KOW
Of
West Bloomfield
Pvoutdly Wishes
Jts
CtAstomelAs avid FiAieirtcls
play a Hispanic pool attendant who
wants to become Jerry's new friend.
Hoch bickered and balked when
asked to do a Spanish accent, consid-
ering it an ethnic slap in the face of
Hispanics. "No regrets," he says of
losing out on that job.
Not that there was anything wrong
with that — no, there actually was,
says Hoch. "I tried to have a sensitive
conversation about it behind closed
doors" with Seinfeld and the show's
co-creator, Larry David.
The accent stayed, and Hoch had
to go. It made me stronger, gave me
more oomph, more power to go up
against one of the more powerful Jews
in Hollywood," he says of Seinfeld.
Hoch became master of his own dia-
logue domain, with an accent on pow-
erful portrayals. His argument on the
set of Seinfeld, he adds, had its impact.
"I think I made them think," says
the performer of his influence on
series co-stars Jason Alexander and
Julia Louis-Dreyfuss.
"I kind of made a dent."
Outside Jerry Seinfeld's antiseptic
apartment, he has done even better.
Dents? Hoch has caused a contusion
on society's conscience. "I get these
The Beastie Boys, composed of
three Jewish men from New York, is
one of the most popular rap groups of
all time, their 1986 debut album
Licensed to Ill selling more than 4 mil-
lion copies. A national tour with fel-
low Def Jam artists Run-DMC con-
verted a generation of white teenagers
to the promise of hip hop as musical
resistance on par with rock music.
In a 1996 interview, band mem-
ber Adam Yauch, now a Buddhist,
ruminated on the Beasties' Jewish
sensibility, "I know sometimes that
Tibetans look to the Jews as a good
example of how to preserve a dias-
porized culture. But personally, I
don't really feel like an outsider in
someone else's society. I feel more
like a New Yorker than one who has
been diasporized."
Purely subjective, the nature of hip
hop's cultural authenticity is difficult
to articulate but primarily is rooted in
the streets, the crucible of culture.
Jewish Canadian journalist Douglas
Century tried a bit of ethnography in
his book Street Kingdom: Five Years
Inside the Franklin Avenue Posse, which
charts his exploration of the inferno of
Crown Heights with ex-drug dealing
rapper Big K as his Virgil.
His reporting on the close proximi-
ty of African-Americans, Caribbean-
letters, fan mail — which I never
thought I'd get — from 16-year-olds
and 22-year-olds, who have never
been to theater, and they tell me they
come and bring their friends."
One fan offers applause from out
front, beaming in the family footlights.
After all, the performer's mother
saw a transformation of her troubled
kid once caught with drugs to a
major international success story
intoxicated with the power of playing
for live audiences.
"I think she's pretty happy," says
Hoch of his mom.
And the homeboy, whose strength
is playing multiple ethnic identities,
"homes" in on the right way to
describe his mother's pride: "Nachas,"
says the Jewish giant in the theatrical
hip-hop world, "is the right word." II
Danny Hoch visits Shaman
Drum bookshop to perform
selections from Jails, Hospitals
and Hip Hop 8-10 p.m.
Wednesday, Sept. 29. Shaman
Drum is located at 313 S. State
Sr., in Ann Arbor.
A
—This article is reprinted with
permission from "CultureCurrents," the
online newsletter of the National
Foundation for Jewish Culture.
& -Healthy
N ew Yeap-
Orchard Lake Rd. & Lone Pine Rd.
Crosswinds Mall
932-3133
r
11111= MEM
MI=
- - - - "EMI 11•11111
HAPPY NEW YEAR
I
FAMILY ITALIAN DINING & PIZZA
I
"RATED #1 BY THE ONES WHO COUNT— OUR CUSTOMERS"
4033 W. 12 MILE, 3 Blks. E. of Greenfield, Berkley
I
548 - 3650
I
DAILY
LUNCH
&
DINNER
SPECIALS
I
ROUND PIZZA
SQUARE PIZZA
I PIZZA - RIBS - FISH
HOMEMADE GARLIC BREAD SMALL OR LARGE SMALL - MED - LARGE
I
ON FOOD PURCHASES
I
OF $6 OR MORE
I
DINING ROOM, CARRY-OUT
1 COUPON PER TABLE • ONLY ONE COUPON PER PURCHASE • NO SEPARATE CHECKS
JN
• EXPIRES 12-31-99
• COUPON NOT VALID WITH DAILY SPECIALS
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
•
I I
II • BANQU ET ROOMS • BEER WINE • COMPLETE CARRY -OUT COCKTAILS ima
Ism Elm
im.
-
mom
Shangvil-La
, .1"fisWe
Americans and Lubavitch Chasidim
records conflict over shared urban
space, not shared culture.
Other work has been done in
understanding hip hop culture as a
geographical phenomenon, one that
unites people living in close proximity.
Writer/performer Danny Hoch advo-
cates hip hop as fruitful partnership,
not just between Jews and blacks, but
among all ethnic groups that have
breathed the same inner city air.
In the introduction to the 1998
book version of his show Jails, Hospitals
b Hip-Hop he writes, "A few people
think I am some anthropological/the-
atrical case-study guy. But I don't tape-
record or interview people to then play
them onstage. This is my world. These
are my inner monologues."
A culture of resistance, hip hop is a
medium through which different cul-
tures can better understand each other.
In Crown Heights, the black and
Chasidic group The Cure uses rap to
build bridges between the communi-
ties. As Century puts it, "Hip hop
these days is a big tent." And so is
Jewish culture. 1-1
Ve.iAy
AUTHENTIC HONG KONG STYLE COOKING
Featuring wonderful, traditional favorites...
a superb variety of dining specialties
DIM SUM LUNCH SPECIALS!
1 1 0.111. tO 3 p.m,
The only
Chi nese
i'estawant
open until
2:00 a.m.
We Wish
Everyone
ci
-Happy
New Year
Sun.
noon-
9 p.m.
-
Hours: Monday thru Sunday
11 a.m. to 2 a.m.
11_1'
t t ,
0
(248) 626 8585
4 QUARTERS
Mon. -Sat.
10 a.m.-
11 p.m.
d
6407 Orchard Lake Rd.
(In The Orchard Mall)
FREE!
With This Ad
ARTE4010
Uszez
4gt
31005 ORCHARD LAKE RD. ,„
BEHIND F & M SOUTH OF 14 MILE • 626-50Au
s. -
1 Coupon
Per
Person
•
Expires
9-16-99
Peter Bershaj and Employees Wish Their Customers
and Friends A Happy & Healthy New Year
We Will Close at 3p.;n., Friday, September 10
and Reopen Saturday, September 11 at 7 a.m.
Regular Hours
Mon-Sat 7am-8pm
CLOSED SUNDAYS
SHIVA DINNERS
AND
BEAUTIFUL PARTY TRAYS
•
FREE DELIVERY
DELI AND GOURMET RESTAURANT
21754 W. 11 MILE RD. • HARVARD ROW • 352-4940 FAX: 352-9393
Detroit Jewish News
9/10
1999
R2