arts & culture
Jewish Bizarre Podcast
Ashley Zlatopolosky
A new podcast is taking listeners
down a rabbit hole of bizarre
Jewish history.

Released in November, the “Jewish
Bizarre Podcast,” a new project from
Reboot, a Jewish arts and culture nonprofi t
and development platform (rebooting.

com), explores little-known pockets of
Jewish history that are strange, mysteri-
ous and often downright shocking.

In fact, podcast host Eddy Portnoy
calls it a “Jewish Atlas Obscura of histor-
ical material.”
“It’s the strange corners of history that
most historians don’t deal with,” he said,
“and that most people don’t even know
about.” The “Jewish Bizarre Podcast” is the
inaugural podcast of the new Reboot
Presents Podcast Network, which
features top idiosyncratic Jewish person-
alities. It’s produced by executive produc-
ers David Katznelson and Noam Dromi
and engineered by Jonathan London.

This new podcast features Portnoy,
academic adviser for the Max Weinreich
Center and exhibition curator at the
YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, as
one of three co-hosts who join ranks to
discuss the Jewish bizarre.

Podcast hosts also include Tony
Michels, professor of Jewish American
history at the University of Wisconsin-
Madison, and Jessica Chaffi n, writer,
comedian and host of the popular podcast
“Ask Ronna.” Together, they explore the
strangest corners of Jewish history.

The Topics Not Taught in
Hebrew School
Episodes are released weekly and
tackle everything from how an 1875
murder changed the perception of Jews
forever, to false messiahs and wrestling
rabbis, to even Jewish stereotypes such
as nose shape and how that impacted
the world’s view on Jews.

While all episodes are unique in their
own way, Portnoy, who is based in
Harlem, says one of the most bizarre is
about the Tonsil Riots of 1906, which the
podcast dives deeply into.

“In 1906, on the Lower East Side,
50,000 Jewish mothers rioted because
their children’s tonsils were taken out in
public schools,” Portnoy, 57, explained.

“It was really a major uproar and it’s an
unusual moment in Jewish history.”
This story, Portnoy said, is represen-
tative of the “Jewish Bizarre Podcast”
as a whole. “It’s one of the ones that I
fi nd appealing and exciting because it
reveals aspects of Jewish life that very
few people know about,” he continued.

Portnoy said each podcast episode
was researched extensively and that
listeners can expect a mix of humor,
seriousness and, of course, very shock-
ing stories.

“The historical aspect is serious, but
it’s dealt with in a lighthearted manner,”
he said. “Tony and I bring the content,
but Jessica draws it out in really clever
and humorous ways.”
Discussing stereotypes in particular,
Portnoy said, has become more important
than ever given the recent rise in public
Podcast hosts Portnoy, Jessica Chaffi n and Tony Michels
antisemitism, even if those stereotypes
are approached from an edge of humor.

“Stereotypes aff ect Jews adversely,”
he said, “and especially now that’s really
come to the forefront and become very
problematic.” Learning More About the Bizarre
To help listeners better understand each
episode, the “Jewish Bizarre Podcast”
has released an episode guide that
includes defi nitions for key terms, pho-
tographs, newspaper clippings, artwork
and additional visual resources and links
for reading.

Episodes drop weekly and can
be found on major podcast listening
platforms, including Apple Podcasts and
Spotify. Listeners can also fi nd them on
the Reboot website.

Following its release of the “Jewish
Bizarre Podcast,” Reboot Presents will
soon release top episodes from previ-
ous Reboot podcasts, including “The
Kibitz,” “Kasher v. Kasher,” “Closening”
and “In Quarantine with Steve Bodow”
as other new content is in production.

The “Jewish Bizarre Podcast” episode
guide includes “Only Murder in the
Shtetl,” which explores a famous murder;
“Jewish Anarchists and the Yom Kippur
Balls,” which discusses how young
Eastern European Jewish immigrants
discovered anarchism; and “The Tonsil
Riots and other Jewish Uprisings,” which
dives into the strangest Jewish riots.

Episodes also include “Jewish
Geniuses, Idiots and the Greatest Mohel,”
which explores the age-old question of
whether there really are more Jewish
geniuses; and “The Strange World of
Nosology and the Jewish Shnozz,” which
debunks the long-running stereotypes
surrounding Jews and nose shape.

Throughout the episodes, podcast
hosts discuss what it ultimately means
to be Jewish and share their personal
stories that relate to Judaism’s most
bizarre topics.

“The reception for our topics has been
pretty strong,” Portnoy said. “There’s
defi nitely interest there.” ■
Ashley Zlatopolsky is a writer for the
Detroit Jewish News, where this fi rst
appeared. Todd, Howard, and Zachary Katz, want to BUY your:
Meet us at our office (appointments preferred) or we will come to you:
Katz Imports
723 Sansom Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106
215-238-0197 Howard’s cell: 215-850-6405 | Diamondpaige2@hotmail.com
20 JANUARY 19, 2023 | JEWISH EXPONENT
Courtesy of Detroit Jewish News
diamonds, gold, watches, silver, coins, and estate jewelry.

We have been buying in the Delaware Valley for over 44 years
and we pay more because we know the value of
your diamonds & jewelry.