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Play Or Pray?

The legendary Yom Kippur decisions of Jewish baseball superstars.

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OTPOURRI ...
ter, a few piles of empty beer
Might not seem like Yom Kippur cases and four or five tables ...
to some without break-fast bagels,
Yet despite its fly-weight size it
lox and cream cheese, and the yearly
managed to inspire a fierce loy-
account of Detroit Tiger's great Hall of
alty among its customers that
Famer Hank Greenberg's High Holiday
would make the most elegant
respect in 1934 of not playing on our holi-
of Detroit restaurants envious.
est of days ... Also revered by countless
Tom, the owner, I forget his
fans is Sandy Koufax, ace Hall of Fame
last name, had no patience
pitcher for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles
with restaurant pomp ... The
menu was in his head ... If
Dodgers who refused to play on Yom
Kippur in the World Series of 1965.
you were concerned about the
That year, Sandy's replacement on the
price, folks were asked to help
mound for the Series'
with the meal ... The
opening game was
least bother you were,
Ilimmmumm lominn._
the team's other great
the less it would cost
pitcher, Don Drysdale,
... Like with your food,
another Hall-of-
some folks would simply
Famer-to-be ... But he
pick up their own dishes,
--1111 701 4 1 iii i art-4
pitched poorly, and, as
110.1114iwissak - . - walk into the kitchen
amm i ,Z .f Ill1111 11111 r
and clear them off ... If
he was removed from
the game, he said to
you wanted another beer,
-11
Manager Walt Alston, "I
you'd might go pull it out
°
bet right now you wish
of the cooler ... It would
I was Jewish, too."
just be assumed that you
And when starring
were a regular customer.
THE THOUGHT
with the Dodgers, Hall It's that time of year!
of Fame candidate out-
COMES to mind that
fielder Shawn Green,
this would have been
who retired in 2008, chose not to play on
the 63rd anniversary of the former famous
Yom Kippur ... "I felt like it was the right
Caucus Club restaurant on Congress,
thing to do:' said Green. "I thought it was
Detroit, that just a few years ago was
the right example to set for Jewish kids, a
forced to close after having its home
lot of whom don't like to go to synagogue:'
there all those years, had the Penobscot
I CAN'T BELIEVE that Tom's Tavern
Building been sold locally rather than to
an out-of-America firm that might never
is still open on West Seven Mile, just west
of Wyoming, Detroit, across from where
have heard of the fame or tradition Caucus
Darbys used to pack 'em in ... It is still
had attained throughout those years.
small and seedy looking with an uneven
The wonderful dining resurgence of
floor and plastered walls with holes in
Detroit now going on would certainly
them.
have been a huge boon also for the former
So many will remember Tom's Tavern
Caucus Club, which so many prominent
of years back when it looked like it had
public leaders, politicians, sports figures,
survived an earthquake ... With lines and
etc. prayed with numerous regular John
angles that were as out of kilter as a box-
and Jane Does that its presence would
er's nose ... It had only a short bar coun-
again be continued.

e ll

amatalr p ft at t r _11

"

, 1

:----

From the date 63 years
ago that Les and Sam Gruber
opened the Caucus Club
across from their original
London Chop House, to the
days of Mary Belloni, the for-
mer waitress there who bought
the dining icon and continued
its precious reputation, it will
forever be remembered ...
Wouldn't it be wonderful if the
Caucus Club as it was would
rise again ... even if at another

location?
Like perhaps at one of Dan Gilbert's
Downtown Detroit buildings looking to
open a restaurant within its edifice ...
Sure would be a huge tribute to maybe
name it Sammy's Caucus Club, or some-
thing on that order, honoring Gilbert's
dad, Sam Gilbert, years ago partner
with Irving Sachs of Saksey's Lounge on
Woodward in Detroit.
SIGHTSEEING ... Retired cardiologist
Dr. Steve Widlansky, looking better than
ever ... His Farmington Hills practice
was taken over years ago by Dr. Alan
Silverman ... Another heart doc who
looks better than ever, Dr. Mel Rubenfire,
University of Michigan Health System,
Ann Arbor, must have found the secret of
smiling youth ... Dr. Michael Seidman, in
ENT Department at Henry Ford Hospital,
West Bloomfield, always sartorial good-
looker with tie and sport jacket or suit ...
Dr. Steven Shumer, popular dermatolo-
gist in Southfield, with a great smile that
immediately gives his patients huge con-
fidence.
WHEN DETROIT Restaurant Week
begins on Friday, Sept. 18, through
Sunday, Sept. 27, this year, it will for the
first time, have two prices, $35 and $25 at
selected locales for its meals ... It will also
have nine or more than the 16 original
participating eateries in 2009.

New restaurants include Mario's, El
Barzon, etc. ... joining standbys Whitney,
Andiamo Riverfront, Roast, Santorini,
Sinbad's, etc. ... Almost 400,000 people
have previously attended popular Detroit
Restaurant Weeks.
OLDIE BUT GOODIE DEPT. ... Joe
bought a parrot and one morning found
it with a small prayer shawl over its
head, rocking to and fro, and mumbling.
Bending over to listen, Joe was shocked to
discover the parrot saying prayers in the
finest Hebrew.
"You're Jewish?" asked Joe.
"Not only Jewish," said the parrot, "but
Orthodox. So will you take me to the
synagogue on Rosh Hashanah?"
"Of course, I'll take you, but can I tell
my friends about you? This isn't a secret,
is it?"
"No secret at all. Tell anyone you want:'
And the parrot returned to his praying.
Joe told all his friends. Of course, no
one believed him, and in no time Joe was
taking bets. By Rosh Hashanah, he had
thousands in bets riding on the parrot.
Grinning, Joe waited. Everyone waited.
The parrot didn't pray. Joe put the prayer
shawl over the parrot's head, but the bird
ducked and the shawl fell off. After the
services, Joe's friends laughed,
He was humiliated and at home vicious-
ly screamed at the parrot, "I'm going to
wring your neck! Pray to die!"
"Hold it, you idiot. In 10 days it's Yom
Kippur. Why don't you bet everyone that I
can sing Kol Nidre."
"Why? You didn't do anything today!"
"Exactly," replied the parrot. "So for
Yom Kippur, just think of the odds you'll
get!"
CONGRATS ... To Arthur and Gina
Horwitz on their 37th anniversary.

❑

Danny's email address is

dannyraskin@sbcglobal.net.

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September 17 • 2015