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Unorthodox

516 episodes - English - Latest episode: 25 days ago - ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratings

Unorthodox is the universe’s leading Jewish podcast, hosted by Stephanie Butnick, Liel Leibovitz, and Joshua Malina. Each week we bring you News of the Jews, interesting guests—one Jewish and one gentile—and so much more.

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Episodes

Inside and Out: Ep 328

August 11, 2022 04:00 - 49 minutes

This week on Unorthodox, we’re kicking off our annual fundraiser and upping the stakes: for every $100 you donate, you’ll be entered to win a mystery gift box curated by Stephanie, Mark, or Liel. Donate at tabletm.ag/mysterybox. Abby Pogrebin returns to the show to tell us about the latest installment of The Minyan, her roundtable interview series for Tablet. She spoke with 10 Orthodox women about their identities and experiences and shares some of that conversation, and the insights it insp...

Moving Forward: Ep 327

August 04, 2022 04:00 - 52 minutes

This week on Unorthodox, we’re getting serious. It’s Tisha B’Av, the Jewish day of mourning that commemorates the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. (Read more about it here.) Our Jewish guest is Rebecca Soffer of Modern Loss, who returns to the show tell us about her new book, The Modern Loss Handbook: An interactive Guide to Moving Through Grief and Building Your Resilience.  Our Gentile of the Week is Walter Russell Mead, who joins us to discuss his new book, The Arc of a Covenant: ...

Staying Cool: Ep. 326

July 28, 2022 04:00 - 57 minutes

This week on Unorthodox, we’re melting down. To beat the heat, we’re bringing you interviews with two very cool Jews.  First we talk to singer songwriter Lisa Loeb, who has been entertaining music lovers of all ages since her breakout 1994 hit “Stay.” She shares how her childhood love of summer camp inspired her “Camp Lisa” record and foundation, plus she tells us about her eyewear collection and the similarities she’s discovered between performing for toddlers and drunk adults.  Our second...

Funny Girls: Ep. 325

July 21, 2022 04:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox: ‘Funny Girl’ casting shakeups, letters from camp, and more.  Our Jewish guest this week is Michael Uslan, who produced the Batman films. He talks with us about comic books as literature, and what makes Batman different from other superheroes.  Our Gentile of the Week is Iranian-American comedian and “Fake the Nation” podcast host Negin Farsad. She tells us about being mistaken for a Jew and shares her upcoming projects.  We want to hear from you! Take our listener ...

Mellow Yellow, Ep. 324

July 14, 2022 04:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re wishing you a hearty ‘Shalom yellow.’ Our first Jew of the Week is Mike Pesca, host of the long-running daily podcast “The Gist,” which he recently relaunched independently. He tells us what podcasts he’s listening to, why it’s important to talk to people you disagree with, and about his childhood as a self-described ‘pizza bagel’ (half Jewish, half Italian).   Our second Jew of the Week is Argentinian journalist Javier Sinay, author of the newly translated bo...

Good Sports: Ep 323

June 30, 2022 04:00 - 58 minutes

This week on Unorthodox, we’re packing our trunks and heading to summer camp.   Our Jew of the Week is Meredith Shiner, host of our forthcoming Tablet Studios podcast about Jews and sports. She joins us today to discuss the new Sandy Koufax statue at Dodger Stadium, which was unveiled during Shabbat. Stay tuned for more about Meredith’s show, which launches this fall.    Our Gentile of the Week is Swami Tyagananda, a teacher at the Vedanta Center in Boston and Hindu chaplain at MIT and Harv...

Stage Hand: Ep. 322

June 23, 2022 04:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, bubbe or buh-bye?  Our Jew of the Week is Zachary Noah Piser, the new star of Broadway’s Dear Evan Hansen. He joins us to talk about his experience taking over the title role in the show—which ends its Broadway run this fall—and his Jewish-Asian identity.  We hear from friend of the show Abigail Pogrebin about her new Tablet project, The Minyan, a series of roundtable discussions about the state of the Jewish community in America from a variety of perspectives. She ...

Stirring the Pot: Ep 321

June 16, 2022 04:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re digging in.  Benedetta Guetta, author of the new cookbook, Cooking alla Giudia, joins us to discuss the fascinating—and delicious—culinary history of the Jews of Italy. We learn that Jews are responsible for bringing the orecchiette pasta shape to Italy, that Jews taught Italians how to cook eggplant, and that the Jews of Italy made kosher prosciutto using goose (here’s her recipe).  Barry Levenson tells us about the National Mustard Museum in Middleton, WI, w...

Mixed Grill: Ep. 320

June 09, 2022 04:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, three of our favorite guests return to the show to tell us about their latest projects.  First we visit Philadelphia restaurateurs Mike Solomonov and Steve Cook at their new Brooklyn restaurant Laser Wolf, a shipudiya, or Israeli skewer house, named for the butcher in Fiddler on the Roof. You can listen to our 2019 road trip to Philadelphia, where we spoke to Solomonov and Cook at their restaurant Zahav, on Episode 204.  Tablet columnist James Kirchick also returns ...

49 Days: Week 7, Malchut

June 05, 2022 04:00 - 43 minutes

Today we are sharing a special weekly edition of Kylie Unell’s podcast miniseries, 49 Days to Stretch My Soul. Kylie is putting her own spin on the Jewish tradition of counting the Omer—the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot—with a daily practice that includes everything from exploring the lyrics of Steven Sondheim, interviewing a ballet dancer, immersing herself in nature, and more. This final week is all about queenliness, and majesty. 

49 Days: Week 6, Yesod

May 29, 2022 04:00 - 41 minutes

Today we are sharing a special weekly edition of Kylie Unell’s podcast miniseries, 49 Days to Stretch My Soul. Kylie is putting her own spin on the Jewish tradition of counting the Omer—the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot—with a daily practice that includes everything from exploring the lyrics of Steven Sondheim, interviewing a ballet dancer, immersing herself in nature, and more. This sixth week is all about connection and foundation. 

The Conversion Episode, 2022: Ep 319

May 26, 2022 04:00 - 58 minutes

This week, we present our fifth-annual Conversion Episode. Each year on the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, we read the Book of Ruth, which tells the story of the first convert to Judaism. To celebrate Ruth and all the Jews by choice since then, we’re sharing three deeply personal stories about the path to becoming Jewish.  First we hear from our associate producer Quinn Waller, who is in the process of converting. Despite all her learning and studying, she is still dogged by feelings of inauthen...

49 Days: Week 5, Hod

May 22, 2022 04:00 - 41 minutes

Today we are sharing a special weekly edition of Kylie Unell’s podcast miniseries, 49 Days to Stretch My Soul. Kylie is putting her own spin on the Jewish tradition of counting the Omer—the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot—with a daily practice that includes everything from exploring the lyrics of Steven Sondheim, interviewing a ballet dancer, immersing herself in nature, and more. This fifth week is all about endurance and perseverance. 

Unorthodox Comes Alive!: Ep. 318

May 19, 2022 04:00 - 1 hour

This week, we’re back together, and totally off the wall.  We’re airing the interviews from our live show in Virginia Beach, hosted by the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. Our Jew of the Week is Congresswoman Elaine Luria, who represents Virginia's Second Congressional District. She tells us about her 20-year career in the Navy; being a fourth-generation Jewish Alabaman before moving to Virginia; and hosting a Passover Seder on an aircraft carrier.  Our Gentile of the Week is NFL Hall...

49 Days: Week 4, Netzach

May 15, 2022 04:00 - 37 minutes

Today we are sharing a special weekly edition of Kylie Unell’s podcast miniseries, 49 Days to Stretch My Soul. Kylie is putting her own spin on the Jewish tradition of counting the Omer—the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot—with a daily practice that includes everything from exploring the lyrics of Steven Sondheim, interviewing a ballet dancer, immersing herself in nature, and more. This fourth week is all about Netzach, or endurance and perseverance. 

Big Bang Slice: Ep. 317

May 12, 2022 04:00 - 1 hour

This week, we’re deep dishing about Licorice Pizza. Our Jew of the week is actress, neuroscientist, and Jeopardy! co-host Mayim Bialik, who makes her directorial debut with the “very, very Jewish” film As They Made Us.  Mayim wrote the film, about a woman coming to terms with her father’s decline and death, at the end of the traditional Jewish year of mourning following her own father’s death in 2015. She tells us about the film’s casting (Dustin Hoffman and Candace Bergen play the parents t...

49 Days: Week 3, Tipheret

May 08, 2022 04:00 - 37 minutes

Today we’re sharing a special weekly edition of Kylie Unell’s podcast miniseries, 49 Days to Stretch My Soul. Kylie is putting her own spin on the Jewish tradition of counting the Omer—the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot—with a daily practice that includes everything from exploring the lyrics of Steven Sondheim, interviewing a ballet dancer, immersing herself in nature, and more. This third week is all about Tipheret, or discipline and harmony.

The Mothership: Ep 316

May 05, 2022 04:00 - 56 minutes

This week, we’re celebrating motherhood: the messy, the funny, the sad, and the profound.  First, an interview with Jewish Fertility Foundation’s Elana Frank, host of the podcast Fruitful and Multiplying. Then we talk to comedian Ester Steinberg about her postpartum comedy special, Burning Bush. We also hear from Rabbi Ilana Garber about her son’s diagnosis of Fragile X Syndrome, and Unorthodox producer Robert Scaramuccia shares a moving story about his mother. We love to hear from you! Sen...

49 Days: Week 2, Gevurah

May 01, 2022 04:00 - 36 minutes

Today we’re sharing a special weekly edition of Kylie Unell’s podcast miniseries, 49 Days to Stretch My Soul. Kylie is putting her own spin on the Jewish tradition of counting the Omer—the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot—with a daily practice that includes everything from exploring the lyrics of Steven Sondheim, interviewing a ballet dancer, immersing herself in nature, and more. This second week is all about Gevurah, or discipline and restraint.

Puzzling Through: Ep. 315

April 28, 2022 04:00 - 1 hour

This week, we’re putting the pieces together.  Our Jewish guest is A.J. Jacobs, whose new book [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/622520/the-puzzler-by-aj-jacobs/] is The Puzzler: One Man’s Quest to Solve the Most Baffling Puzzles Ever, From Crosswords to Jigsaws to the Meaning of Life. He explains why puzzles are such a useful way to see the world, tries to stump us with some Jewish riddles, and tells us what it’s like to appear as a New York Times Crossword clue. Listen to A.J.’s pre...

49 Days: Week 1, Chesed

April 24, 2022 04:00 - 53 minutes

Today we’re sharing a special weekly edition of Kylie Unell’s new podcast miniseries, 49 Days to Stretch My Soul. Kylie is putting her own spin on the Jewish tradition of counting the Omer—the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot—with a daily practice that includes everything from exploring the lyrics of Steven Sondheim, interviewing a ballet dancer, immersing herself in nature, and more. This first week is all about Chesed, or Lovingkindness.

Rootless Cosmopolitans: Ep. 314

April 21, 2022 04:00 - 53 minutes

This week, we’re grabbing our passports.  First we talk to Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman about their off-Broadway musical Harmony, which tells the true story of the Comedian Harmonists, a trailblazing troupe of Jewish-and-gentile entertainers in 1920s Germany.    Professor Andy Markovits joins us to discuss his new memoir, The Passport as Home: Comfort in Rootlessness, about what he learned growing up as a Jew in Romania and Vienna before emigrating to the United States, and why he’s chos...

Introducing '49 Days to Stretch My Soul'

April 15, 2022 04:00 - 10 minutes

We're excited to share a brand new Tablet Studios podcast hosted by our friend Kylie Unell. You might remember Kylie's spiritual journey in the lead-up to the High Holidays last year on "How to Fix a Soul in 30 Days". Now, Kylie is back with another show for another holiday season. The Jewish tradition of counting the Omer, or Sefirat Haomer, marks the 49 days between the second night of Passover and the start of Shavuot, and offers daily opportunities for spiritual challenge and growth. Kyl...

Bonus: Passover Melodies

April 14, 2022 04:00 - 28 minutes

This week we’re sharing a special bonus episode to accompany your pre-Passover prep.  You heard musician Josh Warshawsky sing the order of the Seder on last week’s Passover episode, proving that even the Haggadah's table of contents offers musical inspiration. Today we’re airing Mark’s interview with Warshawsky, in which the rabbi and song leader discusses the various melodies of the Haggadah and takes us on a song-filled journey from start to finish.  We love to hear from you! Send us your...

A Passover to Remember: Ep. 313

April 07, 2022 04:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re digging into Passover traditions.   Stephanie Butnick rids her home of chametz, or leavened bread, with a legalistic assist from producer Robert Scaramuccia. Featuring Rivkah Slonim.  Liel Leibovitz explores the tradition of Jewish first-born sons fasting before Passover, which takes him in some unexpected literary directions. Featuring Erica Brown and Andre Aciman.  Producer Josh Kross interrogates the Wicked Child archetype, with the help of his teenage son...

What’s Cookin’?: Ep. 312

March 31, 2022 04:00 - 57 minutes

This week on Unorthodox, we’re calling the lox-smith.  Our Jew of the Week is Massachusetts State Senator Eric Lesser, who worked for the Obama campaign and administration and helped bring the first Seder to the White House. He’s now running for Lieutenant Governor, and he joins us for some Western Massachusetts Jewish geography and Friendly’s reminiscences.  Then we share a segment from our producer Quinn Waller. She’s converting to Judaism, and with her first Passover coming up, she’s get...

We Are Family: Ep. 311

March 24, 2022 04:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re all connected.  Our Jewish guest is Julie Platt, the new chair of the Jewish Federations of North America, and the mother of some very talented Jewish children. She tells us about the work JFNA is doing to help Jews in Ukraine, and shares her theories on why so many Camp Ramah alums end up on Broadway, her sons included.  Our Gentile of the Week is Father Thomas Soroka, an Eastern Orthodox priest at St. Nicholas Orthodox Church in Pittsburgh. He’s one of the f...

Party On: Ep. 310

March 17, 2022 04:00 - 56 minutes

This week on Unorthodox, we’re throwing a party. Our Jewish guest this week is Judith Rosenbaum, CEO of the Jewish Women’s Archive, who joins us to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the bat mitzvah in America. We talk about the first girl to be become a bat mitzvah, in 1922, plus what bat mitzvahs have meant for Jewish girls and women in the intervening century .  We also speak with Debbie Haback, who co-wrote the 1986 Preppy Handbook parody, The Jewish American Princess Handbook. Plus, w...

Posted Notes: Ep. 309

March 10, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re doing the Wordle.   Evan Jacobson is a TikTok saxophone sensation. You might have seen his viral series where he adds sax solos to “songs that don’t need them.” We got him to compose sax solos to such cultural Jewish anthems as "Sunrise, Sunset" and Jeff Buckley’s cover of "Hallelujah." Shawn Setaro is a writer and podcaster, who created and hosted The Cipher, a hip-hop podcast produced by Unorthodox's own Josh Kross. He talks with us about his new book, Dummy...

Rocking and Rolling: Ep. 308

March 03, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re getting jiggy with it.  Our Jewish guest is Lenny Solomon, frontman of the Jewish rock band Shlock Rock. He talks with us about what it takes to create a great parody song, the role of humor in music, and accounting. You can donate to his fundraiser for his musical, Daniel in Babylon, here. Our Gentile of the Week is professor and writer Devoney Looser, who teaches us about Jane Austen and roller derby, and the surprising ways in which these two subjects inters...

Going Places: Ep 307

February 24, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re lifting off.  This week we’re doing things a little differently. With the situation in Ukraine heating up, two Tablet writers offer their perspective. Vladislav Davidzon talks to us from the ground in Kyiv and Armin Rosen takes us to Uman for the annual Rosh Hashanah pilgrimage to the grave of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov.  We love to hear from you! Send us your emails and voice memos at [email protected], or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 57...

Chasing Memory: Ep. 306

February 17, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re ordering gazpacho for the table.  Our Jewish guest this week is Tablet’s very own Wayne Hoffman, whose new book is The End of Her: Racing Against Alzheimers to Solve a Murder. He talks with us about family legends, coming to terms with his mother’s decline, and the morass of memory. We’re giving away a few free copies of Wayne’s book on our Instagram and Facebook accounts.  We’ve got events coming up! Thursday, April 7 at 7:30 p.m. Eastern, we’ll be doing a l...

Old School: Ep. 305

February 10, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re throwing it back.  Our Gentile of the week is writer Chuck Klosterman, whose new book is The Nineties. He tells us why the 90s were the last real decade, plus what it’s like to earnestly promote a book about an era when apathy reigned supreme. We, on the other hand, are happy to be commercial sellouts—we’re giving away copies of The Nineties on our Instagram and Facebook accounts. We love to hear from you! Send us your emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabl...

Coming in Hot: Ep. 304

February 03, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re all self-upgrading to business class.  Our Jewish guest is investigative journalist Carl Bernstein, of Watergate team Woodward and Bernstein, whose new memoir is Chasing History: A Kid in the Newsroom.   Our Gentile of the Week is The Great British Baking Show semi-finalist Jürgen Krauss, who won our hearts with his Passover plava recipe on Season 9. Krauss, who isn’t Jewish himself but is married to a Jewish woman and raising a Jewish family, tells us about re...

Heroes and Villains: Ep. 303

January 27, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re bringing you a conversation with Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker of Temple Beth Israel in Colleyville, TX, who was held hostage along with three congregants during a Shabbat service two weeks ago Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram. Get a behind-the-scenes look at our recording sessions on our YouTube channel! Check out The Tab, Tablet magazine's new printa...

Safe and Sound: Ep. 302

January 20, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour

This week, we’re reflecting on the rabbi and three congregants held hostage at a Texas synagogue last Saturday.  We’re also sharing an interview with Mark Podwal, an artist who has illustrated for the Metropolitan Opera and the New York Times —and who has a day job as a dermatologist. He tells us how his art, rich with Jewish themes and imagery, is his expression of his Jewish identity Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and fol...

Family Ties: Ep. 301

January 13, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, more Israel-related animal conspiracy theories.   Before she was Liz Lange, our Jewish guest was Liz Steinberg, niece of corporate raider Saul Steinberg. She tells the story of her family’s spectacular rise and eventual fall in the new podcast, “The Just Enough Family.”  Our Gentile of the Week is Delvyn Case, a Christian composer who has written a cantata about the binding of Isaac, based on his reading of one rabbi's midrash that suggests that Abraham actually kil...

The 300th Episode

December 30, 2021 05:00 - 1 hour

This week, we’re celebrating a major milestone: 300 episodes. That’s more than 18,000 minutes of tape over six years, featuring thousands of News of the Jews items, hundreds of amazing Jews and Gentiles of the Week, and way too many jokes about Belgium. We’ve been through a lot together, J-Crew. There was the Saran Wrap vs. tin foil fight, the debate over backing into parking spaces, and endless discussions of what activities might accurately be categorized as “Jewish.” We’ve shared stories o...

Jews on Christmas: Ep 299

December 23, 2021 05:00 - 42 minutes

This week on Unorthodox, we’re drinking the eggnog and going all in on Christmas. Did you know your favorite Christmas song was probably written by a Jew? Marc Tracy returns to the show to shed light on the surprising history of Jewish songwriters and Christmas music, and shares a list of the 10 best Christmas songs written by Jews.  It wouldn’t be a bunch of Jews talking about a holiday—even one that isn’t our own—without a serious discussion of food. Jewish cookbook author and New York Ti...

Big Cheese: Ep. 298

December 16, 2021 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re diving deeper into the cream cheese shortage.  Our first guest is Dorothy Kalins, cookbook writer and former editor in chief of Saveur magazine. Liel talks to her about her new book, “The Kitchen Whisperers: Cooking with the Wisdom of Our Friends.” Then Liel sits down with retired Harvard professor Ruth Wisse, whose new memoir is “Free Like a Jew: A Personal Memoir of National Self-Liberation.”  Our 300th episode is coming up this month, and we want you to be...

Mad Mahj: Ep. 297

December 09, 2021 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we’re prepping for the great cream cheese shortage of 5782. First we call up friend of the show Joshua Malina, who wrote an impassioned essay in the Atlantic asking why, after such a public history of antisemitism, Mel Gibson is still getting work in Hollywood.  Then we talk to Yonit Levi, Israel’s Channel 12 evening news anchor, who recently launched the podcast Unholy with The Guardian’s Jonathan Freedland.  Our Gentile of the Week is University of Oregon profess...

Hanukkah 2.0: Ep. 296

December 02, 2021 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, we really can’t stop talking about Hanukkah—read our op-ed all about it in the Washington Post. First we talk to actress Sarah Podemski, who stars on the new FX on Hulu show Reservation Dogs. She tells us about her “Anishinaabe/Ashkenazi” heritage and growing up in Toronto’s Jewish community, plus her experience working with an all-Indigenous cast and creative team on Reservation Dogs.     Then Liel has a candid conversation with New York Times columnist Ross Douthat...

Bonus: Stacy Keach on "Vienna"

November 26, 2021 19:15 - 12 minutes

Stacy Keach joins Liel to discuss his upcoming presentation of the play "Vienna," created by Stacy Keach Zoom Theater (SKZ). The show begins airing on YouTube on Sunday, November 28, and will be available through Wednesday, December 1. Admission is free. Donations are welcome to benefit The Actors Fund of America. To access the production, visit stacykeachzoomtheater.com.

Bonus: Israel Story's "Pigging Out"

November 25, 2021 05:00 - 1 hour

Unorthodox is off this week for Thanksgiving, but we're bringing you "Pigging Out," an episode from our friends at Israel Story: "Not once, but twice, does the Bible admonish us to abstain from eating the flesh of the pig. And though there are many other animals we are commanded to avoid, the pig has—over the centuries—become the quintessential symbol of all that is unkosher, impure, and morally reprehensible. But was that always the case? In an episode that starts in prehistoric times and e...

It’s Not Jewish Christmas: Ep. 295

November 18, 2021 05:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, it’s beginning to look a lot like Hanukkah! The Festival of Lights starts Sunday, Nov. 28, and we could think of no better way to kick off a holiday about the triumph of Jewish observance over assimilation than with a special episode featuring some amazing Jews whose work celebrates Jewish culture and identity.  Comedian and proud Jew Judy Gold—aka @jewdygold—joins us to discuss embracing her Jewishness on stage and off, and lighting Hanukkah candles in hotel rooms a...

Bagels and Books: Ep. 294

November 11, 2021 05:00 - 59 minutes

This week on Unorthodox, are we ready for a Better Bagel? Our guest is novelist Alice McDermott, whose latest book is What About the Baby? Some Thoughts on the Art of Fiction. She tells us about her 1998 National Book Award-winning novel, Charming Billy, as well as her Catholic faith, relationship with the church, and what she misses now that she’s no longer teaching. Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation at bit.ly/givetounorthodox. Send...

Happy Returns: Ep. 293

November 04, 2021 04:00 - 57 minutes

This week on Unorthodox, our national nightmare is over: Stephanie returns to the show! We talk to comedian Alex Edelman, whose new one-man show, “Just For Us,” is about the time he infiltrated a white supremacist gathering. Edelman, who was raised Orthodox, tells us about starting to wrap tefillin again during the pandemic, his work on Saturday Night Seder, and why some Jewish comedians miss the mark for him. “Just For Us” runs Dec. 1-19 at the Cherry Lane Theatre in New York. Then we visit ...

Returning to Pittsburgh: Ep 292

October 28, 2021 04:00 - 43 minutes

Three years after the Tree of Life synagogue shooting that killed 11 Jews, we return to Pittsburgh with a special episode based on Mark Oppenheimer's reporting for his new book, Squirrel Hill: The Tree of Life Synagogue Shooting and the Soul of a Neighborhood. You’ll hear from the local high schoolers who planned the Saturday night vigil that drew thousands of people, from the Pulitzer-winning editor of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette explaining how he conceived the paper's famous Hebrew-languag...

Spooky Schmoozing: Ep.291

October 21, 2021 04:00 - 1 hour

This week on Unorthodox, former guest Gavriel Savit joins us for a spooktacular Halloween episode. We talk about the Jewishness of Dune, William Shatner’s mission to the moon, why some religious Jews don’t celebrate Halloween, and more. Our Jewish guest is actor, author, and substance abuse counselor Stacey Nelkin, who starred in the 1982 film Halloween III: Season of the Witch. She joins us to reminisce about the critically panned cult classic. Our Gentile of the week is Carrie Harris, a f...

The Artful Dodger

October 14, 2021 04:00 - 17 minutes

This week, while Mark’s on book tour and Stephanie is dancing with diapers, we’re bringing you a minisode with a special story of the impact of a single hungry draft dodger. Enjoy! On October 19 at 12pm ET, Liel will be moderating a live discussion along with Manya Brachear Pashman of American Jewish Committee's podcast, People of the Pod. This is the first in a four-part series by Tablet Magazine and AJC titled “21st Century Europe and the Jews”, which aims to address timely issues related t...

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