The Borscht Belt Tattler

Chatting with special guest Larry Burday about Camp Beaumont (1964-1982), his family's summer camp in Parksville, New York.  Support the show Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe! Follow The Borscht Belt Tattler on socials! Instagram | Facebook | Twitter To learn more about Jen, follow her at @urbanyenta on Instagram.

Episode 80 with Ziggie Stern!  Enjoy the conversation and be a part of the action. Send me a message if you want to appear on a future episode! Support the show Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe! Follow The Borscht Belt Tattler on socials! Instagram | Facebook | Twitter To learn more about Jen, follow her at @urbanyenta on Instagram.

Eddy Portnoy from YIVO joins us on the pod this week! ​​​​​​​​ Eddy is an expert on Jewish popular culture and currently holds the position of Academic Advisor and Director of Exhibitions at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. At YIVO, Eddy helps illuminate Jewish history and culture through physical exhibits, events and presentations. He is also the author of the bestselling book Bad Rabbi An...

Born and raised in Monticello, NY, David Hantman recalls coming of age in the Borscht Belt, landing his first job at the Concord at the age of 16 and what it was like to work at the largest hotel in the region.  Support the show Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe! Follow The Borscht Belt Tattler on socials! Instagram | Facebook | Twitter To learn more about Jen, follow her at @urbanye...

My guest today is Josh Nadel and his family has been pickling for over three generations. It began with his grandfather, Shimmy the Pickle King, who started out making pickles in his basement. Shimmy sold his pickles at many of the Bungalow Colonies in the Catskill Mountains, and to various farmers markets under the company name, Shimmy's Pickles. 50 years later, Josh is carrying on that same...

My conversation with multitalented musician, singer, and storyteller Jake Ehrenreich. Head to jakeehrenreich.com   for more information. Support the show Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe! Follow The Borscht Belt Tattler on socials! Instagram | Facebook | Twitter To learn more about Jen, follow her at @urbanyenta on Instagram.

My conversation with Bart Charlow about his family's hotel, Charlow's Hotel Irvington of South Fallsburg, NY.  Support the show Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe! Follow The Borscht Belt Tattler on socials! Instagram | Facebook | Twitter To learn more about Jen, follow her at @urbanyenta on Instagram.

Comedian, actor and writer Mark Schiff is on the show today. His new book of humorous essays, “Why Not? Lessons on Comedy, Courage, and Chutzpah” is now available on Amazon. I had a blast chatting with Mark about his five decades performing standup comedy, growing up in the Bronx, moving to LA  and summer camp memories in the Catskills.  Check out Mark's upcoming performance dates at  marksch...

Marisa Scheinfeld and Louis Inghilterra make our Borscht dreams come true. Check out maytheborschtbewithyou.com and borschtbelthistoricalmarkerproject.org to learn more about the historical markers, subscribe to the newsletter and stay up to date on the project.  Support the show Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe! Follow The Borscht Belt Tattler on socials! Instagram | Facebook | Twi...

Welcome to a very special holiday edition of The Borscht Belt Tattler. On today's show we chat with comedian Lisa Geduldig who is the creator and host of Kung Pao Kosher Comedy. Kung Pao is an institution in San Francisco and one of the city’s longest-running comedy shows. For the last 30 years, Lisa has been producing and performing in this show that has boasted a Who’s Who of Jewish comedia...

Your mid week Borscht Belt fix is here and our guest is a former sheriff of South Fallsburg, New York. Alphonso Ray Gilmore was born in South Carolina but his family moved to Woodridge, New York, in search of a better life, escaping violence and the Jim Crow Laws that enforced racial segregation. Growing up in Sullivan County, Al served his community as Sheriff for 25 years and for 30 years in the...

Chatting with David Gold, author of Real Catskill Jews: Memories of Small-Town Life in Twentieth-Century America. Buy the book HERE . Support the show Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe! Follow The Borscht Belt Tattler on socials! Instagram | Facebook | Twitter To learn more about Jen, follow her at @urbanyenta on Instagram.

From Brooklyn to Beverly Hills: it's Bruce Charet, current scribe at the Friars Club veteran producer, entertainment manager and philanthropist.  Support the show Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe! Follow The Borscht Belt Tattler on socials! Instagram | Facebook | Twitter To learn more about Jen, follow her at @urbanyenta on Instagram.

Episode 68 with our favorite Bronx Boychik, Avi Hoffman, an internationally known actor, who specializes in Jewish culture and Yiddish theater. His long-running “Too Jewish ” trilogy has been seen by millions on PBS and in venues around the world. He has produced and presented shows throughout North America, Europe and Israel. International Festivals include Romania, Poland, New York, Toronto, Mon...

Are you ready to rock? Episode 67 is here to help!  This week's double dose of chutzpah features David Fishof, the founder and CEO of Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy Camp and I'm joined by special guest co-host Steve Gold of Yesteryearwear.  David is a music producer, sports agent, author and the founder and CEO of Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy Camp. In 2021, David's life was told...

Welcome to Episode 66 with veteran stand-up comedian, Eddie Brill. For 17 years he served as the audience warm-up comic for the late show with David Letterman and for 11 of those years, he was the Stand-Up Comedy Talent Coordinator. In our conversation, Eddie chats with me about his earliest Borscht Belt connection, he reflects on his unplanned career in comedy and how to overcome setbacks. Get to...

My conversation with actress, writer and comedian Cory Kahaney. We chat about about her earliest connection to the borscht belt, the first comedy show she ever saw there and how she continued to entertain in the few remaining bungalow colonies after most of the big hotels closed (which also inspired her play “Pastrami on Rye with Mayo). ​​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​​ Learn about Cory HERE : Follow Cory on Inst...

Lou Menchell was an American comedian and Borcht Belt regular who used Yiddish humor in his inpersonations, songs and standup act. Enjoy my conversation with his son, Emmy-nominated producer and writer Ivan Menchell, as he gives us a glimpse into his father's career. Listen to Lou Menchell, The Most Consistently Funny Comedian HERE . Support the show Don't forget to rate, review and subs...

Sitting down with Jerry Greenfield, author of “He Lost It in the Catskills.” Jerry Greenfield’s story is based on his actual experience of working as a waiter and busboy in the Borscht Belt for over ten summers. This book will bring back memories for anyone who spent summers in the area. Even if you’ve never been there, if you're looking for your next great read, this is still an episode you...

Happy (Canadian) Thanksgiving!  We are so thankful for today's guest, Sam Sadigursky who dropped in earlier this year to chat about The Solomon Diaries, a set of new music inspired by the dramatic rise and fall of the Borscht Belt. Get to know Sam HERE . Listen to The Solomon Diaries HERE . Follow The Borscht Belt Tattler on socials! Instagram | Facebook | Twitter Share your Borscht Belt Stor...

Are you ready to double up on your Borscht? Here's episode 61 with Barry Lewis. Barry is the former editor of the Times Herald-Record, where he worked for 20 years and wrote a weekly column about his life in the Catskills, and working at the various hotels as a busboy, waiter and pool manager. On today’s show, we dive into some of his favorite  memories and his work chronicling and preserving...

We're back (finally) and chatting with Comedian Joey Novick. Joey Novick is a professional stand-up comedian with appearances on MTV, Comedy Central and Rascal’s Comedy Hour. He's appeared at hundreds of comedy clubs across the US and Canada, and opened in concert at comedy clubs for Jerry Seinfeld, Robert Klein, David Brenner, Lewis Black, and Paul Reiser. You can seem Joey next at Cats...

My conversation with writer and photographer Andrea. Based in New York City, Andrea has devoted her efforts in the last several years to fiction and literary nonfiction, which includes  her published memoir/history, Bashert: A Granddaughter’s Holocaust Quest,  and her novel-in-stories, Floating in the Neversink, a coming of age story in the Catskill mountains .  Get to know Andrea and check out he...

It was vacationing at its best. Gary Dan is here to chat about Sha-wan-ga Lodge, his family's hotel from 1923-1972. And check out the massive tribute page Gary started with his late father Abby Dan at shawanga.com . Love what we're doing? Want to help? Here's how you can help us in our our mission to keep the keep the Borscht Belt alive:  Follow us on socials! Instagram | Facebook |...

Barry Mitchell is the Emmy-winning TV producer, comedy writer and musician known to millions of viewers as "Accordion Guy". His scathingly clever parodies and original songs have been featured on ABC-TV's World News Now, CNN Newsnight and ABC-TV's Primetime Live. As a sketch actor he's been seen on NBC Saturday Night Live, Caroline's Comedy Hour and Late Night with Co...