Yid Vid
Yid Vid: Obama’s Not the Only One Conjuring Washington and Lincoln
Barack Obama, as we all know by now, is quite fond of summoning up the spirit of Abraham Lincoln. That’s why it was such a surprise when the presidential predecessor Obama decided to invoke in his inaugural address was not “Honest Abe” but the fellow who (as lore has it) could not tell a lie about chopping down a cherry tree. But our new president isn’t the only one conjuring the spirits of the American Cincinnatus and the Great Emancipator for elevated purposes:
Yid Vid: Hanukkah in Santa Monica — a Great Miracle Didn’t Happen There
As Hanukkah nears its end, the good folks at Temple Emanuel in Cherry Hill, N.J., can breathe easily. Their world-record of 541 dreidels spinning simultaneously has withstood a challenge mounted by Sha’arei Am in Santa Monica, Calif.:
Eighth Night Yid Vid: What Is This Hanukkah Thing All About?
So we’ve had seven nights of Hanukkah videos. We’ve watched singing cowboys, rapping Jewesses, will.i.am impersonators, melodious philosemitism, a comic spilling the beans on George Clooney, Adam Sandler dropping names, and Lipa Schmeltzer doing his thing. But, a viewer might fairly complain, we still don’t have any better sense of what this holiday is all about than when we began. Fair enough.
Seventh Night Yid Vid: A Little Bit of Lipa
Ain’t no Hanukkah song like a Hanukkah song sung by Hasidic pop giant Lipa Schmeltzer (alas, it’s only a promo, so it gets cut off a little abruptly):
Sixth Night Yid Vid: When the Zohan Named Names
Before “You Don’t Mess With the Zohan,” there was the “Chanukah Song”:
Fourth Night Yid Vid: Very Jewish Christmas Wishes
Maybe she can get in touch with this guy, if and when he gets his Christmas wish:
Third Night Yid Vid: Chabad Channels Will.i.am
Yes, Chabad of Malibu can light your menorah. Like will.i.am’s pro-Obama video upon which it is based, the Chabad video features a woman saying “Yes we can” in Hebrew. Unlike the will.i.am video, Chabad doesn’t have Jewish/Danish-American actress Scarlett Johansson — or any other women for that matter — singing along. For which, of course, there’s a ready explanation. That, however, begs the question: Did the folks who made or performed in the Chabad video allow themselves to listen to the original?
Second Night Yid Vid: Hip-Hop Hooray for Hanukkah
Be forewarned, it’s a little crude, a little rude, but then again, what would you expect from a hip-hop defense of Hanukkah:
First Night Yid Vid: Mamas, Don’t Let Your Cowboys Grow Up To Play With Dreidels
Last December, the Bintel Blog marked the Festival of Lights and Latkes with eight crazy nights of offbeat Hanukkah-themed videos for your viewing enjoyment. We watched intergalactic, interfaith warfare; dancing Israeli donuts; Aussie punk rockers; manic terrorists; soulful (and not as soulful) holiday songs; NBA stars playing defense, (faux) O.G. hip-hop straight outta Pico-Robertson; and gambling monkeys.