Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
The Schmooze

Topless Josh Radnor Ordered By Judge To Stay Away From Neighbors

Imagine this: it’s a beautiful afternoon in sunny Los Angeles. You’ve stepped outside to enjoy your spacious property. Suddenly, a shirtless man bursts out of his home, eyes wild. He leers at you, screaming, as another man appears from the same house, also screaming. They begin to take your picture. Wait! One of the men is “How I Met Your Mother” star Josh Radnor!

This is the picture Radnor’s neighbors paint of his behavior. According to TMZ, Radnor and his roommate have been in a long dispute with their next-door neighbors over their property line. When Radnor built what TMZ claims was a 1,300 foot, $130,000 deck, the neighbors claimed that the addition extended into their property, eventually obtaining permission from the City of Los Angeles to have the deck destroyed.

Now, the neighbors claim Radnor is making their lives miserable. Haunting their comings and their goings like a screaming, shirtless mezuzah, Radnor, the neighbors claim, harasses them and any of their guests whenever they enter or exit their own property. Now, a temporary restraining order issued by a judge will ensure that Radnor stays 7 yards away from them while they’re at home.

Now, there are just so many questions about this.

1.Radnor, a Jew who grew up attending Orthodox day schools, has always coasted on a Nice Jewish Boy vibe. Is he nice, or not? Was it always just an act, or has he been corrupted? Is this a healthy expression of rage that will help him avoid turning into a sad sack Philip Roth knockoff, or is he actually harassing the neighbors? American — nay — world Jewry needs to know.

2.Why do the neighbors care that he’s shirtless? Is this finally the turning of the tides against male shirtlessness we’ve all been waiting for? Will men be forced to cover up the way women are soon? Cutting edge stuff, here.

3.Why do they want their neighbors’ pictures? Is it a commentary on celebrity, i.e. the celebrity turns the camera on the viewer?

4.Why does Josh Radnor, a 44 year-old whose worth is estimated in the tens of millions, have a roommate?

We’re praying for a return to shalom bayit for one and all.

Jenny Singer is the deputy lifestyle editor for the Forward. You can reach her at Singer@forward.com or on Twitter @jeanvaljenny

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.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at editorial@forward.com, subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.

Exit mobile version