Alef: The NEXT Conversation
09: What's So Funny?
This past October, comedian Marc Maron sat down with fellow funny-man Eugene Mirman to record an episode of “WTF,” Maron’s weekly podcast. As the two seasoned comics traded jokes, insults, and stories of life on the road, Maron remarked that he had, until recently, felt uncomfortable doing “Jewish humor” on stage. Mirman, himself a Jewish immigrant from the former Soviet Union, began to regale Maron with stories of growing up Jewish in Russia, where “they really hate Jews.”  Maron’s reluctance to be too “Jewish” on stage, juxtaposed with Mirman’s experience with old fashioned, actual, Jew-hating (for lack of a better term) is insightful, poignant, and above all, hilarious.Â
But, is it “Jewish” humor?
What about this:Â A well known Jewish comedian hamming it up (yes, pun intended) at the Last Supper:
The comic is Jewish, but the context? Not so much. So, is it “Jewish” comedy? You tell us…
Alef wants to know “What’s so funny?”  For the next few weeks, we’ll be featuring stories about comedy, humor, and the things that make us laugh as Jews.  Think we missed something? Are we not nearly as funny as our grandmothers always told us we were? Post your favorite examples of “Jewish” humor in the comments section, or email them to Alef@birthrightisraelnext.org.
Happy Laughing!Â
-Alef
Photo by Procsilas, licensed under Creative Commons.
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What’s So Funny Posts
Falling for Funny Guys
The Set Up
My Father’s Name was Lewis Lander
If You Ask Me…
Make ‘em Laugh
Tags: funny, Humor, jokes, Old Country, old jews
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I’m a huge Larry David fan and so whenever he complains extensively about the smallest of things because they annoy him, I tend to see this as an over-the-top expression of classic “Jewish” humor. But perhaps we’ll leave the whole “Jews like to complain” idea for another issue…
A priest and a Rabbi sitting next to one another on a long flight. Bored, the priest turns to the Rabbi and asks: “So as a Rabbi, you keep Kosher?”.
“Yes” replies the Rabbi.
“You’ve never tried something against the rules, like maybe a BLT?” asks the priest.
“Yes, once, on a trip to Madrid” admits the Rabbi, “I ordered and ate a BLT”.
“Good, wasn’t it?” says the priest….
An hour passes and then the Rabbi asks the priest “So you are a Catholic priest, which means you are celibate?”
“Yes, I am ”
“But have you ever, maybe just once, broken the rules and been with a women?” inquires the Rabbi.
“Well, once, while away in Paris, I visited the red light district, and yes, I had sex with a woman”, admits the priest.
…a moment passes, then the Rabbi smiles and says, “A lot better than pork, isn’t it.”