Party On
Ep. 310: Reveling on Purim, celebrating 100 years of the bat mitzvah, and revisiting a ‘Preppy Handbook’ parody
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, we hear an essay from lawyer and writer Emma Sokoloff-Rubin about growing to love her curly Jewish hair.
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) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.
Check out Tablet’s monthlong interfaith project, The Tent, at welcometothetent.com.
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.
We’ve got events coming up!
April 7 — We’ll be doing a live show at the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art, hosted by the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, with schmoozing and book-signing afterward. 7:30 p.m. EDT; get your tickets here.
April 11 (virtual) — Stephanie Butnick will be in conversation with authors Lisa Barr (Woman on Fire) and James McAuley (The House of Fragile Things: Jewish Art Collectors and the Fall of France). 7 p.m. EDT; register here.
Get all our events info at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive.
Check out The Tab, Tablet magazine’s new printable weekly digest. Laid out in an attractive PDF for reading on a tablet or desktop, or to be printed, The Tab takes you into Shabbat and through the weekend, for free. Get your copy at tabletm.ag/tab.
Want to book us for a live show or event in your area, or partner with us in some other way? Email Tanya Singer at [email protected].
Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts.
Sponsors:
KOL Foods offers healthy, sustainable, kosher meat and poultry. Use code UnorthodoxPesach for 10% off your order at kolfoods.com.
ChaiFlicks, the Jewish streaming service, features the best TV and film from across the Jewish world. Get your first month’s subscription for only $3 by using code UNORTHODOX at checkout at www.chaiflicks.com.
- UnorthodoxStepping OutEp. 366: Comedian Modi on ‘moshiach energy’ and coming out, and Father James Martin on his work addressing LGBTQ issues within the Catholic ChurchJune 8, 2023
- UnorthodoxAll That JazzEp. 365: ‘Afghan Dreamers’ producer David Cowan, and a trip across the JEW.S.A. to New Orleans for Jazz Fest ShabbatJune 1, 2023
- UnorthodoxUnorthodox 2.0Ep. 364: Welcoming our new co-host Joshua Malina; plus interviews with ‘Jewish Matchmaking’ producer Aaron Saidman and ‘Leopoldstadt’ actor Aaron NeilMay 25, 2023
- UnorthodoxThe Conversion Episode, 2023Ep. 363: Celebrating Shavuot by honoring all of our Jewish journeysMay 18, 2023
- UnorthodoxThe Long GameEp. 362: Rabbi Ari Lamm on spirituality in the NBA Playoffs; journalist Gabby Deutch on a Jewish cold case; and an up-close look at Maimonides’ 12th-century manuscripts May 11, 2023
- UnorthodoxThe Maine EventEp. 361: Nosh with Tash’s Natasha Feldman’s ‘The Dinner Party Project,’ and a trip Across the Jew.S.A. to Portland, MaineMay 4, 2023
- UnorthodoxThe Final FribbleEp. 360: Celebrating outgoing host Mark Oppenheimer with laughs, ’90s nostalgia, and a trip to Friendly’s April 27, 2023
- UnorthodoxComing HomeEp. 359: Jonathan Rosen on ‘The Best Minds’; a visit to Armenia; and a look at the history of Zionism on Israel’s 75th birthdayApril 20, 2023
- UnorthodoxListen and LearnEp. 358: Podcast macher Arielle Nissenblatt, Andrea Wakefield on Italian American cooking in Delaware, and a look inside the National Library of Israel’s collectionApril 13, 2023
- UnorthodoxPassover 101Ep. 357: Everything you need to pull off a meaningful and memorable SederApril 5, 2023
- UnorthodoxAcross the Jew.S.A: Louisville, KentuckyEp. 356: The bourbon industry’s surprising Jewish history, plus a ‘Seinfeld’ connection and much moreMarch 31, 2023
- UnorthodoxIn BloomEp. 355: Chanie Apfelbaum on her new kosher cookbook; celebrating baseball’s opening day with Zack Hample; and a new project from one of our hostsMarch 30, 2023
- UnorthodoxSesame ShtiselEp. 354: Grover does Passover, plus Ruth Markel on trauma and grandparent alienation, and Indian comedian Zarna Garg on learning from the Jews March 23, 2023
- UnorthodoxBunny BusinessEp. 353: Hen Mazzig on fighting antisemitism online and Gabriel Said Reynolds on teaching about Islam on YouTubeMarch 16, 2023
- UnorthodoxTuning InEp. 352: Jeremy Dauber on Jewish comedy and Mel Brooks, and Clueless’ Elisa Donovan on her acting—and writing—careerMarch 9, 2023
- UnorthodoxThe Whole MegillahEp. 351: Rethinking Purim, plus a visit to Shemesh Farms in Malibu, CaliforniaMarch 2, 2023
- UnorthodoxThreading the NeedleEp. 350: Ashley McKinless and Zac Davis on Jesuitical and Lent and traveling across the JEW.S.A. to Seattle February 23, 2023
- UnorthodoxNew WaveEp. 349: David Sax on ‘The Future Is Analog’ and William Finnegan on surfing February 16, 2023