Larry David gives Jon Hamm a Yiddish lesson in very Jewish start to new season of ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’
Jon Hamm and Larry David discuss Yiddish words during the first episode of Season 11 of “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”
Spoiler alert: This article contains plot details from Episode 1 of Season 11 of “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”
(JTA) — Matzo balls, shiva calls and a Yiddish lesson all played a role in the first episode of the 11th season of “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” which premiered on HBO Sunday night.
The episode offered a case study in why “Curb” has been called “the most Jewish comedy show ever” and suggests that Larry David, its writer, producer and star, has no intention of ceding that mantle.
Breaking News: Jon Hamm says “basheret.” ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ #BREAKING JonHamm #CurbYourEnthusiasm @HBO #Jewy #basheret pic.twitter.com/qVxGt4P1ex
— (((Malina Saval))) (@Malinasaval) October 25, 2021
The episode’s dual storylines each had Jewish elements: In one, David auditions actresses for his new show, using a scene that involves eating a matzah ball at a Passover seder. For his own reasons, he chooses a contender who mispronounces “seder” like “cedar” and “bubbie” as “boobay.”
The other main storyline is about a memorial service that David’s friend Albert Brooks, the famous Jewish actor whose given name is Albert Einstein, throws for himself while he is still alive.
The actor Jon Hamm arrives wearing a torn black ribbon, customarily worn by Jewish mourners to approximate the tradition of rending one’s clothing upon learning of the death of a close family member. David asks why.
“You know, the shiva … the rending of the clothes,” says Hamm, who is not Jewish, using the Hebrew word for the seven-day mourning period that begins after burial.
“Wow, you’re really going Jewy here, aren’t you?” David said.
Hamm then consults with David on the appropriate use of the Yiddish word “bashert,” meaning “destiny.” Can he say, he asks, “I’m feeling a lot of bashert at the loss of our friend Albert”?
David offers an alternative with the Yiddish word “tsuris,” meaning troubles, even spelling it out for Hamm. Hamm deploys the word during his eulogy, shortly before it takes a dramatic turn after a revelation about how Brooks behaved during the pandemic, which in the show’s world is long over. Filming was delayed on the new season, which came as a surprise to the show’s devoted fans, because of COVID-19.
— The post Larry David gives Jon Hamm a Yiddish lesson in very Jewish start to new season of ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
