trappings of a normal existence.

In exchange for a chance to get his old life back, Cobb must now perform an “inception”: instead of extracting dreams, Cobb is assigned to implant a valuable idea into a target’s mind while he sleeps.

The act of inception is far more difficult and dangerous than extraction, but also more lucrative.

(And just think of how useful such a gift would be in the real world. I could finally get my children to clean up after themselves, and maybe even reprogram the barista to get my order right.)

The movie Inception “works” on many levels, as a philosophical puzzle and as sheer glossy entertainment. As a rabbi, I couldn’t help thinking of the Kabbalist teaching that while we sleep, our souls leave our bodies and ascend to their heavenly source in order to replenish energy.

The Kabbalistic commentary called The Zohar explains that when we sleep 59 out of 60 parts of our soul have now left the body, leaving only that 1/60 to sustain us physically. In this disembodied state, the soul encounters visions usually off limits to within our everyday world.

I also noticed that the movie Inception even has a character named Yusuf, a chemist who formulates the drugs needed to enter the dream world.

According to the biblical story, Joseph (or Yusuf) was blessed with the ability to interpret dreams, a rare skill that was highly valued by the Egyptian royal court. As such, his talents granted Joseph access to the highest echelons of society. He eventually became the second most powerful man in the empire, even though he was a foreigner who’d recently spent time in jail!

If the mystics and sages are right, our life is just a dream. In an instant, we can be transported to another dimension (no special effects or fictional narcotics required.)

Kabbalah considers our physical world an illusion, a temporary residence, and not true reality. So stop existing and start dreaming!

Simcha Weinstein is an internationally known, best-selling author. His first book Up, Up and Oy Vey!, received the Benjamin Franklin Award for the best book of 2007. He has appeared on CNN Showbiz Tonight and NPR, and has been profiled in leading publications, including The New York Times, The Miami Herald and The London Guardian. He is a regular contributor to The Jerusalem Post and The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), and other publications. He chairs the Religious Affairs Committee at the renowned New York art school, Pratt Institute. His latest book Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st century (Barricade Books: 2008) is out now.

Goldman, Lipman and Spider-Man: All Jewish names.

My Spidey sense is tingling, 48 years after the Spider-man was first concocted by Jewish artist Stan Lee; Jewish actor Andrew Garfield will don the spandex for the forthcoming fourth film in the Spider-man franchise, replacing Tobey Maguire in the role.

Garfield noted in an interview that he grew up in a middle-class Jewish home and attended private school. While born in Los Angeles, Garfield moved across the pond to live in England with his British mother and American father when he was 3.

Garfield being Jewish is no small matter to the Spider-man universe. In August 1962, Stan Lee was basking in the success of the Fantastic Four and the Hulk, created a new kind of superhero: “A teenager, with all the problems, hang-ups, and angst of any teenager. He’d be an orphan who lived with his aunt and uncle, a bit of a nerd, a loser in the romantic department, and who constantly worried.”

Spider-Man has a number of classically Jewish qualities.

Angst-ridden teenager Peter Parker is introduced in the first panel as “that bookworm [who] wouldn’t know a cha-cha from a waltz!” He’s drawn as a nebbish – a dark-haired, spectacled, neurotic worrier. When he’s bitten by a radioactive spider while visiting a science museum, Parker ends up with an array of superhuman, spider like powers: speed, strength, and agility; a tingling “spider-sense” that warns him of impending danger; the ability to quickly recover from injuries and poisons; and a proficiency for sticking to walls. Originally near sighted, Parker now has perfect vision.

The death of a loved one is a commonplace motive for crime fighting in comics. Just think of Batman. But Spider-Man is driven by guilt rather than revenge. Michael Chabon notes, “I don’t think there’s another comic-book superhero that’s as completely driven by trying to pay some debt, a debt that can’t be paid, as Spider-Man is.” Amazingly, Garfield recently noted, “I have a really big guilt complex and that if I’m not doing any kind of good then there’s no real reason for being.”

Sam Raimi, director of the previous hugely successful Spider-Man movies, agrees with Chabon: “Spider-Man is a character that spends his life trying to pay down his guilt, the only difference is that it’s caused by his uncle, not his mother. That’s a real classically Jewish quality — to be very aware of your sins in this life and try and make amends for them in this life.”

Michael Chabon’s fictional account of the early days of the comic book industry, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay depicts how badly the comic creators themselves needed heroes.

The theme of guilt leads to talk of Spider-Man being Jewish. So does Spider-Man’s dry sense of humor, “He’s a very funny guy, almost Seinfeld with webbing,” observes Marvel writer Danny Fingeroth. Chabon comments, “For years people have speculated that Peter was sort of crypto-Jewish. You know, living with his uncle Ben and aunt May in Queens.”

Many people consider spiders pests and are fearful of them, but in fact these creatures perform a vital natural function by keeping the insect population under control. In the same way, the Jewish people have received their share of bad press over the years. Israel is a special target of misrepresentation in media “spin.” Like the Jewish people, Spider-Man tries to do the right thing but is viewed with suspicion by authority figures.
Spider-Man’s famous costume covers his entire body from head to toe. Even his eyes hide behind unblinking white triangles. Spider-Man seems to be trying particularly hard to conceal himself; not many other comic book characters are so thoroughly disguised.

Spider-Man, unlike other superheroes, is more Woody Allen nebbish than all-powerful, suffering from stereotypical Jewish neuroses. When he was in his Clark Kent guise, Superman was only pretending to be a nerd. Peter Parker really was one.

The director of the forthcoming movie Marc Webb noted, “Mark my words, you will love Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker.” With a guy named Webb helming a Spider-man movie starring a guilt-ridden Jewish actor, who am I to disagree!

Simcha Weinstein is an internationally known, best-selling author. His first book Up, Up and Oy Vey!, received the Benjamin Franklin Award for the best book of 2007. He has appeared on CNN Showbiz Tonight and NPR, and has been profiled in leading publications, including The New York Times, The Miami Herald and The London Guardian. He is a regular contributor to The Jerusalem Post and The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), and other publications. He chairs the Religious Affairs Committee at the renowned New York art school, Pratt Institute. His latest book Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st century (Barricade Books: 2008) is out now.

The Religion of Football (Soccer)

As I write this, Germany has just trounced my beloved England 4-1 for a spot in the World Cup quarterfinals.

As an Englishman living in New York — the world’s unofficial capital city — I’ve been inspired by the passion and excitement I’ve witnessed, as fans of all nationalities gather in the bars of Brooklyn to celebrate “the beautiful game.”

I’d hoped this would be England’s year. After all, I am a man of faith. Yet when England was knocked out, I was well prepared. Partly because I’m a faithful supporter of Manchester City, a team that has yet to win so much as an eggcup since the year I was born.

So yes, I know the meaning of pain. In fact, I was a season ticket holder for many years. Then when Manchester City was demoted to the old second division, I was motivated to rip up that season ticket and enter rabbinical school. (Well, several life changing trips to Israel helped, too).

As luck would have it, my beloved City has now grown into one of the world’s richest clubs, and is in the running for some major silverware next season. I don’t know if my tantrum had any effect on that.

But I was happy to trade my season ticket for a siddur after I began to notice how today’s fans idolize their football heroes. Perhaps because of our sedentary careers and routine lives, many of us live vicariously through professional athletes. Their success becomes our success, and their failures become our failures. Should David Beckham’s injured knee really result in a national day of morning? Where are our priorities? The great Bill Shankly got it wrong: football is not more serious than life and death.

Saturday afternoon is a perfect time for faith, family and friends. We should be relaxing on the pews of the shul, not in the terraces.

Don’t think I’m bashing the beautiful game; after all, once Shabbat over, I still run to check the scores.

In fact, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, noted that football is a powerful metaphor for life.

The objective of the beautiful game is to kick a ball into a “goal.” It sounds easy, but we all have opponents to face, and our true potential is only awakened by challenge and adversity.

In his enlightening and entertaining book “How Football Explains The World,” American fan Franklin Foer uses football anecdotes to explain how the world at large works.

He notes that every four years, we see globalization made manifest in the World Cup. During this communal event, the world is united. Nations may be battling other nations, but they are doing so without weapons – and all are united by their passion for the game itself.

The most important thing to remember is that, win or lose, it’s just a game, and a funny old one at that!

Simcha Weinstein is an internationally known, best-selling author. His first book Up, Up and Oy Vey!, received the Benjamin Franklin Award for the best book of 2007. He has appeared on CNN Showbiz Tonight and NPR, and has been profiled in leading publications, including The New York Times, The Miami Herald and The London Guardian. He is a regular contributor to The Jerusalem Post and The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), and other publications. He chairs the Religious Affairs Committee at the renowned New York art school, Pratt Institute. His latest book Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st century (Barricade Books: 2008) is out now.

Fergie’s Fall

As an Englishman living in New York, I’ve become rather ambivalent towards the Royal Family over the years. The latest scandal rocking Buckingham Palace hasn’t changed my attitude.

The Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson (a.k.a “Fergie”) was just caught in a mortifying tabloid trap. Fergie met with a reporter posing as a businessman who said he was willing to pay handsomely for precious access to her ex-husband, Prince Andrew (who happens to be the fourth in line for the throne).

Alas, evidence captured on hidden video reveals that the Duchess was more than willing to cooperate — if she was paid $40,000 up front, in cash, and £500,000 more later.

To us “commoners,” the situation is baffling. Hasn’t the high profile Duchess made millions of dollars as a Weight Watchers spokesperson and popular children’s author, to name just one of her business ventures?

Stranger still, we’ve learned that, while Prince Andrew is a member of one of the world’s richest families, Fergie’s divorce settlement reportedly nets her only $21,000 a year.

The Duchess’s public life hasn’t been entirely free of public stumbles. The British media is particularly keen to mock her unpaid debts, her latest charity fads, and her every attempt to forge yet another “career.”

Less attention is paid to the efforts made by the Duke and Duchess to create a somewhat “normal” upbringing (in aristocratic terms, at least) for their two children. After a fire destroyed Fergies’s manor home in 2008, she and the children moved into the Royal Lodge with her ex-prince. (Andrew has reportedly assured Fergie that he has no intention of kicking her out, post-scandal.)

The Duchess may still have a roof over her head, but her attempt to make a quick buck may have cost her even more than she’d hoped to “earn.” She’d landed recently landed a £300,000 deal for three television documentaries, but now “a TV source” told the media that, “She’s an embarrassment and has been axed. It’s not clear whether she’ll be able to work again.” No doubt the fallout from Fergie’s lapse in judgment will continue to grow.

The Duchess has thrown away more than most people ever get, and now she has behaved foolishly once again. However, some blame must also lie with the devious undercover tabloid reporter who conducted a sting operation on a woman with notoriously poor judgment who is thought to be drowning in debt.

The Torah states (Leviticus 19:14): “You shall not curse the deaf nor place a stumbling block before the blind; you shall fear your God — I am your Lord.”

Now, the word “blind” can be seen a metaphor, representing someone who is ignorant, foolish or, shall we say, “morally blind.” Thus we are admonished not to take advantage of such people, no matter how tempting it may be. We sometimes assure ourselves that we are merely “teaching the other person a lesson” when we do so, but isn’t that just a rationalization we use because we want to look superior?

On this verse in Leviticus, Nemaha Leibowitz the renowned Bible teacher once noted that:

“The Torah teaches us that even by sitting at home doing nothing, by complete passivity and divorcement from society, one cannot shake off responsibility for what is transpiring in the world at large… By not protesting… danger spots, you have become responsible for any harm arising therefrom, and have violated the prohibition: ‘Thou shalt not put a stumbling block before the blind…’”

So we cannot shrug off mean-spirited attacks on anyone, no matter their position in society. Placing temptation in the path of a weak person is wrong, no matter the excuse or the target. Sadly, our tabloid culture has played a part in breaking our moral compass.

In the wake of the scandal, Fergie stoically appeared at BookExpo in New York, to promote her new series.

Her forthcoming “Helping Hand Books” are intended to “help children understand personal and social issues that affect them growing up, including starting school, coping with bullying and learning about strangers.”

Clearly, Fergie herself needs to learn a few lessons about avoiding “strangers.” My advice to her is to take some time for introspection and rejuvenation. Now that would be a story worth reading about.

Simcha Weinstein is an internationally known, best-selling author. His first book Up, Up and Oy Vey!, received the Benjamin Franklin Award for the best book of 2007. He has appeared on CNN Showbiz Tonight and NPR, and has been profiled in leading publications, including The New York Times, The Miami Herald and The London Guardian. He is a regular contributor to The Jerusalem Post and The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), and other publications. He chairs the Religious Affairs Committee at the renowned New York art school, Pratt Institute. His latest book Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st century (Barricade Books: 2008) is out now.

Homer in the Holy Land!

Sure, Israel has been under a lot of pressure lately from the Obama administration, but that’s nothing. It recently survived the biggest challenge in its history when the Simpons family landed at Ben Gurion Airport.

The first family of American comedy ventured to the Holy Land in a new episode called “The Greatest Story Ever D’ohed.” Leave it to the hapless Homer to do the impossible: uniting Jews, Christians and Muslims together – in outrage.

It all starts when Homer’s born-again Christian neighbor Ned Flanders invites the Simpson family to join his Bible study group on a tour of Jerusalem.

“Hmm, let me think,” muses Homer. “Take my family to a war zone, on a bus with religious lame-o’s, in a country with no pork, in a desert with no casino…”

But his devoted wife Marge insists that the whole family schlep over to Isreal for the trip of a lifetime.

As usual, this episode of The Simpsons was packed plethora of cringe-inducing gags, including the “Israel Airlines” plane coming down on a drinking glass (like the groom at a Jewish wedding – get it?), a hotel named the “Wailing Waldorf,” and even a gutter cleaner — wait for it — fiddling on a roof.

(Personally, I wasn’t thrilled by one sight gag: the sign over baggage claim reading, “Israel: Your American tax dollars at work.”)

The Simpsons are joined by cocky Israeli tour guide named Jacob, voiced by Sacha Baron Cohen. (This actually makes sense, since the very Jewish Cohen spent the entire movie Borat speaking a “foreign language” that was actually Hebrew – an in-joke lost on almost all viewers.)

When Jacob takes the group to the Wailing Wall, Homer and Bart argue about how to place written prayers between the rocks. Being an incorrigible brat, Bart pulls out some of the notes and reads them:

“Sad. Sad. Never gonna happen. Sad. Maybe if you were Brad Pitt.”

Next stop is the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where Ned prays that Homer finds some meaning in the tour — then discovers Homer taking a shluf on the tomb.

“Homer, this is the most sacred spot in Christendom,” Flanders says, “not your backyard hammock.”

Homer: “I’m sorry. It’s just that these tours are so exhausting. You’re jet-lagged, you’re walking around all day, it’s so hard to sleep knowing Marge and the kids are all stuck in one small room. It’s so nice and cool in the Tomb of the Unknown Savior.”

Flanders: “Unknown?! This is the tomb of the most famous man who ever lived.”

Homer: “Porky Pig?”

With that, the normally mild mannered Flanders loses his Christian cool with Homer — and as a result, he’s the one banned for life from the Church of the Holy Sepulcher! Meanwhile Homer, thinking that Ned is wandering alone in the desert, rides off on a camel to save him and soon becomes lost in a sandstorm.

While feeling the effects of dehydration, Homer starts singing about how thirsty he is, to the famous musical signature from Lawrence of Arabia.

In a haze, Homer makes his way to the salty Dead Sea — clearly not the best place to quench your thirst. There, he’s confronted with a vision: a pickle, tomato and carrot – that is, the creatures from the “Veggie Tales”— who proclaim Homer the messiah.

Back in civilization, Dr. Hibbert diagnoses Homer with Jerusalem Syndrome, “the name given to religious delusions or psychoses that occur when people visit Jerusalem.”

(And I should know: about a decade ago, I made a trip to Israel and decided to give up my successful film production career to become a rabbi. “D’oh” is right!)

The episode ends with Homer standing at the Dome of the Rock, exhorting an interfaith crowd to forget their theological differences and become “ChrisMuJews.” He even tries to unite the masses through a universal message of “peace and chicken,” since at least all three Abrahamic faiths approve of eating that particular variety of poultry.

It’s a cute joke, but even though Homer is begging Christians, Muslims and Jews to put aside their differences, he didn’t actually specify what those differences are. Perhaps not surprisingly for a 30-minute comedy show, The Simpson’s experiences in Jerusalem didn’t touch on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Of course, another animated comedy show, South Park, has gotten itself into a lot of trouble lately for daring to mock those religious “differences,” particularly Muslim extremism. So The Simpsons deserve credit for showing their solidarity with another cartoon. Every episode opens with bad boy Bart Simpson writing lines on a chalkboard as punishment; this time the lines said, “South Park – We’d stand beside you, if we weren’t so scared.”

Simcha Weinstein is an internationally known, best-selling author. His first book Up, Up and Oy Vey!, received the Benjamin Franklin Award for the best book of 2007. He has appeared on CNN Showbiz Tonight and NPR, and has been profiled in leading publications, including The New York Times, The Miami Herald and The London Guardian. He is a regular contributor to The Jerusalem Post and The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), and other publications. He chairs the Religious Affairs Committee at the renowned New York art school, Pratt Institute. His latest book Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st century (Barricade Books: 2008) is out now.

Oh, to kick some villainous tuchas

They call me the “Comic Book Rabbi.”

They call me the “Comic Book Rabbi.”

Given the chance to choose my own “superhero” nickname, I’d have picked something more dynamic, like “Super Jew” or simply “The Rabbi.” (Imagine The Thing, but with a kippah.)

I come by my humble nickname honestly, though. My first book was called, Up Up and Oy Vey : How Jewish History, Culture and Values Shaped the Comic Book Superhero. Not surprisingly, I quickly came to be seen as an expert about the Jewish influence on American popular culture.

Most of the time, I study these matters at arm’s length — literally, with a well-thumbed issue of the Fantastic Four circa 1964 in hand.

However, I confess (and that’s not something rabbis normally do) that I sometimes fantasize about doing more than writing and talking about superheroes. Like millions of ordinary people, I wonder what it would be like to pull on some Spandex, then hit the mean streets and kick some villainous tuchas.

No wonder the new movie Kick-Ass is getting so much buzz. The film, based on the 2008 graphic novel by Mark Millar, tells the story of teenage dweeb Dave Lizewski, who sets out to become a real life superhero.

Like Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster and the other members of the tribe who created “Golden Age” superheroes like Superman, Lizewski is a bit of a nerd, invisible to girls and the “cool” kids. So he creates his own superhero costume, dubs himself “Kick-Ass” and goes out in search of bad guys to beat up.

Predictably, Dave fails at his first attempt to fight crime. He discovers that, unlike the fights he’s seen in the movies, real fisticuffs can actually be pretty painful.

After being recorded in action by bystanders with cell phones, Dave/Kick-Ass predictably becomes an internet phenomenon that inspires a whole legion of copycat costumed crime fighters, including a foul-mouthed 11-year-old named Hit Girl. Meanwhile, Dave sets up a Kick-Ass website and is soon overwhelmed by requests for help from total strangers.

These days, aren’t most of us looking for heroes, or wish we could be one? Before you dismiss Kick-Ass as ridiculous fiction, consider my friend, former yeshiva student turned crime-fighter Chaim Lazaros. A bit like Spiderman’s Peter Parker, Chaim is a student at Columbia University by day and a superhero by night, going by the name of “Life” (that’s what his given name means in Hebrew.) Dressed all in black – complete with an eye patch — Chaim goes out looking for trouble on the streets of New York, but it’s not what you think: he’s dedicated to helping out the sick and the homeless.

Chaim is one of a surprising number of people all over the world who are living out the Kick-Ass fantasy. At websites like RealLifeSuperheroes.org, they explain that their “main objective is to inspire others. We hope through our actions we can inspire others to go out and do good, help others, and stand up for what they believe in. There is a hero in everyone and we need to bring it out to help make this world a little more super.”

For whatever reason, these “real life superheroes” feel more empowered to help others when they put on a mask. It seems bizarre, but think about it: don’t we all wear a mask? We hide behind forced smiles or make-up or even Botox. Sometimes we “try on” a new personality, especially when we’re younger and just learning about ourselves, and the world. In fact, the word “personality” comes from “persona,” the Latin word meaning “mask.” We might have one “persona” at work, and another around friends, and yet another around members of the opposite sex we’re trying to impress. Sometimes we forsake our real selves for the assimilated archetype we think society wants us to portray.

So putting on the literal mask of the superhero lets Chaim and his partners in crime fighting throw off the shackles of society’s expectations and pursue more noble, transcendent pursuits.

Yet we have to remember that, “with great power comes great responsibility,” as Spider-Man always says, in a rueful, resigned tone that hints he’d rather be an ordinary mortal.

All of us have responsibilities, and they aren’t fantasies. We can’t hang them up in the closet like a cape when we’re too tired to deal with them. The secret is to stop thinking we either have to be a superhero or a nobody. Sometimes the bravest thing we can do is just be ourselves.

Simcha Weinstein is an award-winning author, whose latest book is Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st century (Barricade Books: 2008) is out now.

Like Father, Like Clown!

In celebration of two decades on television, the writers of one of America’s most dysfunctional family shows, The Simpsons, chose to focus on the character of Jewish entertainer, Krusty the Clown (born Herschel Shmoikel Pinchas Yerucham Krustofski).

In a case of art imitating life, the episode’s plot focuses on poor Krutsy and his show’s rating issues, as TV executives force poor Krusty to add a new co-host to his show. Despite initial tensions, Krusty soon bonds romantically with his new co-host, Princess Penelope, voiced by The Devil Wears Prada star Anne Hathaway.

While she is a Princes she is no JAP. (Jewish American Princess.) Romancing a non-Jew leads to conflict with Krusty’s father, whose voice is familiar to fans as Rabbi Hyman Krustofski (voiced by Jackie Mason ) — who can’t quite restrain the guilt under the chuppah. “Friends, loved ones,” says the rabbi, “we are gathered here today to marry a Jew and — a Congregationalist? Is that even a thing?”

In moment of out of character clarity, Krusty ends the ceremony. He has decided that his bride is too good for him. Yet, a distraught Krusty soon follows his beloved to Paris for a reunion. Princess Penelope seems to show appreciation for Krusty’s Jewish roots, proclaiming him her “Borscht Belt baby” in the episode’s closing scene.

The Krusty character is no stranger to family feuds. In a memorable 2003 episode, “Today I Am a Clown,” Krusty discovers that he doesn’t have a star on the Jewish Walk of Fame. He files a complaint at the head office (“Where the chosen get chosen” as the sign on the wall declares), and finds out that because he never had a bar mitzvah, he’s not eligible for a star of his own. Krusty, devastated, states, “I thought I was a self-hating Jew, but it turns out I’m just a plain old anti-Semite.” Krusty visits his father, Rabbi Hyman Krustofski, who is forever saddened that Krusty did not enter the family business of the rabbinate (“A jazz singer, this I could forgive. But a clown!”). Hyman tells Krusty that he decided for forgo the boy’s bar mitzvah out of fear that his jokester son would make a “mockery out of the whole ceremony.”

Poignantly, Krusty’s marriage wows seem to mirror the larger cultural zeitgeist. The American intermarriage rate in the 1920s was no more than 1%. Compare this to today when the intermarriage rate hovers around 50%.

Jewish intermarriage has been a staple of American comedy; while all-Jewish families have become a rarity in film and TV. The short lived series “Arrested Development,” created by Mitchell Hurwitz, depicts a dysfunctional Jewish family that makes Krutsy’s seem like a haftarah reading. Ironically, the fact that Jews feel comfortable producing a show that makes them look so unsavory simply proves how far we have come.

Could the shortage of all-Jewish families be because Jewish comedy writers themselves are often intermarried? Maybe today’s comics are still just “writing what they know.” Perhaps it’s simply that all-Jewish families don’t get ratings. It’s one of the oldest rules in theater, conflict makes for both high drama and low comedy. To cite just one example, the conflict inherent in a “mixed marriage” provides show plots for programs from “I Love Lucy” to “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”

Yet I would like to see some all-Jewish couples on film and on TV for a change, beyond Gerald and Sheila Broflovski on South Park (exception like this merely prove the rule). Anybody that thinks a Jewish husband and a Jewish wife is not cause for comedy has clearly never been to my house!

Simcha Weinstein is an award-winning author, whose latest book is Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st century (Barricade Books: 2008) is out now.

The Darwin Debate

So then there was the time the monkey escaped from the zoo.

The zookeeper looked high and low, and after a long search, he finally found the monkey sitting in the public library.

His mixed-up looking monkey was holding a Bible in one (opposably-thumbed) hand, and Charles Darwin’s “On the Origin of Species” in the other.

“I’m confused,” the monkey told the zookeeper. “Am I my brother’s keeper – or my keeper’s brother?”

You ll forgive a rabbi for starting off with a little joke. (“Very little,” I can hear some of you saying.) What can I tell you? It’s a hazard of the job.

But for a rabbi like me, the subject of evolution is no joke.

And as an Englishman now living in New York, I can assure you: the topic is never far from the surface here in America. This is the country where atheists “celebrate” Christmas by trying to get “Silent Night” silenced from school pageants, then furious Christians respond with unchristian fury – and we Jews get blamed for it all!

I kid! Again. (Mostly.)

But yes, in the United States, the fallout from the famous Scopes “Monkey” Trial — which pitted evolutionists against creationists — is still in the air.

So I’m not surprised that the producer of a new British movie about Charles Darwin is blaming “religious American audiences” because his film, “Creation,” can’t get a distribution deal across the pond.

“Creation” stars Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connolly as Charles Darwin and his devout wife, Emma. The film depicts events leading up to the publication of Darwin’s world changing book.

In particular, the death of Darwin’s ten-year-old daughter, Anna, caused him to question his Christian faith and paved the way for his theory of evolution and natural selection.

No sooner had the London Daily Mail trumpeted the producer’s claim that right wing Christ ians were trying to ban his movie, than Twitter and Facebook lit up like (soon to be banned) Christmas trees, with calls to defend “Creation” against those redneck censors.

The trouble is: a reporter from New York Magazine (hardly an ally of the fundamentalists) couldn’t find any actual film distributors to confirm the producer’s tales of persecution.

The reporter then ventured another guess at the cause of the movie’s misfortunes:

“Maybe the movie’s just not that good? And a money loser to boot?” mused Dan Kois, quoting one critic as calling it “Flat, dull, and painful to sit through.”

So while American Christians have indeed tried to ban “offensive” movies in the past, this time they don’t seem to care enough about “Creation” to bother.

Frankly, until I read in the Daily Mail about this “controversy” allegedly sweeping America, I hadn’t heard a thing about it.

This doesn’t mean I don’t care about the topic of evolution. I’d just rather argue about real theories and real science, not imaginary controversies surrounding forgettable movies.

Don’t get me wrong: without the brilliance and hard work of scientists in every field, our world would be a poorer place. I admire their ingenuity and dedication. Heck, I admire the fact that they’ve mastered mathematics, because I sure couldn’t!

I only wish evolutionary scientists could admit that they are no more objective about their field as I am of mine. Scientists claim to be motivated by reason, logic and facts – but Darwin himself was clearly influenced by tragic events in his own life, and the feelings these events engendered.

Would the theory of natural selection have ever “evolved” if Darwin’s daughter had lived? We can only speculate – except that lots of “free thinking” scientists wish we wouldn’t.

Evolution says that a dumb universe can create intelligent beings. But we read in Genesis that our intelligent universe just looks dumb – it is smarter than we can perceive.

That’s not to say we human beings aren’t dumb: if you want to see how badly natural selection works, just watch some reality TV!

Some respectable Torah scholars have tried to align Judaism with evolution. Yet none of them can square the famous creation story in Genesis with Darwin’s theories, or their own.

Their error stems from the commonplace belief that evolution has been scientifically proven and therefore cannot be questioned. This is simply not the case. While Darwin’s theories were quickly embraced as handy (and sometimes sinister) metaphors by some artists, writers and philosophers – not to mention a famous dictator or two — they haven’t withstood more rigorous examination.

At bottom, we’re stuck with a handful of fossils, lots of speculation– and plenty of unanswered questions.

The human mind recoils at the prospect of having to say, “I don’t understand.” Any theory is better than none. As far as many moderns are concerned, even a half-baked theory is better than the alternative: religious faith.

Anyway, “Creation” co-star Jennifer Connelly is Jewish. In fact, she was raised here in Brooklyn Heights, where my synagogue resides. I would implore her not to waste this weekend worrying over her new movie’s disappointing performance at the box office. I invite her to come to shul for Rosh Hashanah instead. We may not have all the answers, but we do have something better than theories. We have faith.

Simcha Weinstein is an award-winning author, whose latest book is Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st century (Barricade Books: 2008) is out now.

Does Seinfeld Still Matter?

Curb Your Enthusiasm returns to HBO on September 20, and this seventh season of the critically acclaimed, award-winning comedy series may turn out to be its best yet. That’s because this season will really be a combination of two hit shows in one.

In the alternate showbiz universe of Curb Your Enthusiasm, the cast of Curb creator Larry David’s previous (real life) hit show, Seinfeld, are getting together for a (fictional) cast reunion special.

Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander, and Michael Richards and other stars of that classic 1990s sitcom will show up to work out the reunion’s logistics with their old colleague Larry, and hilarity will no doubt ensue.

When this plot line leaked out, you could sense the, well, enthusiasm in the media and beyond. Anyone who wondered if the world still cared about some “old” sitcom called Seinfeld got their answer: a resounding yes. Seinfeld marked the beginning of a new golden age of Jewish comedy. It still matters.

I’ll take that one step further, and argue that Curb Your Enthusiasm matters even more.

For comedy buffs like me – after all, I “wrote the book” about modern Jewish humor, called Shtick Shift – these new episodes of Curb will be a fascinating blend of old and new.

Seinfeld aired from 1989 until 1998, and was one of the most popular shows in television history. Its characters, situations and catch phrases (like “yadda yadda yadda”) became part of the cultural currency.

More importantly, Seinfeld was a highpoint in the history of American Jewish humor. All those great comedy pioneers, from Fanny Brice (with her broad Yiddish accent) to Woody Allen (with his neurotic nebbishy character) had paved the way for those hilarious 22-minutes a week with Jerry and his friends. If the previous hundred years of Jewish comedy had been a funny run-on sentence, then Seinfeld was its exclamation point.

Yet ironically, even through Seinfeld is now considered the definitive Jewish sitcom, the first seasons featured few openly Jewish storylines. Sure, characters Jerry, Elaine and Kramer were obviously Jewish, but not explicitly so – more like “Israel-lite.”

After a few successful seasons, Seinfeld’s sensibility gradually became more explicitly Jewish – and ironically, the show became even more popular to a wider audience.

In an episode that seemed like a knowing wink to all the non-Jewish fans of the program, Jerry’s gentile dentist converts to Judaism – “for the jokes”!

Jerry: Elaine, the guy’s Jewish two days, he’s already making Jewish jokes.

Elaine: So what? When someone turns twenty-one, they usually get drunk the first night.

Jerry: Booze is not a religion.

Elaine: Tell that to my father.

The nation had “converted” to Jewish humor.

Eventually, Jerry’s Upper West Side neighborhood took over from the legendary Lower East Side to become New York City’s (and the world’s) unofficial Jewish capital.

The breathtaking success of the Seinfeld “experiment” gave the show’s executive producer, Larry David, the creative freedom he needed to follow up with the most openly Jewish comedy series ever: Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Which means that when the Seinfeld gang enters Larry David’s upscale Brentwood domain — a fairyland-shtetl of posh boutiques, exclusive restaurants, therapists and acupuncturists — they will finally become authentically Jewish, no longer just “Jew-ish.”

From its very start seven seasons ago, Curb Your Enthusiasm took the famous Seinfeld sensibility to a radical extreme. The 21st century had just begun, and Curb Your Enthusiasm reflected changing times. America had assimilated Jewishness, Jewishness had assimilated America, and Curb Your Enthusiasm would exploit those realities.

Curb Your Enthusiasm concerns the actual (more or less) off-screen life of Larry David. Post-Seinfeld, the wealthy, successful (and mostly miserable) David is now semi-retired, having left the good old Upper West Side for glamorous Brentwood, Los Angeles.

He hangs out with his manager Jeff Greene (Jeff Garlin) and Jeff’s wife Susie (Susie Essman) and lives with his wife Cheryl (Cheryl Hines).

At least, he did, until that unfortunate Season Six incident with the TiVo repairman… Curb Your Enthusiasm fans have been waiting impatiently to find out if the couple will reconcile in season seven.

Soon they’ll have their answer. With another example of impeccable comic timing, Larry David’s all-new offerings will start airing on September 20, right after Rosh Hashanah. (Which would be the perfect time for Kramer actor Michael Richards to repent of his racist rant a few years back…)

As a rabbi, I can’t think of anything better after two days of giving a bunch of sermons to kvetching congregants than watching the King of Kvetchers himself, Larry David, unveil a new season of this modern TV classic.

Simcha Weinstein is an award-winning author, whose latest book is Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st century (Barricade Books: 2008) is out now.

Family Goy

As a rabbi with a lifelong passion for comedy, I often find myself torn between my love of a good (or even a bad!) joke, and my reverent religious beliefs. The TV program that challenges my sensibilities the most is probably Family Guy.

A recent episode of that notorious and unfailingly offensive show called “Family Goy” skewered a host of clichés with even more blatant disregard for propriety than usual.

In that episode, Lois, the “mom” on the show, discovers that her mother, Barbara Pewterschmidt, is a Holocaust survivor who later renounced her Judaism to help her husband get into country clubs (“It was the right thing to do, dear,” says Mrs. Pewterschmidt ).

“So Grandma Hebrewberg is actually Jewish?” exclaims Lois.

“Yes,” her mother explains. “When she moved to America, her family changed their name. It was originally Hebrewbergmoneygrabber.”

“Family Goy” includes the resurrection of Jewish accountant Max Weinstein, the popular mensch character from a well-known previous episode called “When You Wish Upon a Weinstein.” Written by Mark Hentemann, the newer script’s humor takes a few dark, mean-spirited turns.

At first, Peter embraces his wife’s Jewish heritage, going so far as donning a tallit, kippah and Star of David necklace (chest hair included). He even adopts a Hebrew name that is nothing more than a long guttural “chchchchchch” sound.

When Lois objects, Peter kvetches: “Leave it to a Jew to take all the fun out of being a Jew.”

Peter is then visited by the ghost of his father Francis, who warns him that he will go to hell for renouncing his (nominal) Catholicism. Sure enough, the next day, Peter turns anti-Semitic. That is, he attempts to shoot Lois with a sniper rifle!

Incredibly, Peter is purposely emulating Amon Leopold Göth, the Plaszów concentration camp commandant featured in “Schindler’s List.” Peter sits shirtless in his bedroom window with a rifle, shooting at his wife and the town’s only other well-known Jew, Mort.

After Lois apologizes for Peter’s violent behavior, Mort responds, “No problem, Lois. That’s just how people say hello to me.”

In the end, Peter and Lois apologize to each other, but are left wondering which religion to follow now, if any.

Needless to say, the “Family Goy” episode generated plenty of controversy. Dvir Abramovich editor of the Australian Journal of Jewish Studies, complained that the show “dredged up age-old stereotypes about Jews and money and reinforced deeply embedded prejudices that still abound today”.

In my humble opinion, that is exactly the point.

While interfaith catastrophes and travesties abound in “Family Goy”, that’s what makes it so brutally honest. Why not get these stereotypes out in the open and mock them?

By confronting our insecurities through cutting edge humor, and looking at them through the lens of comedy, we can start controlling those feelings instead of letting them control us.

Family Guy is a necessary counterpoint to the glossy veneer of Jewish-gentile harmony that has become de rigueur in contemporary prime-time comedy.

The world, after all, isn’t always a paradise of peace and harmony. Just this week, the world witnessed the theft of the infamous “Arbeit macht frei” (“Work makes you free”) sign that once hung over the gates of Auschwitz. Meanwhile, as its horrors recede into the distant past, the macabre phenomenon of Holocaust denial is growing. What does it tell us that at the same time, today’s generation of post-modern comedians, like Sarah Silverman, have declared the Holocaust “on limits” as a subject of humor.

As a rabbi, much of that humor makes me deeply uncomfortable. It certainly isn’t material for a Shabbat sermon. However, context and narrative point of view are everything, and can be the difference between a harsh but insightful gag and a tasteless joke. Family Guy uses absurdity to remind us of the gravity of the Holocaust, not make fun of it. By playing the character of a no-excuses bigot, Peter Griffin forces the audiences to confront their own prejudices.

In a final Shtick Shift, Lois actually is a Jew and is voiced by Jewish actress Alex Borstein. So what’s my lesson for this latest member of the tribe, I will have to quote my namesake Max Weinstein who comments in “Family Goy”, “becoming Jewish doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a process that involves spiritual education and good works.”

Simcha Weinstein is an award-winning author, whose latest book is Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st century (Barricade Books: 2008) is out now.

Next Page »