Weekly Quiz - Pre 2019 

Fats Domino, RIP

New Orleans musician Fats Domino died last week at the age of 89. Domino was called “the real King of Rock ‘n’ Roll” by Elvis Presley, and John Lennon said that “There wouldn’t have been a Beatles without Fats Domino.” What was the Jewish connection in Fats Domino’s life?

A. Fats Domino lived next door to the Anshe Sfard Synagogue in New Orleans as a teenager and served as the “Shabbos Goy,” turning on the lights in the building on the Sabbath.

B. Domino learned to play piano as a child, practicing at school and at a neighbor’s house, as his family did not own a piano. In high school, Domino worked part-time for Morris Karnofsky, a Jewish merchant who owned the Morris Music Company, selling records, phonographs, and musical instruments. Recognizing the musical talent of his young employee, Karnofsky donated a small upright piano to the Domino family, and it was on this piano that Domino wrote his first hit, The Fat Man.

C. Dave Bartholomew, the musician, producer, and co-writer of many of Fats Domino’s hits, though not Jewish, is a descendent of Sephardic Jews who had immigrated to St. Thomas from Spain during the Inquisition. The family name was Bar-Talamanca, but when Bartholomew’s grandfather moved to New Orleans, he changed his name to Bartholomew and married a non-Jewish woman.

D. New York record producer Lew Chudd, son of Russian-Jewish immigrants, hired New Orleans bandleader Dave Bartholomew as a talent scout, and Bartholomew introduced Fats to Chudd. Chudd signed Fats to Imperial Records, where The Fat Man and many subsequent Domino hits were recorded and released.

E. Just as singer Chubby Checker chose his stage name and developed much of his musical style by copying Fats Domino, so too did Domino develop his musical style, and name, by copying from an earlier musician, Borscht Belt singer Schmalz Pinochle. In the 1930’s and '40’s, Pinochle regaled audiences at Grossingers and other Catskills Resorts, singing such songs as I’m Gonna Be A Mentsch Some Day, Ain’t That A Shonda, I’m Walking To Berditchev, and I Hear You Kvetching.

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Dickinson, Texas

The intersection between government and religious and/or political beliefs is in the news with growing frequency, including debates over government-mandated birth control coverage in insurance policies, and the question before the Supreme Court of whether a baker must make a wedding cake for a gay couple when that violates the baker’s religious beliefs. Dickinson, Texas was in the news recently because of a Jewish-related controversy over laws or policies. What was the issue there?

Dickinson Texas City Hall by N. Saum is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

A. In reaction to the national controversy over kneeling during the National Anthem, the Dickinson School Board passed a policy requiring all students to stand during the anthem at school events including ball games, concerts, and other school assemblies. However, the wording of the policy refers more broadly to standing during invocations and prayers as well. The Jewish community is objecting because Jewish football players were told that they must stand when the team gathers for the “voluntary” pre-game prayer which is offered by a player, and which typically includes references to Jesus Christ.

BDickinson, which received more than 50 inches of rain during Hurricane Harvey, has posted an online application for residents to request grants to cover the expense of hurricane-related damage repairs. The application requires residents to ensure that their contractors do not boycott Israel. Some residents object, saying that this will make it more difficult to get repairs done, and the ACLU says that this clause unconstitutionally violates First Amendment protections.

C. The Dickinson City Council passed a law requiring that all schools allow teachers to carry concealed handguns. B’nai Emunah, an Orthodox synagogue, is suing because they say that it is a violation of their religious protections under the first amendment. The synagogue board does not object to this provision; however, they argue that for the synagogue’s monthly “Shabbat School” (when children come for Shabbat services and a family luncheon), the teachers should be restricted from bringing a gun to shul because this action violates the Jewish prohibition against carrying on the Sabbath.

D. When a Jewish family received the 2017-18 school calendar, they noticed that graduation was scheduled to fall on Shavuot, and they contacted the school superintendent to request that the date be changed, as they and their graduating son would be in synagogue that evening for the holiday. According to the family, the superintendent told them that while he would like to accommodate the family, if he did so he would have no choice but to provide accommodations to the growing number of Muslim students in the district, and that “before you know it, our school would be governed by Shariah law.”

E. On the Shabbat before Purim, a Jewish student came to school wearing a t-shirt that included pictures of Purim revelers in costume, dancing and drinking, along with wording which read “Remember the Amalek.” Jews are traditionally commanded on Purim to remember Amalek, an ancestor of Haman, who tried to destroy the Jewish people in the desert during the Exodus. The student was sent home by the principal who cited the school’s Code of Conduct which states “Students may not exhibit any clothing with slogans, quotes, or messages which disparage the people and the state of Texas.” Said the principal, “In Texas we remember the Alamo, where our heroes died defending our freedom, not the Amalek, whatever that is.”

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Harvey Weinstein

Jewish Hollywood mogul/film producer Harvey Weinstein was fired by the Weinstein Company last week following news reports detailing multiple allegations of sexual harassment and assault. Throughout his career, Weinstein has received many awards, including the GLAAD Excellence in Media Award, the Commander of the Order of the British Empire from Great Britain, and the Chevalier (Knight) of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from France. He has also received much praise from celebrities, politicians, and businesspeople, including President Barack Obama, who in 2014 thanked Weinstein and his wife for “their friendship and support, and for the amazing movies that they’ve made.” Which of the following are also examples of the praise Weinstein has received?

Harvey Weinstein by Nick Step is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

AIn 2005, Steve Bannon (who had previously worked in the film industry, producing such films as The Indian Runner with Sean Penn) partnered with Harvey and Bob Weinstein in a DVD distribution company, Genius Products. Said Bannon of Weinstein recently, “Harvey Weinstein taught me more than anyone about the film industry and business in general. Of course, had I known about his use of power to abuse women, I never would have had anything to do with him.”

BWeinstein was honored at the Simon Wiesenthal Center/Museum of Tolerance 2015 national tribute dinner, where fellow film industry executive Jeffrey Katzenberg offered the following words in introduction of Weinstein: “I’m going to tell you something you don’t know: He’s actually just a really nice Jewish boy.”

CWeinstein has been thanked by multiple Academy Award winners throughout his career. Based on speeches given by Oscar winners between 1966 and 2016, only Steven Spielberg had more mentions, with Weinstein tied with God for 2nd place. And among those praising Weinstein was Meryl Streep, who actually referred to Weinstein as God.

D. In 2013, Weinstein presented the Algemeiner newspaper’s “Warrior for Truth” award to Elie Wiesel, who responded to Weinstein, saying, “You made me love films, it is only thanks to you...Because at one point you came in my life and now I like films too, especially those that you make.”

ELast week, Bill Cosby, star of The Cosby Show which was produced by the Weinstein Company, said of Harvey Weinstein, “Really? He did all that without quaaludes? I tip my hat to you, Mr. Weinstein!”

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Kol Nidre Canoodling

In Israel, it is a common custom for young Israelis to gather on the streets after Kol Nidre for an evening of fun and flirting. Many of the teenagers can be seen wearing the traditional white of the holiday. The teens, including both secular and more religious youth, will often stay out late, walking or biking around, or just relaxing on blankets and pillows in parks or, as they do in the town of Shoham, lazing in the grassy area of the large traffic circle in the center of town. Which of the following is among the reasons that this tradition has developed?

IMG_8805.JPG by Andrew Ratto is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

A. The medieval Jewish scholar Rashi wrote that “the Holy One, blessed be He, first made Adam and Eve.” From this he noted the high value Judaism placed on marriage and children and commented that hunger for love was as powerful as hunger for food. Thus, Yom Kippur, a day of fasting, was seen as a time when young couples might be particularly attuned to matters of the heart as well as matters of the stomach.

BIn the Talmud, Rabbi Simeon Ben Gamliel noted that in ancient times girls would dance in the vineyard in white dresses on Yom Kippur and boys who were not married would go there to find a wife. The current custom, while not consistent with religious Jewish practice, can still be traced in part to this historical connection of Yom Kippur to matrimony.

C. According to Chassidic tradition, as noted on the Chabad website, “On Yom Kippur, we access and reveal the very essence of our soul, which is one with the very essence of G-d.” This deep and personal connection to God, in effect where two become one, has led the Chassidim to consider the day after Yom Kippur as an ideal day for weddings, a time when two people become as one. While the social behavior in Israel after Kol Nidre services would not be acceptable within the Chassidic community, it is the Chassidic tradition that the day after Yom Kippur is a good day to marry which has led to the practice in some Israeli communities of socializing on Yom Kippur with a goal of meeting the person whom you would eventually marry.

D. There is a traditional link between the High Holidays and weddings. God is considered to be the groom and the Jewish people are viewed as the bride, with the month of Elul seen as a time of courtship. The blowing of the shofar signifies the Jewish people’s acceptance of God’s proposal. The Israeli custom among young people on Kol Nidre flowed from this traditional concept of courtship during the High Holidays, though clearly with a much more secular approach in modern-day Israel.

E. Given that romance is forbidden on Yom Kippur, Israeli teenager Yuval Sadaka, who lives in Shoham, explained that “Girls like Yom Kippur because the boys act nice for once.” And noting that romance is actually forbidden on Yom Kippur, she added, “You want to do it because you can’t do it. Not even the bad breath you get from fasting can ruin it.”

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