Front Lines
NOTEBOOK
Pardon Me, But ...
y
ears ago, the grade-B science fiction
movies were sure to have the fol-
lowing scenario. A space ship lands
(neatly maneuvered on barely seen wires — I
told you it was grade-B) and the alien exits,
confronting the shocked Earthlings with, "Take
me to your leader."
Let me put forth some of my own scenarios
and some take-offs on that now famous
phrase.
. •
Suppose that the alien is from a bovine
planet and lands in a field; it could say to our
local inhabitants, "Take me to your feeder."
Picture an alien shaped like a garden hoe,
landing near a tool shed and saying to its
inhabitants, "Ta
ke me to your weeder."
What if the being comes from a yeasty
planet. It might say, "Take me to your kneader."
Now that I'm on a roll ... (ouch!) imagine a
• creature landing at a library during story hour
and demanding, "Take me your reader."
Its possible that if the ship were to land
in Africa during a safari, the
they come in peace, perhaps we
request might be, "Take me to
could get one with powers to help
your beater." Of course, if the
out at the casinos in Las Vegas. You
life form was in the shape of a
know, as in, "Stake me against your
vampire, it might plead,"Don't
cheater."
stake me; I'm a bleeder."
Wanting to gain attention of the
Landing in Disneyland
media, a resident of outer space
Sy Man ello
— why not, are pro-athletes
might consider a prank such as
Edito rial
the only aliens allowed? — the
flagpole sitting. Then it might
Assist ant
being might say,"Take me to
request us to, "Wake me if I teeter."
your greeter."
If parking were a problem for
If outer space is tuned in to our local court
the spaceship (and why would aliens be
TV, upon landing a creature might request,
exempt from such a problem?), I can see one
"Take me to your pleader."
approaching a policeman and saying,"Take me
Knowing that there is talk of cloning on
to your meter."
Earth and wishing to make a conquest even
Many if us are aware of the power of the
less noticeable, the alien might say,"Take me to Indian snake charmer. It would not be amiss
your breeder." If, on the other hand, there was
for an alien to then say, "Lead me to your fakir."
a viewing of Dr. Phil and his ilk, the statement
But that opens up a whole new area, doesn't it?
might be, "Take me; I'm a needer."
I can hear you now thinking, "Forsake him; I'm
Since many aliens say (and I know this
no longer a reader." I
because I am a fan of such grade-B shlock)
The Play's The Thing
Rachel and Ari Hollander and a cast of 25
young thespians will present Snow White
and the Seven Dwarfs Sunday, Sept. 3, on
stage at Temple Beth El in Bloomfield Hills.
The musical follows the success of last
summer's production and two previous
backyard performances.
Most of the cast members, ages 7 to 12,
attend Eagle Elementary School or Warner
Middle School in Farmington Hills, where
Rachel, 11, is an incoming sixth-grader. Her
brother, Ari, 8, is producer.
Rachel's mom, Jennifer, is chief pro-
duction assistant in charge of helping to
supervise rehearsals, create costumes and
scenery, and prepare snacks for the hard-
working cast members.
Rachel understands the challenges of
theater production from appearing in
several performances of the Farmington
Hills Youth Theatre Sky's the Limit
Productions.
"I started working on organizing and
casting Snow White last spring, and we
will have had 12 rehearsals by show time,"
she explains. 'Ari and I wrote one original
song to begin the show. Seeing it all come
together is a great feeling."
Cast members agree. "Making new
friends and having fun" is what theater is
all about, says Nate Strauss, 12.
Rachel's family has agreed to be her
patrons so all proceeds from ticket sales
can go to the Michigan Humane Society.
"Last year, we raised $350 for the
Humane Society," Rachel says, "and this
' 10 August 31. 2006
time I'm hoping for $500." An early sum-
mer lemonade sale kicked off Rachel and
Ari's fundraising efforts.
The Snow White cast includes
Samantha Goldsmith, Mirna Kaafarani,
Jordan, Rebecca and Samantha Berman,
Yoni Weiss, Maggie and Aaron Hack,
Morgan and David Giles, Sivon and
Edon Levinson, Haley Eisenshtadt, Alex
Bolstrum, Kendall Strong, Rachel Wetzel,
Genna and Maria Reed, Alex Valenti and
Carly Rothenberg.
The show goes on at 12:30 p.m. at Temple
Beth El, 7400 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield
Township. Tickets are $3 for adults, $2 for
children, no charge for ages 2 and under.
Tickets are available at the door. For further
information, call (248) 855-9946.
— Keri Guten Cohen, story development editor
Five of seven dwarfs pose in character for a publicity shot, along with director
Rachel Hollander, top left, and producer-brother Ari Hollander, top right, of West
Bloomfield. Dwarfs, left to right, are Nate Strauss, Kate Kreiss, Caroline Strauss,
Clara Valenti and Brandon Rothenberg.
In Search Of Truth
Last week, the American Jewish
Committee sent out an alert urging
condemnation of Iran's exhibition
of cartoons mocking the legitimacy
and extent of the Holocaust. The
cartoons ridicule and minimize the
Jewish experience in the Holocaust
as a way to express Iranian concern
about the plight of the Palestinian
people in their conflict with Israel.
Brenda Rosenberg of the AJC-
Metro Detroit chapter shared the
alert with her interfaith partners.
In a letter sent to the Iranian
ambassador to the U.N., Rev.
Daniel Buttry,
a Warren-
based global
consultant
for peace and
justice with
the American
Baptist
Churches,
wrote: "Your
government's
action in call- Brenda Rosenberg
ing for and
displaying
these cartoons is blatant hypocrisy."
Buttry, a member of the Detroit-
based NCCJ Interfaith Partners,
said he was offended by Danish
cartoons depicting Mohammad in
insulting ways. He said he stood
with American Muslims in protest-
ing the cartoons, which were publi-
cized in parts of Europe.
"The government of Iran is
doing exactly what you are criticiz-
ing in the West," Buttry wrote to
Ambassador Mohammad Javad
Zarif. "You are committing the
same vile offense so, as I raised
my voice against the cartoons
of Mohammad, I raise my voice
against the cartoons about the
Holocaust and the Jews."
He said the act "brings disgrace
on the name of Islam and the God
for whom you claim to stand."
He said "to try to serve the cause
of justice for the Palestinians by
denying and demeaning the suffer-
ing of Jews in the Holocaust is to
debase both justice and truth, key
matters for Islam."
Said Rosenberg, a Bloomfield
Hills resident, "It is so important
for us to not just talk to each other
as Jews, but to dialogue with the
Christian and Muslim communities
so we're working together on issues
critical to each of us."
— Robert A. Sklar, editor