Arts & Entertainment Chanukah Laugh-Along As Jewish joke book turns 25, authors reflect on changing Jewish humor. Uriel Heilman Jewish Telegraphic Agency H ere's one: Michael Bloomberg walks into a diner and orders coffee and a danish. When the bill comes in at $14, the flummoxed bil- lionaire mayor asks, "What, are danishes so rare in these parts?" "No," replies the waiter, "but Bloombergs are." The story is a variation on a joke about Rothschild and 20-ruble eggs made famous in the The Big Book of Jewish Humor, first published a Parody Partners Duo create a joke book for Generation X and beyond. Gail Zimmerman Arts & Entertainment Editor I f you liked The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, the Comedy Central host's irreverent take on poli- tics, and you never miss the mocking pop-culture hilarity of the network's South Park, you're sure to appreciate zrrAMM, VMVWX*MMWM, quarter of a century ago. The story also is partly true. Bloomberg spokesman Stu Loeser — an avid devotee of The Big Book of Jewish Humor — was sharing the joke with BloOmberg when Loeser and the mayor were overcharged for danish and coffee at a New York diner. Before Loeser got to the punch line, however, the Jewish mayor finished the joke for him. Whether that's a sign of the diffusion of Jewish humor into the national con- sciousness, the success of the 25-year- old compilation by William Novak and Moshe Waldoks or simply a telling anec- dote about the mayor's sense of humor, is anybody's guess. What's certain is that a quarter-century since the publication of Big Book, Jews are still laughing at themselves — and Americans are laughing along with them. "Although many of the people listed on the cover are no longer around," Novak and Waldoks write in their introduction Jewtopia: The Chosen Book for the Chosen People (Warner Books; $25, but for you, $24.99). Authors-editors Bryan Fogel and Sam Wolfson introduced the Jewtopia concept as a stage play about young Jewish singles in a nonstop produc- tion of bits that mimic Jewish stereotypes. In the book, the duo's brand of humor (with help from writer Amy Shearn and original drawings and illustra- tions by Drew Beam) ranges from an analy- sis of why Jews have a penchant for freezing food to a quiz about Jewish celebrity noses. "To anyone who might take offense at our brand of crazy, whacked-out humor, we swear we're just a couple of nice Jewish to the 25-year anniversary edi- tion ($24.95), which HarperCollins released last month, "and Sholem Aleichem is still dead, The Big Book of Jewish Humor is still very much alive." The authors sat down with JTA recently over a pair of pastrami sandwiches at Rubin's kosher deli- catessen in Brookline, Mass., to talk about the book — and to trade jibes and wisecracks. SHE WALDOKS Beyond Stereotypes A lot has changed in 25 years, they said. "When we first put the book together in 1981, we were not sure Jewish humor would continue:' Waldoks said. "But Jewish humor is still active. It's more self-conscious, much more knowledgeable. It goes beyond the stereotypes." The pair cited TV programs like Comedy Central's South Park and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, both mainstream shows laced with Jewish ref- erences and Jewish jokes. They noted that boys with way too much time on our hands," the 30-ish duo writes in the "Introduction" that precedes the book's eight chapters, which include: "Food: Anyone Have Some Zantac?" "Jewtopia's Guide to Life: From Bar Mitzvahs to Bowels," "Travel: Planes, Trains and Diarrhea," "Stereotypes: Look, Ethel, I Found a Penny" and "Conspiracy Theories: Do Jews Control the World?" - in which the authors put the kibosh on the rumor that the Jews are somehow responsible for 9-11 ("Most Jews don't know where the fuse box is in their own home"). Part-history, part-travelogue, part introduction to Judaism, Jewtopia offers useful advice like "alternative uses for matzah" (roof shingles, mili- tary body armor, kitchen floor tiles) and suggested dialogue for the Jewish traveler to Spain (Donde estan los knishes Buenos? - where are the good knishes?). Warning: This new wave of Jewish joke book - think performers like Sarah Silverman - includes obscenities, pro- fanity and brazen photos as part of the mix. Yes, Jewtopia doesn't hold anything back in its subject matter or in its illustrations and could be offensive to some, but anyone who doubts the authors' taste and talents need look no further than the book's dust jacket. There you can find testimonials from Linda Fogel and Arlene Wolfson - the writers' two Jewish mothers, whom they include in the book in their seg- ment on "Phone Conversations with Jewish Mothers." *4" GROUPER - GROUPER • GROUPER! Tasty, White, Flaky and Healthy Grouper Prepared 5 Ways. 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