Tablet Studios

We're closing out 2018 with two interviews with people who stand up—quite literally—for what they believe in.  First, we sit down with formerly Hasidic comedian Leah Forster, who has traveled the world performing for religious Jewish audiences, but whose recent gigs were cancelled after religious authorities found out she was gay and threatened to pull the kosher certifications of venues who hosted her. You can follow along with Leah on Instagram.

Then, Mark talks to Presbyterian minister Jeff Hutchinson, who shares the harrowing tale of what happened when he dared to confront white supremacists at a nearby church in Black Mountain, North Carolina—a story that doesn't end until Hutchinson finds a new church 1,000 miles away. 

We're hitting the road in 2019! Come see us January 15 at Washington Hebrew Congregation in Washington, D.C. It's free—register here. We'll be at the Stroum JCC in the Seattle area February 2 for a special live show with Dan Savage of the Savage Lovecast. Tickets here.

We love to hear from you: Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to [email protected] or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt.

This episode is sponsored by JChef, the new kosher meal kit. Go to Jchef.com/unorthodox and use coupon code Unorthodox30 to get 30 percent off your first order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tis the season—for Chinese food and a movie!

Our first Jewish guest is Bill Adler, the Def Jam alum who helped Run DMC create their iconic 1987 song "Christmas in Hollis". He tells us how he went from being a music journalist to the second full-time employee at Def Jam in the 1980s; how "Christmas in Hollis," ended up on the soundtrack of films like Die Hard, and how his distaste for cliche holiday music led him to make an annual Christmas playlist for friends and family, and now, you! Listen to Adler's 2018 Christmas Jollies mix here.

We also talk to Steven de Souza, the Hollywood screenwriter responsible for films like Commando, Judge Dredd, and, of course, Die Hard. He tells us how Bruce Willis's character was actually originated by Frank Sinatra, the origin of the movie's epic "yippee ki yay" catchphrase, and why Die Hard is even more of a Christmas movie than White Christmas.

We're hitting the road in 2019! Come see us January 15 at Washington Hebrew Congregation in Washington, D.C. It's free—register here. We'll be at the Stroum JCC in the Seattle area February 2 for a special live show with Dan Savage, of the Savage Lovecast. Get your tickets here.

We love to hear from you: Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to [email protected] or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt.

This episode is sponsored by Harry's. Get $5 off any shave set–including the limited-edition holiday sets–when you go to Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX.

This episode is sponsored by JChef, the new kosher meal kit. Go to Jchef.com/unorthodox and use coupon code Unorthodox30 to get 30 percent off your first order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Unorthodox, we're getting over our latke hangovers.

Our first Jewish guest is New York Times writer Taffy Brodesser-Akner, who has written profiles of celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow, Bradley Cooper, and Melissa McCarthy. She joined us at our recent live show at the Manhattan JCC to talk about how she tries to be a journalist and a mensch, which biblical figure she'd love to profile, and why she enjoys being on Twitter.

We also sit down with Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, the former Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. He tells us about getting to know the royal family (and giving the Queen a menorah), speaking out against British anti-Semitism, and the time he had to meet with Prince Harry after the 20-year-old wore a Nazi uniform on Halloween.

But before all that, Liel talks to his friend Scott Harris about the amazing Be A Jewish Star music competition for Jewish youth!

shabbat shalom and thanks again.

scott

S C O T T   H A R R I S

We love to hear from you: Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to [email protected] or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt.

This episode is sponsored by JChef, the new kosher meal kit. Go to Jchef.com/unorthodox and use coupon code Unorthodox30 to get 30 percent off your first order.

Hear from fascinating people doing interesting work in Israel and Israelis making their mark across the globe–like spice master Lior Sercarz of La Boite NYC, Ambassador Ido Aharoni, and former Miss Israel and Ethiopian Jew Titi Aynaw–on Jewish National Fund’s podcast IsraelCast. Find IsraelCast on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts, or learn more at JNF.org/israelcastpodcast.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From warding off the evil eye to rules about whistling, Jews are serious about their superstitions. This week on Unorthodox, we hear from listeners about their family customs, talk to Tablet's editor-in-chief Alana Newhouse about the enduring nature of shtetl superstitions, and take a visit to a very lucky spot in Northern Israel. Ptui ptui!

We love to hear from you: Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to [email protected] or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869.

This episode is sponsored by:

Belvedere Vodka, certified kosher by the Orthodox Union, and produced in accordance with the legal requirements of Polish Vodka. Learn more here.

Jewish National Fund, making an impact on Israel with a vision that encompasses planting trees, building water reservoirs, helping those with special needs, preserving heritage sites, and transforming the North and South with new housing, job creation, and infrastructure development. As you plan your year-end giving, go to JNF.org/tablet to take part in fulfilling that vision.

JChef, the new kosher meal kit. Go to Jchef.com/unorthodox and use coupon code Unorthodox30 to get 30 percent off your first order.

Harry's Razors, for a great shave at a great price. Get $5 dollars off a shave set, including the limited-edition holiday sets, when you go to Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today's episode comes out a day early, so you can gobble it up before Thanksgiving.

First, comedian Travon Free, a producer on Lena Dunham's HBO show Camping, speaks with producer Josh Kross about anti-Semitic old tweets of his that resurfaced last week.

Liel sits down with Jewish guest Frederick Wiseman, the legendary filmmaker, to discuss his latest documentary, Monrovia, Indiana.

Our gentile of the week, live from Cleveland, is former Rock and Roll Hall of Fame president and CEO Terry Stewart. to talk about what he calls the greatest job in the world, the much-speculated upon Hall of Fame nomination process, and how 'rock and roll' the Hall of Fame's CEO can actually be.

We love to hear from you: Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to [email protected] or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt.

This episode is sponsored by:

Little Passports, the perfect holiday gift for the curious kid in your life. Each month they’ll get a fun-filled package with hands-on activities and interactive projects designed to spark their curiosity about geography, world cultures or science. Order today at Littlepassports.com/unorthodox.

Hear from fascinating people doing interesting work in Israel, as well as Israelis making their mark across the globe, on Jewish National Fund’s podcast IsraelCast. From spice-master Lior Sercarz of La Boite NYC to Ambassador Ido Aharoni; from “Queen of Kosher” Jamie Geller to former Miss Israel and Ethiopian Jew Titi Aynaw, there’s something for everyone. Find IsraelCast on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts, or learn more at JNF.org/israelcastpodcast.

Belvedere Vodka. certified Kosher by the Orthodox Union and produced in accordance with the legal requirements of Polish Vodka. For more, visit Belvedere Vodka.

Check out the Unorthodox Demos, from our favorite Jewbadour Jim Knable. 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Unorthodox, boy are we grateful.

We're grateful for our gentile of the week, Shay Khatiri, the Iranian-born political refugee who raised more than $1 million for the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh following the Oct. 27 massacre. He set up a GoFundMe page, which quickly went viral, and the campaign has so far raised $1.2 million, which will go directly into the synagogue's bank account. He also tells us about being blacklisted by the Iranian government after signing a 2016 letter urging President Trump to impose sanctions on the country, disappointing his mother by not becoming a doctor, and the asylum trial that awaits him in order for him to stay in the U.S.

And we are triply grateful for our Jewish guest, bestselling author A.J. Jacobs, who returns to the show for the third time! (Don't miss his first and second visits.) He tells us about his new book, Thanks a Thousand: a Gratitude Journey, in which he thanked every single person responsible for his morning cup of coffee—from the barista at his local coffee shop to the coffee farmers in South America. He tells us why gratitude is a deeply Jewish value, and offers advice on how we can all embrace our Mr. Rogers side instead of our Larry David side.

We love to hear from you: Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to [email protected] or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt.

This episode is sponsored by:

Little Passports, the perfect holiday gift for the curious kid in your life. Each month they’ll get a fun-filled package with hands-on activities and interactive projects designed to spark their curiosity about geography, world cultures or science. Order today at Littlepassports.com/unorthodox.

Belvedere Vodka, certified Kosher by the Orthodox Union and produced in accordance with the legal requirements of Polish Vodka.

Jewish National Fund, As you plan your year-end giving, go to JNF.org/tablet to take part in fulfilling that vision.

Rabbi Eitan Tours, a unique way to experience Israel. Go to rabbieitan.com/unorthodox for a free consultation and itinerary planning. Unorthodox listeners also get $50 off a tour of at least one day with Rabbi Eitan.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Unorthodox, we’ve got a bit of a mish-mash (mish-mosh?) for you.

First, a taste of our visit to Cleveland, where we recorded a live episode at the Mandel JCC (and ate a lot of deli).

Then, Stephanie sits down with Jewish author Gary Shteyngart, whose new novel Lake Success is about a Manhattan hedge fund manager named Barry Cohen who abandons his wife and son for a Greyhound road trip across America with the backdrop of the 2016 election. In the wake of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, Gary talks about his personal connection to Squirrel Hill, and how HIAS, the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, resettled him and his family when they fled the Soviet Union for America. Plus, he explains why dachshunds are the ultimate Jewish dog.

Our gentile of the week is comedian and Risk! podcast host Kevin Allison, recorded live at the Manhattan JCC earlier this month. A member of the 90s sketch comedy troupe The State, Kevin told us about working as a bartender at the Grammys while having a show on MTV (Sarah McLachlan recognized him), plus how he started his storytelling podcast, where notable figures share true stories they never thought they’d dare to share. His question for the panel: Why are so many American Buddhists Jews?

We love to hear from you! Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to [email protected] or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt!

Shalom, friends.

Sponsors:

Little Passports. A subscription to Little Passports is the perfect holiday gift for the curious kid in your life. Each month they’ll get a fun-filled package with hands-on activities and interactive projects designed to spark their curiosity about geography, world cultures or science. Order today at Little Passports.

Rabbi Eitan Tours, a unique way to experience Israel. Go to rabbieitan.com/unorthodox for a free consultation and itinerary planning. Unorthodox listeners also get $50 off a tour of at least one day with Rabbi Eitan.

The Branch, a new podcast from Hadassah. Each episode explores how positive relationships between Israeli Jews and Arabs can bring new hope for a truly shared society. Check it out at Hadassah.org/thebranch.

Harry’s, a great shave at a great price. Get your trial shave set at Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Saturday morning, 11 Jews were murdered in a synagogue in Pittsburgh. Like Jews and their friends everywhere, we were heartbroken by this heinous anti-Semitic massacre, the first-ever large-scale attack against Jews on American soil. To grieve with our brothers and sisters in Pittsburgh and hear their stories, We traveled to Squirrel Hill, the city's Jewish enclave, along with a team from Tablet.

What we found was a unique and committed Jewish community, where congregations are intertwined and neighbors check in on each other and young adults return to raise their families. A close-knit community, within a larger city, now reeling from the weekend's senseless horror.

In this special episode, we bring you the voices we captured, from the French family who fled violence in Paris only to meet it again in Pennsylvania, to the rabbis whose congregations were targeted, to the neighbors and community members who now face the daunting task of mourning the dead and rebuilding all that was destroyed.

If you want to share thoughts or stories about Pittsburgh's Jewish community, email us at [email protected] or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869.

 Unorthodox is a smart, fresh, fun weekly take on Jewish news and culture hosted by Mark Oppenheimer, Stephanie Butnick, and Liel Leibovitz and brought to you by Tablet Studios.

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This week on Unorthodox, we're going fer-mental.

Liel and Stephanie sit down with chef David Zilber, the director of the fermentation lab at Noma, the Copenhagen restaurant credited with redefining Nordic cuisine. He and Noma chef and co-owner Rene Redzepi just came out with The Noma Guide to Fermentation, which has everything you could ever want to know about fermenting. He tells us about growing up eating Ashkenazi and Caribbean cuisine in Toronto, seeing Drake and the cast of Degrassi on the subway, and what his favorite Jewish comfort food, latkes, would look like fermented.

Sophia talks to journalist Alix Wall, whose March 2018 article about inmate James A. White Jr. in J., the Jewish News of Northern California, may help get the septuagenarian pardoned next month. White, who is serving life without parole for murder and has been incarcerated for the past 37 years, spearheaded programs that give inmates a college education—1,500 men in his prison have since gotten their college degrees.

We're heading to Cleveland! Join us Nov. 5 for a live show at the Mandel JCC with special guests David Gilbert, CEO of Destination Cleveland, and former Rock & Roll Hall of Fame president Terry Stewart. Get your tickets here. We'll also be in

We'll also be in Houston Nov. 6, at the Evelyn Rubenstein JCC with Rice Jewish Studies professor Joshua Furman and other guests. Those tickets are here.

Have a question for Unorthodox? Send it to [email protected] or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869.

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This week on Unorthodox, we're on patrol. We talk to Ruchie Freier, the founder of Ezras Nashim, the first all-female volunteer ambulance in New York City, founded and staffed by Hasidic women in Borough Park, Brooklyn. Ruchie and Ezras Nashim are the subject of the documentary '93Queen', made by filmmaker Paula Eiselt, who also joins us.

Ruchie Freier is a New York City Criminal Court judge, and the first Hasidic woman to hold elected office in the US. Paula Eiselt is an independent filmmaker. '93Queen' is her feature film directorial debut.

Join us at October 24 at 7:30 p.m. at the Marlene Meyerson JCC! Our special guests are New York Times writer Taffy Brodesser-Akner, RISK! podcast host Kevin Allison, and rapper MC Paul Barman. Get your tickets here!.

This episode is sponsored by the 2019 Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Awards. Do you know a Jewish teen making a difference? Nominate them for the $36,000 award at dillerteenawards.org.

This episode is sponsored to you by Harry’s. Get your trial shave set at Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX.

This episode is sponsored by Belvedere Vodka, certified Kosher by the Orthodox Union and produced in accordance with the legal requirements of Polish Vodka. For more, visit belvederevodka.com.

Reimagine End of Life is a weeklong festival to spark dialogue, break down taboos, and bring diverse communities together around the universal topics of life and death. Reimagine End of Life is taking place all over New York City from October 28th to November 3rd. For a full list of events, visit jccmanhattan.org/reimagine.

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