LL Cool J is a Good Friend to the Jews

I just read an article in the Jewish Journal about a recent appearance that rap legend LL Cool J made at a benefit for The Ulmer Institute. The article, titled "LL Cool J discusses his Jewish friends, Israel and more," includes an interview LL Cool J gave at the event.

LL Cool J with Rabbi Jason Miller

The event Wednesday night supported TUI, which focuses on treating, researching and training around trauma relief for using methodologies developed by Israeli psychiatrists. Its founder, Faith Central Bible Church Bishop Kenneth Ulmer, is a friend of LL Cool J, who served as an honorary host of the event.

I'm not at all surprised that LL has been getting more involved with the Jewish community, Black-Jewish relations, and that he expressed interest in visiting Israel soon. I had the chance to shmooze with him a few years ago and he told me then that he was hoping to get to Israel soon.

LL Cool J even offered a "L'chayim" greeting to me on video:

Here is the complete interview with the Jewish Journal:

Getting Marco Rubio to Say Shabbat Shalom

Can Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio speak Yiddish? Marc Daniels of "Weed Out Hate" has made yarmulkes with all the presidential candidates' names on them. He was in Iowa earlier this week and tried to get Rubio to say Gut Shabbes! on video while wearing a Marco Rubio kippah. Fortunately Lauren Selsky, who covers the Rubio campaign for CNN, was right there to video his three attempts. The first thing Rubio had to do was learn that it's Gut as in "good" and not Boot Shabbes. Here's Selsky's tweeted video:

'Gut' Shabbos or 'Boot' Shabbos? You decide. #2016 #Iowa @mikiebarb pic.twitter.com/7Z3W6s12RB

— Lauren Selsky (@LJSelsky) January 31, 2016

Maybe it's becoming more popular to get famous people to say Shabbat Shalom. After writing about my friend Lisa Lis, who collects video Shabbat Shalom greetings from celebs, I decided to try it myself. I've found it's much easier to get celebrities or politicians to say the much easier "Shabbat Shalom" on video rather than the Yiddish expression of Gut Shabbes. Too bad Marco Rubio didn't have that option! Here are some famous Shabbat Shalom greetings from the past couple of years:

Shaquille O'Neal Says Shabbat Shalom:

Tina Fey Says Shabbat Shalom:

Charles Barkley Says Shabbat Shalom:

Michael Bolton Says Shabbat Shalom:

Russell Simmons Says Shabbat Shalom:

Bill Cosby Says Shabbat Shalom (Not really!):

Kevin Pollack Says Shabbat Shalom:

Conan O'Brien Says Shabbat Shalom:

J.B. Smoove Says Shabbat Shalom:

Joe Torre Says Shabbat Shalom:

Henry Winkler Says Shabbat Shalom:

The Jewish View on the Celebrity Nude Photo Hacking Scandal

The recent naked celebrity photo hacking scandal underscores the primary concern that we all should understandably have regarding the Internet. Privacy breaches due to intentional hacking in my opinion keep the Web from being the greatest invention of our modern times. You see, just about every day of my life I feel a sense of gratitude that I am living during the Digital Age. The vast amount of information at our fingertips thanks to the Internet is amazing. However, the ability for hackers to steal our data -- whether personal financial information or sensitive photographs that we'd like to keep private -- casts a negative light on the entire endeavor.

The idea that someone evil has hacked into the personal iCloud accounts of a few select celebrities like Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Upton, Avril Lavigne, Hayden Panettiere, Hillary Duff, Jenny McCarthy, Kate Bosworth, Kim Kardashian, Kirsten Dunst, Mary Kate Olsen and Selena Gomez tells us that none of our password protected data is really safe from theft. These celebrities took photos with their cellphones -- like most of us do -- and believed that those photos would remain secure and out of the public eye. The truth, however, is that as soon as a better encryption method is created there will be a hacker who knows how to break that encryption to steal the data.

Every day there are people who have their personal data stolen. The reason this recent hacking scandal has been so widely reported around the world is because it has the two ingredients for mass appeal -- celebrities and nudity. While the public's interest is certainly piqued thanks to the release of these unauthorized, intimate photos of celebrities (some of which include famous athlete Justin Verlander of the Detroit Tigers who is dating model Kate Upton), there are some very clear cut ethical issues that are raised by the scandal.

Clearly, the hacker who managed to get into the iCloud accounts of these celebs and then leak the images has violated the law in addition to violating a universal code of ethics. He is a thief -- plain and simple. By extension, legal and ethical questions arise about anyone who profits from these hacked photos. That might be a sticky situation of course because some of the celebrities themselves will likely benefit from the release of these hacked photos.

The more difficult ethical questions arise when discussing the culpability of those who view these leaked photos. Could simply viewing them be considered deriving benefit and thus a form of theft? To answer this very modern question through a Jewish perspective, it's best to consult a Jewish legal scholar from the 11th century. Rabbeinu Gershom was both a legal expert and an ethical sage who ruled on matters involving privacy of information and the public trust.

Jewish Themes in Michael Jackson's Songs

Today is the fifth anniversary of Michael Jackson's sudden death. He died on June 25, 2009 and like the notable deaths of other big name celebrities, I remember exactly where I was at the time. As a child I was a big fan of Michael Jackson's music. I recall listening to the cassette tape of Thriller on the way to and from Hillel Day School in the Fall of 1982. When I discovered MJ's "Off the Wall" cassette in my parents' music collection I listened to it until it just broke. Today, my oldest son loves listening to Michael Jackson, which is certainly a good sign that his music will outlive him.

In Michael Jackson's memory I've gone through his entire song catalog to find the "Jewish themes" in his music. Thanks for reading and sharing... Enjoy!

ABC – Learning the alef-bet in cheder

A Brand New Day – Havdallah

Another Part of Me – Neshama Yiterah (our second soul on Shabbat)

[I’m] Bad – The Vidui (Confessional)

Baby Be Mine – Pidyon Haben

Beat It – Hoshanah Rabbah theme

Beautiful Girl  – King Ahashverosh's serenade of Queen Esther

Ben – Hebrew for “son”

Black or White – How some describe Jewish law

Break of Dawn – Hashkama Minyan (early risers' prayer group)

Can't Get Outta the Rain – Mashiv haruach u'morid hageshem (prayer for rain)

Can't Let Her Get Away – Agunah (chained woman without a bill of divorce)

Cheater – Ryan Braun

Come Together – Minyan

Dancing Machine – There’s one at every Jewish wedding

Dirty Diana – The Princess of Wales in niddah (sorry!)

Don’t Stop ’til You Get Enough – What you don’t say to a mohel

Earth Song – "Kol Ha-olam Kulo"

Fly Away  – Shiluah Haken (shooing away the mother bird)

Free  – Yovel (Jubilee year when all slaves and prisoners go free)

The Girl Is Mine – Kinyan at a Jewish wedding "Harei at mekudeshet lee b’taba’at zo…"

Got to Be There – That guilty inner monologue before holiday dinners with the family

Heal the World – Mi-Sheberach prayer for the Ill

I Want You Back – Pidyon Haben (redemption of the first born)

I'll Be There – Elijah says this before every bris

In the Back – Where everyone sits in shul

Jam – Goes nice on a bagel

Keep the Faith – Ani Ma'amin (b'emunah shleyma)

Leave Me Alone – Lonely Man of Faith (Soloveitchik)

Man in the Mirror – Cheshbon Nefesh (personal accounting before High Holidays)

Night Time Lover – Mikvah Night

Off the Wall – What happens to your kvittel (note) if you don't stick it deep enough into the cracks of the Kotel (Western Wall)

Privacy – Yichud

(No Michael Jackson songs that start with Q)

Remember the Time – Kiddush (Remember the Sabbath day...)

Rock with You – Palestinians said this to Israelis during Intifada

Save Me – Hoshiah Na!

She’s out of My Life – Get (Bill of Divorce)

Somebody's Watching Me – God's omnipresence

Someone in the Dark – Pharaoh during the 9th plague

Speechless – Vayidom Aharon (Aaron was speechless - Lev. 9)

Take Me Back – Ba'al Teshuva

Unbreakable – The groom can't smash the glass at his wedding

Up Again – T'chiyat Hametim (resurrection of the dead)

(No Michael Jackson songs that start with V)

Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ – Simchat Torah

We Are Here to Change the World – Tikkun Olam

We’ve Had Enough – Dayeinu!

(No Michael Jackson songs that start with X)

You Are Not Alone – Hashem is everywhere

You Can’t Win – Trying to convince Bubbie you're not hungry

(No Michael Jackson songs that start with Z)

Why Shep Gordon is the SuperMensch

A few months back I received a voicemail from a publicist in Los Angeles. She told me that she stumbled upon my PopJewish.com blog on the web, read some of my posts, and thought I'd enjoy watching a movie she was promoting. I returned the call and we talked a little about Hollywood icon Shep Gordon and the film about him that Mike Myers directed.

I quickly agreed to screen an advance of the movie and within a week I received a copy of "Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon". I put the film on one of my monitors and continued to do some work on the other. Well that lasted for about 30 seconds until my full attention was directed to the very Jewish looking guy on the screen who sounded a little like Larry David with a nasal infection.

Shep Gordon and Mike Myers (http://www.torontoverve.org/)

I was hooked. The film has interviews from some of Hollywood's biggest celebrities talking about why Shep Gordon is such a great guy (read: mensch). This biography documentary could easily have felt like a bar mitzvah tribute video, albeit to a seventy-year-old Hollywood agent, but Myers succeeded in making this a truly touching film that shows the best parts of Hollywood.

Shaq Speaks Hebrew Pretty Well

A few years ago I saw one of those quick "catch a celebrity getting into his car" video clips on TMZ.com in which NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal walked out of a restaurant and wished all his Jewish friends a L'shanah Tovah. It was right before Rosh Hashanah and it was circulated pretty quickly around the Web.

I had forgotten about that video when I asked Shaq to say "Shabbat Shalom" into my cellphone yesterday. My friend and fellow native Detroiter Lisa Lis got me hooked on video recording celebs saying those two Hebrew words a couple years ago and I've already collected several which I uploaded to my YouTube.com channel.

Yesterday at CES in Las Vegas I heard a wonderful interview with Russell Simmons, the Hip Hop pioneer and entrepreneur. After the interview he graciously offered a "Shabbat Shalom". After meeting Russell, who is the president of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding along with Rabbi Marc Schneier who serves as chairman, I had the opportunity to meet Curtis Jackson, better known as 50 Cent. Something told me that he wouldn't be so into saying Shabbat Shalom, but Shaq was more than willing. In fact, he took the time to ask me what "Shabbat Shalom" means and when it's appropriate to say it. He even surprised me with some other Hebrew phrases ("Baruch Hashem" and "L'shanah Tovah"). Shaq and I shmoozed for a while inside the Monster booth at CES. When he saw the large American Express bag I was carrying with me, he asked where I got it because he needed a large bag to carry his gifts from Monster. I gave him the bag and in return he presented with me a nice pair of Monster DNA Pro headphones. A great deal!

I suppose had I gotten 50 Cent to say "Shabbat Shalom" on video it would have been the triple trifecta of Shabbat Shalom greetings in one day from three uber-successful entrepreneurs in the African American community. All three gentlemen struck me as very impressive, nice guys who are each doing great things to promote technology and entertainment in the 21st century.

The Shabbat Shalom videos of Shaq and Russell Simmons are below:

Drew Barrymore Plans to Remove Tattoos for Conversion to Judaism

A year ago I wrote about Drew Barrymore's journey toward conversion to Judaism and how she was turning to her friend Adam Sandler for assistance.  At the time she was engaged to marry Will Kopelman, an art consultant who is Jewish. The couple married on June 2, 2012 in Montecito, California and welcomed their child, a daughter named Olive Barrymore Kopelman, on September 26, 2012.

Some were surprised that Drew didn't convert to the Jewish faith before getting married (this is her third marriage) or at the least before delivering her first baby. But she reported that it was a long process and she didn't want to take the plunge before she was ready. About Judaism, Drew has said "It’s a beautiful faith and I’m so honored to be around it. It’s so family-oriented… the stories are so beautiful and it’s incredibly enlightening. I’m really happy."

Photo: Algemeiner.com

Top Yom Kippur Apologies of the Year

Yom Kippur begins on Tuesday evening next week and it will mark the 5,773rd year (give or take) that Jews will reflect on their misgivings and seek to be better in the coming year. It's also an ideal day for apologizing for wrongdoing.

I love the list that JTA compiled of the top apologies of the year. They might not have all been heartfelt or sincere, but they were interesting nevertheless.

Of course, Detroit's own Delmon Young made the list after apologizing for his anti-Semitic rant outside the Detroit Tigers' Manhattan hotel this past spring. I think we're still waiting for apologies from Michigan Speaker of the House Jase Bolger for banning Rep. Lisa Brown from speaking on the floor of the Michigan House for using the word "vagina" a few months ago. And an apology might be appropriate from the owner of a clothing store in India that goes by the name "Hitler".

U.S. Rep. Kevin Yoder (R-Kan.)

For skinny dipping in the Sea of Galilee during a congressional visit to Israel.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee

 For circulating unsubstantiated claims about casino magnate and Republican Party donor Sheldon Adelson.

Peter Madoff

For helping deceive investors in his brother Bernie’s Ponzi scheme.

Yeshivah College of Melbourne, Australia

For not doing enough to stop sexual abuse in its midst.

Detroit Tigers outfielder and DH Delmon Young

 For launching into an anti-Semitic tirade at a New York hotel.

Nancy Brinker, founder of Susan G. Komen for the Cure

 For initially suspending funding for Planned Parenthood.

Andrew Adler, former owner and publisher of the Atlanta Jewish Times

 For an opinion column in which he counted President Obama's assassination as among Israel's options in heading off a nuclear Iran.

The East End Madrassah, a Toronto Islamic school

For teaching students about "crafty" and "treacherous" Jews.

Tehmina Adaya, owner of the Hotel Shangri-La in Santa Monica, Calif.

For not being quicker to address charges that her hotel had discriminated against pro-Israel activists.

Texas state Rep. Larry Taylor

 For saying "don't try to Jew them down" during a public hearing.

Former London Mayor Ken Livingstone

For being disparaging in a meeting with Jews.

Wodka Vodka

For putting up billboards with the slogan “Christmas Quality, Hanukkah Pricing.”

Brett Cohen's Not Famous (Or Is He?)

Who is Brett Cohen? He's just a regular person who has become famous for pretending to be famous while not being famous. Did you follow that?

Brett Cohen was curious to see what would happen if he walked around Times Square looking like he was famous, complete with bodyguards, Paparazzi and a film crew. Guess what? It worked. Tourists posed for photos with him. Kids clamored to get his autograph. And when Times Square pedestrians were asked what they thought of Brett Cohen by the film crew, they acted like they were his biggest fans, raving about his work as an actor in a recent Spiderman movie and praising his latest song.

Regular guy Brett Cohen posing as a celeb in New York City's Times Square

So this 21-year-old Jewish SUNY at New Paltz college student proved that anyone can pretend to be a celeb as long as you can play the part. The YouTube video (below) of Brett's shenanigans is already going viral and his "experiment" has been covered by Mashable, the Washington Post, Reddit, and The Daily What. So, not only did Brett Cohen prove that he could fake fame, but he managed to get his 15 minutes of it along the way.


But Brett Cohen isn't the only one parading around Times Square pretending to be someone he's not. I was duped earlier this month when I thought I caught a glimpse of Snoop Dogg in Times Square. A man who is a spitting image of the rapper (now called "Snoop Lion") was walking at a celeb pace with a large entourage. After taking a photo with the lookalike (below) I still wasn't sure he was the real deal so I posted the photo on Facebook asking my friends if they thought this was actually Snoop Dogg or an impostor. Turned out that the majority thought it was really him.

With a guy who looks an awful lot like Snoop Dogg

It was when I overheard a member of his entourage ask for a small donation from a group of teens who wanted a photo with the supposed celeb that I realized it wasn't the real Snoop Dogg. This apparently wasn't his only night pretending to be Snoop Dogg. My cousin's wife, Ashley Broad of "Hardcore Pawn," had been similarly duped the week before in Times Square by the same Snoop Dogg lookalike.

So what does this say about celebrity and how we respond to it? Many Times Square tourists pay a good deal of money to visit Madame Tussauds New York and get their photo taken with wax models of their favorite celebs. Is that any different than getting a photo standing next to "Nobody Brett Cohen" or "Not Snoop Dogg"?

In the Jewish calendar we're now in a period of personal introspection as we approach the High Holy Day season. What does Brett Cohen's foray into faux stardom teach us? I wonder if Brett Cohen felt differently about himself during his hour of celeb status. Perhaps he got a taste of what it feels like to be a celebrity who can't walk a few feet without being hounded for photographs and autographs. Perhaps he felt larger than life and enjoyed the feeling. Perhaps he was just trying to prove a point that we're all too star struck to even realize that we don't really care if the celeb is even a legitimate celeb.

One thing is for sure -- our society continues to go ga-ga over the wrong celebs. The young entrepreneur, Nancy Lublin, who took her inheritance and started a non-profit for homeless women to get free business suits for job interviews will go unnoticed walking through Times Square and yet thousands will flock to catch a glimpse of a Kardashian sister. I'm glad Brett Cohen's experiment worked because it will give us all something to think about. We're all mega-celebrities in our own way. Thank you Brett Cohen!

Is Benjamin Millepied Jewish?

Is Benjamin Millepied Jewish? That seems to be the question of the day. Natalie Portman, who starred in “Black Swan” along with three other Jewish actresses all playing ballerinas (Mila Kunis, Winona Ryder and Barbara Hershey), will marry Benjamin Millepied and have his baby.

Rabbi for Weddings

Perez Hilton broke the news earlier today that not only is Natalie Portman now engaged to marry her choreographer from “Black Swan,” but that she is also pregnant. Now, Googlers the world over want to know if the Jewish/Israeli actress is marrying within the faith. Turns out that the French Benjamin Millepied is not an MOT.

According to the Israeli online paper Ha’aretz, the 29-year-old Israeli-born actress and Millepied, a well-regarded ballet dancer and choreographer, met during the making of Black Swan, Darren Aronofsky’s psychological thriller that stars Portman as a ballet dancer. Portman has been nominated for best actress by the Golden Globes and the Screen Actors Guild. Millepied played a small on-screen role in the film as a dancer.

UPDATE #1: While Cyberspace is buzzing about whether Natalie Portman's beau is a "Member of the Tribe" or not (ABC News reports his faith is unknown), New York City-based writer Marla Garfield is working the conspiracy theory angle. She wrote on Facebook: "I doubt that Millepied is even that guy's real last name. In French, it means 'a thousand feet,' and the dude plays a dancer in 'Black Swan.' That's just too ridiculous to be real. I bet his last name is Schwartzenbergerfeldowitz or something."

UPDATE #2: On January 29, 2014 JTA.org posted the following news about Benjamin Millepied:

French choreographer Benjamin Millepied, the husband of Jewish actress Natalie Portman, told an Israeli newspaper that he is converting to Judaism.

Millepied told the Hebrew-language Yediot Acharonot in an article published Wednesday that he is “in the middle of the conversion process.” He added that he hopes the process will “come to an end soon and I will become a Jew.”

Becoming Jewish is “very important for me,” Millepied told the newspaper.

The couple is in Israel through March as Portman casts the movie that she is directing based on “A Tale of Love and Darkness,” a book by Israeli author Amos Oz.

The couple will relocate to Paris, where Millepied will work as director of dance at the Paris Opera Ballet
Portman said in September in an interview with the French magazine Madame Figaro that she is interested in becoming a French citizen.

“I don’t have the French nationality, but I would be love to get it. But I don’t know if it’s possible because I already have an American and an Israeli passport,” she said.

Portman and Millepied, who have a son named Aleph, were married in a Jewish wedding ceremony last year.