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Bad Blood

Is there really a need for kosher regulations about eating blood?

ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM ASSOCIATE EDITOR

FUTURA

I
CRAZY

ESTEEM

TRIUMPH

over THIS!

CELESTIAL

Q: Is it true that Irving Thalberg
is buried in a massive mausoleum
in Los Angeles?
A: Even a place like Holly-

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Give your heart
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4

32

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irsettiinoHneart

wood — where the oddball is
normal and the excessive is un-
derstated — had never seen
anything like it.
Irving Grant Thalberg, Hol-
lywood's "Boy Wonder" (in
1919, when he was 20 years
old, he was named head of
Universal Studios) was laid to
rest in 1936 in a private mau-
soleum that cost $50,000.
That same year, the price of
a new car was about $700.
Born in 1899 in New York,
Thalberg produced his first
film, The Hunchback of Notre
Dame, in 1923. He was 24
years old.
In 1924, Thalberg became
production chief at MGM,
where he produced Ben-Hur,
Broadway Melody, Grand Ho-
tel, the Barretts of Wiinpole
Street, Mutiny on the Bounty
and a number of films by the
Marx Brothers.
Among the stars whom
Thalberg brought from obscu-
rity to fame: John Gilbert, Gre-
ta Garbo, Clark Gable and
Joan Crawford.
Thalberg also was involved
with a number of Jewish caus-
es and, unlike many of his con-
temporaries, was interested in
his religious heritage. (He did
not marry longtime love Nor-
ma Shearer until she convert-
ed to Judaism.)
Mr. Thalberg was 37 years
old when he died of pneumo-
nia. He is buried at the Forest
Lawn Cemetery in Glendale,
Calif., also the final resting
spot of Jewish screen vamp
Theda Bara.

Q: I have neighbors who emi-
grated from Russia a few years
ago. During a recent discussion of
World War II, they kept referring to
a "Gitler," who I assumed was
Hitler. What's with these people?
Don't they know the Nazi leader's
name?

A:I'm going to give you the
answer to this now, and I sure
hope you'll "git" it and not mis-
understand your neighbors
again.
The Russian language does
not include the "h" sound. Russ-
ian speakers compensate for
this with foreign words by sub-
stituting a "g" where the "h"
normally occurs.
This transformation is
evident in Jewish surnames
of non-Russian origin. Thus,
Russian Jews have names
like Gurwitz instead of Hur-
witz, Gittleman (Hittleman),
Opengeym (Oppenheim),
Galpern (Halpern), Gess (Hess),
Gillels (Hillels) and Gindes
(Hindes).

Q: I know the Torah forbids Jews
from eating blood, but is this law
really necessary? Eating blood
seems like such a revolting prac-
tice. Who would do it?
A: The use of blood in cook-

ery is so wide-
spread that
Jews are, in
fact, unusual
for not con-
suming it.
The Torah
does indeed
prohibit Jews
from using
blood as food
(in Leviticus
7:26, 17:10;
and Deuteron-
omy 12:16, 23,
and 15:23).
But much of
the rest of the
world has for
years enjoyed
eating some-
thing called
blood sausage,
which scholars
believe origi-
nated in Assyr-
ia. The recipe
traveled to the
hog butchers Soup's on — but
of Tyre in is the blood in?
Phoenicia,

whose sailors carried it west.
Today, blood sausage (also
known as blood or black pud-
ding) remains a favorite dish
throughout Europe.
Additionally, blood is
used as a thickening agent
in civets, or blood stews,
and in soups of the world.
The Polish czarnina tradition-
ally is made with duck's blood.
The Chinese make a chicken-
blood soup, and the French
have a soup of shad, blood
and red wine. In Ireland's
County Cork, the natives
enjoyed drisheen, made of
blood boiled with milk and
herbs.
Blood is a staple in the
diet of many nomadic and
pastoral peoples. The ancient
Mongols regularly sustained
themselves on blood drawn
from their horses, while the
Masai tribesmen of Tanzania
drink fresh blood taken from
the jugular veins of their cat-
tle.
Even here in the West,
back in the 19th century
it was customary for women
periodically to visit the slaugh-
terhouse, where they drank
animal blood as a tonic.
Blood also has had
industrial uses and has been
employed to treat wine and
clarify sugar.

(

Send questions to "Tell Me Why"
c/o The Jewish News, 27676 C
Franklin Rd., Southfield, MI
48034 or send fax to 354-6069.

