 Poetry by Studying With the Masters” </strong>(W.W. Norton, $25.95), an annotated anthology of poetry that ranges from Sappho to Shakespeare to Sylvia Plath. Each of the 80 poems is selected for the lesson that it can teach the working poet, a principle of selection that makes for a rich reading experience. The premise of his book owes something to Yeats: “And there’s no singing school but studying/Monuments of its own magnificence.” </p>
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Philanthropist donates $250,000 to Mount Zion cemetery repair
Shlomo Rechnitz, a Los Angeles businessman and philanthropist, has donated $250,000 to restore the badly vandalized Mount Zion Cemetery in East Los Angeles. In addition, two other donors, real estate developer Izek Shomof and businessman Adi McAbian, each donated $25,000, and another real estate developer, Michael Fallas, gave $10,000, making possible some major initial repairs to the site, which has been damaged by intruders in recent years, including knocking over gravestones. The century-old cemetery is the gravesite for about 7,000 Jews.
Following these gifts and a site visit on May 30 by key community leaders, the first stage of the crumbling cemetery’s restoration is expected to begin in June.
Articles in the Jewish Journal and Los Angeles Times have raised awareness about the issue in recent weeks. Rabbi Moshe Greenwald, co-director of Chabad of Downtown Los Angeles, is leading the effort to restore the cemetery.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles assumed responsibility for Mount Zion Cemetery in 1969 after its original owner, Chevra Chesed Shel Emeth, was no longer able to maintain it. In the past decade, Federation has provided annual support of about $25,000.
Rechnitz also made news in recent weeks when he purchased the beleaguered Doheny Glatt Kosher Meat Market after it was shuttered following a scandal about its former owner’s mishandling of kosher meats. Rechnitz visited Mount Zion Cemetery in late May for the first time after hearing from a concerned community member about the situation there. Rechnitz’s grandfather, Henry Rechnitz, is buried in the adjacent Agudas Achim Cemetery, just a few feet from Mount Zion. Rechnitz told the Journal that after viewing some of the destruction at the cemetery, he told Greenwald that he could not see any more and that he was ready to help.
“The situation there is nothing short of deplorable,” Rechnitz said in an interview. “We live in a city that features and showcases so many beautiful, lavish, prestigious homes, and when it comes to our dead we are centuries behind Europe.” He was referring to extensive efforts in Europe to restore and maintain Jewish cemeteries, many of which were desecrated during the Holocaust.
The damage at Mount Zion is so severe, Rechnitz said, that he took pictures to show to others whom he thinks may not believe that this could happen in a city like Los Angeles.
“When I looked at headstones being smashed and graffiti and bullet holes, and a lot of spaces where you could literally see into the grave, it was scary.”
On May 30, a group of rabbis and other Jewish community leaders visited the cemetery, marking a significant turning point in the restoration effort. Among those present were Jay Sanderson, president and CEO of The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles; Rabbi Elazar Muskin of Young Israel of Century City; Rabbi Kalman Topp of Beth Jacob Synagogue; Rabbi Boruch Sufrin of Harkham Hillel Hebrew Academy; David Suissa, president of TRIBE Media Corp., parent company of the Jewish Journal; Rabbi Greenwald and others.
In early May, Sanderson and Federation Chief Operating and Financial Officer Ivan Wolkind said that Federation — which is the custodian of the property but does not own it — expressed concern that repair work should not start before enough money is raised to support the full restoration, out of concern that it might not be completed.
Greenwald wants repair to begin immediately on the hundreds of damaged headstones, graves and ledgers, and to proceed as more donations come in — row by row, section by section. This, he told the group of visitors, is what consulted contractors recommended.
“All the monument companies said that they would have to do it area by area,” Greenwald told the group. “No one can put yellow tape around the entire cemetery and say, ‘OK — construction site.’ ”
Although there is still no agreement on when repairing the graves and headstones should begin, Greenwald and Sanderson both agree that the first work to be done will be to repair and secure the site’s perimeter fencing. That work, they hope, can begin in the coming weeks.
Currently, the fence surrounding the seven-acre cemetery is not high enough in some places to keep out intruders; in other areas, it is missing barbed wire,or, worst of all, is pierced with large holes. Greenwald expects the fence repair to cost anywhere from $40,000 to $50,000.
Local rabbis in attendance on May 30 all agreed that securing the perimeter is the most urgent priority, and that with $300,000 in the bank, work on this should begin as soon as possible.
Rabbi Topp of Beth Jacob weighed in during the meeting, saying that the effort to protect the dignity of those resting at Mount Zion is a chesed shel emet, a true act of kindness, because those receiving the kindness cannot possibly return the favor. “Giving dignity to the deceased,” Topp said, “is something of the highest priority.”
The sense of unity generated on May 30 and the monetary commitment by major figures to get the repair work started is, in all likelihood, largely the result of Rechnitz’s donation to Friends of Mount Zion Cemetery, the group led by Greenwald that is organizing the effort.
Rechnitz’s gift, Sanderson told the Journal, “is potentially a game changer.” A condition of the $250,000 donation is that repair work begin immediately, Rechnitz said.
In the past, Sanderson said during a recent interview, efforts to restore the cemetery have briefly popped up in the community, only to fizzle shortly thereafter.
But with Rechnitz throwing his support behind the effort, and with momentum building among religious and lay leaders to secure the perimeter, maybe this time will be different.
“It’s a great first step and it’s a first step that hasn’t been taken since we got into this situation,” Sanderson said.
“It’s no longer just an idea,” Greenwald said.
For at least the past 10 years, Federation has given Home of Peace — a cemetery adjacent to Mount Zion — about $1,000 per month to perform routine maintenance on the cemetery, which opened in 1916. According to Wolkind, Federation spends approximately an additional $13,000 per year on other various projects for the cemetery.
In an e-mail to the Journal on May 31, Sanderson wrote that Federation is committed to continuing its $25,000 annual allocation to Mount Zion. That amount, though, is not nearly enough to restore or, in the long term, maintain the cemetery, according to projections by Friends of Mount Zion Cemetery. Additional funds will have to come from other sources.
“Hopefully, other people in Los Angeles will get wind of the situation and will feel a responsibility as well,” Rechnitz said. “Now that people do know about it and as it gains publicity, I have full trust in the Jews of Los Angeles that they are all going to want to take part in fixing this problem.”
Based on estimates from several contractors, Greenwald thinks that a five-phase restoration of the cemetery will require about $675,000 and work on the site would take until at least the end of 2015. Maintaining the cemetery once it is restored will cost between $30,000 to $40,000 per year, he said.
With Rechnitz’s donation and Federation’s existing annual commitment to the cemetery, Mount Zion’s 2015 target completion date appears possible.
Over the next few weeks, Greenwald, Federation and the rabbis who were at the May 30 meeting said they plan to meet with other local Jewish groups, including other Jewish cemeteries and synagogues, to try to raise awareness and funds for the restoration project.
“It’s a community dilemma and it should be a community solution,” Greenwald said.
To donate to Friends of Mount Zion Cemetery, send checks, payable to “Friends of Mount Zion Cemetery,” to 219 W Seventh St., Suite 206, Los Angeles, CA 90014.
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Tehran says U.S., not Iran, sponsors terrorism
Iran on Friday rejected a U.S. State Department report that accused Tehran of increasing its support for terrorism overseas to levels not seen for two decades, saying it is the United States that backs terrorists in the Middle East.
“Iran itself has been the victim of state-sponsored terrorism, which has claimed the lives of thousands of innocent Iranian people,” said Alireza Miryousefi, spokesman for Iran's U.N. mission.
“Iran has been actively engaged in counterterrorism activities by all possible means and is a party to many counterterrorism international legal instruments,” he said.
The State Department report on Thursday cited a series of actual and planned attacks in Europe and Asia linked to Hezbollah, Iran's Lebanon-based ally, including a July 2012 bombing in Bulgaria that killed five Israeli citizens and a Bulgarian, and wounded 32 others.
Last July, Iran's U.N. ambassador denied his country's involvement in the Bulgaria bombing, which he accused Israel of carrying out. “We have never, and will not, engage in such a despicable attempt on … innocent people,” Ambassador Mohammed Khazaee said.
“It should be mentioned that the U.S. government has no merit to label other nations of sponsoring terrorism as it has a long … record (of) supporting terrorist groups in our region as well as Israeli state terrorism,” Miryousefi said.
He cited the recent removal from the U.S. list of terrorist organizations of the Mujahadin-e-Khalq, a dissident group that calls for the overthrow of Iran's Shi'ite Muslim clerical leadership and fought alongside the forces of Iraq's late Sunni Muslim dictator Saddam Hussein in the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war.
“The recent delisting of the MEK terrorist group … and also allowing it to publicly lobby in Washington is a clear indication that the U.S. government has double standards in dealing with terrorism and uses designation of others as terrorist only to serve its illegitimate political interests,” he said.
The State Department report's release comes as U.S. and European officials and intelligence agencies say Iran and Hezbollah have stepped up their military backing for the besieged government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Editing by Peter Cooney
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Andrew Greeley – A Demographer of His Religion and of Ours
There are many non-Catholics, Jews perhaps foremost, who should be grateful to Andrew Greeley for helping to paint a religious landscape of America.
Sociologist and priest, Andrew Greeley passed away yesterday at age 85. In addition to his many accomplishments, Greeley was a senior researcher at the University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center which fielded the first General Social Survey in 1972 and was the first ongoing national survey to ask a religion question, a continuation of Greeley’s groundbreaking work on the social effects of a Catholic education which overturned the widespread belief that Catholics had low college attendance rates. Greeley found that white Catholics graduated from college and pursued advanced degrees at higher rates than the general white population in the U.S. which was mostly Protestant.
Jewish researchers got their first taste of a national data-set, the GSS, which hinted at the actual population size of American Jewry and had 16 almost yearly series of data about Jews by the time the first 1990 National Jewish Population was fielded and served as a validation tool for the new, more comprehensive national Jewish data.
Its possible to say that if this Catholic priest who was never allowed to pastor a parish because of the facts that he found and published to the dismay of his superiors and subsequently was forced to turn his energies and life to research, American Jews would perhaps have never learned so much about ourselves through the data gathering that he help create over the past half-century.
Pini Herman, PhD. specializes in demographics, big data and predictive analysis, has served as Asst. Research Professor at the University of Southern California Dept. of Geography, Adjunct Lecturer at the USC School of Social Work, Research Director at the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles following Bruce Phillips, PhD. in that position and is a past President of the Movable Minyan a lay-lead independent congregation in the 3rd Street area. Currently he is a principal of Phillips and Herman Demographic Research. To email Pini: pini00003@gmail.com To follow Pini on Twitter: Follow @pinih
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War for the Soul of the World
By Rabbi Mark Borovitz
I was reading the articles about Facebook taking down the “hate women” pages that get posted. I am angry and upset that it has taken so long for social media to do things that are not tolerated in print media and the bastardization of free speech and global connection.
What does this have to do with Redemption? Everything! We live in a world where everyone and anyone can say things and start “revolutions” in a minute. We live in a world that is truly limitless in our ability to communicate and make changes happen globally. This is both wonderful and scary.
Scary because we live in a world that is unredeemed. People still compete and compare and this leads to hatred, intolerance and war. Make no mistake; we are in a war for the soul of the world! Social media, which I am using right now, gives everyone a platform to speak up, everyone can have a voice. The war is being fought based on which voice is going to speak up. Too much of social media's voice is about hatred and “against” someone or something, be it women, Israel, Islam, or political issues. The reason this happens is because most of us have not redeemed ourselves. We are still living in our own “Egypts,” our own “narrow places.” We now have a platform from which we can spread our hatred, our discontent with our lives, our negativity about others (really about ourselves) and gain a following that feeds all of these thoughts.
When we are Addicted to Redemption, we are able to fix ourselves and see the beauty and the not so beautiful parts of ourselves, others and the world. We are able to repair old damages to our being: physically, emotionally, intellectually and spiritually. We are also able to spread a message of hope, spirit, love and Truth. We get out of Egypt and narrowness in order to put limits on our negativity. We are able to rally others to look inside themselves and redeem themselves in order to redeem others and our world.
This is the wonder and beauty of social media. This is how we can stop the evil that permeates ourselves and the world. This is how we STAND FOR something instead of against others. Every Spiritual Tradition has paths to redemption that start with the individual and go out to others. Let us all commit to using social media to tell the stories of our own redemption and help others redeem themselves and the world, instead of building ourselves up by tearing down others. Join me in being addicted to redemption so we can use the technology of today and tomorrow to enhance everyone, free everyone from the tyranny of hatred and comparisons and redeem the soul of the world so we “men learn war no more.”
War for the Soul of the World Read More »
Paul Scott’s $32,000 electric car lunch with President Obama
If you had something important to say to the President, how much would you spend to get his ear? On June 7, I'll be eating lunch with President Obama for $32,400. Two dozen other high-dollar donors will be there, but I'll be the only one in the room who does his own laundry. I'm not wealthy — I'm spending a large percentage of my retirement savings, at age 60, to sit at the table.
Why? Because it's a deeply troubling time in our country and in our world. Whether you choose to believe it or not, climate change is a greater threat to life on Earth than at any time in modern history. Our economic recovery remains shaky, at best, and millions remain unemployed. Say what you will about dubious fracking practices that may result in more U.S. oil exports, we'll be treacherously dependent upon hostile nations for much of our petroleum for a long, long time.
But I, and thousands of other Americans, have been practicing solutions to these seemingly intractable problems by driving electric vehicles on renewable energy. I want to tell Obama about the economic benefits of this transition away from oil during his visit to Santa Monica to raise money for the Democratic Party.
As we all know, money drives the political game. Those with a lot of money are given access to politicians, Democrats and Republicans alike, and those of modest means are only heard at the ballot box. Adding to the problem is the use of vast sums of money spent to pollute the democratic process with massive slur campaigns filled with misinformation and outright lies. The truth rarely gets heard.
What I want Obama to hear is that for over a decade, I've been driving a zero-emission electric car powered by sunlight — it runs on solar electricity generated by the solar panels I purchased over 10 years ago. This is, in fact, the reason I can afford to speak to the President. By powering my home and car with clean energy, I'm no longer forking over thousands to the oil, coal and natural gas companies. I recently calculated how much I've saved by paying a small utility bill, only, for these basic needs since 2002: roughly $16,000. This is about half what it is costing me to meet with Obama.
It begs the question: what would our planet and political process look like if millions of Americans stopped giving hundreds of billions to polluting industries and spent their savings instead on locally-generated, renewable electricity and local goods and services. It's reasonable to assume that the inexorable march toward climate calamity would slow and that millions of jobs would be generated. And, if people contributed even a small portion of this savings to causes they believed in — school fundraisers, healthcare for a relative, animal rescue, and especially political causes — the playing field would begin to level.
They tell me I'll have two-to-three minutes with the President. I will represent the average American who wants a clean environment, a fair political process and a livable society. Switching from oil to renewable electricity will clean the air, diminish the power of the fossil fuel industry, and strengthen the economic vitality of our communities by stopping the flow of $700 billion spent on oil every year, much of it leaving the country. We must redirect that wealth toward making life better for everyone. It can be done. This is what I will tell Barack Obama.
Paul Scott is a co-founder of Plug In America, the nation's leading nonprofit voice for consumer adoption of electric vehicles. He sells electric cars and solar power for a living.
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Summer Sneaks calendar
SAT | JUNE 1
LOS ANGELES JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL
More than 20 dramas, documentaries, comedies, foreign language films and shorts will be shown at seven venues from Thousand Oaks to Beverly Hills. Highlights at the eighth annual L.A. Jewish Film Festival include tonight’s star-studded opening-night gala celebration with the premiere of the comedy “Putzel,” starring Susie Essman (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”) and Melanie Lynskey (“Two and a Half Men”); “Neil Diamond: Solitary Man,” a documentary on the music icon; “Becoming Henry/Roman Polanski: A Film Memoir,” with Polanski addressing every aspect of his celebrated and controversial life; “My Father and the Man in Black,” the untold story of Johnny Cash and his talented but troubled manager; and “When Comedy Went to School,” the closing-night film, which presents an entertaining portrait of the country’s greatest generation of comedians. A program of the Jewish Journal. Sat. Through June 6. Various times, locations. $40 (opening night gala), $7-$12 (films). (213) 368-1661. lajfilmfest.org.
ORIT HOFSHI
Based out of Mishkan Omanim (The Artists’ Studio) in Herzliya, Israeli artist Hofshi returns to Los Angeles with her latest exhibition, “Cessation,” which explores the relationship between the artist, topographical patterns and her perception of the environment and man through works on paper, installations and woodcutting. Sat. 7-9 p.m. (opening reception). Through July 27 (Tuesday-Saturday 10 a.m.-6 p.m.). Shulamit Gallery, 17 N. Venice Blvd., Venice. (310) 281-0961. shulamitgallery.com.
MON | JUNE 3
MOSH BEN-ARI
One of Israel’s foremost singer-songwriters and co-founder of the world music ensemble Sheva, Ben-Ari combines traditional Jewish ethnic chants with rock, soul, reggae and pop. Guest artist Mooke, an Israeli rapper and former frontman of Shabak Samech, also performs on the last stop of Ben-Ari’s U.S. tour. Mon. 7:30 p.m. $45 (advance), $55 (door). Avalon, 1735 N. Vine St., Hollywood. (323) 462-8900. avalonhollywood.com.
SUN | JUNE 9
MANDY PATINKIN
Mandy Patinkin
Beloved for his Broadway turns in “Evita” and “Sunday in the Park With George” as well as numerous roles on screens big (“The Princess Bride,” “Yentl”) and small (“Homeland,” “Criminal Minds,” “Chicago Hope”), the Tony and Emmy winner performs popular standards and Broadway classics while backed by the Pasadena POPS, conducted for this concert by Eric Stern. Sun. 8 p.m. $81-$153. John Anson Ford Theatres, 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. E., Hollywood. (323) 461-3673. fordtheatres.org.
FRI | JUNE 14
BARRY MANILOW
Direct from Broadway, following a critically acclaimed sold-out run, the pop singer-songwriter brings hits like “Mandy,” “Copacabana,” “Looks Like We Made It,” “I Write the Songs” and “Can’t Smile” to adoring Fanilows during a three-night engagement at the Greek. Fri. 8 p.m. Through June 16. $9.99-$249.99. The Greek Theatre, 2700 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles. (323) 665-5857. greektheatrela.com.
TUE | JUNE 18
“THE JUDY SHOW — MY LIFE AS A SITCOM”
Judy Gold, the 6-foot-3 Jewish mother of two, is bringing her big, critically acclaimed off-Broadway hit to the Geffen. A one-woman show and homage to the classic sitcoms of Gold’s youth, including “The Brady Bunch,” “The Partridge Family” and “Facts of Life,” “The Judy Show” covers life, love, show biz and ultimately her quest for her very own show. Through July 28. Tue. 8 p.m. $57. The Geffen Playhouse, Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater Season, 10886 Le Conte Ave., Los Angeles. (310) 208-2028. geffenplayhouse.com.
SUN | JUNE 23
GUSTER
The road warriors from the East Coast jam band scene blend the sounds of Simon and Garfunkel and the Beach Boys with tribal drumming. Led by nice Jewish boys Ryan Miller and Adam Gardner on guitars and vocals and Brian Rosenworcel on percussion, the band joins groups Barenaked Ladies and Ben Folds Five for the “Last Summer on Earth 2013” tour. Sun. 7 p.m. $37.75-$77.75. The Greek Theatre, 2700 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles. (323) 665-5857. greektheatrela.com.
THU | JUNE 27
NEIL GAIMAN
The acclaimed author of “Coraline,” “The Graveyard Book,” the comic book series “The Sandman” and the award-winning fantasy novel “American Gods” discusses his well-received new novel, “The Ocean at the End of the Lane,” with Entertainment Weekly’s Geoff Boucher. Gaiman’s first work for an adult audience in eight years, “The Ocean at the End of the Lane,” follows a middle-aged man who returns to his childhood home, where he is confronted by a past too strange, too frightening and too dangerous to have happened to anyone, let alone a small boy. Thu. 8 p.m. $40-$103. Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale. (818) 243-2539. alextheatre.org.
SUN | JUNE 30
FRED WEINTRAUB
The Hollywood legend you’ve never heard of — who guided the careers of celebrities Woody Allen, Bill Cosby, Neil Diamond and Joan Rivers; championed the making of the “Woodstock” film, saving Warner Bros. in the process; and discovered martial arts sensation Bruce Lee — discusses his memoir, “Bruce Lee, Woodstock and Me.” “I’ve pretty much seen and done it all,” writes Weintraub. “Or at least as much as any nice, Jewish, Ritalin-deprived, Depression baby could ever hope to see and do.” Sun. 2-4 p.m. Museum admission rates apply: $10 (adults), $6 (students, seniors), $4 (children, 3-12), free (children under 3). Autry National Center, Griffith Park, Los Angeles. (323) 667-2000, ext. 326. theautry.org.
WED | JULY 10
“A PARALLELOGRAM”
Pulitzer- and Tony-winning playwright Bruce Norris follows up his monster hit “Clybourne Park” with this mind-scrambling comedy that distorts the audience’s perspective and poses profound questions about the choices we make. Directed by Tony-winning director Anna Shapiro (“August: Osage County”), “A Parallelogram” follows Bee, for whom the past, present and future collide when strange new revelations rock her seemingly normal suburban life and take her down a rabbit hole. Through Aug. 18. Wed. 8 p.m. $30-$50. Mark Taper Forum at the Music Center, 135 N. Grand Ave., downtown. (213) 628-2772. centertheatregroup.org.
FRI | JULY 12
Beth Lapides
BETH LAPIDES’ “UNCABARET”
Idiosyncratic blends with the conversational to form actress, writer and producer Lapides’ weekly stand-up showcase. Over its 25 years of existence, “Uncabaret” has fostered the careers of stars Kathy Griffin, Margaret Cho and Jeff Garlin. This time the magic happens at the summer series Grand Performances. Fri. 8 p.m. Free. Grand Performances, 300-350 S. Grand Ave., downtown. (213) 687-2159. grandperformances.org.
“INTO THE NIGHT: SECRETS AND TRUTH”
Celebrate the creative universe of artist, illustrator, animator and toy designer Gary Baseman, whose whimsical exhibition, “The Door Is Always Open,” is currently on display at the Skirball. The festive “Into the Night” soiree features live bands, DJ sets, gallery explorations, art making, film screenings and a special appearance by the artist himself. Ages 21 and over. Fri. 9 p.m.-1 a.m. $15 (advance), $20 (door). Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles. (310) 440-4500. skirball.org.
SAT | JULY 13
“SONGFEST SINGS AMERICA: CELEBRATING LEONARD BERNSTEIN”
Celebrating America’s great composer, SongFest 2013 partners with Grand Performances to present a concert, the centerpiece of which will be the unpublished “Songfest: A Cycle of American Poems for Six Singers and Orchestra,” a 1977 song cycle by Bernstein. Other works include favorites from “Candide” and “West Side Story.” Bernstein’s daughter, Jamie Bernstein, will recite the poems. Sat. 8 p.m. Free. Grand Performances, 300-350 S. Grand Ave., downtown. (213) 687-2159. grandperformances.org.
SUN | JULY 14
“BECOMING LOS ANGELES”
Featuring contemporary design, exceptional objects and multimedia, this 14,000-square-foot permanent exhibition offers a unique take on Los Angeles: Inside a suite of four galleries, a visually striking canopy symbolizes the sweep of history and leads visitors through major sections or historical eras: the pre-Spanish landscape, the Mission Era, the Mexican Rancho Era, the early years of the American Period, the emergence of a new American city in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and L.A. as a global city of the 21st century. Sun. 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. $12 (adults), $9 (seniors, college students, ages 13-17), $5 (ages 3-12). The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles. (213) 763-3466. nhm.org.
“THE NEWSROOM”
In the season two premiere, the staff of “News Night,” led by anchor Will McAvoy (Jeff Daniels), producer Mackenzie McHale (Emily Mortimer) and cable news president Charlie Skinner (Sam Waterston) chase a mysterious tip, which leads to a story that ultimately spins out of control. New arrivals to the Aaron Sorkin series include actress Marcia Gay Harden, who plays a litigator defending the station from a termination suit. Sun. Free. 10 p.m. hbo.com.
THU | AUG 1
SHYE BEN-TZUR
The acclaimed Israeli composer and musician resets Hebrew prayers and poetry to Indian devotional music. Part of the Skirball Sunset Concert series, presenting musical traditions from around the world. Thu. 8 p.m. Free. 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles. (310) 440-4500. skirball.org.
SAT | AUG 10
MOSTLY KOSHER
Southern California-based klezmer band Mostly Kosher’s bandleader and singer Leeav Sofer and Janice “Rachele the Matchmaker” Mautner Markham on violin celebrate Jewish culture. They perform songs and stories from across the globe as part of the family series “Big!World!Fun!” at the Ford. Sat. 10 a.m. $5 (adults), free (ages 12 and younger). John Anson Ford Theatres, 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. E., Hollywood. (323) 461-3673. fordtheatres.org.
“AN EVENING OF DANCE”
The Zev Yaroslavsky Signature Series continues with the Complexions Contemporary Ballet. Led by Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson, Complexions troupe brings its athletic, lyrical, technically proficient and seasoned choreography and dancers to the Ford stage. The evening also includes local favorite Lula Washington Dance Theatre, a creative outlet for dancers in South Los Angeles. Sat. 8 p.m. $45-$85. John Anson Ford Theatres, 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. E., Hollywood. (323) 461-3673. fordtheatres.org.
TUE | AUG 20
Itzhak Perlman
ITZHAK PERLMAN
The melding of the Israeli-American violinist’s soulful tone and virtuosic technique with Cantor Yitzchak Meir Helfgot’s tenor highlights tonight’s concert performance, “Eternal Echoes: Songs and Dances for the Soul.” This program includes beloved Jewish liturgical and traditional works in arrangements for chamber orchestra and klezmer musicians. The Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Klezmer Conservatory Band and conductor Russell Ger also appear. Tue. 8 p.m. $1-$136. Hollywood Bowl, 2301 N. Highland Ave., Los Angeles. (323) 850-2000. hollywoodbowl.com.
SUN | AUG 25
LOS ANGELES JEWISH SYMPHONY
Encompassing dance and music from Russia, Argentina, Israel and the United States, the orchestral ensemble’s performance, “Cultural Collaborations,” features the orchestra and Argentinian tango dancers Miriam Marici and Leonardo Barrionuevo performing the U.S. premiere of “Go Tango!” along with a musical look at the familiar story of Tevye the Milkman (“Fiddler on the Roof”) in the symphonic suite “Reb Tevye.” The evening continues with violinist Kobi Malkin, who is featured in the world premiere of Sholom Secunda’s “Violin Concerto,” and closes with a return to dance with the world premiere of “Israeli Country Dances Suite,” which highlights 10 different forms of dance popular in Israel over the years, ending in a rousing horah. BODYTRAFFIC dance ensemble acts out the interpretation. Sun. 7:30 p.m. $30-$50 (general), $20 (students). John Anson Ford Theatres, 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. E., Hollywood. (323) 461-3673. fordtheatres.org.
SAT | SEPT 7
GARY BASEMAN
Baseman’s solo exhibition, “Base Man” — featuring the works of the artist, illustrator, animator and toy designer — runs through the fall at the Venice-based Shulamit Gallery. Born in 1960 to Polish-born Holocaust survivors, Baseman began his career as a successful illustrator in the 1980s, then transitioned into fine art in 1999, gaining wide recognition for his whimsical work. Gallery hours: Tuesday-Saturday. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Shulamit Gallery, 17 N. Venice Blvd., Venice. (310) 281-0961. shulamitgallery.com.
Summer Sneaks calendar Read More »
Report: Talks between Waze and Facebook break down
Talks between an Israeli technology firm and Facebook reportedly broke down over the Israeli company’s insistence on staying in the country.
The navigation company Waze had been in talks to be acquired by Facebook for $1 billion. But the negotiations reportedly broke down over Waze officials’ stipulation that the company’s managers and employees remain in their Raanana, Israel headquarters instead of relocating to Menlo Park, Calif.
The report of the breakdown in talks was reported Wednesday by the website AllThingsD, citing sources close to the deal.
Neither Waze, a free downloadable navigation app with more than 34 million subscribers, nor Facebook has publicly addressed reports of a breakdown in negotiations.
Waze reportedly is also in talks with Google and Apple.
Report: Talks between Waze and Facebook break down Read More »
Letters to the Editor: Women of the Wall, Gun Violence, Angelina Jolie
Words at the Wall
If praying with tallis and tefillin was all that Women of the Wall (WOW) wanted, they would be satisfied with the Sharnsky compromise of a third section for all other forms of Jewish worship (“Stone-Walling,” May 24). If they accepted that, they would also be allowing the Orthodox to have a place where they could pray the way they wanted to. The 2,000-year history of ritual and prayer at the Kotel should be allowed to continue and have its place as well.
This type of “theater” illustrates that it’s not just equality that WOW want, but rather to impose their practices and values on others. This is frighteningly similar to Muslims who want to impose their will on democratic societies.
Adrienne Eisenberg
Tarzana
I hope every Jewish person comes to the Kotel; every man, woman and child who can get there, comes to the Kotel, regardless of level of frumkeit, age, attire. Come, just come, and maybe when the whole squawking mess of us shows up at the Wall, unable to discern who is enemy and who is friend, we’ll come to realize that we all are Jews and we are all friends; that there has never been the need to fight. Am Yisrael Chai.
Rachel Ann Anolick-Hindarochel
via jewishjournal.com
Tefillin Not for Sharing
I don’t find this exciting at all (“My Grandfather’s Tefillin,” May 24). In my opinion, it’s really a shame and disrespectful. I think we women must remember how holy it feels to have a man that is not equal to us; being the man, they are unique and special.
Doreen Cohanim
via jewishjournal.com
Gun Violence
What’s with the obsession with gun violence (“Scandal!” May 24)? It’s not even among the 15 leading causes of death in the United States, according to National Vital Statistics Report. It’s down a stunning 49 percent since 1993.
And according to a recent Gallup poll, most Americans (86 percent) think job creation and economic growth should be Congress’ top priority (gun control is next to last).
Warren Scheinin
Redondo Beach
Advances in Breast Cancer Surgery
Dr. Albert Fuchs’ column on Angelina Jolie’s preventative double mastectomy addressed the difficult issue of breast cancer surgery very well but it’s worth emphasizing an often overlooked aspect — the type of mastectomy performed (“Understanding Angelina,” May 17). The mastectomy that Jolie underwent is not the old-fashioned procedure that leaves a woman with a horrible scar across the chest in place of her breast. This operation, a leftover from the early days of surgery, is gradually being replaced by operations that join the best of plastic surgery with cancer surgery, together known as oncoplastic surgery. These surgeries are proven to accomplish cancer prevention or treatment as effectively without the deformity that destroys the lives of many breast cancer survivors.
Jolie’s surgery, a nipple-sparing mastectomy with implant reconstruction, is just one version of these operations that remove the cancer-forming breast tissue inside the breast but leave the skin and even nipple intact. The volume inside the breast can be replaced with an implant, as in Jolie’s case, or natural fat from elsewhere in the body. As a result, Jolie can look forward to a new life without high risk of developing breast cancer but still have breasts that look and feel normal. The important point for readers of the Journal is that you don’t need to be an A-level actress to access these advanced oncoplastic procedures. Most preventative mastectomies and breast cancer surgeries are amenable to similar surgical techniques, but, like many things in medicine today, it pays to do a little homework and be a more informed patient.
As doctors involved in the treatment of this heartbreaking disease on a daily basis, we applaud Ms. Jolie opening the discussion and Dr. Fuchs for his informed column.
Dr. Joshua D. I. Ellenhorn, director, Tower Breast Center
Dr. Joel A. Aronowitz, director of plastic surgery, Tower Breast Center
Poetry Men
I may be mistaken but each and every time I pick up the Jewish Journal and there is poetry in your Poem section, the poet just happens to be female. Is there a reason for this bias or is this just the quirkiness of my no longer religiously reading your journal and fortuitously missing the males?
Daniel Goodman
via e-mail
Editor’s Note: In just the last seven issues, the Journal has published the poetry of Tony Barnstone, David Gershator, Jake Marmer and Bill Yarrow. Look them up at jewishjournal.com/poetry and see what you have been missing.
Correction
In the photo caption for “A Match Made in … Israel” (May 17), Nevo Segal is on the left, not the right.
Letters to the Editor: Women of the Wall, Gun Violence, Angelina Jolie Read More »
One Israeli Creation for the Weekend
Bar Refaeli (26) is an international model, often referred to as the most beautiful Israeli creations nowadays. Refaeli's modeling career started at the age of 8 months, when baby Bar starred in a commercial. At the age of 15, she appeared in campaigns for the Israeli fashion brands Castro and Pilpel, and also starred in several commercials on television.
Throughout her career, she starred in many fashion campaigns for Israeli brands and companies, and also acted a little bit, but what got her the status of an Israeli symbol is her success abroad. Refaeli appeared on the covers of Elle (France), Maxim and GQ (Italy) magazines , and in 2007, appeared in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, and she was the covermodel of the 2009 issue. This made her the first Israeli model to appear in the magazine. In 2008, Refaeli became the presenter of the clothing line Hurley, and of Diddy's cologne, “I am King.” In 2009, she became the spokesperson of Garnier International and these are just the top of the iceberg of her busy career. Besides her modeling career, Refaeli was also known for being Leonardo DiCaprio's girlfriend for some time, and recently, she was highly noticed during the 2013 Super Bowl, where she starred in the much talked about GoDaddy commercial.
Even though she did not serve in the IDF (an issue that received a high dose of criticism here,) Refaeli is an international ambassador of Israel, being proud of her nationality, and promoting the beautiful place that we live in.
GoDaddy's commercial from the 2013 Super Bowl
Bar Posing for Sports Illustrated With Rafael Nadal, Michael Phelps and Chris Pau
One Israeli Creation for the Weekend Read More »