MY URBAN KVETCH

From the Creators of "Arrested Development": "Sit Down, Shut Up"

From the creators of "Arrested Development" and several of its cast members, along comes "Sit Down, Shut Up," a new animated series about teachers (for which my new LA friend Laura Gutin, as well as uberwriter and random encounter Jim Vallely, are also writers).

Check out a teaser promo here, featuring Henry Winkler, Will Arnett and Jason Bateman, among others, and listen for the one-word term that Nick Kroll uses to describe the "Hollywood Elite." (Hint: it starts with J.) First two episodes are available on Hulu now!

Israel's Birthday Present to Itself: Renaming "Swine Flu"

What, you thought it was just a joke? That when swine flu surfaced, the only Jewish comedy to arise would be people proclaiming the illness unkosher, followed by a swell of pride from kosher Jews declaring themselves morally superior for not exposing themselves to pigs. (Wait, that sounded wrong. But you know what I meant.)

[Photo at left from http://blogofneworleans.com.]

The day after Israel celebrated its 61st birthday, one of her health ministers gave the world a comedy present. Here's how you deal with a deadly strain of flu named after an unclean animal. You rename it after the country it came from.

Ultra-Orthodox Deputy Health Minister Yakov Litzman on Monday declared that Israel would call the new potentially deadly disease that has already struck two continents 'Mexico Flu,' rather than 'Swine Flu, as pigs are not kosher.

"We will call it Mexico flu. We won't call it swine flu," Litzman told a news conference on Monday,

Suddenly, I'm wondering how turkey (itself already a country, in addition to an animal) got the name הודו, meaning "India." I know it comes from תרנגול הודו, but beyond that: if you're going to name a bird that is already named after a country something in Hebrew, why not be consistent and name it תורכיה?

Welcome to my brain.

Thank you, Ha'aretz, for bringing this important piece of news to Religion and State in Israel's attention.

6 (Not 61) Ways to Celebrate Yom Ha'Atzmaut

Halfway through Yom Ha'atzmaut in Los Angeles, nearing the end of the day in New York, and with the celebrations already behind them in the Birthday country, most people have already found a way to celebrate Israel's 61st birthday. For instance, I like to take this moment during the calendar year to look through my photos, and revisit the real promise of the Promised Land: "Almost-Free Pizza."

But just in case you haven't yet celebrated, or want to celebrate more, here are a few ways to connect with the land and people of Israel in the remaining moments of the day and throughout the year ahead, as we look forward to 62 and beyond.

Jenji Kohan, Jill Soloway, and the Hebrew Mamita: "Inside the Jewish Noggin"

Yesterday I went to an event about images of Jewish women in Hollywood sponsored by the MorningStar Commission, an organization founded with support by Hadassah (I actually worked at Hadassah when the Commission was founded, and have long wanted to attend their events). This one, titled "Inside the Jewish Noggin," promised a "main event" interview with Jenji Kohan (left), the creator of "Weeds" and the potentially upcoming "Ronna and Beverly," as well as networking and breakout groups with Jewish women in the industry to give us an inside look at some of the issues they face as Jews in Hollywood. (Sold.)

I've written a longer post about it at Beliefnet (now available here!), but here are some highlights that you won't read over there.

• As an intro, "Hebrew Mamita" Vanessa Hidary (follow her on Twitter!) did her famous spoken-word piece about what it means to look Jewish...I asked her afterwards if it was a longer version of the one we'd seen on YouTube, and she confirmed that it was. As many times as I've seen it, I never get tired of it, and that's a testament to Vanessa's energy. (Haven't seen "Monologues" yet? Now's your chance! Check out this video and get your tickets in NJ, NY and Chicago here.)
• Writer/producer Jill Soloway gracefully handled questions from a room of interested attendees (many of them with job agendas), ranging from explanations about how the American TV industry works to the role of Jews in the writers' room. She explained a theory that Jews were "recreating culture to defend ourselves post-Holocaust," and noted that she meets young writers and tries to mentor them. In fact, she said, in response to a question about where the "United States of Tara" writers come from, she had met a playwright and offered her a job in an email exchange. (At which point, some blogger quipped, "so what's your email address?")
• As she took the stage, Jenji tried to adjust her lapel mic with the help of a technician. "You need to get higher," she said. After a few members of the audience began to snicker, she realized, "everything's a pun."
• Jenji noted that in her writers' room, the only thing that people aren't allowed to be is politically correct. "Being PC...that's just not ok," she said.
• When asked if Andy Botwin (Justin Kirk) would make a good rabbi, she initially said no, that "Andy lacks the scholarship," but that, as long as someone else wrote his speeches, he'd be "fun to listen to at the High Holidays."
• Asked about what it means to raise Jewish children, Jenji said that it means raising children to "question everything and look deeper...ask questions, ask 'why', ask more."
• Growing up in a showbiz family, none of the kids were supposed to go into the industry, but two did. (Brother David Kohan is the co-creator and producer of "Will & Grace.") Their family dinner table was "a really rough room." When Jenji's brother told a fart joke, a parent responded "fart jokes are an easy laugh - you can do better."

This did not come out of the interview with Jenji, which was gracefully conducted by Jewish Journal writer Danielle Berrin, but there's also a Jewish geography/Buffy connection that I must mention. (Because you know that's why you come here.) Jenji's husband, Christopher Noxon, is the brother of...Marti Noxon (writer/executive producer for Buffy and Angel)! Thanks to that factoid, I can also file this in "Much Ado About Whedon." Nice.

Want to watch the whole video and tell me which quotes I got wrong? Check it out over at the Jewish Journal's website. And don't forget to see the official post at Beliefnet.

Seth Rogen Lives in a Medieval Castle

At least in my dream last night, he did. I was part of a team of Jewrnalists selected to go on a tour of Rogen's mansion: we wandered through drafty, marble halls, listening to the echoes of our footsteps and gawking at enormous beds and kitchens preparing sumptuous feasts (all strictly kosher, we were assured), and I waited for my chance to interview him, which never came. Best I managed was a handshake and thanking him for having us.

Deconstruction: I blame my recent outing to Runyon Canyon - at the top, we looked into the valley and saw houses that were enormous even from afar, houses I will never see from the inside because they are owned by the incredibly wealthy Hollywood elite.

Nice that even in my dreams, I'm a Jewish writer.

Also, I blame this clip (via Cinematical), which I received on Friday afternoon. If you're listening for his trademark gruff, Rolf-the-muppet voice, don't bother - this clip is either shortly after his bar mitzvah or eerily pre-weed. Enjoy.

Things to Do With Matzah, Lindsay Lohan and the Lost/Passover Racist Experience

The rabbis ask, how can one prepare one's internet for Passover?

If you haven't seen it already, check out my friends Will Levin and Michelle Citrin in the outtakes from last year's viral smash, "20 Things to Do With Matzah." Then laugh your matzah balls off at this latest Andy Borowitz column about Lindsay Lohan's Talmudically inspired film oeuvre. An excerpt:

Herbie Fully Loaded (2005), Georgia Rule (2007), I Know Who Killed Me (2007), etc.

On first glance, Lohan’s most recent movies do not appear to be as overtly Jewish as her earlier work. But not so, according to Yeshiva University professor Shlomo Sitowitz, a leading Lohan film scholar and the only person known to have seen all of her films, including the little-known Confessions of a Teenage Shmata Queen (2002). Sitowitz’s theory, which has gained traction in Jewish cinema circles of late, is that Lohan’s later films are meant to symbolize the Ten Plagues of Egypt. For example, Georgia Rule, pulled from theaters after one week, represents darkness, while the Volkswagen or “bug” in Herbie Fully Loaded represents either locusts or gnats. Scholars may quibble as to which film corresponds to which plague, especially because any number them seem like incurable boils.

What's that about the "Lost/Passover Racist Experience"? Well, I wrote a post for Beliefnet comparing "Lost" and Passover, and got a mix of comments, a few of which pronounced it "racist" and "not even clever or interesting. just words on a page." Ouch. Sure, I'd prefer to be hailed as a comic genius, but I'm realistic: I mean, I'm not Andy Borowitz. I do have to allow for the possibility that pre-Passover, with cleaning and flying all over the place, my sense of humor may have suffered a hit. Still, whether or not it's funny, I'm not sure how the post is racist, but I'm sure someone will tell me.

But to end on a holiday-appropriate note, I'll share my DailyOm horoscope for today (think they know I'm Jewish and celebrating Passover with my family tonight?):

"About That Email..." - JTA Posts Apology for Email Language

The JTA posted a response today, calling Friday's solicitation letter "ill-advised," which it certainly was, and creating more of a context for the "ask" than recipients of the letter were originally given (this from Dan Sieradski's post on the subject):

I will therefore be the first to admit that Friday's fundraising letter was ill-advised and regrettable. The characterization of bloggers and Twitterers as "non-professional" and unreliable was not only counterproductive but arguably false. Worse yet, by seemingly attacking the blogosphere and Twittersphere, JTA has turned itself into a straw man in the battle between old and new media.

Over the weekend, there's been a lot of angry responses from bloggers and other outraged users of new media. And the JTA realized almost immediately that the email was a mistake. So now that we've had the outrage and the apology, how can we all learn from this experience and move on? What's the lesson, for JTA, which contributes Jewish journalism's mainframe, and for the "bloggers, Twitterers and unprofessionals" whose work complements "just the news" with personal opinion, insight, irreverence, reflections, humor etc?

Jewish Bloggers Are Not the Enemies of Jewish Storytelling

This morning, I opened my email to find a solicitation letter from the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) that I found extremely surprising. Since the economy dipped, I'd been getting more solicitations from everyone. But this particular email, headed "The Future of Jewish Storytelling," seemed to be using bloggers (and Twitterers) as a scare tactic designed to elicit donations, the way other organizations use terms like “aging Holocaust population,” “Jewish singles crisis,” and “rise in anti-Semitism.” Unless you act now, the message seemed to say, “bloggers, Twitterers, and nonprofessionals” will take over Jewish journalism entirely and (the ultimate implied leap from any scare tactic used in Jewish fundraising) cause the demise of the Jewish people.

But that couldn’t be what they were saying, could it? I used to blog for the JTA. I've watched with delight as the site revamped its look and content, including blogging and Twitter as two additional tools in the arsenal of Jewish journalism. So I parsed it line-by-line, the way my Talmudic ancestors might have; indeed, the way certain rabbinic discussions in the Haggadah unfold.

“Storytelling is fundamental to the Jewish experience," the letter began. I could not agree more. Storytelling is what Passover is all about, it’s about legacy, family, interpretation, and history. "And, storytelling is what JTA does every day,” the email continues, noting coverage from Mumbai to Gaza, from Obama to Madoff. Now, I wouldn’t have used the word “storytelling,” which for me connotes more of an inventive, imaginative lens on events than say, “journalism,” "news," or “reporting.” But mostly, agreed – JTA’s where I go for my Jewish news, rendered objectively in news pieces and hopefully wielded to larger, more inspiring points by features writers, op-ed columnists and some of their blogging staff members. When JTA made its appearance on Twitter, I couldn’t have been more thrilled: finally, a way to make sure that the stories reached me in “realer” time than a once-daily JTA bulletin could achieve. I’d learn about the news stories as they happened, which is of great help to me as a blogger and Jewish writer, enabling me to stay abreast of news at the speed of technology.That's a media service for the 21st century.

No April Fool's Post, But Double the Traffic on April 1

Today is April 1, which means you're probably expecting riotous spoofery and parodization. But Purim was last month, and my article was cut, so I'm still wounded (and might post it here later today). And I've been busy with ROI applications promotions (as my Tweeps know). But despite my lack of postage here yesterday and today, my traffic has more than doubled for both of those days.

People always ask, "how do you do it, Esther?" How is it that you can predict both social and internet trends with the (even more imminent) accuracy of Nostradamus, and translate said trends into pageviews?" Well, now I'm sharing my secret with you: I'm a frickin' oracle. Of sorts. With manifestation of predictions, sometimes misdirected from the original position of focus.

Last year, I changed my Facebook status from "single" to "engaged." That's it. And this happened. A brief recap:

Facebook Fools' Day Experiment: Change "Relationship Status" from "Single" to "Engaged"

Duration: 18 hours: 12:30am-6:30pm April 1

Findings: 35 respondents=15 email messages, 20 wall posts in a 18-hour period. About 70% of responses understood that the status change was a joke. About 25% of responses wished me mazal tov and wanted to know who the lucky guy was or why they were first hearing about this now. And 5% were threatened marriage proposals. From guys who are already in relationships. (Just to give you an idea of what's out there.) Most of my regular posse of New Yorkers knew better than to even respond. Or maybe they're too busy.

So that explains the upward blip in traffic. As for the social trend I was unknowingly predicting? Through my Facebook Fool's prank, I predicted April Fool's engagement that was then manifested in the relationships of others: by the time I woke up in Los Angeles, three friends of mine got engaged to their long-time significant others (all of them had to begin their emails with "this is NOT an April Fool's joke!"). So, who's up for passing that karma on?

And by the way, mazal tovs to Jacob and Nicole, Alon and Rachel, and Becca and Adam (endearingly hamming it up in the photo above). Celebrating with you from afar and, with one of you, from not-so-afar. :) And a happy April Fool's Day to you all.