Check back weekly for new, up-to-date Jewish Trivia questions & answers!
Have a question or comment about our questions and answers? Do you think we made a mistake (not likely, but I guess it could happen)? Do you want to know more (who doesn’t)? Are you lonely and just want to talk to someone? There, there, don’t cry. It’s going to be okay. I promise.
Let us know what’s on your mind.
President Joe Biden
RASHI, RAMBAM and RAMALAMADINGDONG are on vacation for the New Year. We hope you’ll enjoy this trivia question from 2020. Given how much of a fog all of our brains are in because of almost two years of COVID fatigue, we’re assuming you don’t remember the answer!
✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡
Speaking in 2013, Joe Biden said of the Jewish people, “You make up 11 percent of the seats in the United States Congress. You make up one-third of all Nobel laureates. So many notions that are embraced by this nation that particularly emanate from over 5,000 years of Jewish history, tradition and culture: independence, individualism, fairness, decency, justice, charity.” He concluded by saying what?
Joe Biden - Caricature by DonkeyHotey is licensed under CC BY 2.0
A. “These are all as you say, as I learned early on as a Catholic being educated by my friends, this tzedakah.”
B. “These are all as you say, as I learned early on as a Catholic being educated by my friends, this mitzvah.”
C. “These are all as you say, as I learned early on as a Catholic being educated by my friends, this chutzpah.”
D. “These are all as you say, as I learned early on as a Catholic being educated by my friends, this yiddisher kop.”
E. “These are all as you say, as I learned early on as a Catholic being educated by my friends, this kreplach.”
The Rockettes
The number of COVID cases has increased dramatically across the country. Universities such as Cornell, Georgetown, and Princeton, among others, have gone back to virtual-only classes and exams. The NFL postponed three of this weekend’s games. And in New York City, which saw the positivity rate double over just three days last week, many Broadway shows have canceled performances. In addition, the Radio City Rockettes announced that they have canceled the remainder of their Christmas Spectacular season, which had been scheduled to run through January 2. Which of the following is part of the Jewish history of the Rockettes?
Rockettes by Ralph Daily is licensed under CC BY 2.0
A. One former Jewish member of the troupe, Alyssa Epstein, went on to become a Reform rabbi. Every year since, she has returned for the Rockettes organization’s holiday party where she has led the group in a Chanukkah candle lighting.
B. The Rockettes have performed at many events besides the Christmas Spectacular, including the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, Radio City Easter Pageant, and President Donald Trump’s Inaugural Ball. The group has also been hired to perform at private events including Jared Kushner’s bar mitzvah at the Plaza Hotel in 1994.
C. Christine Frances Masave Horii, a Protestant Japanese-American, who was a Rockette in the 1990’s, later converted to Judaism and moved to Israel, where she now only dances in front of all-female audiences.
D. The Rockettes were conceived of and created by Samuel “Roxy” Rothafel, who was inspired by the group dancing of the hora which he saw and participated in at many bar mitzvahs and weddings.
E. The Jewish co-producer and choreographer of the Rockettes, Leon Leonidoff, also produced a Kol Nidre spectacular that performed at Radio City Music Hall.
Israel’s Air Force One
Five years ago Israel purchased a used jet with the intention of customizing it for the use of the Prime Minister and the President for official travel. Prior to that these officials had been renting commercial planes. While the aircraft’s upgrade has been completed, the plane is still sitting in a hangar and it is not clear if or when the current Prime Minister, Naftali Bennett, or Israel’s president Isaac Hezog will use the craft. While it hasn’t been publicly stated, it is believed that there is reticence because the plane is viewed as a symbol of the corruption of former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, under whose authority the plane was purchased and renovated at a cost of almost $300 million. What do they call this plane, the equivalent of the United States’ Air Force One?
LY/ELY El Al Israel Airlines B737 4X-EKC by Riik@mctr is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
A. Kochav Tzion, Star of Zion.
B. Aliyat Tzion, Rising to Zion.
C. Yonat Tzion, Dove of Zion.
D. Knaf Tzion, Wing of Zion.
E. Bibi’s Follies.
Supply Chain
Supply chain problems have led to shortages of many consumer products, including computer chips, breakfast cereal, running shoes, paint and more. What product has been in short supply recently which has affected the Jewish community?
Containers by russellstreet is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
A. Chanukkah candles, causing many consumers to use birthday candles and even votive candles for their Chanukkah menorahs.
B. Cream cheese, leaving New York bagel stores scrambling to be able to fulfill orders for bagels with a shmear.
C. Parchment, which is holding up the production of new Torah scrolls, megillot, and mezuzah scrolls.
D. Kosher meat, resulting in more vegetarian or dairy Shabbat dinners in Jewish households.
E. Common sense and decency among many Republican politicians, who continue to compare COVID restrictions to those imposed on Jews during the Holocaust (just a short list includes Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, New York gubernatorial candidate Rob Astorino, Maine state Representative Heidi Sampson, Oklahoma Republican Party chairman John Bennett, North Carolina Representative Madison Cawthorn, and Pennsylvania Congressman Scott Perry).
Stephen Sondheim, z”l
Musical theatre lyricist and composer Stephen Sondheim passed away last week at the age of 91. The legendary artist wrote the lyrics for West Side Story and Gypsy, and wrote lyrics and music for many shows including A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Company, Follies, Sweeney Todd, Sunday in the Park with George, and Into the Woods. He was the winner of multiple Tony and Grammy awards, an Academy Award, and a Pulitzer Prize among others, and he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama. Sondheim, the grandson of German-Jewish immigrants, had no formal Jewish upbringing. However, when asked about his Jewish identity, he replied, “It’s very deep. It’s the fact that so many of the people I admire in the arts are Jewish. And art is as close to a religion as I have.” Sondheim’s upbringing did include attendance at summer sleepaway camp with many other Jewish campers. Where did Sondheim go to summer camp?
Stephen_Sondheim_-_smoking by an Unknown photographer is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
A. He attended Camp Androscoggin in Maine. The camp focuses on athletics, including archery, tennis, boating, and soccer. Other Jewish attendees over the years at Camp Androscoggin were Alan Jay Lerner, Tom Lehrer, and S.I. Newhouse, Jr.
B. He attended Herzl Camp, a Zionist camp in Webster, Wisconsin, where he learned to play piano. Attending Herzl in other years were Bob Dylan, who learned to play guitar there, and Ethan and Joel Coen, who both focused on photography.
C. He attended Surprise Lake Camp in Cold Spring, New York, where he sang in the camp choir. Other Jewish campers who sang in the choir at other times included Eddie Cantor, Neil Diamond, and Gene Simmons.
D. He attended Interlochen Arts Camp in Interlochen, Michigan. The camp program is centered around musical theatre (which Sondheim concentrated on), plus creative writing, dance, and visual arts. Other Jewish attendees have included actor Tovah Feldshuh and singer Peter Yarrow.
E. He attended Fleet Street Camp in London Town. At camp Sondheim learned to shave and also to bake pies.
Thanksgiving
This year Americans will be celebrating the 400th anniversary of the first Thanksgiving feast which took place in Plymouth Colony in 1621. At that event, roughly 50 Pilgrims came together with more than 100 American Indians to celebrate a successful harvest. There was some concern in the past among Jews as to whether observance of the holiday might violate the proscription against copying “the ways of the Gentiles.” However, the great 20th century Orthodox authorities Rabbi Moshe Feinstein and Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik agreed that the holiday is secular, not Christian, and therefore celebration by Jews is not religiously prohibited. There has been another controversy around the holiday, however. What past Thanksgiving event led a group of rabbis to protest?
The famous Macy's Turkey by Ben W is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
A. In the mid to late 1800’s, the largest producers of turkeys were Arkansas and Virginia. Being fresh on the heels of the Civil War, and recognizing that New York had a very sizable hog farming industry, in 1867 Governor Reuben Fenton of New York called on New Yorkers to “punish the people of the states of insurrection, and support the good people of the state of New York, by gracing your Thanksgiving table with ham rather than turkey.” A group of rabbis protested that the governor’s comments were insensitive to the “beliefs of the children of Abraham, who are also good citizens of New York.”
B. In Israel, it is a tradition for the President to attend a Thanksgiving dinner at the United States Embassy. But in 2007, rabbis from a number of Chassidic sects, including the Belz, Ger and Bobov, protested when Israeli President Shimon Peres attended the event. In that year, Thanksgiving happened to fall on the 10th of Tevet, a minor fast day commemorating the siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar in 597 BCE. The rabbis did not believe that the Israeli president should have attended a meal celebration on that date, even though only a small number of very religious Israelis observe the fast.
C. In 1868, Pennsylvania Governor John W. Geary issued a proclamation calling on Pennsylvania citizens to celebrate Thanksgiving by praising “the name of God and magnify Him with thanksgiving,” and to pray that “our paths through life may be directed by the example and instructions of the Redeemer, who died that we might enjoy the blessings which temporarily flow therefrom.” All seven of Philadelphia’s rabbis criticized the governor for his exclusion of Israelites, which they said cast “reflections upon thousands, who hold a different creed from that which he avows.”
D. In 2013, Thanksgiving overlapped with Chanukkah, leading many to reference Thanksgivukkah, and to combine the celebrations. Some people served latkes at their Thanksgiving meal, while others lit Chanukkah menorahs shaped like turkeys. Rabbis from the ultra-Orthodox Satmar community in Brooklyn objected to this combining of the holidays, saying that it was a “chillul HaShem” (a profaning of God’s name) to mix the religious and secular holidays.
E. In 2013, Thanksgivukkah was celebrated by many Jews as the two holidays of Thanksgiving and Chanukkah overlapped. Macy’s, the sponsor of the annual Thanksgiving Day Parade, picked up on that theme by including a giant Menurkey balloon, a turkey which featured Chanukkah candles on its back. However, immediately behind that balloon was a float sponsored by Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. This float featured the Cheesasaurus Rex, and rabbis from the Orthodox Union objected to that float’s position right behind the Jewish-themed balloon, as they felt the dinosaur that was covered with cheese violated the Jewish prohibition of mixing meat and milk.
Britney Spears
A judge just ended the almost-14 year conservatorship which Jamie Spears maintained over his daughter, the performer Britney Spears. While the singer had suffered from mental illness leading to the court-established conservatorship, there is much controversy as to the role played by her father, and whether he was operating in his daughter’s best interest. During this time, Britney continued to perform, including a concert in Israel. What problem arose when Britney Spears performed in Tel Aviv in 2017?
Britney Spears by steven.i is licensed under CC BY 2.0
A. Spears visited the Western Wall when she arrived in Israel. When word got out that she was there, fans mobbed the holy site, causing authorities to shut down the women’s section of the Wall.
B. The Labor Party had to cancel their leadership elections, which were scheduled on the same day as Britney’s concert. The polling place was across the street from the Yarkon Park concert venue, and the chaos of the huge crowds in the area led the Labor leaders to postpone the election until the next day.
C. The concert happened to be scheduled on the minor fast day of Shiva Asar b’Tammuz, the 17th of Tammuz, which commemorates the date that the Romans breached the walls of Jerusalem in 70 C.E. Members of the haredi religious community held protests outside the concert site at Yarkon Park because they were offended that a concert featuring the sexy performer would be held on that date.
D. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was scheduled to speak at a fundraising event in Tel Aviv on the date of the performance. However, his motorcade could not get to the venue because there was so much traffic heading to Yarkon Park, the site of Britney’s concert, and the event had to be canceled.
E. Spears had shaved off her hair again before flying to Israel. She visited Jerusalem, and when she got to the Plaza at the Western Wall, a rabbi approached her from the rear and said, “Hey Mister. This is a holy place,” as he put a yarmulke on her head.
Sesame Street
Now that the Centers for Disease Control has approved vaccinations for children ages 5-11, Big Bird tweeted “I got the COVID-19 vaccine today! My wing is feeling a little sore, but it’ll give my body an extra protective boost that keeps me and others healthy.” In response, Senator Ted Cruz wrote, “Government propaganda…for your 5 year old!” Big Bird has been a part of Sesame Street since the first episode in 1969. It has been speculated that the most “Jewish” characters on Sesame Street are Statler and Waldorf, the curmudgeonly critics in the balcony. What actual Jewish event has occurred on Sesame Street?
Big Bird by Selena N. B. H. is licensed under CC BY 2.0
A. In one episode of Sesame Street, Mr. Hooper showed pictures from his family album, including scenes of a family Passover seder, and then everyone sang Dayenu.
B. During a Christmas party in a December episode, Big Bird came upon Abby Cadabby, who was sitting alone and crying. When Big Bird asked her what’s wrong, she replied, “I’m Jewish. I don’t celebrate Christmas, so I’m afraid no one likes me.” Big Bird told her that everyone on Sesame Street is loved and he brought her back to the party, where she told everyone how she celebrates Chanukkah.
C. Sesame Street regularly teaches the alphabet by presenting examples of words that begin with each letter. One of these segments featured “S is for Shalom.”
D. In an episode featuring real children, Oscar the Grouch offered a cookie to a little boy who was wearing a yarmulke. The boy asked, “Is it kosher?”, and Oscar showed the boy the “OU” symbol on the packaging.
E. Sesame Street often educates about different cultures and religions. On a segment about Judaism and Yom Kippur, Kermit the Frog swung Big Bird over his head to demonstrate the Kapparot ceremony. Luckily, Bob intervened before the ritual slaughter occurred.
Jay Black, z”l
Jay Black, lead singer of Jay and the Americans, died last week at the age of 82. Black, whose real name was David Blatt, was raised in an Orthodox family in Brooklyn. His first public performance was as a member of the choir at Temple Beth-El in Borough Park, singing under the leadership of the renowned Cantor Moshe Koussevitzky. But Blatt went on to be expelled from three different yeshivas and his musical interest shifted to doo-wop. He then replaced Jay Traynor, the original singer of Jay and the Americans, and he adopted the name Jay Black. He and the band went on to record such hit songs as Only in America, Cara, Mia, and Come a Little Bit Closer. Yet Jay Black never lost his Jewish connections, and Jay and the Americans included what song of Jewish interest on their 1967 album Try Some of This! ?
Jay and the Americans 1963 is in the Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
A. Hava Nagila, the traditional Jewish dance song, which Jay Black chose to record because he had just celebrated his own marriage to Marsha Garbowitz, his first wife.
B. Where is the Village/Vi iz dus Geseleh, a song in English and Yiddish that Jay Black sang in memory of the victims of the Holocaust.
C. Dona Dona, the song about a calf being led to slaughter which was originally written in Yiddish by Sholom Secunda and Aaron Zeitlin and popularized in English by Joan Baez.
D. Hatikvah, the Israeli national anthem, which was recorded live at a Jay and the Americans concert in Tel Aviv.
E. Only in Jerusalem, a version of the Jay and the Americans hit song Only in America, which included the lyrics, “Only in Jerusalem/Land of milk and honey, yeah/Would a shayna maidel like you fall for a poor schmo like me.”
Steve Bannon
The House of Representatives has voted to hold Steve Bannon in criminal contempt of Congress, and the Justice Department will now decide whether to pursue charges against Bannon. The vote resulted from Bannon’s refusal to appear under subpoena before the House of Representatives Select Committee investigating the January 6 insurrection and the role that President Trump might have played. In the past, Bannon has been accused of being anti-Semitic, an issue that particularly came up when President Trump appointed Bannon as Chief Strategist and Senior Counselor in 2016. At that time, which of the following people offered a defense of Bannon against the charge?
Steve Bannon by Gage Skidmore is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
A. Joel Pollack, a Jewish senior editor-at-large at Breitbart News, the website which Bannon headed at that time, offered “proof” that Bannon was not anti-Semitic, based on his relationship with Bannon. “I have Saturdays off, Jewish holidays off and Steve Bannon always wishes me a ‘Shabbat shalom’ on Friday afternoon.”
B. Former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke said of Bannon, “I’m thrilled with this appointment. You have an individual, Mr. Bannon, who’s basically creating the ideological aspects of where we’re going. But anti-Semitic? Trust me. I know an anti-Semite when I see one, which I often do. And Steve Bannon does not fit that category.”
C. President Trump responded to the charge of anti-Semitism at the time of Bannon’s appointment to the White House staff, saying, “Why would I appoint an anti-Semite to any job now that I have a Jewish son-in-law?”
D. Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich defended Bannon against the charge in an interview on CBS’s Face the Nation program, saying that Bannon’s past credentials prove he isn’t anti-Semitic. Said Gingrich, “He was a managing partner of Goldman Sachs. He was a Hollywood movie producer.”
E. Bannon was the director, and co-writer with Sarah Palin, of the 2011 documentary The Undefeated, which explored Palin’s life and political career. In an interview on Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace asked Sarah Palin about the charge of anti-Semitism against Bannon. Palin replied, “I can see anti-Semites from my porch. But I can’t see Steve Bannon.”