Amusing Jews

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independent educational organization dedicated to the research, collection, and exhibition of original manuscripts and historical documents.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...

Barbara “Willy” Mendes is a fine artist and underground comix pioneer whose new anthology, Queen of Cosmos Comix Trilogy, is published by Fantagraphics.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Queen of Cosmos Comix Trilogy https://www.fantagraphics.com/products/queen-of-cosmos-comix-trilogy   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merc...

Michael Kimmel is a SUNY distinguished professor emeritus of sociology and gender studies at Stony Brook University, whose latest book is Playmakers: The Jewish Entrepreneurs Who Created the Toy Industry in America.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Playmakers https://wwnorton.com/books/9781324105282   Michael’s website https://www.michaelkimm...

Johanna Silver is a garden writer and author of the book, Growing Weed in the Garden: A No-Fuss, Seed-to-Stash Guide to Outdoor Cannabis Cultivation.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Growing Weed in the Garden https://www.abramsbooks.com/product/growing-weed-in-the-garden_9781419742767/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/m...

Peter Kuper is a prolific cartoonist whose work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Nation, Charlie Hebdo, and MAD magazine. He’s the author of numerous books, including the graphic novels Kafkaesque and Insectopolis: A Natural History. His latest book, Wish We Weren’t Here: Postcards from the Apocalypse, is published by Fantagraphics.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Produc...

Michael Seth Starr is a prolific biographer whose books include Don Rickles: The Merchant of Venom.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Michael’s website https://www.michaelsethstarr.com/   Don Rickles: The Merchant of Venom https://www.kensingtonbooks.com/9780806541747/don-rickles/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/...

Rena Strober is a Broadway, television, film, and voice actor who’s currently working on a memoir, Singing for Sid and Other Wow Moments.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Joey Angel-Field   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/   Subscribe to the Amusing Jews podcast https://www.spreaker.com/show/amusing-jews   Adat Chaverim – Congr...

We’re thrilled to chat with Mark Rubin, Jew of Oklahoma, a multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter whose latest album is Dispatches: Songs from a World Gone Mad.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Mark’s website https://www.jewofoklahoma.com/   Mark’s Bandcamp https://jewofoklahoma.bandcamp.com/   Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience ht...

Deborah F. Blum is an artist, educator, and documentary filmmaker whose latest film is Laemmle’s List.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Laemmle’s List https://www.laemmleslist.com/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/   Subscribe to the Amusing Jews podcast https://www.spreaker.com/show/amusing-jews   Adat Chaverim...

Mathew Klickstein is an author and pop culture historian whose books have covered such topics as Nickelodeon, The Simpsons, The San Diego Comic-Con, and Lloyd Kaufman, president and co-founder of Troma Entertainment.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Mathew's website https://www.mathewklickstein.com/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amus...

Alan Bernstein is a filmmaker whose latest documentary is When We Went MAD!   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   When We Went MAD! https://tubitv.com/movies/100047417/when-we-went-mad   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/merch#!/   Subscribe to the Amusing Jews podcast https://www.spreaker.com/show/amusing-jews   Adat Chaverim –...

  Jeff Newelt is a veteran PR and social media macher who has worked with Harvey Pekar, Art Spiegelman, Al Jaffee, the Zappa family, and many more.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Jeff’s LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jahfurry/   Jeff on Harvey Pekar https://forward.com/culture/books/139783/harvey-pekar-our-mensch-in-cleveland/   Jeff...

Yossi Yovel is an ecologist, neurobiologist, and author of The Genius Bat: The Secret Life of the Only Flying Mammal.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   The Genius Bat https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250378446/thegeniusbat/   The BAT LAB for Neuro-Ecology https://www.yovelbatlab.com/   Amusing Jews Merch Store https://www.amusingjews.com/mer...

Arie Kaplan is a prolific writer of non-fiction, television, graphic novels, video games, and transmedia. His new book is The Encyclopedia of Curious Rituals and Superstitions.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   The Encyclopedia of Curious Rituals and Superstitions https://www.quarto.com/books/9781577154624/the-encyclopedia-of-curious-rituals-a...

We’re delighted to chat with Andrew Rubin, a filmmaker and author whose debut novel is Hell or High Winter.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer: Mike Tomren   Andrew’s website https://www.hellorhighwinter.com/   Hell or High Winter https://rarebirdlit.com/hell-or-high-winter-book-one-in-a-holy-trinity-by-andrew-rubin/   Symptom Media https://symptommedia.com/...

Mark Rutzick is a retired attorney who was twice appointed to the federal government’s Senior Executive Service. His new book is Breaking New Ground: The Untold Story of Early America’s Jewish Electoral Pioneers—1788 to 1920.   Co-hosts: Jonathan Friedmann & Joey Angel-Field   Producer-engineer Mike Tomren   Mark’s website http://www.markrutzick.com/   Breaking New Ground https://www.amazon.co...