The Arts

Today’s Jewish Birthday: Richard Belzer

Courtesy of Wikipedia Richard Belzer (August 4, 1944 – February 19, 2023) was an American actor, comedian, and author. He was best known for his role as BPD Detective, NYPD Detective/sergeant, and investigator John Munch, whom he portrayed for 23 years in the NBC police drama series Homicide: Life on the Street, Law & Order: Special Victims Unitand several guest […]

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Jewish Celebrities, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Today's Jewish Birthday, Wikipedia

An Israeli-American Perspective: Symbiotic Relationship of Music in Our Two Countries

Songs like “Stairway to Heaven” and “Dust in the Wind” opened me up to a much greater world and introduced me to the power of lyrics, offering a wider outlook on life. For instance, the first time I heard the lyric from Kansas, “Same old song, just a drop of water in an endless sea, all we do, crumbles to the ground, though we refuse to see,” I was struck by its beauty and depth. [Shahar Masori]

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Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Shahar Masori, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

Updated ‘Peter Pan’ Respects Indigenous People

In a previous version, indigenous people were called redskins or savages, spoke in broken English, and had a number called “Ugg-a-wug” that used jibberish lyrics.  That number has been replaced by a song called “Friends Forever” in which the Native Americans and the Darling children teach each other some dances from their respective cultures.  [Sandi Masori]

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San Diego County, Sandi Masori, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

Kvelling over the Olympics; Local Volunteer Opportunities

San Diego native, Sara Levy who made her Olympic debut in Paris with the U.S. women’s rugby team, took the bronze on Tuesday, July 30. The team stunned Australia and delivered the first-ever Olympic medal for the team and its Jewish forward, Levy. [Cailin Acosta]

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Cailin Acosta, International, Jewish History, Philanthropy & Volunteerism, Sports & Competitions, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

Today’s Jewish Birthday: B.J. Novak

Courtesy of Wikipedia Benjamin Joseph Novak (July 31, 1979) is an American actor and comedian. He has received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations and won two Screen Actors Guild Awards. Novak is known for starring as Ryan Howard in the NBC sitcom The Office (2005–2013), for which he was also a writer and executive producer. He appeared in the films Inglourious Basterds (2009), Saving Mr. Banks (2013) and The

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Jewish Celebrities, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Today's Jewish Birthday, Wikipedia

Kosher Wines: The Talk of the Podcast

Starting in Manhattan, kosher wine lovers held monthly meetings called Rosh Chodesh Clubs (RCC). Club members would each bring a bottle of a delicious kosher wine to share with others. The wines had to be of a minimum age, and considered high quality, before they were permitted into club tastings. As the idea caught on, the clubs soon incorporated the idea of adding gourmet chefs to their evening festivities. [Eva Trieger]

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Eva Trieger, Israel, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Travel and Food, USA

At Libraries: Novel Imagines the Worries of Marcel Proust’s Mother

My perseverance paid off, however, and I soon found myself immersed in what seemed to be the diary entries kept by the woman who was Marcel Proust’s mother, describing the daily life of a bourgeois family, of whom the son, Marcel, was a constant source of worry, and sometimes even anguish. [Dorothea Shefer-Vanson]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Samson vs. Hercules

Many consider Hercules the strongest ancient Greek and Samson the most muscular Jew. Both tales involve eating and drinking. Both were engaged in romantic affairs; Hercules had four wives, and Samson had liaisons with three women and married one of them. The two had miraculous births involving a deity: Hercules’ father was the god Zeus, and Samson gave birth after his mother received a message from heaven delivered by an angel. The two births focused on their mother, the woman Zeus cohabited with, and the woman with whom an angel communicated. In both instances, the husbands were ignored. [Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Today’s Jewish Birthday: Lisa Kudrow

Courtesy of Wikipedia Lisa Kudrow (July 30, 1963) is an American actress. She rose to international fame for her role as Phoebe Buffay in the American television sitcom Friends, which aired from 1994 to 2004. The series earned her Primetime Emmy, Screen Actors Guild, Satellite, American Comedy, and TV Guide awards. Phoebe has since been named one of the greatest television characters of all time

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Jewish Celebrities, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Today's Jewish Birthday, Wikipedia

Jewish Talent Comes to the Fore at Comic-Con

Once again, it was that time of year when nerds worldwide go to sleep giddy. Each day this past weekend, we awakened bright-eyed and bushy-tailed to see what morsels of news and hype our corporate overlords had decided to drop at the most significant comics convention and marketing bonanza in the world: San Diego Comic-Con! [Shor M. Masori]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Jewish Celebrities, San Diego County, Shor M. Masori, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

J.D. Vance’s ‘Hillbilly Elegy’: An Argument for a Universal Military Draft

One of the many things we can learn from Vance’s experience and use it to help not only hillbillies but all disadvantaged cultures. We can institute a universal draft. All males and females from age 18 must either join one of the military services for at least two years or a new, somewhat similar service that helps improve the lives of US citizens. Israel has such a system. [Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

Today’s Jewish Birthday: Geddy Lee

Courtesy of Wikipedia Geddy Lee Weinrib (July 29, 1953) is a Canadian musician, best known as the lead vocalist, bassist, and keyboardist for the rock group Rush. Lee joined the band in September 1968 at the request of his childhood friend Alex Lifeson, replacing original bassist and frontman Jeff Jones. Lee’s solo effort, My Favourite Headache, was released in

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Jewish Celebrities, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Today's Jewish Birthday, Wikipedia