Why Are Jews So Funny?

From The Confession of an American Jew in The Morning News, by the very funny and very Jewish Wayne Gladstone (not pictured right)…

A friend once asked why there are so many Jews in comedy. I must confess: The question struck me as dangerous‚Äîakin to asking why so many Greeks own diners. Still, he was hardly the first to make the association. The relationship between Jews and comedy frequently has been noted by scholars, serious talk-show hosts, and pudgy AEŒ† guys…

I simply didn’t know why there were there so many Jews in comedy. My Hebrew school certainly didn’t offer credits in stand-up, and I was pretty sure there wasn’t an “earlier, funnier” Torah. It bothered me that I didn’t have a better answer then, and it took me a long time before I realized I was making a mistake by focusing on the Jew in isolation. If Jew plus America equaled comedy, then there had to be something funny about that combination—and there is.

In America, Jews are a white minority. Think about that: We can live comfortably, practice freely, and bowl adequately. But being a Jew in America is like using left-handed scissors: You can make it work, but it just doesn’t feel right. This is Jesusland. Always has been, always will be.

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