Shoshana Hurwitz recommends Roslyn Bresnick-Perry to the Association of Jewish Libraries 15 Jul 2010, 4:49 pm

Shoshana Hurwitz reviews "I Loved My Mother on Saturdays":

From Roslyn Bresnick-Perry's childhood in the shtetl to her immigration to New York and life into adulthood with a career in the fashion industry, this book cannot simply be considered a collection of short autobiographical stories, or even a transcript of the dynamic family history she has been relating orally to audiences for decades. Written mostly in the first person, which gives the reader a feeling like she is right there in your living room, a few major themes of Bresnick-Perry's stories include adventures in adjusting to Jewish life in America and ups and downs in her relationship with her mother (as illustrated in the book's title). As the captivated reader will discover once the author admits it to herself, the author's life is storytelling, which she eventually decides to make into her real career, and a very successful one it is. Recommended for all types of Jewish libraries.

Congregational Libraries Today reviews the YCT Tanakh Companion to Samuel 25 Apr 2010, 7:46 pm

The Book of Samuel narrates the transition from the chaos of Judges to the establishment of the kingship through the stories of Samuel, Saul, and David. Fully half of the thirteen articles in this volume focus on the nature, necessity for, and character of the kingship held by Saul and David. Other articles deal with prayer, the Ark of the Covenant, the oracular use of the Urim and Tummim, and the Temple. The authors employ a "literary-theological" perspective, citing both modern and classic sources.

These essays come from a conference, Yemei Iyun, sponsored by Yeshivat Chovevei Torah. They preserve the oral tone of the presentations—a bonus for the reader. The articles teach about the Book of Samuel, but they also stand as models of how master teachers tackle sophisticated topics. The essays are clear and engaging. The authors guide the readers through difficult material with deceptive ease.

The essays include the biblical text under discussion (in both Hebrew and English) which makes this an easy book for reading or study. This volume claims to present "Bible study in the spirit of modern and open Orthodox Judaism" and is envisioned as the first offering in a series. If they are all this good, I can hardly wait.

—Rabbi Louis A. Rieser

(Congregational Libraries Today, November/December 2007, p.14)

Yo, Yenta! previews The Comic Torah 8 Jan 2010, 7:31 pm

Yo, Yenta! applauds the funding of The Comic Torah, which it notes is "Probably Not Coming to A Shul Near You…"

Excellent news! Ben Yehudah Press has raised the funds it needed to publish Aaron Freeman and Sharon Rosenzweig’s The Comic Torah, which means those of us who pre-ordered this fabulous and colorful piece of holy heresy can expect our copies … soon?

By Passover, me hopes, ’cause it’d be super fun to spice up the seder with its hubba-hubba characters and manaically hilarious — yet sincere — interpretations of the Good Book. (Yes! Would the authors consider a comic hagaddah as their next project? It might keep El Yenta Man from falling asleep after the third cup of wine…)

Check out this week’s parsha, Shmot, featuring a dark Moses encountering the purple-haired goblin who lives in the burning bush. Good gawsh, I do love these people’s dark sense of humor. Charming as The Comic Torah might be, however, even I in my newly-amped blash-feemous glory can tell it isn’t appropriate material for the Shalom School kinders. But b’nai mitvot kids will loooooove it!

New Voices reviews The Comic Torah 31 Dec 2009, 7:23 pm

Elle Mikulincer-Weiss reviews The Comic Torah and interviews creators Aaron Freeman and Sharon Rosenzweig for New Voices, the national Jewish student magazine and decides: "Torah classes will never be the same."

Bottom line: "The book could be the perfect bar or bat mitzvah gift to inspire the birthday kid to keep reading the Torah in a new and innovative way."
Full article:

Book Review: Aaron Freeman and Sharon Rosenzweig's "The Comic Torah"

December 31, 2009   |   Elle Mikulincer-Weiss

Redrawing the Very Good Book

The final commandment in the Torah is to write a torah scroll for oneself, but few expect to take it literally.

While the Good Book has always been a best seller, it’s not exactly a page-turner or a beach read.  Half of the joy of the Bar or Bat Mitzvah is an end to the tedium of reading an endless line of who begat whom.

But “The Comic Torah,” created by husband and wife Sharon Rosenzweig and Aaron Freeman, is far from boring. In the book the authors present what they call “the cutting edge of the lunatic fringe,” as they wrote in an email to New Voices. Torah classes will never be the same.

In the beginning

Rosenzweig, who was trained as a painter, discovered her husband’s cartoons of Torah scenes in their house one day. Freeman been using the comics as a way to connect with the Jewish world: the comics would be a memorable way of showing that he “was down with the program of parsha and midrash,” he wrote.

But Freeman is a standup comedian, not an artist. And while the work showed promise, Rosenzweig could not let it remain as it was.

“I wasn’t planning to take his work over, but I had to do something,” she said.
 
So, like Adam and Eve, they started work on the fruit of their labor, pushing the boundaries of biblical discussion with their own unique twist:

God as a Woman.

I am YHWH, hear me roar

Feminism aside, it takes a lot of guts to show the Almighty as a curvy, beautiful young woman.

“At first, we avoided depicting the deity, or used bearded white men,” Rosenzweig said but “later, when God appeared in the burning bush, a flirtation developed in the drawing, which was completely unexpected."

Having based Moses on her husband Aaron, “It seemed logical that I play YHWH,” she said.

Perhaps more daring than the feminine divine is the character of  “Honey,” based on the Bollywood starlet  Shilpa Sheti, who is the personification of the land of Israel, a sultry temptress of a land giving new meaning to the phrase Jewish geography.
The love triangle between God, Moses and the land comes across poignantly. It recalls the Song of Solomon, with the scorching subtext that allows the viewer to see the intimacy of the situation while keeping her interest.

It’s hard not to feel a flutter in your chest at the revelation at Mt. Sinai, where, the authors wrote, readers see “Ya and Moses on their 40 night tryst by the light of a flaming volcano.”  Yeshiva never made it sound quite so interesting.

Strangely enough, despite what most rabbis say, God as a woman may not be so radical a concept.

“God is neither woman nor man,” said Sharona Segal, who teaches Jewish women’s classes in Boston. “Reading references to God as 'He' is very disturbing, but I imagine it's due to the lack of a neutral pronoun in both English and Hebrew.”

In fact, in Judaism, “God is as much woman as man,” says Segal, and that is why when teaching students, she has “tried not to use 'He' to describe God, because it's very inaccurate. God encompasses both genders, and should be shown as such.”

Segal noted that at the beginning of the Friday night service, God appears in the text in a feminine form. 

She added that the “Comic Torah” may serve a vital need in the community, since “the image of the fierce, paternal God is not, I think, a healthy one where it comes to observance.” 

The celebrity bible

One of the most enjoyable parts of the comic is how contemporary and hip it is. The couple drew the biblical characters after celebrities, with the intention that readers will connect with the characters as people they know from the news.

Still, some of the character choices seem a bit unusual, such as Cheech and Chong as Nadav and Avihu, Aaron’s rebellious sons. In fact, this may alienate some viewers, who find that the fast and loose approach a little tongue in cheek. The Bible is not Saturday Night Live.

Rosenzweig and Freeman acknowledge that their approach may be risqué and may push buttons, but see that as an asset rather than a flaw. As time goes on, certain cameos (“Yes, we Canaan”) will date the work and force a constant updating every few years as old celebrities fade from the public radar and new ones replace them.

The book may also struggle to find an audience. The comics require a high level of Jewish knowledge for the jokes to work, such as Elliot Spitzer playing the biblical character Laban, “The White Guy.” The pun works only if the reader understands that Laban means “white” in Hebrew.

Rosenzweig and Freeman, however, succeed with brilliant illustrations and the book could be the perfect bar or bat mitzvah gift to inspire the birthday kid to keep reading the Torah in a new and innovative way.

As for those who find the work too controversial, the creators acknowledge that it won’t fit every single household, but sees that as an asset.

“We don’t mind if others disapprove," they wrote. “Hopefully, it will inspire them to write a Torah of their own.”

We have winners! Prizes awarded for our Twitter it Romantic contest 17 Aug 2009, 5:18 pm

A big thank you to all who participated in our Tu b'Av twitter contest. We asked you to send a romantic twitter to or about your loved one, and the response was heartwarming.

Our judges have picked the winning entries, who will receive copies of Shefa Gold's new book, In the Fever of Love: An Illumination of the Song of Songs.

1. @velveteenrabbi :  My love plans built-in bookshelves, buys paint for the nursery, shapes where our child will dwell. We find home in each other. #15av
   
2. @vegdem : to my true love, the one who completes me: Thank you for pursuing me relentlessly. Relentlessly! #15av
   
3. @KatiBlack : chickpea & wilted spinach salad for lunch. thx @n_q_mainstream for being my #vegan meal pimp. u know how to keep ur girl happy #15av

And to keep the fever of love alive as the month of Av winds down, here is the first chapter of In the Fever of Love featuring the love poetry of The Song of Songs (in bold) and Shefa Gold's intimate, poetic response.

Contest: Tweet to your love on Tu b'Av #15av 3 Aug 2009, 4:02 pm

The date

Tu b'Av -- The 15th day of the Hebrew month of Av -- the full moon at the height of summer -- this year, Tuesday night August 4 and Wednesday August 5 -- is the Jewish Valentine's Day.

In ancient times, "There were no better [i.e. happier] days for the people of Israel than the Fifteenth of Av and Yom Kippur, since on these days the daughters of Israel/Jerusalem go out dressed in white and dance in the vineyards. What were they saying: Young man, consider whom you choose [to be your wife]..." (Mishna Taanit, Chapter 4)." (Learn more about Tu b'Av at MyJewishLearning.com.

Our celebration

Ben Yehuda Press and MyJewishLearning.com are sponsoring a twitter-wide celebration of love on Tu b'av. Go to Twitter.com. Join if you aren't already a member. And then post a note to or about your true love. Add #15av to the end of your note (that's hash-one-five-ay-vee) so we'll know that it's an entry.

The contest begins Tuesday night and continuing until Wednesday night. You can follow the entries in real time on the Ben Yehuda Press home page.

The prizes

The three best tweets with the #15av label -- best as defined arbitrarily by the heart of each individual judge -- will receive a free copy of  In the Fever of Love: An Illumination of the Song of Songs by Shefa Gold.

(Here's how poet Alice Ostriker described In the Fever of Love:

"For Shefa Gold, the Song of Songs is--as Rabbi Akiba said--a Holy of Holies. It is at once God's word to us, ours to God, and the loving words of human lovers to each other. Readers of In the Fever of Love will be inspired and led deeper into their own souls by her shimmering interpretations.")

The judges

Matthue Roth wrote the novel Losers and the memoir Yom Kippur a Go-Go. He's a slam poet, an Internet filmmaker, and the associate editor of MyJewishLearning.com. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife, who doesn't have Twitter, so he's disqualified from entering.

Sharon Rosenzweig and Aaron Freeman are authors of How To Say I Love You in Thirty Languages and creators of The Comic Torah.

Another judge is yet to be named. Stay tuned.

The fine print.

Prizes will be awarded to U.S. addresses only. You must be 18 years or older to enter. Decision of the judges is final. Void where prohibited by law.

Nikki Stiller reviews Isidore Century for the Home Planet News 8 Jul 2009, 2:53 pm

Oy! Where to begin? FROM THE COFFEE HOUSE OF JEWISH DREAMERS is so rich, so full of life and has so much ta'am, tastiness, that it is almost daunting to review. Even the author's name seems significant (indeed, we find out his real name is Irving Centor) for these poems, in which the religious and the secular vie with each other, seem particularly suited to the last century and the current one.

Leonard Maltin on Wicked Wit: "If you love vintage show business, this book is a must-read!" 18 Jun 2009, 10:49 pm

Leonard Maltin has reviewed Wicked Wit of the West on LeonardMaltin.com:

Virtually the last man standing from the era of vaudeville, radio comedy, and the Marx Brothers' heyday, the screenwriter of Meet Me in St. Louis, and the creator of The Life of Riley, Irving Brecher had a long, amazing career, but he never gave serious thought to writing an autobiography. Then an ardent admirer named Hank Rosenfeld insinuated himself into the nonagenarian's life, becoming a friend and confidant and wisely taking a tape recorder along every time he spoke to Brecher or accompanied him to an event. The result is an unconventional but entertaining book, full of great stories, wonderful show business memories, rants and salty opinions. (Told by Rosenfeld that I don't credit writers in my Movie Guide--which is not entirely true--Brecher hurls a profanity in my direction.) It also offers a bittersweet portrait of old age, although Brecher refuses to surrender to sentiment. In one of their last conversations, Rosenfeld asks the 94-year-old what he would like as an epitaph. He replies, "Here lies Irv Brecher, who doesn't recommend it."

Brecher sold his first jokes to young, up-and-coming vaudevillian Milton Berle in the early 1930s, never dreaming that he could make a living as a writer. By the end of that decade he was under contract to MGM, where he crafted the scripts for two Marx Brothers movies, At the Circus and Go West, and formed a close, long-term friendship with Groucho. One of the joys of this book is its illustrations; there aren't many but what's there is cherce. Script pages from the Marx Brothers films show how Groucho's dialogue was written and revised. Pictures bear witness to Brecher's claim that he stood in at a hurried photo session for a stage tour of Go West--only to discover that his picture, in Groucho makeup, was reprinted for years to come as if it were the real Julius Marx. Another anecdote involving the writer and Jack Benny pulling a practical joke on director Mervyn LeRoy might seem like a tall tale if there weren't photographic evidence to back it up.

If you love vintage show business, this book is a must-read. Prepare yourself for conversational detours, trips to the local deli, and a lot of anger over George W. Bush. And be ready to appreciate a man who never got the attention he deserved. (Irving Brecher died just as this book was going to press, late last year. He couldn't have asked for a better testament to a life well lived.)

Wicked Wit "Like 'Tuesday with Morrie' only with laughs" -Santa Monica Daily Press 4 Jun 2009, 2:18 pm

Jack Neworth reviews The Wicked Wit of the West for the Santa Monica Daily Press

To historians of American comedy, the name Irving Brecher, ought to be included among the legends. At 24 Brecher was the only writer to get sole credit on Marx Brothers' films, "At the Circus" (1939) and "Go West" (1940.) He also worked on "The Wizard of Oz," created,"The Life of Riley" as a radio show, wrote and directed it as a movie and then as the first television sitcom (Starring a young, and relatively slim, Jackie Gleason).

Brecher's remarkable life is chronicled in this hilarious memoir, "The Wicked Wit of the West" (as Groucho dubbed him) as told to L.A. Times folk-journalist, and Santa Monica resident, Hank Rosenfeld.

Drawing on his early days of writing for Vaudeville and radio, the book is brimming with Irv's juicy tales about Hollywood icons, including Benny, Berle, Gleason, Burns, and of course, the Marx Brothers. It's the product of seven years of Rosenfeld's tagging along with Irv, splitting pastrami sandwiches, and recording Irv's every word of rapid-fire banter and acid wit.

Like "Tuesday with Morrie" only with laughs, the beauty of this book is the deep friendship that develops between Rosenfeld and the oft-crotchety Brecher. It began in 2001, when Turner Classic Movie channel interviewed Golden Age Hollywood participants. "I'm afraid I'm the last living MGM writer," Irv said. "And frankly I just hope I get through this interview."

In attendance, Rosenfeld was struck how much Irv sounded like Groucho, "That distinctively edgy launching of an expertly aimed zinger." Suddenly there was a beeping sound. "Unless there's a canary in here, my hearing aid just died."

"How long do those batteries last," asked the interviewer. "About two weeks," Irv replied. "Longer if you don't do any listening."

Brecher didn't want to be part of a typical, self-absorbed Hollywood biography. He agreed to do the book on one condition, "That I don't have to read it." Hank insisted on using a tape recorder to "get everything accurately." Irv quipped, "You're going to have trouble being a journalist if you insist on being accurate."

The book begins in 1931 in New York city. Irv was 17 and a ticket-take/usher at his cousin's movie house on 57th Street. He worked six, 10 hour days for $18 a week and was glad to have it as he was the only support of his parents and siblings in Depression-era Bronx.

In his spare time, Irv would occasionally send newspaper columnists Walter Winchell and Ed Sullivan topical gags and one-liners for the pure joy of seeing his name in papers with circulation of over one million. He never for a moment dreamed it would eventually lead to a career in glamorous, far-off Hollywood.

One day a reviewer for Variety, Wolf Kaufman, came into the theatre. He had recognized one of Irv's jokes in a Vaudeville act of Bob Hope! He convinced Irv to run an ad in Variety advertising his joke-writing talents. Irv didn't have the $15 for the ad, as it was almost a week's salary. Kaufman arranged for Irv to temporarily owe Variety, a publication he would wind up subscribing to for the next 70 years!

One of those responding to the Variety ad was a brash, young Vaudeville comedian named Milton Berle who was notorious for stealing other comics' material. (The chapter on Berle is entitled, "The Thief of Bad Gags."). After reviewing pages of Irv's jokes, Berle paid him the princely sum of $50. Soon Irv would quit his usher's job and would forever jokingly blame Hope and Berle for his life in show business.

Among the great Groucho stories details his and Irv's vacation at a hotel in the south that didn't accept Jews. Groucho sat on his suitcase and accused the hotel of being one in a chain of brothels. "Is it true that you're your brothel's keeper?" he asked the perplexed hotel manager.

In a scene from "Go West," a western, Groucho's knocked down a flight of stairs in a saloon by the villain. Harpo and Chico rush over to give him water. "Forget the water," Groucho says, "force brandy down my throat." That line became famous in bars all across the country. Pretty heady stuff for the 24-year-old screenwriter who wrote it.

"The Wicked Wit of the West" is a funny, charming, and ultimately touching, reminiscence. For those over 60, it may bring back fond memories of radio and early television. For those under, it represents an essential piece of American comedy history.

Irv's glaucoma made it impossible to review the book's galleys. He hired an actor to read it to him over four days. Shortly thereafter he passed away but even on his deathbed, he was cracking one-liners. Irv missed the publication but he had "read" the book, something he joked he'd never do. I'm definitely glad that I did.

The Wicked Wit Of The West, A Must-Read - Canyon News 16 May 2009, 1:28 pm

Tommy Garrett reviews Wicked Wit for The Canyon News of Santa Monica

SANTA MONICA--From the publisher's own words, you know that this book is something that has to be read and absorbed: "Irv Brecher convinced Judy Garland to star in Meet Me in St. Louis, wrote Bye Bye Birdie and gave Jackie Gleason his first TV series and a new set of teeth. 'The Wicked Wit of the West' (as Groucho Marx dubbed him) tells juicy tales about Hollywood legends John Wayne, Louis B. Mayer, Jack Benny, George Burns, Ann-Margaret, Ernie Kovacs, Cleo the basset hound and of course, Grouch, Harpo and Chico. At the age of 94, Irving Brecher was still making us laugh. Though Brecher died last year before this book was published, author Hank Rosenfeld who lives in Santa Monica managed to get this wonderful tome published and is making fans and readers laugh at book signings all over Southern California." But don't just take the publisher's word for this book. Pick up a copy of this entertaining yet informative book that is filled with photographs, once private memos and even the Brecher's own notes on some of Hollywood's biggest stars.

But all that hype is not without just cause. The book chronicles what made Brecher such an icon, not just at MGM but throughout his career in Hollywood. Brecher is best known for creating "The Life of Riley," on radio, in the movies and as the very first sitcom for television. There is no surprise to the reader how much Hank Rosenfeld admired his subject, but what you find out in this book is how he continued to press Brecher and questioned him extensively in order to complete this tome.

When you read "The Wicked Wit of the West," be prepared for a handkerchief and plenty of laughs. Crying was something I hadn't done a lot of lately, but crying tears of joy and laughter was synonymous with reading this hilarious yet affectionate book. Brecher was the last of the great funnymen who made fun of himself as much as he did others. Never mean spirited, he was however from a distant era of our nation. When times were tough and people had to either laugh or cry. Brecher felt both were necessary but that tears from laughter rather than sorrow would be more positive for our world. His brand of humor has never been duplicated since.

What I found amazing about this story is all of us Hollywood historians knew of the wonderful infectious wit and humor of Irv Brecher, but we now can add Hank Rosenfeld to the list of great scribes who never cease to humor us with great detail. This book is not like most chronicles of "As Told To" stories. It's filled with the wisdom, talent and humor of two great men in Hollywood, Irv Brecher is a given. Hank Rosenfeld should be added to the list of Hollywood historians who contribute great literature in our industry.

This book is a must read and should be in every film class across America.

MyJewishLearning.com on Cabalist's Daughter: "Glorious" 28 Apr 2009, 5:52 pm

Novelist Matthue Roth reviews The Cabalist's Daughter on MyJewishLearning.com's Mixed Multitude blog. Bottom line: He gets it.

The Cabalist's Daughter is a bipolar sort of book. On one hand, it's a crazy, unhinged vision of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, starting with a wild supposition and growing steadily wilder from the first page onwards-what if the Lubavitcher Rebbe had a clone? On the other, it's a pretty serious book that touches upon messianism, rape, global warming, peace in the Mideast, and those perpetually-impending nuclear crises that the news people are so fond of reporting about.

New book on Song of Songs to premiere May 16 at Bethesda event 21 Apr 2009, 3:33 pm

Book event to be followed by Havdalah service
7 pm Saturday night, May 16th
at
THE DENNIS AND PHILLIP RATNER MUSEUM
10001 OLD GEORGETOWN ROAD, BETHESDA

Light refreshments will follow.
The museum will remain open for your enjoyment until 10pm
RSVP: Eve Yudelson 201-833-5145, eve@benyehudapress.com

Can we connect to God through love? Can we connect to love through God?

Those are the questions that underlie Rabbi Shefa Gold's new book, In the Fever of love: An Illumination of the Song of Songs.

Rabbi Gold is a leader of the Jewish Renewal movement and composer of six albums of Jewish liturgical music. Her new book is an intimate erotic elaboration of the Song of Songs in which she speaks directly and passionately to God, The Beloved.

The May 16th event at the Ratner Museum is the official publication party for In the Fever of Love. In the Fever of Love is illustrated with artist Phillip Ratner's drawings which are on display at the museum.

The event will feature chant and song from the Song of Songs and readings from her book.

(High-res jpg of book cover)

The Wicked Wit of the West: One of the Funniest and Most Poignant Books of the Year About Life and Death 6 Mar 2009, 8:50 pm

Pam Vetter of the American Chronicle reviews Wicked Wit:

The Wicked Wit of the West: One of the Funniest and Most Poignant Books of the Year About Life and Death

Pam Vetter

"The Wicked Wit of the West" is definitively the best read of the year as you find yourself re-reading excerpts over and over again. Author Hank Rosenfeld is giving the world a gift by sharing this story in Irving Brecher's own words.

Imagine pursuing Brecher, a screenwriter from the Golden Age of Hollywood, for an interview and then the relationship blossoms into an opportunity. That is exactly what happened for Rosenfeld.

While Brecher wasn't sold on the book idea immediately, his family loved the concept. His wife, Norma, had been encouraging him to do it for years. Brecher wanted the memoir to be different than a tawdry exercise of Hollywood self-absorption and he found a way to share his true voice through Rosenfeld. More memoirs should involve the actual subject because what results in this book is a page-turning work of art. Instead of painting in broad strokes, this memoir is more an exercise in fine-detailed pencil drawings that make you laugh and remember how it used to be in Hollywood. With perfect timing, "The Wicked Wit of the West" showcases one original story after another. Stories you've never heard before. It took Rosenfeld six years to record his conversations with Brecher. As a result, he collected a portion of cinematic history.

Born in 1914, Brecher had dreams like every other kid. He wanted to be a journalist but found success and rewards in being a comedy writer when Milton Berle hired him to write jokes. Over the years, Brecher amassed many credits in radio, film and television. His credits are an uplifting walk through film history with two Marx Brothers' films, a punch up of dialogue in "The Wizard of Oz," a shared Oscar nomination for "Meet Me in St. Louis," and screenwriting credits for "Shadow of the Thin Man," "Bye Bye Birdie," and "The Life of Riley," among others.

Brecher's incredible memory into his 90s exposes a time in history when a career was built on talent rather than a single headline or a retouched photo. It never seems like name dropping when Brecher mentions the people who used to sit at his table at the private Hillcrest Country Club: Groucho Marx, Harpo Marx, George Burns, Al Jolson, Jack Benny, George Jessel, Lou Holtz, Milton Berle and the Ritz Brothers. As one-liners flow from his lips, it reminds readers that Brecher was no slouch himself. He made comedians look good with tight one-liners that made the audience think and made the audience laugh.

Throughout the book, Brecher weaves a reality about enjoying life, experiencing the highs and lows of the studio system and ultimately facing death. While there are hilarious bits on nearly every page, Brecher also acknowledges that many of his contemporaries are dead as he has attended far too many funerals. He describes himself as "the last man standing" after the Hillcrest table of famous friends had passed away. He thought it would be nice to hold funerals before someone died so the guest of honor could enjoy the event.

In an interesting review of a farewell, Brecher shares the story of Milton Berle's funeral, as he resented that he was not asked to speak at the service. He felt it was because he didn't have a big enough name, but you sense his loss of Berle, a man whom he greatly respected. With a streak of ongoing honesty, Brecher also talks about the death of Bob Hope and his dealings with the comedian. This section reads with a mix of hilarity and hostility reflecting on the way he was treated.

When you live into your 90s, you experience a lot of death and it becomes part of life. Brecher describes finding his first wife, Eve, "with that beautiful smile, asleep forever." Who can describe a passing better than this? No one. Brecher delivers on so many levels in this book, you find yourself wanting a sequel. Even when he jokes about death, it's poignant. In true form, he read famous obituaries and was proud when his films were mentioned. When he read the obituary for Susan Marx, the wife of Harpo Marx, he pointedly told Rosenfeld, "Listen, kid, come on over and let me give these stories to you before I croak."

While you never feel rushed in reading, time is ticking throughout this book and you realize how important it is to document every story from Brecher's memory.

There are little extras throughout as well, including detailed payments he received for jokes, good reviews of his films, a 1940 typed letter from Groucho Marx, and photos of Brecher with celebrities. The story about Al Jolson is a mouth dropper. The details of celebrity affairs are shocking. The ditty on Jackie Gleason and the capping of his teeth is hysterical. Behind the scenes, the reader gains personal insight from Groucho Marx about quiz shows and "You Bet Your Life." The way Brecher tricked Judy Garland into performing in "Meet Me in St. Louis" is an absolute hoot! Clearly, studio stars only wanted to hear what they needed to hear and Brecher knew it. And, finally, Brecher reveals how Ann-Margret was really discovered. The last few chapters are rife with banter and you may find yourself shedding a few tears.

When I read the introduction to this book, I was a little wary at the use of various fonts to represent different voices. Alas, my worry was for naught. The reader easily embraces the typesetting and it works beautifully.

Great thanks goes to writer Rosenfeld for making the time to follow Brecher all over town, documenting what otherwise would have been lost.

Simply put: "The Wicked Wit of the West" is a must-read book. In fact, it's so wonderful you're not going to want to share it with your friends when you're done reading it. Tell them to buy their own copies. It's a keeper that you will want on your bookshelf so you can re-read it on a rainy day for a pick-me-up. If an official, unedited recording of the Brecher-Rosenfeld conversations is ever released, this writer will be first in line to buy the audio.

The publication of this book begs the question: how many other amazing life stories are going untold at the Motion Picture home? Probably, far too many.

In 2001, his obituary ran in print prematurely. Sadly, Irving Brecher died in November 2008 at the age of 94 and never saw the official release of this book. But, I bet it was one helluva funeral.

It's Only A Purim Shpiel 5 Mar 2009, 5:19 pm

How was the holiday of Purim celebrated back in Europe? This funny childhood memory is one of the tales told by award-winning storyteller Roslyn Bresnick-Perry in her new collection, "I Loved My Mother on Saturdays" and other tales from the shtetl and beyond.

There is a section of this story in which I enumerate all the delicacies that my aunts and grandmother prepare for the holiday. I relate how I pestered them to let me help them in all they attempted to do. Then I ask in the story, "So what could my grandmother do?"

At one performance, before I could give the solution, a man yelled out from the audience, "Give you a good spanking!"

"Yes," I answered him, "but then you wouldn't have a story." -RBP

Purim is coming--you can smell it in the air. Even the snow, hard-packed and glistening in the sun, feels it and cries a little, making puddles in the well-worn pathways. Poor snow; it knows that if Purim is here, Pesakh can't be far behind, and it brings with it the sweet and glorious spring. Soon the rains will come and turn everything to mud. Purim is coming, and the long winter with its boring nights and icy days is just about over.

There is lots of gay talk in my grandparents' house. Everyone is busy preparing for Purim. Everyone is busy writing, making lists. My grandmother and my mother are making a list of all the ingredients needed to make and bake all the Purim delicacies. Teiglakh, cakes, tarts, cookies in all shapes and sizes, scones filled with prune jam or currants and, of course, those tasty, gooey hamentashen. My aunts Liebe and Shushke are compiling lists of who is to receive shalakhmones, gifts of delicacies exchanged by one family with another. My mother and my grandmother really have the final say on this matter and will no doubt rearrange the names.

My uncle Avrom-Layb has enlisted the services of my Aunt Fiegel to help him write a new version of the Purim shpiel, which will then have to be presented to the Dramatic Society for approval. My uncle is a gantzer makher, a big wheel in this society, which can boast of the best and the brightest young people of the shtetl.

My Formal Entry into the Garden of Internet Blogging, Full of Snakes and Apples! 5 Mar 2009, 2:55 pm

This is a far cry from my days on JCN, the Jewish Communications Network. Alot has happened on the Web since that time, but I've kept a rather low profile.

What lures me out from the lurker's corner is a chance to share in the excitement of new Torah and teaching tools with other educators, noodniks and armchair theologians like me--and NOT like me!!

What I am hoping for: An interactive community of people who want to learn, to teach, and to squabble about Text. I would like to see teachers talking to each other and sharing curriculum ideas and reproducibles. We are working on several arms of Jewish education: We are making our way through Tanakh with Yeshivat Chovevei Torah's amazing lectures-turned-readable essays. Our first book was Samuel. The next one coming out is Judges. We plan to have curriculum available for all the texts as they come out and a forum for teachers to share with other teachers what has worked in their classrooms.

We also have an amazing set of Holocaust books produced by twenty dedicated teachers from the Holocaust Consortium. The set is edited by Karen Shawn, Ph.D, who teaches Holocaust literature at Yeshiva University and was director of Holocaust education at the Morah School of Englewood, NJ, for many years. A Covenant Award recipient, she served for 10 years on the staff of Yad Vashem's summer Institute for Educators from Abroad. Her co-editor, Keren Goldfrad, collected essays by professors from universities in Israel, Australia, and America for the teacher's guide.

I realize how retro it is to rhapsodize about the internet. It's such a "given" in our lives, that it is uncool to be awed. But man, it's the library of Alexandria, the Smithsonian Institution and the Tower of Babel and more. It is our shared project: to know, to know and to know more. To connect and to learn, about each other and about ourselves. It's the Fifth Dimension. Let's play.