Amusing Jews

Mark Cohen is an author and journalist whose books include Overweight Sensation: The Life and Comedy of Allan Sherman.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-Engineer: Mike Tomren   Overweight Sensation https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/distributed/O/bo43634385.html   Mark’s website https://www.markcohenbooks.com/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews...

Josh Kleinberg is a heavy metal afficionado whose article, “Spreading the Disease: Heavy Metal Jews and the Secular Sacred,” was published in the Spring 2026 issue of Humanistic Judaism Magazine.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Humanistic Judaism Magazine https://shj.org/meaning-learning/humanistic-judaism-magazine/   Amusing Jews Merch Stor...

Yale Strom is one of the world’s leading ethnographer-artists of klezmer and Romani music, history, and culture. His latest novel is The Autobiography of The Offenbacher.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   The Autobiography of The Offenbacher https://olympiapublishersusa.com/books/the-autobiography-of-the-offenbacher   Yale’s website https://ww...

Ari Ashkenazi is a retired professor of anthropology of art and arts education whose latest memoir is Retracing My Steps: A Queer Memoir.   Retracing My Steps https://www.amazon.com/Retracing-My-Steps-Queer-Memoir/dp/B0HG87VNXY/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/   Subscribe to the Amusing Jews podcast https://www.spreaker.com/show/amusing-jews   Ad...

Elizabeth Stordeur Pryor is a professor of history at Smith College and author of the new book, Something We Said: Richard Pryor, a Notorious Word, and Me.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Something We Said https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Something-We-Said/Elizabeth-Stordeur-Pryor/9781982154509   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.am...

Jacques Berlinerblau is the Rabbi Harold White Professor of Jewish Civilization at Georgetown University and author of The Philip Roth We Don’t Know: Sex, Race, and Autobiography.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   The Philip Roth We Don’t Know https://www.upress.virginia.edu/title/5393/   Jacques’ website https://www.jberlinerblau.com/   Amusi...

Joe D’Esposito is a comic book artist and painter whose latest graphic novel, The Outsider, is published by Fantagraphics.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   The Outsider https://www.fantagraphics.com/products/the-outsider   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/   Subscribe to the Amusing Jews podcast https://www.spreake...

Michael Isaac Shokrian is publisher of the Thieving Magpie literary quarterly and author of the new novel, American Playground.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-Engineer: Mike Tomren   Michael’s website https://www.mishokrian.com/   the Thieving Magpie https://thievingmagpie.org/about/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/   Subscribe to th...

Yona Verwer is a Dutch-born multidisciplinary visual artist based in New York City and founder of the Jewish Art Salon, a global network of contemporary Jewish visual artists and scholars.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Yona’s website https://www.yonaverwer.com/   Jewish Art Salon https://jewishartsalon.org/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https...

Hannah Eve Rothbard is a multimedia artist, curator, and writer based in New York City.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Hannah’s website https://www.hannaheverothbard.com/   81 Leonard Gallery https://81leonardgallery.com/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/   Subscribe to the Amusing Jews podcast https://www.spre...

Ascendants: Technology, Corporate Power, & Humanity’s Future – with sci-fi author Don Schechter     Don Schechter is an author, filmmaker, and film & media studies professor at Tufts University. His debut sci-fi novel is Ascendants.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Ascendants https://ascendantsbook.com/ No Win Scenario – podcast https...

Julian David Stone is an author, photographer, and filmmaker whose novels include The Strange Birth, Short Life, and Sudden Death of Justice Girl.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Julian’s website https://www.juliandavidstone.com/   Justice Girl https://www.juliandavidstone.com/home-1-1   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/m...

Alex Shvartsman is a prolific science-fiction author whose latest novel is The Best of All Possible Planets.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   The Best of All Possible Planets https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ufopublishing/the-best-of-all-possible-planets   The Best of All Possible Planets – audiobook preview https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

Jacques Berlinerblau is the Rabbi Harold White Professor of Jewish Civilization at Georgetown University and author of the new book, Can We Laugh at That? Comedy in a Conflicted Age.   Can We Laugh at That? https://www.ucpress.edu/books/can-we-laugh-at-that/hardcover   Jacques website https://www.jberlinerblau.com/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/   Subscribe to the...

Mathew Klickstein is a pop culture historian and author of See You At San Diego: An Oral History of Comic-Con, Fandom, and the Triumph of Geek Culture. Gus Krueger is an art director and designer for the theme park industry and the son of Comic-Con co-founder Ken Krueger.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   San Diego Comic-Con Oral History Panel...

Steven Lee Beeber is a freelance journalist and author of The Heebie-Jeebies at CBGB’s: A Secret History of Jewish Punk.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   The Heebie-Jeebies at CBGB https://www.chicagoreviewpress.com/the-heebie-jeebies-at-cbgb-s-products-9781556527616.php   Steven’s website http://www.jewpunk.com/   Amusing Jews Merch Store ht...

Adrienne DeArmas is director of the Shapell Roster of Jewish Service in the American Civil War at the Shapell Manuscript Foundation, an independent educational organization dedicated to the research, collection, and exhibition of original manuscripts and historical documents.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Shapell Manuscript Foundation http...

Patrick McGilligan is a biographer and film historian whose books include, Funny Man: Mel Brooks.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Funny Man: Mel Brooks harpercollins.com/products/funny-man-patrick-mcgilligan   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/   Subscribe to the Amusing Jews podcast https://www.spreaker.com/show/a...

Director Gaylen Ross and producer Carol King have a new documentary, Sapiro v. Ford: The Jew Who Sued Henry Ford.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Sapiro v. Ford https://sapirovford.com/   GR Films https://www.grfilmsinc.com/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/   Subscribe to the Amusing Jews podcast https://www.sp...

Joe Alterman is an Altana-based jazz pianist and executive director of the Neranenah Concert and Culture Series.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Joe’s website https://www.joealtermanmusic.com/   Joe’s Bandcamp https://joealterman.bandcamp.com/   Joe’s Substack https://joealterman.substack.com/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingje...

Eric Beck Rubin is an author and academic whose new novel is Ten Clear Days.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Ten Clear Days https://www.turtlepointpress.com/books/ten-clear-days/   Eric’s website https://www.ericbeckrubin.com/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/   Subscribe to the Amusing Jews podcast https://www....

Barb Rosenstock is a picture book author whose latest book is Houdini’s Library.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Houdini’s Library https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/712436/houdinis-library-by-barb-rosenstock-illustrated-by-mar-delmar/   Barb’s website https://barbrosenstock.com/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/m...

Command Sergeant Major (Retired) Samuel P. Yudin recently retired from the California Army National Guard and is president of the Jewish American Military Historical Society.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   The Jewish American Military Historical Society https://jewishmilitary.org/   Samuel P. Yudin Award https://alephmilitary.org/2025-csm-s...

Kim Deitch is a prolific cartoonist who’s been making comics since the underground movement of the 1960s. His latest book is How I Make Comics, published by Fantagraphics.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer Mike Tomren   How I make Comics https://www.fantagraphics.com/products/how-i-make-comics   Kim’s Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Deitch   Amus...

Michael Seth Starr is a prolific biographer whose books include Nothin’ Comes Easy: The Life of Rodney Dangerfield.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Michael’s website https://www.michaelsethstarr.com/   Nothin’ Comes Easy https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/770877/nothin-comes-easy-by-michael-seth-starr/9780806543239/   Amusing Jews Merc...