Sesame Hamentashn: Burt & Arnie, the Purimman’s Friends

J.J. Goldberg March 7, 2011

Bert and Ernie, as portrayed by Burt (Visotzky) and Arnie (Eisen), have fun arguing over who’s got the bigger Hamentash.

Coincidentally or no, one is an ordained rabbi, former PBS star, friend of Bill Moyers and author of an unlikely hot-selling 1997 re-examination of Genesis. The other is a professor of the sociology of religion, friend of Steven Cohen and author of a modestly selling 2000 re-examination of the Torah. On the other hand, one is the Appleman Professor of Midrash and Interreligious Studies and director of the Louis Finkelstein Institute for Religious and Social Studies at the Jewish Theological Seminary. The other runs the Jewish Theological Seminary. Guess who gets the bigger Hamentash? See how they handle the allocation of their uneven assets.

J.J. Goldberg is editor emeritus of the Forward, where he served as editor in chief for seven years (2000-2007).

The views and opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Forward. Discover more perspectives in Opinion. To contact Opinion authors, email opinion@forward.com.

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