jew judaizes the Jeopardy quiz show

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'Sabbath for $400': Cholent stumps 'Jeopardy!' contestants in question about Shabbat restrictions
https://www.jta.org/2021/10/14/culture/sabbath-for-400-chulent-stumps-jeopardy-contestants-in-question-about-shabbat-restrictions

(JTA) — Contestants on an episode of "Jeopardy!" that aired Wednesday night were stumped when presented with a photo of cholent, a stew traditionally cooked by observant Jews over the course of Shabbat.

The clue, for $400 in the "Sabbath" category: "Exodus 35:3 bans doing this on the Sabbath, hence the Jewish dish 'cholent,' which can go on the stove Friday and cook until Saturday lunch."

The contestants got close with guesses of "What is cooking?" and "What is work?" but failed to name the exact Shabbat prohibition Mayim Bialik, the show's temporary host and herself an Orthodox Jew, was looking for.

In the end, Bialik explained the answer: "What is 'lighting a fire?' And the word 'cholent' is from the French 'chaud lent,' [meaning] 'cooks a long time.'"

Explaining cholent on national television was a fitting role for Bialik, the first Jew to host the popular quiz show.

Bialik, who starred in "The Big Bang Theory," served as a celebrity host during the search for longtime "Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek's replacement and was named a host for primetime specials in August. After Mike Richards, the show's executive producer who was selected to host the show full-time, was revealed to have made offensive comments about women and Jews, Bialik was temporarily promoted to full-time host. While Jeopardy producers continue to search for Richards' permanent replacement, Bialik has said she'd like to keep the gig permanently.

Bialik frequently writes about her Jewish identity and posted a video about her Jewish identity to Twitter Wednesday as part of a social media campaign organized by Hillel International to help Jewish college students feel proud of their Jewish identity. Bialik produced a series of videos for My Jewish Learning this year.



See related post here:  http://theinfounderground.com/smf/index.php?topic=28411.msg94525#msg94525

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'Jeopardy!' devotes entire category to Yiddish theater
https://www.jta.org/2021/12/10/culture/now-included-in-yiddish-theaters-renaissance-an-entire-jeopardy-category

(JTA) — In recent years, Yiddish theater has enjoyed a remarkable resurgence, with Yiddish-language performances wowing audiences in New York, online and, last month, Stockholm.

But perhaps its biggest audience yet came on Thursday night, when "Jeopardy!" devoted an entire category to it. The iconic quiz show is seen by an estimated 8.7 million people every night, making it the most-watched syndicated show on the air.

This week, the contestants are all college professors as part of the show's first-ever professors tournament, and the host is Mayim Bialik, the Jewish actress whose regular-season run was just extended as the show figures out how to replace longtime host Alex Trebek, who died last year.

Julie Williams, an English professor at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Indiana, chose the first question in the Yiddish Theater category after it appeared during Double Jeopardy, the show's second round.

But it was Ed Hashima, a professor of history at American River College in Sacramento, California, who dominated. He correctly responded to four of the five clues, racking up points as he identified one play as the Yiddish "King Lear," named the Jewish holiday of Purim as being tied to Yiddish theater's origins and answered that Marlon Brando's acting teacher was Stella Adler, who grew up in a family of Yiddish theater royalty.

Hashima also revealed a "Daily Double" in the category, allowing him to select his own wager. A smile broke across his face as Bialik read the clue: "A surprise New York hit in 2018 was a Yiddish-language 'Fiddler on the Roof': This song becomes 'Ben Ikh Bin a Rotshild."

The response, of course, is "If I Were a Rich Man," and Hashima added $2,400 to his already substantial lead. One could almost imagine Trebek humming the song's memorable theme, but Bialik offered no elaboration or commentary about the clues — unlike when cholent was a "Jeopardy!" question earlier this season and she offered a short history lesson.

One clue stumped all of the contestants, who declined to buzz in. "The play 'Chantzhe in Amerika' is about a woman wanting to learn this modern play; 'How I Learned To' do it is a non-Yiddish play," Bialik read.

The correct response: "What is 'Drive,'" referring to the classic work by Paula Vogel, the Jewish playwright whose own passion for Yiddish theater has been a galvanizing force in her recent work.

Speaking recently with the Harvard Divinity Bulletin about her play "Indecent," which incorporates scenes written by the classic Yiddish playwright Sholem Asch, Vogel offered an insight about why Jeopardy's non-Jewish contestants might be so knowledgeable about what was until recently a niche ethnic entertainment.

"Yiddish is a language of yearning, a language of anxiety. I believe we've worked hard to communicate that love to the audiences," she said. "We've had productions in Omaha, Nebraska, and in Boise, Idaho, where Yiddish is rarely heard. Audiences have said they feel the emotion we are trying to convey."

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'What is rabbi?': Angela Buchdahl becomes a 'Jeopardy!' clue
https://www.jta.org/2021/12/30/culture/what-is-rabbi-angela-buchdahl-becomes-a-jeopardy-clue


(JTA) — Few rabbis appear before more people than Angela Buchdahl, the senior rabbi of New York City's 2,000-member Central Synagogue. But Buchdahl may have become one of the most recognizable rabbis ever after her name — and face — appeared as a clue on "Jeopardy!" Wednesday night.

The cameo came toward the end of the game show's second round, in a category titled "I am Woman." Reigning champion Amy Schneider, en route to her 21st straight win, selected the $800 clue, and a picture of Buchdahl wearing a tallit with purple stripes appeared.

Host Ken Jennings read the clue: "Korea-born Angela Buchdahl is the first Asian-American to be ordained a cantor, as well as this leader of a Jewish congregation." Contestants didn't have to know anything about Buchdahl to make out that the correct response was "What is 'rabbi'?" and Ben Walthall, who ultimately came in third, got it right away.

Born in South Korea in 1972 to an American Jewish father and Korean Buddhist mother, Buchdahl grew up in Tacoma, Washington, and became a rabbi in 2001 when she graduated from Hebrew Union College, the Reform movement's seminary. Since becoming senior rabbi at Central Synagogue in 2014 (she had been senior cantor there since 2006), Buchdahl has been a public ambassador for the idea that the Jewish people are more diverse than many might think, speaking on the topic in the media and in her sermons.

Rabbi Geoffrey Mitelman, a one-time "Jeopardy!" contestant who organized a memorial service for former host Alex Trebek after his death, congratulated Buchdahl on her appearance as a clue.

"Mazal tov to Rabbi Angela Buchdahl for being more than a contestant on Jeopardy! but as a CLUE!" he said in a tweet.

Incidentally, none of the contestants correctly identified New York Gov. Kathy Hochul in the same category.

Buchdahl's appearance comes amid a string of notable Jewish clues on "Jeopardy!" in recent months. Earlier this month, the show devoted an entire category to Yiddish theater, and cholent, the slow-cooked Shabbat stew, was featured in a clue near the beginning of the season. Mayim Bialik, the Jewish actor who is sharing hosting duties with Jennings while the show seeks a permanent replacement for longtime host Alex Trebek, explained the traditional Jewish food to the stumped contestants.

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Activists on the Jewish left celebrated over the weekend as Emma Saltzberg, a Jewish activist who helped co-found the Jewish anti-occupation group IfNotNow, extended a "Jeopardy!" winning streak that has some comparing her to the game show's most successful contestants.

Saltzberg has taken the lead for three episodes in a row and currently has a total of $54,199 in prize money. Saltzberg, a consultant who lives in Brooklyn, is a senior fellow at Data for Progress, a progressive think tank, according to her Twitter bio.

Several progressive Jewish organizations celebrated Saltzberg's wins on social media Saturday.

Jews for Racial & Economic Justice, a social justice organization based in Brooklyn, even broke with its usual policy of refraining from posting to social media on Shabbat to celebrate Saltzberg.

The left-wing magazine Jewish Currents also celebrated Saltzberg, who has contributed to the magazine.

Saltzberg caught the eye of more than just Jewish viewers. A five-time winner on the show, Tyler Rhode, tweeted about her Friday evening, "The #Jeopardy champ is legit. One to watch.