Jewish Humor Central is a daily publication to start your day with news of the Jewish world that's likely to produce a knowing smile and some Yiddishe nachas. It's also a collection of sources of Jewish humor--anything that brings a grin, chuckle, laugh, guffaw, or just a warm feeling to readers.
Our posts include jokes, satire, books, music, films, videos, food, Unbelievable But True, and In the News. Some are new, and some are classics. We post every morning, Sunday through Friday. Enjoy!
Itay Benda, also known as Itay Ben David, was born in Jerusalem with music in his soul. Enthralled by music
from a young age, he convinced his friends to take music lessons to form
his first band. He’s since gone on to tour around the globe with some
of the most prominent Israeli and European acts as both a singer and
musician.
Currently based in Los Angeles and performing around
the world, Itay brings new meaning and life to audiences as he shares
the songs inside his soul. As a solo act or alongside a band of up to
twelve, Itay incorporates nuances and flavors from his time spent
touring the world.
Join us in welcoming Shabbat tonight with Shalom Aleichem, as sung by Itay Benda.
On
this Throwback Thursday we're turning the clock and calendar back to
1955, when Groucho Marx was in his heyday as host of the weekly show You Bet Your Life. The
show debuted on ABC Radio on October 27, 1947, then moved to CBS Radio
debuting October 5, 1949, before making the transition to NBC-TV and NBC
Radio
on October 4, 1950. Because of its simple format, it was possible to
broadcast the show simultaneously on radio and television. The last
episode in its radio format aired on June 10, 1960. On television,
however, the series continued for another year, debuting in its final
season on September 22, 1960, and with a new title, The Groucho Show.
In
this episode, Groucho banters with a contestant who claims to be a strongman who shows up with an inner tube that he proceeds to blow up while answering Groucho's questions.
Candid
Camera
was an American hidden camera/practical joke reality television series
created and produced by Allen Funt, which initially began on radio as
The Candid Microphone on June 28, 1947.
After a series of theatrical
film shorts, also titled Candid Microphone,
Funt's concept came to television on August 10, 1948, and continued
into the 1970s. The show involved concealing cameras filming ordinary people being
confronted with unusual situations, sometimes involving trick props,
such as a desk with drawers that pop open when one is closed or a car
with a hidden extra gas tank. When the joke was revealed, victims would
be told the show's catchphrase, "Smile, you're on Candid Camera."
Peter
Funt joined the show professionally in 1987 when he became a co-host
with
his father. During this time the show was being broadcast on the CBS
television network. In 1993, Allen Funt had a serious stroke, from which
he never fully recovered. This required Peter to host the show
full-time.
The
show went through a few revivals. During his time on the show Peter was
a producer, host and acted on the show. He also produced and hosted
over 200 episodes.
In this Candid Camera classic stunt, Peter visited a quiet section of Medford, Oregon, where they had nice, short house numbers. All day he knocked on doors, informing residents that they were being assigned new, very long house numbers. Watch their reactions!
The Smothers Brothers, Tom and Dick, performed Hava Nagila on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour during the first season in 1967. You'll enjoy their version, but only if you have the patience to sit through a long and rambling five minute introduction.
"Hava Nagila" is a well-known Jewish folk song. Its Hebrew lyrics, meaning "Let us rejoice," were added by Abraham Zevi Idelsohn in early 20th-century Jerusalem and were inspired by the Psalms. The song quickly became a staple at Jewish celebrations like weddings and bar/bat mitzvahs, spreading globally as an anthem of joy and Jewish identity.
The Smothers Brothers, Tom and Dick, were one of the most iconic comedy duos in the history of television. They began performing as a duo in the late 1950s, playing in coffeehouses and clubs in San Francisco. Their act consisted of music, comedy, and witty banter, which quickly gained them a following.
The Smothers Brothers became a household name in the late 1960s with their variety show, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. The show was groundbreaking in its approach to comedy, pushing the boundaries with political satire and social commentary.
The show also featured up-and-coming musical acts, including The Doors and The Who, and introduced the world to comedians like Steve Martin and George Carlin.
The Smothers Brothers' irreverent style made them a beloved and enduring force in American comedy.
It's another Monday and time for another Joke to Start the Week. Today Mickey Greenblatt is back with another good one.
Marshal (Mickey) Greenblatt received degrees from Columbia (BA and BS in Flight Sciences), a DC from Von Karman Institute (1963) and his PhD from Princeton in Aerospace Sciences. He worked as a researcher for NASA and the Naval Research Laboratory.
With four other scientists, he founded Fusion Systems Corporation, which invented microwave-powered UV lamps for drying coatings. He founded and served on the boards of technology companies and is active in volunteer work. He served on the executive committee of the Jewish Council for the Aging of Greater Washington for many years.
Mickey
also loves Jewish jokes and sent us this one to share with you. Here's
the setup: Moshe Goldberg had serious hearing problems for years. His family complained all the time that they had to scream when they were talking to him. Finally he went to see his ENT doctor. And then...
With over 20 years of experience, Yohay Sponder brings his unique
outlook on life to the stage. Throughout his career he has starred in
multiple TV and radio shows. He produces and headlines in 'Funny Monday -
Israeli Comedy in English' and has performed all over the world.
Having
gained a massive following on social media, Sponder most recently
finished up a sold-out tour in Europe with his new show "Self Loving
Jew".
In June Sponder toured the USA with shows in Boston, Philadelphia, and Fort Lauderdale.
In
this video clip from a recent performance, Sponder spoofs Israeli criticism of Prime Minister Netanyahu's love of cigars with a scenario of world leaders smoking together.
Today we welcome Shabbat with another version of Mizmor Shir L'Yom HaShabbat by Cantor Bryce Megdal and the Adult Choir of Congregation Shir Shalom of Westchester and Fairfield Counties.
The congregation is
located in Ridgefield, Connecticut approximately one mile from South
Salem, New York. It is a union of Jewish Family Congregation of South
Salem, NY and Temple Shearith Israel of Ridgefield, CT.Though a Reform congregation, its congregants come from Reform,
Conservative and Orthodox backgrounds or no religious background at all.
This version was recorded at the installation of Cantor Megdal in March 2025.
Stiller
and Meara (Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara) were a husband-and-wife comedy
duo that was popular primarily in the 1960s and 1970s. They made
frequent appearances on television variety shows such as The Ed Sullivan Show. A
lot of their humor focused on their different religious backgrounds,
but actually Meara converted to Reform Judaism six years after marrying
Stiller.
In
this video clip from 1966, Jerry and Anne discover that they're the last two people on earth, but they have differing views on their obligations as survivors.
Candid
Camera
was an American hidden camera/practical joke reality television series
created and produced by Allen Funt, which initially began on radio as
The Candid Microphone on June 28, 1947.
After a series of theatrical
film shorts, also titled Candid Microphone,
Funt's concept came to television on August 10, 1948, and continued
into the 1970s. The show involved concealing cameras filming ordinary people being
confronted with unusual situations, sometimes involving trick props,
such as a desk with drawers that pop open when one is closed or a car
with a hidden extra gas tank. When the joke was revealed, victims would
be told the show's catchphrase, "Smile, you're on Candid Camera."
Peter
Funt joined the show professionally in 1987 when he became a co-host
with
his father. During this time the show was being broadcast on the CBS
television network. In 1993, Allen Funt had a serious stroke, from which
he never fully recovered. This required Peter to host the show
full-time.
The
show went through a few revivals. During his time on the show Peter was
a producer, host and acted on the show. He also produced and hosted
over 200 episodes.
In
this episode the Candid Camera crew rigged a pair of escalators in a two-level shopping mall so that they both went up. Shoppers who needed to go down had to find creative ways of reaching the ground floor.
In 2020 the Forverts launched a daily series of
short informal video clips called Yiddish Word of the Day.
The series,
written and narrated by Forverts editor Rukhl Schaechter, aims to give
non-Yiddish speakers an introduction to familiar Yiddish words and phrases and
how they might be used in everyday situations.
Schaechter, who was appointed the new editor of the Forverts in 2016, is
the first woman to helm the paper in its 119-year history, its first
editor to have been born in the United States, and likely its first editor
who is shomeret Shabbat.
We posted the
first
of this series in May 2020. Now that the Forverts is continuing the
series, we'll continue sharing some of the words and phrases as a regular feature of
Jewish Humor Central. On Friday we start a year of celebrating America's 250th anniversary, so let's see how to say the Fourth of July in Yiddish and learn a few expressions relating to the holiday.
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 reveals his marriage secret. Enjoy!
Today we send best wishes to Mel Brooks on his 99th birthday. For almost a century Mel has given us so much laughter that it's hard to list all of the shows, movies and other forms of entertainment that he produced, directed, and acted in.
A recipient of numerous accolades, he is one of 21 entertainers to win the EGOT, which includes an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony. He received a Kennedy Center Honor in 2009, a Hollywood Walk of Fame star in 2010, the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2013, a British Film Institute Fellowship in 2015, a National Medal of Arts in 2016, a BAFTA Fellowship in 2017, and the Honorary Academy Award in 2024.
Here's a summary of his many achievements. He's still active and busy developing new productions, including the sequel to Spaceballs. Go Mel!
Julia Sabra and Amalia Kelter Zeitlin are two musicians deeply
committed to building and inspiring Jewish community through song. They met briefly in December of 2023, but did not become friends until
September of 2024, when they were both living in Jerusalem.
One day, a
mutual friend told them that they really needed to make music together. They took her advice, and started compiling songs for an album of Jewish
music. Some written by Amalia, some by Julia, and some an organic
collaboration of their musical minds.
The album is in development, and the duo is looking for sources of funding. In the meantime they are performing in various locations, including this session in a private home in Baka, Jerusalem, where they sing Lecha Dodi for a group of friends.
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.
Candid
Camera
was an American hidden camera/practical joke reality television series
created and produced by Allen Funt, which initially began on radio as
The Candid Microphone on June 28, 1947.
After a series of theatrical
film shorts, also titled Candid Microphone,
Funt's concept came to television on August 10, 1948, and continued
into the 1970s. The show involved concealing cameras filming ordinary people being
confronted with unusual situations, sometimes involving trick props,
such as a desk with drawers that pop open when one is closed or a car
with a hidden extra gas tank. When the joke was revealed, victims would
be told the show's catchphrase, "Smile, you're on Candid Camera."
Peter
Funt joined the show professionally in 1987 when he became a co-host
with
his father. During this time the show was being broadcast on the CBS
television network. In 1993, Allen Funt had a serious stroke, from which
he never fully recovered. This required Peter to host the show
full-time.
The
show went through a few revivals. During his time on the show Peter was
a producer, host and acted on the show. He also produced and hosted
over 200 episodes.
Twenty-three years ago a Candid Camera team member posed as a postal worker and tried to sell homeowners a new postal service for three dollars to junk their junk mail and throw it away before delivery. Did he get any takers? Watch and see.
We've been following Elon Gold and posting some of his shtick on Jewish Humor Central for the last 15 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.
Today
we're sharing a video clip of Gold on stage in a short bit of
observational comedy about two Jewish holidays that are not fun and what would happen if we had one holiday when the "Do Not's" become "Do's".
It's another Monday and time for another Joke to Start the Week. Today Mickey Greenblatt is back with another good one.
Marshal (Mickey) Greenblatt received degrees from Columbia (BA and BS in Flight Sciences), a DC from Von Karman Institute (1963) and his PhD from Princeton in Aerospace Sciences. He worked as a researcher for NASA and the Naval Research Laboratory.
With four other scientists, he founded Fusion Systems Corporation, which invented microwave-powered UV lamps for drying coatings. He founded and served on the boards of technology companies and is active in volunteer work. He served on the executive committee of the Jewish Council for the Aging of Greater Washington for many years.
Mickey
also loves Jewish jokes and sent us this one to share with you. Here's
the setup: My doctor retired, so I had to get a new one. I met this Doctor Kanofsky. He put me through a series of tests. And then...
Social media sensation Yohay Sponder has gone viral with his charming
and unapologetic comments on Jews in general, Israeli Jews
specifically, and overall audience interaction on topics ranging from
political correctness (or not), Muslims, women, terrorists, gays, and
the Holocaust — many things people are feeling, but stand back from
expressing.
Since 2016, Sponder has been producing “Funny Monday,” an Israeli standup comedy
show in English that, among other things, touches upon current events
from an Israeli-Jewish point of view.
In
this video, Sponder explains how the anti-Israel BDS movement has increased the size of his audiences.
Singer/Songwriter John Ondrasik released his hit song Superman (It's Not Easy) in 2001 and it quickly became an anthem for first responders, men and women in uniform, and the broken everyday people working to heal our country from the 9/11 attack.
Now, 24 years later, Ondrasik, who is better known by his stage name, Five for Fighting, has written an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal explaining how the song has found a second life dedicated to Alon Ohel and the other hostages being held in captivity in the tunnels of Gaza.
Ondrasik, who is not Jewish but is married to Jewish executive producer Carla Berkowitz – with whom he has two children, writes:
I turned to “Superman,” hoping to remind the world that the hostages are
people, not statistics. They are brothers and sisters, sons and
daughters, husbands and wives. Music would bring out this shared
humanity after the Jewish people experienced their worst trauma since
the Holocaust, just like music uplifted an America shattered by 9/11.
In this video Ondrasik collaborates with current hostage Alon Ohel’s mother Idit, brother Ronen, and family and friends with this new version of Superman to support Alon and all hostages and their families.
Candid Camera
was a popular and long-running American hidden camera reality
television series. Versions of the show appeared on television from 1948
until 2014. Originally created and produced by Allen Funt, it often featured practical jokes, and initially began on radio as The Candid Microphone on June 28, 1947.
The show involved concealed cameras filming ordinary people being
confronted with unusual situations, sometimes involving trick props,
such as a desk with drawers that pop open when one is closed or a car
with a hidden extra gas tank. When the joke was revealed, victims were
told the show's catchphrase, "Smile, you're on Candid Camera." The catchphrase became a song with music and lyrics by Sid Ramin.
Today
we're sharing a classic episode from 1963 in which hotel guests expecting a $20 a night room are ushered into an enormous two-level suite with four bedrooms and a dining room that seats 40 people and costs $500 a night.
What happens when a stand-up comedian
is also a rabbi? Rabbi Bob Alper is a legendary stand-up comedian who
has been making audiences laugh for years. Bob brings a unique blend of
spirituality and humor to the stage.
His experience as a rabbi and
stand-up comedian gives him an unmatched storytelling ability that
resonates with diverse audiences.
Throughout his thirty year comedy
career he has presented wonderfully unique material in a way that's
intelligent, sophisticated, and 100% clean. Since
2010 we have posted more than two dozen video clips of his stand-up
routines. We keep finding new clips.
Here's a clip from a recent presentation where he reflects on the time he changed pulpits. Enjoy!
It's another
Monday and time for another Joke to Start the Week. Today we're sharing a
joke by Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak (YY) Jacobson, one of America's premier
Jewish scholars in Torah and Jewish mysticism.
Rabbi Jacobson, an American Chabad rabbi from Monsey, New York, is one of the most sought after
speakers in the Jewish world today, lecturing to Jewish and non-Jewish
audiences on six continents and in forty states, and serving as teacher
and mentor to thousands across the globe.
He is considered to be one of
the most successful, passionate and mesmerizing communicators of Judaism
today, culling his ideas from the entire spectrum of Jewish thought and
making them relevant to contemporary audiences.
He served as editor-in-chief of the Algemeiner Journal, and as a choizer (transcriber) for Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson.
He also loves to tell jokes, and here's
the setup: There's this rabbi who wins the Irish lottery. $5 million dollars. And then...
As Israel absorbs missile barrages from Iran, we share a prayer for the brave Israel Defense Forces as they defend their country from land, sea, and air.
This is a version of the prayer which was attended and participated in by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a synagogue.
We pray for the safety of the soldiers and for the population that they are protecting.
Mizmor Shir L'yom HaShabbat, based on Psalm 92, is a prayer recited during the Shabbat morning service. It praises and expresses gratitude to God for the gift of Shabbat and its significance in Jewish tradition.
This soul-stirring rendition of the classic Shabbat tune is performed by Ori Yavor and friends.
Ori is a musician, therapist and host of diverse and special musical content.
Ori leads singing circles, Shabbat and Kirtan receptions, leading
healing journeys with sounds – sound healing, accompanying yoga classes
with a wide variety of instruments from all over the world.
Ori drums and sings in various ensembles (curamundo, HaQawwaliya),
guides educational and experiential workshops/lectures – a musical
journey around the world for all ages (3 months to 100), accompanies
couples to the hupa, leads cocoa ceremonies, and more… everything is
dynamic, adjusted and attentive to the audience and the atmosphere.
The Yiddish folk love song Tumbalalaika
originated in Eastern Europe in the 19th century, but its exact origin
is hard to pinpoint. That hasn't prevented it from being sung and played
over and over, not only in places where Yiddish songs are sung, but
just about everywhere in the world, in vocal and instrumental versions,
in cabarets and in the movies.
Just as we have followed the songs Hava Nagila, Adon Olam, Hevenu Shalom Aleichem, and Abanibi
as they took different forms as interpreted by a wide variety of
singers, musicians, and dancers, we're continuing the series today that
we started back in 2012, sharing our 27th version of this
universal courting and love
song.
It's played by Jewbalaya and sung by its principal singer, Lea Kalisch. From Rap to Rumba, Folk to Feminism, Lea blends styles and languages like a smoothie. Lea is a Swiss Jewish
international entertainer who gives tradition a facelift. Yiddish
Theater, forgotten melodies, original songs, and mashups—all delivered
with young, zestful energy.
Jewbalaya plays a good-time mixture of Klezmer and Traditional New Orleans Jazz.
With a horn section, drums, banjo, accordion and vocals, Jewbalaya
offers a shmaltzy stew of funky beats and Yiddish treats. Jewbalaya has
performed recently at the Lake Harriet Bandshell, Mall of America, The
Slavic Experience Festival, and more.
In this video, Lea and Jewbalaya sing and play a swinging version of the Yiddish folk song Tumbalalaika. It was recorded at Temple Israel in Minneapolis.
Candid
Camera
was an American hidden camera/practical joke reality television series
created and produced by Allen Funt, which initially began on radio as
The Candid Microphone on June 28, 1947.
After a series of theatrical
film shorts, also titled Candid Microphone,
Funt's concept came to television on August 10, 1948, and continued
into the 1970s. The show involved concealing cameras filming ordinary people being
confronted with unusual situations, sometimes involving trick props,
such as a desk with drawers that pop open when one is closed or a car
with a hidden extra gas tank. When the joke was revealed, victims would
be told the show's catchphrase, "Smile, you're on Candid Camera."
Peter
Funt joined the show professionally in 1987 when he became a co-host
with
his father. During this time the show was being broadcast on the CBS
television network. In 1993, Allen Funt had a serious stroke, from which
he never fully recovered. This required Peter to host the show
full-time.
The
show went through a few revivals. During his time on the show Peter was
a producer, host and acted on the show. He also produced and hosted
over 200 episodes.
Twenty-four years ago the Candid Camera team went to Bloomingdale's in California and put tags on womens' clothing that showed an expiration date.
The team member posing as a sales clerk tried to convince customers that they shouldn't buy clothes that had an expiration date that was fast approaching. Watch their reactions in this classic video.
In 2020 the Forverts launched a daily series of
short informal video clips called Yiddish Word of the Day.The series,
written and narrated by Forverts editor Rukhl Schaechter, aims to give
non-Yiddish speakers an introduction to familiar Yiddish words and phrases and
how they might be used in everyday situations.
Schaechter, who was appointed the new editor of the Forverts in 2016, is
the first woman to helm the paper in its 119-year history, its first
editor to have been born in the United States, and likely its first editor
who is shomeret Shabbat.
We posted the
first
of this series in May 2020. Now that the Forverts is continuing the
series, we'll continue sharing some of the words and phrases as a regular feature of
Jewish Humor Central.
Today
we get to learn the Yiddish words for children and a few related proverbs.
Jewish
Folks Telling Jokes is the title of a show that was performed in
Toronto a few years ago. We've been running multiple jokes from the show and you've been requesting more. We're
glad to report that we haven't run out of clips from Toronto, so you'll
be seeing more of them. Today's session was filmed on
location at an Aroma Espresso Bar in Toronto. The joke teller is Jack Samuel. Here's the setup: A Jewish guy comes down from his condo, goes to the pool, and sees a sign. The sign says "Pool Closed. No swimming allowed." And then...
With over 20 years of experience, Yohay Sponder brings his unique
outlook on life to the stage. Throughout his career he has starred in
multiple TV and radio shows. He produces and headlines in 'Funny Monday -
Israeli Comedy in English' and has performed all over the world.
Having
gained a massive following on social media, Sponder most recently
finished up a sold-out tour in Europe with his new show "Self Loving
Jew".
This summer he is touring the USA, with shows in Boston, Philadelphia, and Fort Lauderdale.
In
this video clip from a recent performance, Sponder asks if there are any Muslims in the audience. Watch what happens.
Today we welcome Shabbat with another version of Lecha Dodi set to Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah in an arrangement by the Maccabeats. It's sung by ApiChorus, Harvard Hillel's Jewish a Cappella Group.
Founded in 2023, ApiChorus is a coed group comprised of current students at Harvard University. They sing a diverse repertoire of Hebrew and English classics, represent a broad range of Jewish backgrounds, and perform at venues locally in Cambridge as well as in concerts across the country.
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Just Published: The Kustanowitz Kronikle - 35 Years of Purim Parody
Every Purim for the past 35 years we have published a Purim parody edition of The Kustanowitz Kronikle, covering virtually every aspect of Jewish life, and including parodies of hundreds of popular movies. This year we decided to retire the series and capture all the fun in a book that's just been published and is available at Amazon.com. It has every Purim issue of The Kustanowitz Kronikle from 1988 through 2022 in a full-color, full-size paperback book with hilarious headline stories and parody movie picks. Here are a few examples: TRUMP, NETANYAHU SWAP ROLES, COUNTRIES; NEW TALMUD VOLUME "VOTIN" FOUND IN IRAQ; JOINS "FRESSIN", "NAPPIN", TANTZEN","PATCHEN"; "JUDAICARE" PROGRAM PLANNED TO ENSURE THAT ALL JEWS HAVE SYNAGOGUE MEMBERSHIP; RABBIS CREATE TALMUD AMERICANI; NEW LAWS EXTEND HALACHA TO THANKSGIVING AND JULY 4; JEWISH ORGANIZATIONS WORLDWIDE UNITE TO STOP GLOBAL WARMING; FOCUS ON REDUCING HOT AIR; RABBIS TO REQUIRE SHECHITA FOR MANY FRUITS AND VEGETABLES
Jewish Humor Central Staff
Publisher and Editor-in-Chief:
Al Kustanowitz Food and Wine Editor:
Aviva Weinberg Israel Food and Wine Consultant Penina Kustanowitz Reporter and Photographer:
Meyer Berkowitz Reporter Phyllis Flancbaum
Now You Can Book Program and Lecture Dates for 2025 and 2026 in Person and Via ZOOM
Now is the time to book our Jewish humor programs and lectures for your 2025 and 2026 events in person and via ZOOM anywhere in the world. Book any of our 22 popular programs including "The Great Jewish Comedians", “Israel is a Funny Country”, and "Jewish Traces in Unexpected Places." Click above for details and videos. To book a program with Al, e-mail: dan@hudakonhollywood.com
"Jewish Traces in Unexpected Places" is now available on Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle editions
This book presents 150 anecdotes and associated video clips that reveal the myriad ways that Jewish culture, religion, humor, music, song, and dance have found expression in parts of the world that, at first glance, might not seem supportive of Jewish Life. It includes 50 videos of Hava Nagila being performed from Texas to Thailand, from India to Iran, and from Buenos Aires to British Columbia. Also highlighted are 34 international versions of Hevenu Shalom Aleichem, Adon Olam, Abanibi, and Tumbalalaika. Whether you’re reading the print version and typing in the video URLs or reading the e-book version and clicking on the links, you’ll have access to 150 video clips totaling more than 10 hours of video. Enjoy!
"Israel is a Funny Country" is now available on Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle editions
This book explores the multifaceted nature of humor in Israel, some of which is intentional and some of which is unintentional. Either way, the quirks of Israeli life contribute to making that life interesting and fulfilling. In the pages of this volume, we take a look at humorous slices of Israeli life, Israeli comedy, satire and parody, funny TV commercials, unusual stories about food, surprising rabbinic bans on daily activities, simchas as they can only be celebrated in Israel, and endearing aspects of Israeli culture. There are more than 120 anecdotes and links to video clips totaling more than six hours of video. We hope that these anecdotes and video clips give you a new and different insight into life in Israel, and encourage you to join in the fun by planning a visit to the land flowing with milk and honey.
Now is the time to book our Jewish Humor Shows and Lectures in person or on ZOOM.
Bring Al's Jewish humor lectures and comedy programs with the funniest videos on the Internet to your community and your synagogue, club, JCC, organization or private event in person or via ZOOM. We're taking reservations now for 2025 and 2026 dates in your community. Click above for details. To book a program with Al, e-mail: dan@hudakonhollywood.com.
Now Open: The Jewish Humor Central Gift Shop
Jewish Humor Central logo merchandise is now available. Click on the image above to see the complete collection -- More than 100 items from tote bags, baseball caps, mugs, aprons, drinkware, T-shirts and sweatshirts, to pajamas and underwear.
The Best of Jewish Humor Central - Now Available in eBook and Paperback at Amazon.com
The Best of Jewish Humor Central - More than 400 video clips, including music and comedy videos for all the Jewish holidays. View them on Your PC, Mac, Kindle Fire, iPad, iPhone, iTouch, Android Tablet and Smartphone. Click on the image above to peek inside and download a free sample. And now, a paperback edition for anyone who prefers a traditional book and doesn't mind typing the URLs instead of clicking on them.
About the Publisher and Editor-in-Chief
A long-term devotee of Jewish humor, Al Kustanowitz has been collecting and sharing it even before there was an internet. In 2009, after a 36-year career at IBM managing new technology projects, he founded Jewish Humor Central (jewishhumorcentral.com. Through the blog he brings a daily dose of fun and positive energy to readers who would otherwise start the day reading news that is often drab, dreary, and depressing (subscribing is free). He has published 12 books on humor based on his more than 4,000 blog postings, each of which includes a video clip and his commentary.
He has presented more than 100 programs in South Florida and the Northeast on topics that include the great comedians and entertainers of the 20th century, funniest moments in film and television, flash mobs around the world, and composers and lyricists of the Great American Songbook.
He earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from the City University of New York and taught computer science courses at the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences at New York University. He is a member of the Advisory Board of the International Association of Yiddish Clubs.
You can contact Al via email at akustan@gmail.com.
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