CARL ENTERTAINMENT , s CHOP HOUSE 3020 Grand River 833-0700 Free Parking Nationally known for serving 4-H Prize Blue Ribbon Steak and Chops. Finest Seafood and Liquors. Private Dining Rooms for Banquets and Parties Serving daily from 11:30 — Sunday from 2 p.m. Jerry Lewis In Drama On Tikuach Nefesh' JEFF ROSEN Special to The Jewish News T oronto — Comedic actor Jerry Lewis is well known for his unwavering support of the fight against muscular dys- trophy. In his first TV-movie appearance, his character has a similar concern. Lewis and Patty Duke will star in Fight for Life, set to air, 9 p.m. Monday, on WXYZ Channel 7. Purchase tickets to all three productions and save $30.* For more information call (313) 874-SING. by Giacomo Puccini May 9-1ó, 1987 Three Performances Only! A spectacular production of Puccini's opera thriller. Sung in Italian with English surtitles (The Barber of Seville) by Gioacchino Rossini May 23-30, 1987 Three Performances Only! Delight to the comic antics of Seville's legendary barber Figaro. Sung in Italian with English surtitles By George and Ira Gershwin June 3-7, 1987 Seven Performances Only! America's own operatic classic includes "Summertime" and "I Got Plenty of Nuttin'. " ICHIGAN PERA. HEATRE (313) 874-SING *When purchasing a pair of subscriptions 68 Friday, March 20, 1987 David DiChiera, General Director THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS The true story, set in Col- umbus, Ohio, in 1977, re- volves around an Orthodox Jew, Dr. Bernard Abrams, played by Lewis, and his battle to save the life of his six-year-old adopted daughter Felice, who is suffering from epileptic seizures. Cantor A. Eliezer Kir- shblum of Adath Israel Con- gregation in Toronto, who was hired as a consultant to ensure the authenticity of the Jewish scenes, said the film focuses on the concept of Pikuach Nefesh, saving an endangered life. "We know that in Jewish law it's an ac- ceptable principle that we sometimes put aside a law in order to achieve the ultimate end," he said. When Felice, played by Jaclyn Bernstein, begins to experience about 15 seizures a day, she is rushed to the hospital, where she under- goes tests. While seemingly alright for the next couple of months, she suddenly falls to the floor with violent seizures during a Sabbath dinner. Abrams discovers that the drug Valproate has been used successfully in England for 20 years to treat a form of epilepsy, and seems as if it could help Felice. However, when he attempts to get it he is turned down by every doc- tor because it is illegal in the U.S. He later realizes that 200,000 other kids in America have this same type of epilepsy and don't have the money to go to England to get the needed drug. Just before leaving for London with his family and his best friend, a Catholic priest, Abrams is offered the drug on a compassionate-use basis • by U.S. authorities. However, he decides it is morally incorrect to take the drug for themselves while other children with the same form of epilepsy have to suf- fer. "If a child loses its mind, isn't it, in a sense, losing its life? The Talmud says that to save a life we can put aside rigid laws, and apply the moral principle," Abrams de- clares. With the help of his friend, 5,000 boxes of the drug are smuggled back home to help other children suffering from epilepsy. While sounding like a typi- cal Hollywood plot, the story has a happy ending. Felice survives, and today at age 16 is doing fine. The drug even- tually was legalized in the U.S. Iry Wilson, executive pro- ducer of the film, said that when Lewis was sent the original script, which didn't have as much of the "Jewish- ness" as the final version, the actor was "enormously moved." "He never does TV except for his own telethon, and what obviously attracted him was his basic philosophy of trying to save kids, which this piece is about," Wilson said. Copyright 1987, JTA, Inc. Jewish Choral Music On Tuesday The Michigan Women's Chorale and Cong. Shaarey Zedek Men's Choir, directed by Cantor Chaim Najman, will present an evening of Jewish choral music, 8 p.m. Tuesday, in celebration of Jewish Music Month. The Women's Chorale, .comprised of women from De- troit area sisterhoods, will perform a suite of Yiddish folk songs in English transla- tion, entitled "Singing of Angels," arranged by Charles Davidson. The choral suite will be accompanied by Leypsa Groner, pianist, and an instrumental ensemble, with narration by Rabbi Groner. The men's club will present a program of Hebrew songs. Admission is free and re- freshments will be served. The musicale is sponsored by the music division of Cong. Shaarey Zedek's cul- tural commission, Dr. Samuel Stulberg, chairman and Dr. Harold Daitch, music chair- man. Judy Goldstein At Center Sunday Judy Goldstein, a folksinger whose repertoire spans more than 100 years of Jewish history and culture, will appear at the Jewish Community Center in West Bloomfield, 3 p.m. Sunday. There is a charge. For in- formation, call the cultural arts department, 661-1000, ext. 341.