What is David Bowie’s Jewish connection?

“Aladdin Sane [Belgian]” by Marc Wathieu is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

A. Bowie performed at a concert at Park Hayarkon in Tel Aviv in 1990, during the time of the first Intifada. During the performance, he altered the lyrics of his song, Space Oddity, singing, "Ground Control, we need Salaam. Ground Control, we need Salaam. Love your neighbor and may God bring you Shalom.”

B. In his song, Station to Station, Bowie sings, “Here are we, one magical movement from Kether to Malkuth.” The lyrics reflect Bowie’s interest in Kabbalah, with Kether, “the crown,” representing the divine light, and Malkhuth, “kingship,” representing the nurturing receptacle of that light.

C. Bowie starred in the 1976 movie The Man Who Fell to Earth, about an extraterrestrial (Bowie) who lands on Earth while on a mission to bring water back to his planet, which is suffering from a destructive drought. The movie, written by Paul Mayersberg, was loosely based on the true story of an Israeli spy who was sent by Ben Gurion to Moscow in 1951. The spy, a trained chemist, infiltrated the D. Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology of Russia in order to steal Russian desalination technology. This information was critical to Israel’s survival, where a lack of fresh water was as great a threat to the fledgling state as was the military threat from its Arab neighbors.

D. Bowie, in an interview with the Jerusalem Post when he toured in Israel in 1996, explained that his song Space Oddity was based on his interest in Kabbalah. Said Bowie, “When Major Tom leaves the space capsule and floats away in space, it is for me a representation of the Kabbalistic teaching about the relationship between the Ein Sof, the mysterious infinity, and the finite world which God created. By separating from his earthly tin can, Major Tom is seeking to connect to the eternal God of the universe.”

E. David Bowie was Jewish, and his birth name was David Borowitz. At his bar mitzvah party in 1960, he sang a song, which later morphed into his greatest hit, Space Oddity. The lyrics he sang that day were “Ground Control to Rabbi Baum. Ground Control to Rabbi Baum. Take your prayer book and put your kippah on. Ground Control to Rabbi Baum. Commencing Torah, tallis on. Kiss your tzitzit and may God’s love be with you.”

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The Orthodox Union has given kosher certification to a medical marijuana product produced by Verio Health of New York. In regard to this, Rabbi David Bleich, a Yeshiva University professor and authority on Jewish medical ethics, did NOT make which of the following statements?

“White Widow” is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

A. He said that medicinal marijuana is “a perfectly acceptable use of a plant that grows in God’s garden.”

B. He said that he “can’t tell you the 614th mitzvah is thou shalt not smoke pot.”

C. He said that “once it [marijuana] is in a cookie, it is no different from any other cookie and a cookie needs certification.”

D. He said that recreational use of marijuana is “pleasure for pleasure’s sake,” and “certainly not that to which a Jew should aspire.”

E. He said that use of medical marijuana on Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur would be “a double mitzvah, as these days are known as the High Holidays.”

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The Beatles are once again in the news, as they have finally allowed their music to be streamed on such music services as Spotify and Apple Music. What was the Jewish connection to the Cavern, the Liverpool nightclub where the Beatles performed regularly at the start of their career?

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A. The Cavern was originally opened by the Jewish Labour Movement organization as a club for young Jewish teens to socialize. The food served was kosher, and the club was closed on Friday nights, only reopening on Saturday night after sundown. The underground club was named The Machpelah, referencing the Biblical Cave of Machpelah, the burial place of the Jewish patriarchs and matriarchs. The club was later sold to local businessmen who converted it into a music club and renamed it the Cavern in homage to its original name.

B. The Cavern was owned by a Jew, Alan Sytner. Sytner, a member of the Greenbank Drive Synagogue (where Brian Epstein’s family were members), knew that many local Jews kept kosher. Therefore, he allowed them to just buy pastries and coffee at the Cavern’s cafe, rather than the full meals that patrons usually had to purchase.

C. The Cavern was originally an air raid shelter, built during World War II. From 1940 until the end of the war, the space was used on Saturday mornings as a synagogue by the Jews of Liverpool. Among its members were Harry and Queenie Epstein, parents of Brian Epstein, who went on to manage the Beatles career and rise to stardom.

D. The Cavern was located around the corner from the Greenbank Drive Synagogue, where Brian Epstein’s family were members. On Kol Nidre night in 1961, Brian snuck out of services, where he never really felt comfortable, and went to the Cavern to hear music. This was where he discovered the Beatles, who were performing that night, and he eventually went on to manage the group.

E. The Cavern was owned by a Jew named Alan Sytner. In 1958, he hosted his son’s Bar Mitzvah party at the club and hired the Quarrymen, a regular club act, to play at the affair. The Quarrymen consisted of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Pete Shotton. At the party, Lennon spontaneously started singing a ditty he made up on the spot: “As I read this Torah, Send my blessings to you. Remember that I’ll always be in love with Jews.” Four years later the Beatles recorded the reconfigured “P. S. I Love You.”

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What did Mike Zof, an Israeli DJ and bar owner, do to celebrate the opening of the new Star Wars movie, The Force Awakens, in Israel?

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A. Zof’s bar, located in Petach Tikva, is across the street from the local movie theater that is showing The Force Awakens. Fans camped out in line by the theater for three days prior to the opening. Zof kept his bar open around the clock, providing music, food and drinks, and use of bathroom facilities.

B. Zof hosted a Star Wars-themed party at his bar, based on the Mos Eisley Cantina bar scene from Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Anyone dressing as a Star Wars character received a discount on drinks, and all of the previous Star Wars movies were playing on the large screen televisions that usually broadcast soccer matches. The highlight of the event, however, was the appearance of Israeli-born Natalie Portman, who starred as Padmé Amidala in three previous Star Wars movies.

C. Zof rented out an entire movie theater in Petach Tikva for his own personal showing of the film. To avoid conflicting with the Sabbath, films in Israel generally open on Thursday rather than Friday as they do elsewhere. Therefore, The Force Awakens opened a day earlier in Israel than elsewhere, enabling Zof to be one of the first people in the world to see the flick.

D. Zof’s son’s bar mitzvah had long before been scheduled to take place on December 19. When Zof, a huge Star Wars fan, learned that the movie was opening at the same time, he rented out a movie theater and moved the bar mitzvah there. The ceremony took place in the theater, followed by a showing of The Force Awakens. After the movie, Zof’s son offered a d’var Torah comparing the theme of Vayigash, where Joseph reunites with his brothers and asks “Is my father still alive,” with the movie theme, wherein the Resistance, a military force led by Leia Organa, searches for her missing brother Luke Skywalker.

E. Zof created a new drink in honor of the movie, which he offered for free to anyone who showed a ticket receipt from a viewing of The Force Awakens. Over the first weekend of the movie’s release, Zof gave away more than 1000 of the drinks, which he calls the Darth 'n' Storm-trooper-y.

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What did Yosef Abramowitz, CEO of Energiya Global and a pioneer of the Israeli solar energy industry, say at COP21, the global climate change conference?

A. “Because it is Chanukkah, I’m expecting a miracle of renewable light and that the deal will actually be done.”

B. “While we Jews may be better than anyone in coaxing more energy out of limited oil, as we are reminded during this week of Chanukkah, I hope that going forward we will refocus on the never-ending resources of the sun above rather than the rapidly shrinking non-renewable energy sources below.”

C. “Israel has survived and thrived for almost seven decades despite being the only country in this part of the world that is not sitting on top of vast oil fields. We have, by necessity, learned to maximize our oil and gas usage while expanding the use of solar energy to levels that far surpass all of our neighbors. We would welcome the opportunity to share our knowledge and technology with our Arab neighbors so that this region can fulfill our obligations under the COP21 agreements.”

D. “Mashiv haruach u’morid hageshem. God causes the wind to blow and the rain to fall. But even our rabbis recognize that the wind does not always blow, and the rain does not always fall, when and where the earth needs it. I am pleased to be a part of this world-wide effort to help God to do his job, what you might call our Climate Tikkun Olam.”

E. “I am proud to represent Israel at this conference. The Jewish people understand the problems of climate change. Remember–it is in our land that it rained, and poured, for forty daysies, daysies. Rained, and poured, for forty daysies, daysies. Nearly drove those animals crazy, crazy. Children of the Lord. But then the sun came out and dried up the landy, landy. Sun came out and dried up the landy, landy. Everything was fine and dandy, dandy. Children of the Lord.”

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Which of the following online deals is being offered from Israel for Cyber Monday shoppers?

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A. El Al is offering round-trip first class fares between Tel Aviv and New York for $7040, a 20% discount off the regular fare of $8800. Travel must take place during Chanukkah week, between December 6 and December 14.

B. Ahava is offering a “Cyber Love” 20% discount on all of its beauty products, plus free shipping. There is a minimum $100 purchase.

C. The Israel Diamond Industry is offering a 6.82 carat yellow radiant diamond, which normally sells for $450,000, for only $366,000.

D. None, as the Chief Rabbinate has ruled that Cyber Monday (and Black Friday and Small Business Saturday) are “treif,” as they are part and parcel of the Christmas shopping season.

E. The Mossad is offering a special deal called Pollard-Palooza. Anyone who gets caught making an online transfer of stolen intelligence information from the United States to Israel will receive a 20% discount on the length of their imprisonment.

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Because the turkey is native to America, it is not mentioned in the Torah. Therefore, a name was devised for this bird in modern Hebrew. What is that name?

A. The turkey is called tarnegol hodu. Tarnegol means chicken. Hodu means thanks (the same root as todah.). By the time President Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving as a national holiday in 1863, turkey had already become the traditional meal of the day. Trade between the United States and Europe was a major industry by that time, including the American export of turkeys. As European rabbis determined that this new bird was in fact a kosher bird, they connected the American holiday to the bird and assigned it the name tarnegol hodu, chicken of thanks.

B. The turkey is called tarnegol hodu. Tarnegol means chicken. Hodu means India. The bird got this name because it was believed that America, where these birds were native, was part of India; thus the bird was called Indian chicken.

C. The turkey is called tarnegol hodu. Tarnegol means chicken. Hodu means India. Turkey was served by the native Americans, or Indians, to the Pilgrims at Plymouth at the first Thanksgiving celebration in 1621. In 1649, Solomon Franco, a Dutch-Jewish merchant in Boston, heard of this dinner, and on a subsequent trip back to Europe, he introduced turkey to the Jewish community of Holland, explaining that it was an Indian bird; hence the name.

D. The turkey is called tarnegol gadol, meaning big chicken.

E. The turkey was called tzipor gadol, meaning big bird. However, in 1983, the Children’s Television Workshop, creator of Sesame Street, licensed Israeli Educational Television to produce an Israeli version of the show, Rechov Sumsum. As part of their negotiations, the Children’s Television Workshop petitioned The Academy of the Hebrew Language to change the turkey’s Hebrew name to avoid confusion, as Big Bird, while variously described as an ibis, a golden condor, or even a canary, was definitely not a turkey. As a result, since that time turkeys in Israel have been referred to as nesher katan, or little vulture.

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John R. O’Donnell's book Trumped! quoted Donald Trump as saying which of the following (to which Trump later acknowledged, “The stuff O’Donnell wrote about me is probably true.”)?

"Donald Trump” by Gage Skidmore is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

A. “I would never build a casino in Israel. The rabbis would never let me stay open on Saturday, even though I know that most of the little old ladies who come to my Atlantic City casino on Saturday are Jewish. How do I know? Because the most popular item in our restaurant is matzah ball soup!”

B. “Black guys counting my money! I hate it. The only kind of people I want counting my money are little short guys that wear yarmulkes every day.”

C. “People ask me why I only build expensive buildings. Why don’t I build more affordable apartments? Because that’s not what I do. That’s what the Jewish builders do. LeFrak. Fred Wilpon. Tishman. Sol Goldman. Those Jews just build for the masses. Cheap, ugly buildings. Not like my buildings. I build for the rich Wasps. Beautiful buildings. And that’s why I put my name on them.”

D. “The last thing I want is for my daughter to marry a Jew. My life is complicated enough.”

E. “I won’t go into a synagogue. Well, I would go into a reform synagogue, just not one where they try to make me put a beanie on top of my head. That would never work.”

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In exactly one year, you will be entering a voting booth to select the next president of the United States. Will it be Hillary? Jeb? Marco? Bernie? Or could it even be Donald?

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And now, one more presidential weekly quiz.

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To what did Ronald Reagan attribute his strong negative feelings about anti-Semitism?

A. He credited his father, John Reagan, a traveling salesman, who told of checking into a hotel while on a sales trip. The clerk said to Mr. Reagan, “I’m sure you’ll enjoy it here; we don’t allow any Jews.” At that point, despite the fact that there was a blizzard outside, Mr. Reagan informed the clerk that he would not enjoy sleeping there, and he left the hotel and slept in his car.

B. He credited his mother, Nelle Wilson Reagan, who shopped regularly at a store in his birthplace, Tampico Illinois. Because Reagan’s father, a traveling salesman, was often on the road, Mrs. Reagan did not always have the funds needed to make purchases. As Mrs. Reagan explained it to Ronald, “The storekeeper was a very kind Jewish man, Mr. Harry Schilkofsky. He would let me shop and he kept a record of what I owed, so that when your father returned, we could pay our debts. Many stores would not let Irish Catholics shop on credit. Mr. Schilkofsky was a godsend to us.”

C. Said Reagan in an interview with Barbara Walters in 2001, “I was very lucky to meet so many wonderful Jewish people when I was working in Hollywood. Kitty Carlisle, Kirk Douglas, John Garfield, Dinah Shore, and so many others. But I really owe everything to Jack Mayer of Warner Brothers, who gave me my first break, signing me to a contract in 1937. I knew that people like this did not deserve the hatred that so many Americans felt toward them just because of their religion.”

D. In an interview with Dick Cavett, Reagan said, “I had only been working in Hollywood for a few years when Senator McCarthy began holding a series of hearings, looking for Communists. A lot of people I knew were called to testify, and over time, I noticed that many Jewish actors I had known and worked with seemed to disappear from view. Edward G. Robinson, Stella Adler, Howard da Silva, John Garfield. So many wonderful actors who hadn’t done anything wrong. That’s when I first began to understand how terrible anti-Semitism was, and that’s when I first began to get involved in politics. If not for this awakening, I might never have run for president of the Screen Actors Guild, which was really my first elected position.”

E. Reagan had starred in the movie Bedtime for Bonzo, where he and actress Jane Linden posed as the parents of a chimpanzee, Bonzo, so that Reagan's character, a psychology professor, could experiment with the chimp regarding the classic “nature vs. nurture” issue of human development. Said Reagan, “The producers had intended to hire Lauren Bacall to play my wife in the movie. But it turns out that Bonzo had a clause in his contract saying that he would not work with any Jewish actors, and as a result, Bacall was not hired. I even tried to intervene, pleading with Bonzo to make an exception. But he just squealed and threw a banana at me. I finished the film because I had already signed my contract, but I decided never to put myself in that position again.”

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