Tablet Studios

This week on Unorthodox, we’re kicking off December with three very festive interviews. First up, designer Jonathan Adler and his husband, three–time Unorthodox guest Simon Doonan. Jonathan tells us about growing up with a one-room shul-house in rural southern New Jersey and how he developed his love for pottery and ceramics at summer camp. Simon talks about his new book, Drag: The Complete Story,...

Live from Detroit with Jackie Victor of Avalon International Breads and Phil Goldsmith of New York Bagel, plus a road trip to Zingerman's Deli in Ann Arbor, MI We talked carbohydrates and community on stage at the JCC of Metro Detroit with two Jewish guests who run Detroit institutions: Jackie Victor, CEO and co-founder of Avalon International Breads, and Phil Goldsmith, fourth-generation owner of...

This week on Unorthodox, we’re coming to you from, well, all over the place. First, we check in on our hosts to see what was up when they were in Cincinnati this past weekend, and we even get some news fresh from Cincinnati’s Jewish newspaper, The American Israelite. Our first Jewish guests are Mike Solomonov and Steve Cook, co-owners of the James Beard award-winning restaurant Zahav and several o...

This week on Unorthodox, we’re coming to you from Temple Beth El in Stamford, CT. Our Jewish guest is Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, author of more than 15 books, including the recently updated and reissued Words that Hurt, Words that Heal. Rabbi Telushkin tells us about the most common types of questions he fields as a rabbi, why he’s so interested in Jewish laws of ethical speech, and what he learned f...

We’re taking this week off, but we wanted to bring you an unedited look into a conversation Mark was desperate to set up between two of his friends, Liel Leibovitz and Jay Michaelson.  These are two Jews who are very in sync in some ways, but extremely different in others.  Come explore with them as they talk about some of the most important issues we’re all facing.

This week on Unorthodox, comedian Nick Kroll returns to the show to talk about 'Big Mouth,' his raunchy Netflix animated show about puberty, now in its third season. He tells us about hosting Purim talent shows with 'Big Mouth' co-creator Andrew Goldberg at their Jewish day school in Westchester, NY, explains how his own adolescent experiences influenced the show, and shares his bar mitzvah horror...

This week on Unorthodox, we're marking the one-year anniversary of the Tree of Life shooting in Pittsburgh, which occurred on October 27, 2019. Two days after the shooting, we aired a special episode recorded from Pittsburgh, featuring voices from the community. This year we're revisiting the horror of the massacre and checking in with local Pittsburgh Jews about their reflections one year later....

This week on Unorthodox, we're celebrating all the Jewish holidays, including reaching our 200th episode! We talk to a gematria expert to find out just what the number 200 symbolizes in Jewish numerology, and hear some words of wisdom from our boss, Alana Newhouse. Our first guest is Jodi Kantor, co-author of the new book 'She Said,' which details the allegations of sexual misconduct against Harve...

This week on Unorthodox, a special live show recorded at the San Francisco JCC. We’re joined by guest host Bari Weiss, New York Times opinion editor and writer and the author of How to Fight Anti-Semitism [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/616727/how-to-fight-anti-semitism-by-bari-weiss/]. We also talk to New Yorker writer Andrew Marantz, author of the new book Antisocial: Online Extremists...

The Newish Jewish Encyclopedia, our guide to all things Jewish (and Jew-ish), is here! To celebrate, we put together a very special episode featuring some familiar voices. Get a taste of the book from its contributors and hear about famous Jews, favorite holidays, and beloved Jewish foods from Mario Cantone, Corey Feldman, Tovah Feldshuh, Bethenny Frankel, Gilbert Gottfried, Steve Guttenberg, Tone...

We're closing the book on 5779 with our fifth-annual apology episode (listen to previous year's episodes here [https://www.tabletmag.com/tag/unorthodox-apology]). Join us for stories of apologies, discussions about friendship, and an exploration of one of the most controversial figures in recent Jewish history. First we talk to our Tablet colleague Marjorie Ingall, who co-edits the site SorryWatch...

This week we're going to party like it's 5779, while we still can. First we sit down with Samantha Frank and Rena Singer, the rabbi and rabbinical student behind Modern Ritual, which models passionate, feminist Jewish life and content on Instagram. They tell us why they're they're thinking beyond congregational posts, and why they believe social media is the way to connect with young Jews today. W...

Join us for 'The Newish Jewish Encyclopedia' launch party next Wednesday, Sept. 18 at 7:30 p.m. at the JCC Manhattan! There will be wine from our friends at Unorthodox Wines, and you'll be able to buy the book two weeks before its official publication date! Can't make it? Preorder the book and you could win a Zabar's gift basket! To enter, forward a copy of your receipt or confirmation to unorthod...

 'The Newish Jewish Encyclopedia,' our guide to all things Jewish (and Jew-ish), is out next month! Pre-order your copy today and you could win a Zabar's gift basket—to enter, forward a copy of your receipt or confirmation to unorthodox@tabletmag.com. This week, two more Jewish guests! We sit down with food writer Adeena Sussman, whose new cookbook is Sababa: Fresh, Sunny Flavors From My Israeli K...

If you enjoy this podcast, there's something you can do to help keep us going: Donate to the Unorthodox fundraiser and make us stronger in 5780 and beyond. This week, we're pledging our loyalty to Unorthodox with two amazing Jewish guests. Our first guest is actress Michaela Watkins, who you've seen in Casual, Transparent, and The New Adventures of Old Christine. She's in the new film Brittany Run...

This week: a special update from Stephanie’s apartment and a reminder to donate to the Unorthodox fundraiser! Gifts of $180 and above get you a hot-off-the-press copy of our forthcoming book, The Newish Jewish Encyclopedia; gifts of any size get you our eternal love and appreciation. Let us know what you think of the show! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener lin...

Don't forget to donate to the Unorthodox fundraiser! Help us keep going strong in 5780 and beyond. This week on Unorthodox: A whole lot of Jewish guests! First we sit down with Cindy Chupack, an Emmy-winning TV writer and producer who's worked on shows like Sex and the City, Modern Family, and Everybody Loves Raymond. Her latest film, which she co-wrote and directed, is Otherhood, now streaming on...

Donate to the Unorthodox fundraising drive and help us keep going strong! Our Jewish guest is Taffy Brodesser-Akner, New York Times Magazine writer and author of Fleischman is in Trouble. She tells us about the moment she learned her debut novel was a New York Times bestseller, why she writes from such a specific—and jewish—place, and why people are always asking her about Philip Roth. Our Gentile...

It’s that time of the year: The Unorthodox fundraising drive! Help us keep going strong in 5780 and beyond—donate here. Our Jewish guest this week is Liz Feldman, writer and creator of Dead to Me, the new Netflix series starring Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini. She tells us about the Jewish elements of the hit traumedy which was just renewed for a second season. Our Gentile of the Week is...

We're off this week, recharging in various locations, but we didn't want to leave your feed completely empty.  Instead, Mark has a story he's been trying to find a place to tell for years. As our fourth birthday approaches, we wanted to expand our own creation myth, back to when Mark was 15 years old. Here's a few links for when you're done: First, take our survey here or at http://bit.ly/uosurvey...

This week in 'News of the Jews,' Israel's new Education Minister endorsed gay conversion therapy, a controversial and widely discredited practice. We're bringing you an interview (recorded before those comments were made) with Mathew Shurka founder of Born Perfect, an organization that lobbies against conversion therapy. Mathew tells us about his own experience—he spent five years in conversion th...

This episode was recorded live at the Hollis Hills Bayside Jewish Center in Queens. Our Jewish guest is Leon Neyfakh, who hosts the new podcast Fiasco, which tells the story of the 2000 election. He previously hosted two seasons of the hit podcast Slow Burn—the first focused on Watergate, and the second on the Clinton impeachment. He tells us why he focuses on what it was like to live through thes...

In honor of the 4th of July, we present our second-annual Jews Across America episode, celebrating the diversity of Jewish life throughout this great nation. (You can listen to last year's episode here) We have a bunch of star-studded guests! Blair Braverman, the second Jewish woman to complete the Iditarod, joined us at our Chicago live show with her dog, Flame, to tell us about how a Jewish girl...

Unorthodox is off this week, but we have something special for you instead. Mark Oppenheimer was a recent guest on Slate’s Trumpcast, where he explained everything you could ever want to know about Trump and the Jews.  Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. Follow us on Tw...

Our first Jewish guest this week is Matthew Futterman, deputy sports editor at the New York Times and author of the new book, Running to the Edge. A 23-time marathoner, Matt breaks down the major transformations in both professional and recreational running over the past few decades, and describes the more meditative aspects of the sport, explaining how running is, for him, a form of prayer. Our s...