Forward.com

A New Yad for the Bar-Mitzvah Set

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:00:00 EST

A ceremonial yad, or Torah pointer, is a traditional gift for a bar or bat mitzvah. But a new technological innovation aimed at helping children learn their Torah and Haftarah portions represents a new kind of competition for this classic ritual item.

Vienna Event Misplaces the ‘Hatikvah’

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:42:00 EST

Talk about “Hope”-less. Organizers of an international fencing competition outside Vienna claim to have misplaced a recording of Israel’s national anthem — nearly preventing the piece, “Hatikvah,” from sounding during an awards ceremony.

Sea of Faces

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:35:00 EST

The American Friends of Rabin Medical Center’s November 2 “Broadway on the Hudson” gala aboard the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum celebrated one of Israel’s premier hospitals and honored Teva North America, a division of a global pharmaceutical enterprise with roots in Israel, and its president and CEO, William Marth.

Costco Gets Into the Torah Business

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:23:00 EST

A Seattle-based wholesale giant famed for its gargantuan 10-gallon tubs of mustard and 76-pound containers of detergent is about to start selling Jewish scripture.

Written Words

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:36:00 EST

Honorees, award presenters and guests at the October 27“ So Near & Yet So Far” Alzheimer’s Association Rita Hayworth Gala had a vested reason for the urgency to find a cure for a disease that currently afflicts 5.3 million Americans.

Sir Ian Knows What It’s Like

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:35:00 EST

His years as a closeted gay man gave actor Ian McKellen an understanding, he says, of Jews who hid during the Holocaust.

Prestigious Award for Israeli Choreographer

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:34:00 EST

Dancer, choreographer, innovator — many words have been used to describe Ohad Naharin, artistic director of Israel’s premier modern dance group, the Batsheva Dance Company. But Dance Magazine, in its 2009 award, given at a ceremony November 9 in New York, simply called him the man who “revolutionized international dance.”

MacFarlane’s Not-So-Funny Jew Joke

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:34:00 EST

The animated sitcom “Family Guy” isn’t exactly high art. The Sunday night, 30-minute program, which airs on the Fox television network, is filled with off-color jokes. Nonetheless, many fans were disappointed when the show’s creator, Seth MacFarlane, took things to a new extreme November 8 during a variety special titled “‘Family Guy’ Presents: Seth and Alex’s Almost Live Comedy Show.”

Songs About Roots

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:06:00 EST

“We can’t promote human rights abroad unless we can defend human rights at home,” author and journalist Sheryl WuDunn said at the October 14 New York Women’s Foundation dinner at Gotham Hall. The dinner honored her and her husband (via video), New York Times correspondent Nicholas Kristof. WuDunn and Kistoff are co-authors of “Half the Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity for Women Worldwide,” and the first couple to share a Pulitzer Prize for journalism.

First Israeli NBA Player Scores Big

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:14:00 EST

It’s been a slam dunk transition for the first Israeli in the National Basketball Association.

The Pitselech Are Reviving Yiddish

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:13:00 EST

Oy gevalt, Yiddish is dying. It’s listed in the Encyclopedia of The World’s Endangered Languages, which means that an entire generation is at risk of not knowing such phrases as nosh, shmear, pitsel and shayna maidel. Indeed, where would we be as a people without some good bagels and shmear? Unless bubbes, zaidies and alter kochers (grumpy old men) keep teaching us Yiddish words, they might be lost to the dreck (garbage) forever.

Jon & Shmuley Plus Another Media Circus

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:13:00 EST

Reality star Jon Gosselin, who has been plagued by a storm of ugly tabloid rumors, has been seeking to avoid more media attention. So, his recent decision to participate in a public forum — or as many media outlets are referring to it, an “apology show” — with yet another personality known for cultivating the spotlight came as a surprise. Gosselin, 32, joined Rabbi Shmuley Boteach at the West Side Synagogue in Manhattan on November 1 for an event titled “Fame: Blessing or Curse?” Run by Boteach, the discussion was billed as a “raw and intimate dialogue on the ethical challenges and moral responsibility of celebrity.”

A Yiddish Fête

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:58:00 EST

The October 8 New York Police & Fire Widows’ & Children’s Benefit Fund at the New York Hilton was a historic moment. For the first time, four New York City mayors —Michael Bloomberg, Rudolph Giuliani, David Dinkins and Ed Koch —were recognized by a single cause. “I never pass a cop on the corner without stopping to say thanks for keeping us safe,” Bloomberg said.

Is Your Recipe Worth $25,000?

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:36:00 EST

One of TV’s top chefs has signed on to judge a kosher recipe contest that will award prizes worth $25,000.

Hummus Wars

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:33:00 EST

Battles over the origins of hummus have raged across the Middle East for generations, with Israelis and Lebanese arguing over which group can claim rights to the first ever recipe and who makes the precious dip better. Recently, however, the war has reached new heights.

The L.A. Times: ‘Jewish Guys Heart Shiksas’

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:29:00 EST

Who’s to blame for keeping Jewish women off the big screen? The answer: Jewish men, at least according to commenters on a Los Angeles Times blog.

Trick or Treyf: Madoff Mask A Hit for Halloween

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 16:00:00 EST

Ghostly sightings of Bernard Madoff’s plastic punim will be popping up everywhere this Halloween, as costume shops report that Madoff masks are flying off the shelves.

Nice Jewish Guys Are Pinups in New Calendar

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:57:00 EST

A producer of the hit reality TV show “The Simple Life,” which stars Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie, is now trying to boost the image of nice Jewish guys — one month at a time.

We Remember, on Facebook

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:55:00 EST

It seems like an oxymoron to be a Jew and be a “fan” of Auschwitz, but there are more than 10,000 such fans.

Glitz, Glamour and the Arts

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:12:00 EST

Artist Ed Ruscha, recipient of the Artistic Excellence Award at the October 5 Americans for the Arts 2009 National Arts Awards dinner, joked that all the evening’s honorees should collaborate on a film based on Salman Rushdie’s “The Satanic Verses.” In response, Rushdie, who accepted the Kitty Carlisle Hart Award from a longtime friend, writer Paul Auster, quipped that he was ready to do it, providing he starred in the film. “Books are here to stay,” Rushdie assured the stellar gathering at Cipriani 42nd Street.