A Comedy Classic for Parshat Noach - Bill Cosby's "Noah" Routine

This past Shabbat, the Torah portion of the week read in synagogues around the world was Parshat Noach, the second portion in the book of Bereisheet (Genesis) that told the story of Noah, the ark that he built at God's command, and the great flood.

There have been many commentaries on this story, but the only one that belongs on Jewish Humor Central is Bill Cosby's classic routine on the dialogue between God and Noah when Noah was instructed to build the ark according to specifications that are recorded in the Torah.

We saw Cosby in a live performance on stage in Lancaster, PA, last month. At 77, he's still as funny as we remember him on his LP records back in the '60s.

The Noah routine first appeared on Bill Cosby is a Very Funny Fellow...Right!, Cosby's debut comedy album. It was recorded live at the nightclub The Bitter End in New York City's Greenwich Village during early 1963. The album includes three sketches about Noah. The three sketches were also included in a collection titled The Best of Bill Cosby released in 1969 and then again in 2005.

Cosby appeared on TV and did the first Noah skit. We're including a video clip of his TV performance below. In our opinion, it's not quite as good or as complete as the record version which appears below the video, but it lets us see his facial expressions as he talks and argues with the Lord.

Enjoy them both!

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