Noam
Welcome to Wondering Jews with Mijal and Noam. This podcast is our way of trying to unpack those big questions about Israel, about Judaism, and about the Jewish experience. Today, I have the great fortune to have sitting next to me Raanan Hirschberg. What’s up Raanan?
Raanan
I thought I was thinking, you’re going to pronounce my name more with a more Hebrew nun. Yeah.
Noam
Yeah, yeah, that’s what you wanted.
Raanan
I just assumed it was going to happen.
Noam
Why?
Raanan
I don’t know. I just assume, I mean, you’re not Israeli.
Noam
But I’m not.
Raanan
As you have an orthodox vibe.
Noam
What does that mean? What does it mean? I have an Orthodox vibe.
Raanan
And Hebrew action. Well.
Noam
Oh, I pronounce Hebrew words decently. I did.
Raanan
Did you? No, no, I grew up conservative.
Noam
What is it? What’s the difference?
Raanan
You know the difference.
Noam
What’s the difference? Yeah. What’s the difference?
Raanan
We led women on the bema.
Noam
That’s Orthodox Judaism. The great theologians were like. The difference between Orthodox and conservatives is you grew up letting women on the bima and Orthodox.
Raanan
Didn’t do. I grew up conservative, but somehow perform, like, very orthodox gigs. Yeah. And to ingratiate them, I had this one joke where I say, you know, I’m poor. I’m. You’re supposed to get so drunk. You don’t know the difference between Hayman and Mordecai. Yeah, but I grew up reform, so I can do that sober.
Noam
No.
Raanan
It could.
Noam
It’s mean. It’s a mean joke, right? So the Orthodox like it.
Raanan
Because I go, I’m actually conservative and you’re all like. Same difference.
Raanan
So you got it. You know, because you know, when you’re performing, you got to do different jokes for different groups. For an Orthodox, you trash on the reform your form.
Noam
So what do you give me? Give me a good reform against Orthodox Jewish.
Raanan
You never reformed, I guess a reform show that’s just like a regular. It’s just a show in New York. Like.
Noam
I don’t know.
Raanan
I don’t know. That’s not the one. I did one reform gig. I’ve done a lot of gigs. Like, he’s like synagogue gigs. I’ve only done one reform gig. It was good. It was really good.
Noam
Okay. Let me give you a little background on run on anon Hirschberg. I like saying anon, by.
Raanan
The way.
Noam
Well that’s what how did your parents name you Raanan? Are they Israeli?
Raanan
They’re not. I’m not as Nick as I appear. I’m just a regular Jew from Kentucky, which I guess is exotic.
Noam
Yeah, it’s kind of interesting.
Raanan
Yeah, yeah, I usually say I’m a Jew from Kentucky, which is like being a unicorn. The only difference is in people. Kentucky thought we had two horns.
Raanan
But I yeah, I, they just like the name I don’t know, you know some some prayers. They just liked it. Do you know what. Think somebody is really.
Noam
Do you know what it means?
Raanan
Yeah. Of course. Yeah. Full of life. Fresh. Luxuriant. Yeah.
Noam
Is that you?
Raanan
I feel like that’s that orthodox kind of. You know, you probably have never.
Raanan
Grew up Orthodox. Tries to be cool.
Noam
I was.
Raanan
You know, that place, and it’s like.
Noam
It’s not pronounced Costa Rica.
Raanan
Oh. Is it? Maybe. I guess it is. I never realized that.
Noam
Maybe it’s because.
Raanan
It’s not in Costa Rica.
Noam
So I. But I have no. By the way, that was my condescension. I couldn’t it’s not about Hebrew. Could be about English, too.
Raanan
Yeah, I guess you’re right. I don’t know, I don’t know, it’s the kosher, you know, the.
Noam
Okay. Whatever. Okay. Yeah.
Raanan
I was in the elevator. Was this Orthodox? He was trying to be all cool. Yeah, just all just like headphones. Sunglasses. We have the yarmulke on. I’m like, he can’t be.
Noam
But. But he felt cool.
Raanan
He felt cool. Yeah, yeah.
Noam
But you’re just like. It’s just not working for you.
Raanan
Well, over a resort with your family.
Noam
There’s a limit. There’s a.
Raanan
You go to a summer camp.
Noam
You start with summer camp. Just listing summer camps. By the way, this is a funny game I did go to most of all one summer.
Raanan
I got it right, I.
Noam
What else?
Raanan
Keep going.
Noam
Yeah.
Raanan
Keep going.
Noam
What else do you know about me on?
Raanan
That’s all? That’s all I just know. Where are you from?
Noam
Do you tell me at this point you know everything about me?
Raanan
I’m gonna go with Chicago. You went to Solomon Schechter.
Noam
I grew up in Baltimore. Yeah, I went to school. Called Beth to Philly.
Raanan
Okay. So. Yeah. So you went to quite a.
Noam
It’s like a community school.
Noam
Trying to think.
Raanan
I do that. That Christmas, the Hanukkah show up every year. It’s a club in Baltimore.
Noam
That wasn’t so cool. I had to keep on my head. I wasn’t going to.
Raanan
You know, he always had with me every year. He’s Jewish. He always had me with the price. And it’s like a show on Christmas for Jews. It’s just so depressing. It’s like either like we’re just Jews haggling on a.
Noam
Chinese food or. No.
Speaker 3
Yeah, naturally.
Noam
Okay, so we got through two words of your bio. That’s what I call you. It’s what I call you on. So non Hirshberg that’s your name by the way. Okay. Raanan Hirshberg is one of comedy’s most explosive voices. High energy joke, dense and relentlessly funny. I’m reading his bio. This is what he gave me. This is no this one he gave me.
Noam
This is why it’s a funny thing to read someone’s bio. Because when people read my bio, I’m like, I’m very self-conscious because I’m like, wait, they’ll they’ll know that I actually looked at this beforehand and.
Raanan
Gross is on fresh air. She’s not like this act from.
Noam
Well, what do you think I memorized his entire is a long. He’s performed on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon,
Noam
You have great specials. This is my yeah, a lot of great stuff. Morbidly Jewish, morbidly Jewish, brave jokes from the underground, all hilarious stuff. I just watched you on Dan Sodor.
Noam
Love the vibes. Love everything that you do. Really, really funny. And I read the New York Times piece about you.
Raanan
Right.
Noam
How did that come about?
Raanan
The last one. The one about,
Noam
How many New York Times pieces do you have about you?
Raanan
I’ve had quite a few.
Noam
Really? Why do you really. Why do you have so many? Do you, like, know someone there?
Raanan
The comedy writers. A fan of my work.
Noam
That’s so cool.
Raanan
You know, he’s the fellow. Judy’s a great guy. Jason Zinnemann, a very smart guy. He’s great reviews on comedy, and he’s written some really good books. I’m a fan of him, honestly. He has a great book on horror films, but I really love. But, but yeah, so he’s he’s just written about me a couple of times, but the last one was about, I think it was about, it was about me, but it was also just about, kind of comedians dealing with, like, Israel and stuff.
Raanan
Right? Right.
Noam
Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Did you not read it?
Raanan
I read it.
Noam
There’s so many things you’re just constantly being spoken about.
Raanan
About I think about. Cause I do some stuff about Israel in my, in my hour. So something about that. Yeah.
Noam
Okay. Give me, give me, give me, tell me one of your Israel bits. I wrote my I wrote my dissertation on. This is funny. I actually wrote my dissertation on how to teach about Israel. Yes. And you have a very and and you’re very smart about something you said. Not that I necessarily agree with it, but I think it’s very smart.
Noam
You said that you never trust anyone who to write about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, who’s got, you know, a Jewish last name or a Palestinian muscle mass name. You have to trust a Filipino like a Filipino should should write it.
Raanan
Yeah. It’s a little like, yeah, yeah, I know.
Noam
What’s the.
Raanan
What’s it doing? Okay.
Noam
By the way, you see what I did there by.
Raanan
I said it’s hard to read an objective book about Israel. Turns out the book I read by. Yeah, who have been fortunate to have the very perspective and the one by Muhammad said, no, Germans should write a book about Israel. We need to get like a Filipino to write a book.
Noam
Right? So, so it’s a smart bit. It’s a smart bit, but it’s.
Raanan
A it’s just a fun I it is interesting with books on. It does seem like most of them are either from.
Noam
You could find you could find you and you. You seems to be like a nuanced comedian. Meaning like even like your take on Israel. You’re not the you’re not my what I do. In general, besides this. Because you have no idea what I do, by the way, right? So what I do besides this.
Noam
Come on. This is pretty good. Come on, look at my producer. Look. Look at all this. I got a dissertation in front of me. An actual one. Okay, but none.
Raanan
For you even.
Noam
Right? Right on. Let me just tell you. Where was I going with this? Okay, so so so so my my, in general, the way I teach about Israel, I deeply believe it should be a nuanced take on the history of Israel. Meaning you have to learn the good, the bad and the ugly. You have to see different sides of the issues.
Noam
You have to. You say, sure, but like your point, a lot of people don’t actually do that because write your joke about Schwartzberg and Berger versus Z. Like they’re going to say their side, but there’s a way to actually tell the story that shows and respects different sides of the issue. You know what I’m saying?
Raanan
So the joke is not what my jokes are just trying to to me, they’re ultimately just trying to get a laugh.
Noam
And they’re pretty funny.
Raanan
Yeah, they’re trying to get a laugh. They’re not trying to be like.
Noam
But you’re also nuanced about Israel is what I’m saying.
Raanan
Yeah, but they’re not trying to like you. If sometimes people already like, I don’t know if that’s true. And I’m like, I don’t either. I like to give you an example, because I do think people have become so ideological about everything, that when you’re a comedian, you do a joke. Now people comment.
Raanan
Where they argue with you. Yeah. And sometimes I’m just kind of like like I have a I’ll do one. I have a joke.
Noam
I didn’t ask you to do one.
Raanan
How? It’s hard. Like if people look at jokes now like you’re writing a say, right, like I have a joke where I just say, like, if you go to Germany’s really got on their act together, like, now, if you draw a swastika in Germany, they’ll throw your ass in jail immediately without even hesitating. And I love that. It’s like even though they’re no longer Nazis, they’re still kind of being Nazis.
Raanan
You know, still within that.
Raanan
And one very viral. But because Germans were so angry. Right. And the reason they were angry is because they felt like, well, of course, if someone draws a swastika, they should go to jail in Germany, right? And I’m like, I agree with you, right? I’m not I wasn’t I wasn’t.
Raanan
Saying that because I think that, like, I don’t I wasn’t saying that because I think like, you can’t have laws about, you know, I mean, look, in America we have freedom of speech is a little different. But in Germany, you know, if.
Speaker 3
You did.
Noam
He did some.
Speaker 3
Stuff you.
Raanan
Might have.
Speaker 3
To do.
Raanan
I have to be a little draconian about it. I’m not, I don’t. But the point I’m trying to make is it’s like I don’t disagree with that. I just thought it was funny joke.
Noam
I mean, I do.
Speaker 3
Know.
Raanan
Like an irony.
Noam
I do know what you mean. Now, here’s what I was supposed to do in to start this episode that into because I’m not actually going through my notes. So this is episode number two of our Jewish American Heritage Month. And Jewish comedy is such a huge part of of the Jewish experience. So do you I want to I want to talk a little bit about you and how you were raised, what it was like growing up as a conservative Jewish person in Louisville, Kentucky.
Noam
Did you? Let’s start a little bit with your with your with your origin story. Do you? How did you grow up, you said as a conservative Jewish person before, but tell us a little bit about your Jewish upbringing.
Raanan
So I grew up in Louisville, Kentucky, which is people have this like snobbish view of Kentucky, and Louisville is more of a just like a city. I always tell people like whatever snobbish view you have, Kentucky, you have some kind of like, you know, that’s what we in Louisville have about the rest.
Speaker 3
Of, you know, right?
Raanan
Yeah. You know, it’s like the 16th largest city because people are always like, well, they’re Jews of Louisville. Yeah, it’s the diaspora, wherever.
Speaker 3
Yeah.
Raanan
I mean, when my grandpa tried to.
Speaker 3
Leave your.
Raanan
Holocaust, he wasn’t very picky. And but he wasn’t like, I don’t know how. Switzer. Lexington. Let me think about it. But like, it’s there’s about 10,000 Jews. These are the gods.
Speaker 3
Yeah.
Raanan
There was a two conservative synagogues, two reform synagogues and the Orthodox synagogue. So I went to a Jewish day school. I mean, there was.
Speaker 3
A Jewish day school I did. So what.
Raanan
Age did till I was ten? Until I was ten, until middle school, there was about only nine other kids in my class. And really, to get the padding, we took a lot of the Russian Jews.
Speaker 3
Who were.
Raanan
Immigrating at the time and I said, immigrating. I think that’s.
Speaker 3
A word that.
Noam
They immigrated. They immigrated?
Speaker 3
Yeah.
Noam
The emigrate to immigrate.
Raanan
From emigrate. Yeah. Anyway, they came here.
Speaker 3
Yeah. They arrived.
Raanan
Right in the 90s and and so. Yeah. So I felt like I knew a lot of Jews and my whole world was mostly a lot of Jews until middle school. And then I was dumped into the, the secular world. We kept kosher, which is, by the way, I want to say, I mean, we kept conservative kosher, right?
Speaker 3
What does.
Raanan
That mean? So we didn’t eat meat out at restaurants. We still went to restaurants, but we didn’t eat.
Speaker 3
Meat out.
Raanan
Right. We used to go to Asian restaurants like this. This Thai restaurant was. So I hated it so much because Asian food without me.
Noam
Yeah.
Raanan
Just sucks because if you don’t have the fees or me. Right?
Noam
What do you really do?
Raanan
What are you doing? So we’re just, you know, it’s just like, oh, it’s no peas, right? Like just fried rice alone. I hated going to this Thai place types. I am, but but so yeah. So that until college and then in college. I’ve told this before, but I did. I had un kosher chicken from the cafeteria, and I got a cold store the next day.
Noam
That’s God.
Raanan
God or, you know, psychosomatic guilt. And I had chicken the next day to see if, you know, I got a cold, I got a culture again. And then to test out the theory again, I had like a lot of bacon then. And then by the third day I didn’t have cold, so I broken through. You’re worried about you trying to break?
Raanan
Yeah, that’s. We’re converting. I have to get turned down three times.
Noam
Yeah.
Raanan
That’s right. It’s the same thing. Leaving. You didn’t leave.
Noam
You didn’t leave. Okay. So. All right, so that’s how you grew up. Do you have. Do you have any memories of anything anti-Semitic growing up, or was it or was your Jewish identity just like happy go lucky 90?
Raanan
Very little. I didn’t experience much anti-Semitism growing up. I mean, I do a bit about this too, but I used to say people in Kentucky didn’t even really know what a Jew was. The word culture enough to be anti-Semitic. Like, I just.
Noam
Think there’s a certain level.
Raanan
I feel like I should be like, which one side? Again, I didn’t expect much. I if anything, I’ll tell you, I, I don’t remember when I was five, I told my doctor wasn’t Jewish. That said, you’re not Jewish, you’re not a good person.
Noam
You said that.
Raanan
Yeah. So Jewish.
Noam
As a five year.
Raanan
Old.
Noam
What was what was his or her reaction?
Raanan
I don’t know, I remember my mom was very embarrassed. And I’m curious now like why I said that, but I must have like had.
Noam
Some internalized something, something.
Raanan
But I didn’t see my my family wasn’t they weren’t like, were better than, you know, but I must have, I don’t.
Noam
Know, chosen people.
Raanan
Yeah, yeah. Chosen people.
Noam
Yes. Yeah. Yeah.
Raanan
But but no, I didn’t experience much, I mean.
Noam
Do you experience anti-Semitism now?
Raanan
Yeah. Much. Yeah, a lot more now. Now there’s different types of anti-Semitism.
Noam
Like what?
Raanan
Anti-Semitism masquerading as anti, you know, criticism of Israel, Ice parents a huge amount of that. But that’s anti-Semitism. You know, like when you’re if I post something and you just say free Gaza under it, you’re like, I have nothing. I didn’t do anything. I was nothing to do with. Right. You know, I’m, you know, so that’s anti-Semitism, right?
Raanan
That’s treating Jews in some kind of monolithic organization whose, you know, no different than telling, you know, a muslim. Like, what are you going to do about all the terrorists?
Noam
Right?
Raanan
I mean, right. So like so yeah, I mean, I experienced a lot of that a lot since October 7th and then the old school, like anti-Semitism, like the, you know, the what’s not hiding behind the Israel stuff, some of that. No, I experience a lot of that online lot. I mean, that’s.
Noam
All that’s the that’s the that’s the horn kind of anti-Semitism. Right?
Raanan
That’s become very normal ones too.
Noam
Right.
Raanan
Sometimes I’ll see people.
Noam
It’s so weird.
Raanan
Try to be anti-Semitic but hide it behind anti-Israel stuff. But they mess up how they’ll, like, fail. Like I saw this comedian tried to after the Iran war. He tried to. He said, I guess America now is just a Jew night of June, and I almost want to help them out. I’m like, no, you’re trying to hide your anti-Semitism behind anti-Zionism de Israel.
Raanan
You’re not supposed to say to you that, right?
Noam
You just gave it away.
Raanan
You’re like doing it wrong. I want to help them. It’s like if you see like if I see like a pro-life guy with a sign, but it’s misspelled. I like, I want to help the spelling. And I’m like, like, you need to hide your anti-Semitism better because, you know, say Zion. You mean Zionist, right?
Noam
You should do consulting on this.
Raanan
Because it’s like a lot of times it’ll happen. They’ll be like, they’ll just say, Jew in there. And that defeats the whole thing, you know? It ruins the whole temperature. Do it.
Raanan
And that is the part about this that is people like, you know, that is the part that is simple, that it’s like it really is simple. It is easy to not be anti-Semitic. You just only you just keep it to the criticism of the government. That’s that’s it. That will and it’s very hard for people to do that.
Raanan
Yeah.
Noam
It seems to.
Raanan
Be able to do that.
Noam
It seems like it’s been very, very difficult.
Raanan
And it sucks to the Zionism thing because people have different definitions now. So then there’s such an ideological like there’s such a confusion now in communication. I remember when, when I first started to see after October 7th the kind of anti-Semitism behind the anti-Zionism, I did a bit. I posted something where I was making fun of that, where I was having someone go, oh, my roommate, which is Zionist nose, and his like, like.
Noam
Just like obvious things.
Raanan
Yeah. You know, you know, you know, like whatever, I forgot, you know.
Noam
Zionist pennies.
Raanan
You know, money. And I remember like, people I knew friends got offended. And I guess from their perspective, I don’t know who knows, but I guess they think I mean, so this is the problem to change the language. Once you change the language, they think I’m saying like some kind of like right wing. You can’t criticize kind of right wing Zionism, you know what I mean?
Raanan
Which that does exist. Of course. And I do think that’s terrible. And I do think a lot of those, you know, I’m not a fan. I hate people like Benguet Burns matric. And I do think they have helped anti-Zionist convince everyone that every Zionist is like that.
Noam
That might be my only push back to that is that they don’t need much help. Meaning?
Raanan
Meaning me. Right? Like. Yeah. Like.
Noam
I mean, I agree that there are going to always be once the Jewish people take center stage politically in any sense, then then you’re under the microscope of the world and the Jewish people. Jews are news. So people are going to be out there. And if you’re going to be in the political sphere, then people are going to be commenting on you and having having an opinion on you.
Noam
I also think that it doesn’t take much for people to then take someone’s ideology that you strongly disagree with, and then easily take that and then impugn the whole people, like you said. And so like it becomes like it’s a low hanging fruit that you almost take advantage of. You’re like, oh, is it going to be it’s easy to take this one.
Noam
And then yeah, like to say that.
Raanan
Of course they have made it easy.
Noam
Yes yes yes.
Raanan
Yes.
Noam
From a Western liberal. Yes.
Raanan
Yes have made it easier. But yes the anti-Semitism obviously.
Noam
It’s going to exist. And that’s the thing it’s going to be interesting to see with like if in Israeli government, if Naftali Bennett and Lapid, who are the opponents to, to to Bibi Netanyahu. But but what’s going to be interesting. Let’s say those two win. Okay.
Raanan
Yeah. They will be demonized.
Noam
Do you do we now think that anti-Zionism, anti-Semitism is going to go away? That’s that’s kind of yeah.
Raanan
I mean, and this is a question of like, how much of how. Yeah.
Noam
And like, why are we blaming. It’s like it’s like it’s a whole claim. It’s the whole thing. Like blaming the blaming the, the victim for. Well, you shouldn’t have been dressed that way. Right, right. Do you know what I’m saying?
Raanan
Yeah. I mean, but then the question then becomes too is.
Noam
Like, what? Do you have anything to do with Ben-Gvir?
Raanan
Right, right, right, right. What I.
Noam
Do, what I say was.
Raanan
How I mean, like, that’s the kind of complicated thing about all of it is that, like, while I do think it’s anti-Semitic for someone to blame me for Israel, I at the same time, dude, there is a part of me that is upset when I see them.
Noam
Of.
Raanan
Course, and it is upset when I see them attempting to represent Judaism with rage that I find very not Jewish, right?
Noam
Fair, fair.
Raanan
Fair premises and bigoted and gross. And so it’s interesting. It is. It is endlessly complicated, where on one hand, it’s anti-Semitic for you. Me, for you to blame me for Ben-Gvir. But after Jew, there is a part of me that feels that does not like that he represents me on any level. Right? So it’s like it’s both. It’s like this.
Raanan
It’s like.
Raanan
Basically the way I feel is and this is I might offend some a lot of listeners, but you know what? I’m trying to deal with this in a.
Noam
Take us through your thinking.
Raanan
I think it’s anti-Semitic for a non-Jew to blame anti-Semitism on, like Netanyahu or Israel, you know, but we have Jews can blame a little.
Noam
You know what I mean? I right?
Raanan
It’s like, you know, there are quite a few Israeli newspapers that to speak in language. Yes. And I don’t mind when they do. Right. That’s the thing. It’s like.
Noam
Right.
Raanan
As long as you have some skin in the game. I just think, I think what’s so complicated now, if you really break it down, I think there’s like four things happening at once, right? You have legitimate criticism of Israel, which is there’s plenty of that. You have anti-Semitism hiding behind criticism. Okay. Right. You have that’s two. The third thing is you have people saying, the legitimate criticism of Israel is anti-Semitic, bad faith actors.
Raanan
And then you have people calling out rightfully the anti-Semitism as anti-Semitism. Got it. So you have all four of those things happening at once, and that’s enough for everyone when they post about it to someone else. Think you’re talking about something else, right?
Noam
Right. It’s so confusing.
Raanan
If you’re like, if you’re saying, you know, there’s so much criticism of Israel’s anti-Semitic, someone else goes, well, I saw a criticism that was a legitimate. And they think that’s what you’re talking about. It’s just an idea. It’s a I actually think no one should ever talk about it.
Noam
Israel just spent 20 minutes talking about Israel.
Raanan
It is so complicated and paradoxically and and like and there is so much, there’s.
Noam
So much. Do you ever spend time there?
Raanan
Yeah, I’ve spent.
Noam
Some time. Do you like it?
Raanan
Yeah. Yeah, I do like it. I it’s.
Noam
It’s it’s it’s pretty amazing.
Raanan
It’s cool to like walk down the street of the Jew and see, you know, like just every archetype and know they’re Jewish, you know, like, you see the jock, the dumb hot girl, you know, they’re all Jews. It’s it’s.
Noam
Everyone’s right. It’s even though 75% are Jewish. 25% or not.
Raanan
But were you for once and I know some people, I hate that even. But it is a weird thing as a Jew and non-Jews can’t understand this, you do for once not feel like an outsider. Yeah, which is an interesting thing, to just be like that douchebag over here with you that bullies Jews. That, that his view that that that everyone to Jew.
Raanan
Right. So it’s like there is a stunt everyone. But there is a sense you do have a sense of this.
Noam
Where majority in Israel, the Jews are majority in Israel.
Raanan
That is a feeling that has, you know, value. And it’s a feeling that I understand why people why Israel means a lot to people. Because that is an important feeling that, you know.
Noam
All right. I want to go a little bit past Israel. If it’s possible, I want to I want to ask you about.
Noam
About other comedians and about Jewish comedians. Are there Jewish comedians that you look up to and are the Jewish comedians that you, you know right now that you’re like this, this Jewish community.
Raanan
Is.
Noam
No, no, no, no, no, no. You can say whatever you want. We might edit it out. I don’t know I don’t know what I mean. So that’s what I’m going to ask you. Jewish community. This is such a Jewish conversation. Jewish community or comedian who is Jewish. Is there a distinction between the two?
Raanan
Of course. Yeah. I mean.
Noam
Are you a Jewish comedian?
Raanan
I don’t I mean, I’m not I’m not a.
Raanan
How do you explain it? How do I explain that? Well, I am a Jewish comedian, but.
Noam
You’re so clearly a Jewish comedian.
Raanan
I don’t see myself like I’m a Jewish comedian. But I’m trying to think of how.
Noam
Well who give me give us examples of Jewish comedians.
Raanan
All right, so, like, Jerry Seinfeld’s a Jewish comedian. He’s Jewish and he’s a comedian.
Noam
But that’s. But do you view him as a Jewish comedian or comedian who is Jewish? Like, same with Larry David, Jewish comedian or comedian who was Jewish or like, who were.
Raanan
The other? I don’t think that language really mattered. I think that we used to do this in summer camp. There was.
Noam
A Jewish American, American Jew. You’re like, I don’t know what. Yeah, right. Okay.
Raanan
So you no, Philip Roth didn’t consider himself a Jewish writer, right? And all he ever wrote about Jews. Right. Like, I think there’s some sense for any artist to want to be like. I appeal to not just one group, you know what I mean? Right? So you don’t want to feel like, you know, I don’t want to feel like like, obviously like someone like Modi, who’s great is very specifically, have you heard the audiences is mostly Jews?
Noam
Yeah, I don’t know, but that makes sense.
Raanan
What have myself that way. I want my comedy to be appreciated by everyone, whether you’re Jewish or not. But that doesn’t mean that Judaism isn’t a big part of.
Noam
But isn’t there. Let’s go through.
Raanan
A little.
Noam
Let’s go through a little history for a second. There’s something very Jewish about being comedic. What? What is that? Why is that part of our. There’s a story in the Talmud that I’ll explain to you because orthodox and using, you know, so there’s some called the Talmud. Yeah. Oral law of the Jewish people. Here’s a problem. The problem is, I said this to you before we got in the mix.
Noam
When I’m around, actually, funny people like you, I think I’m funny. You know, you gave me, like.
Noam
Anyway. So there’s something in the Talmud they talk about this story, which I love. I’ve quoted it before. I think I’m wondering where they. They’re looking for someone who is going to go to the world to come, and they end up finding the comedians in the Talmud. They said they make people laugh. And making people laugh like is like a, you know, a highway highway to heaven, like you got it.
Noam
Is that like, that’s a pretty cool thing. Like, you make people laugh when people are sad and people are depressed. People like you make people happy, joyful, something that’s pretty cool.
Raanan
Oh, sure. Yeah it is. And in terms of why Judaism, why there’s so much comedy that comes to Judaism, I mean, there’s so many reasons. I will say, if you go back to just if you just look at just the Bible itself, Judaism is such an existential religion that’s very much grounded in this world and this world.
Raanan
So much of the Bible’s human folly and so much of it is I mean, it’s funny to I mean, I remember I was in synagogue, I was at a friend’s daughter was just kind of going through the just flipping through the Bible. And there’s there’s a part where they tell Sarah that she’s going to have a kid and she just laughs, right?
Raanan
And God’s like, are you laughing? Yeah. She’s like, no, she’s lying to God. It’s like. It’s like it’s so much about uman. Not it’s so much about human human emotions, human desires, human as opposed to Jesus, which is kind of this almost transcending that. And comedy itself is essentially human. The reality of human emotions, real ugly, sometimes just real human emotions kind of getting in the way of your ideals.
Raanan
Right? Right. That’s comedy. Right? It’s not tragedy. It’s not. It’s, you know, you want to be this great person, but your your feelings, your thoughts are often way too human and way too, you know, flawed and jealousy, greed, all that shit. And that’s that’s the Bible. So I do think some sense of the humanness of it maybe plays a part.
Raanan
I mean, obviously oppression, I mean, comedy is I say comedy really black people and Jews is really both kind of helped create modern stand up. But yeah, I think, I mean, I think the Bible is it’s funny and I think the practicality to Judaism or like looking at this life, I mean, I know we believe in God and there’s a spiritual element, but there is very much rudeness.
Noam
Focus on the here.
Raanan
And now, here, now. And that that’s where comedy is, here and now. Jesus is not funny. He’s not funny at all. He’s like very like, you know, but like, you.
Noam
Know, what was that? I don’t know.
Raanan
Very like, you know, thinking about, you know, having and he’s very up in the clouds. Right. But a lot of the people in the Old Testament are funny. And there’s, you know, you know, Adam and Eve, they’re like lying to God.
Noam
And you’re like, that’s a silly thing to do.
Raanan
And Abraham is negotiating with God. He’s trying to haggle.
Noam
The story of Sodom you’re talking about right now.
Raanan
So, like, so it’s just like there’s a, you know, a funniness to the human.
Noam
That’s amazing. That’s amazing. Okay, I want to do something with you right now. I have one more question. Did you study to be a comedian? It’s not in my notes.
Raanan
No. I mean, what do you mean, studying?
Noam
Like.
Raanan
Like did you.
Noam
Yeah. Like, how do you how did you. How did you go? How do you do this?
Raanan
I move back to Louisville. I like sometime when I was in my 20s and I started doing the open bikes at the club there. Yeah. And, you know, I just started liking them. And you start doing it, and one minute you, you know, you suck a hobby and then after a year.
Noam
Just kind of that became your thing.
Raanan
Yeah. But it just, you know, it was just open mics, you know. Did do you.
Noam
Do you get nervous before.
Raanan
Yeah. I mean it depends on what the situation is. But I still get nervous sometimes if I’m doing something. I mean, for I have an exciting disorder. So I’ll get I’ll get.
Noam
Is this a is this a bit. Or do you actually have an anxiety disorder.
Raanan
Yeah. No I mean I anxiety right. And so I will. But just to say that like I’ll get anxious just leaving the apartment. So yeah I’ll get go. But for the most part I’ll get nervous if it’s something like if I’m taping a special or in late night, I must get nervous.
Noam
So how do you deal with anxiety? Asking for a friend?
Raanan
Well, there’s nothing. You know, it’s kind of like, how do you deal with dying? It just happens. You go through it, you know? You know, you don’t have to learn how to do it. Like, I mean, like, if I’m doing an important show and I’m nervous, I’m just nervous. It sucks. And then I do the show. I mean, I guess there’s some techniques.
Raanan
I, I think the best thing that I would get panic attacks on stage, actually, not too long ago, I got off my medication, I was on some anti-anxiety medication, and I got off and it really messed me up. And I started getting panic attacks on stage all the time. And the best thing with comedy, I think, was helping with anxiety is getting a panic, a panic attack on stage and realizing it doesn’t ruin it.
Raanan
Like, and just like any anxiety, the best thing is to have it.
Noam
Just go.
Raanan
Through it. Reminded that even if you’re not having fun, it didn’t ruin the show. You know.
Noam
What I mean? So what happens when you have the panic attack? What? Like what?
Raanan
I just feel my heart racing and I’m on stage and I’m just in my head.
Noam
You start sweating a ton.
Raanan
Imagine that.
Raanan
But yeah, I mean, nobody usually goes away once you’re on stage though, you know? Right.
Noam
Okay. I want to ask you. I think I have five questions over here. One, two, three, four, five. I counted well, and you speak about conspiracy theories. Yeah. So I was wondering if I could read some off to you, and you can rank them on an absurdity scale of 1 to 5.
Raanan
Okay, so five is the most absurd. That’s right. Okay.
Noam
Here we go. Number one.
Raanan
Are these real?
Noam
Here we go. You tell me.
Raanan
If they’re real, too.
Noam
Well, here we go. A weapon in space funded by the Rothschild family, was used to cause a wildfire in California to make space for high speed rail. Project 1 to 5.
Raanan
It’s pretty upset.
Noam
Now you’re, like, debating whether or not it’s.
Raanan
Well, I mean, to be fair, I have to see the other ones to know in relation.
Noam
No, no it’s not. You don’t have to compete. You don’t go.
Raanan
That’s really absurd. I’d say that’s like we’re not, you know, but honestly, Jews, Jews are, you know, play a big part in physics and lasers, you know, so there’s some there’s some truth to that, that a lot of Jews studied lasers.
Noam
Oh, okay.
Raanan
You know, part of physics, right?
Noam
We like physics.
Raanan
You know, I actually have a cousin who studied lasers, so I guess I’ll bring it from a 5 to 4.
Noam
Oh, wow. Okay, so because your cousin studied physics. Okay, okay, okay. Lasers.
Raanan
But did not care that much about working on the bomb because you thought physics was a Jewish science. Yeah. So he was, like, not that interested in it, you know?
Noam
Well, that didn’t work out well. Yeah. Okay. Okay. All right. Number two, the great replacement Jewish elites are orchestrating mass migration to replace majority white populations in their own countries.
Raanan
Right. This is this is one that I also did not understand for a while, because I remember in Charlottesville.
Noam
Right. The Jews will not replace us.
Raanan
And I was so confused that I was like, I don’t think the Jews want your shitty job, but I don’t think Jews are looking to whatever you do, sell Confederate flags outside of Walmart or whatever. Like we’re not really into work, you know? So I never understood that. And then I realized, oh, the oh, they’re saying the Jews are getting immigrants to.
Raanan
Right. Yeah.
Noam
So 1 to 5.
Raanan
Well, I’d say considering that Stephen Miller.
Noam
Oh, God.
Raanan
Most immigrant person in the world. If you’re not in this conspiracy, I guess I’d say it is scared that Jews are part of this. But also, Jew is the basically the architect of getting every. It’s amazing this country. So I say that puts it to five.
Noam
Right?
Raanan
Okay, fine.
Noam
Okay. Here’s another one. Number three, a debunked rumor that 4000 Jews, Israelis were told to stay home instead of going to work at the World Trade Center at 911.
Raanan
The whole point of that.
Raanan
Whole point that you were all furious.
Noam
Well, Jewish officials in the Bush administration, yeah, on the planet, planned the attack with the Mossad as a pretense for invading the Middle East.
Raanan
Well, considering that Bush could even really complete a sentence, finding it hard to bring that.
Noam
He was, he didn’t. You don’t think he had an endearing aspect to him with.
Raanan
His right arm? Was not being able to complete his sentence or being very, very proud when he was able to complete his work. He was the first president you, like, worried for him? Right. Like kind of rude or for. Because you were worried? Yeah.
Noam
But that that came. That’s not now a theme, by the way, throughout American presidency. Right?
Raanan
Very much an immersive experience when you feel like you’re there.
Noam
I mean, I had this also with President Biden towards the end. That was a rough experience.
Raanan
Yeah. Until the end. But Trump is the opposite. You’re like you’re like, wanted to stop talking. Just the opposite. But finally, like you can get to the end of the sentence.
Noam
Do you have a do you have a Biden impression?
Raanan
No, no, no, I’m.
Noam
Not, you know, impression. There’s something.
Raanan
About I just have a baby. So I’m very tired. So I guess naturally I have that impression.
Noam
But Biden impressions make me crack up for some reason. Like specifically a Biden impression, I don’t know.
Raanan
Why Adam Ray has a great one.
Noam
Is he? No. Oh, is he the one? Kill Tony. Tony. Okay, so he was. So he was on with the other famous one, Shane Gillis. Right? Right.
Raanan
So the Adam Ray is great. Those great. Like.
Noam
Okay. So 1 to 5. She was playing 911.
Noam
Do you like these are all. You’re not into this one either.
Raanan
A lot of Jews. I don’t, but I guess I guess if we’re planning to do this, we could have killed our own to have that happen. Right? But.
Raanan
I mean, I guess I guess I’d go with five.
Noam
Five again. Okay, so these are.
Raanan
Yeah.
Noam
Yeah. No no no no.
Raanan
I’m like, okay.
Noam
Here. Okay. Okay, fine. Some corners of the internet speculate that Epstein was a spy working for the Mossad, of course, and was part of a blackmail operation.
Raanan
Right now, this is. I don’t think. But Epstein does this weird thing where there’s so much weird shit. It’s weird, and I do. I mean, there’s all this stuff. Baroque. But he wasn’t really involved in these very government at the time. I’m not going to give it a five just because this kind of guy who’s like.
Noam
You still know.
Raanan
What’s happening, read about that. You’re like, are conspiracy theories true?
Raanan
So like, I don’t know. I mean, I don’t I do think I’d like to think, yeah that or I’ll say this, it makes me uncomfortable that people emphasize way more the idea of him being massaged honey trap than, say, like a Putin honey trap, whatever. Or the Hungarian or whatever the fire. You know, I feel like people really focus in way more on the Mossad element, but there’s a lot of it’s weird people.
Raanan
So I’m going to give that a three.
Noam
It was weird. It’s weird. Wow. Okay, okay. Well, okay, so here’s the right. It’s it.
Raanan
Right. I can see him honestly. So I don’t think he’s only words with. But I could see anyone. Yeah. He’s a weird guy. Yeah, I don’t know. Do you say I’m uncomfortable when people talk only about.
Noam
So here’s the problem with conspiracy theories in general is I think people who are attracted to conspiracy theories are very attracted to anti-Semitism. Also, there’s a there’s a there’s a direct line.
Raanan
That.
Noam
It’s because anti-Semitism is the longest running conspiracy theory of all time.
Raanan
It was just one giant conspiracy, right?
Noam
So that’s why that’s why I get.
Raanan
Very no, I mean, that’s why we get uncomfortable.
Noam
Yeah. Like, oh, I mean, but is there a conspiracy? Okay, how about this one last one. The center of the earth is hollow, and there are either Nazis or dinosaurs living there, depending on who you ask.
Raanan
Well that one’s true. The. One I mean. Yeah, but no, I mean all conspiracy theories, lead to anti-Semitism, eventually. Yeah, right. I do think that and I do think like which makes sense because Jews is the one prejudice where it’s, it’s the prejudice of a group that has power. Right? It’s the prejudice. This group has all this power. It’s a right. It’s a prejudice of not people you think are inferior, but in a way people you think are superior, right, or have power controlling things.
Raanan
So obviously, like the conspiracy theories are connected to that.
Noam
They’re both superhuman and subhuman, that the Jews are both. Yeah.
Raanan
I think I was saying this on Sundays podcast. I think it’s Jews having self-control. It’s been a big cornerstone of anti-Semitism. The fact that Jews get really tired when they drink, you know, and I think a lot of white.
Noam
Is that true?
Raanan
I feel like a lot of Jews like that. Like after a couple.
Noam
Yeah, he’s done, done.
Raanan
And I think a lot of the guys see that and they just get so drunk and beat their wives and stuff over the years. They don’t trust the Jews. Self-control.
Noam
Do you use the word? And that was never allowed to use that word growing up. Really. You never allowed it. Well.
Raanan
But adorable that we call them going.
Noam
Right because it’s like billions of people.
Raanan
Yeah. You’re right.
Noam
And the Jews are called, you know, in Hebrew, a guy that were called a we’re called the Holy people or, you know, yeah, we are called a guy. It just means the people.
Raanan
Oh, interesting. Yeah. Oh, is that why you want to use it?
Noam
No.
Raanan
No. Stranger.
Noam
No. That’s Gare so the Orthodox Jew.
Noam
No. You’re just now you’re just showing off. This is good.
Raanan
My. My great grandfather.
Noam
Was from the. So you’re from the. Wow. So not fell? No, dude, there’s no falling with. This is very special because the connection to the spiritual and the mystical, it’s very special.
Raanan
Of course. Yeah, yeah. Well, my, when my, when my great grandfather was accused of murdering his child.
Noam
Standard thing to be accused of.
Raanan
And asked if he should leave Poland.
Noam
Yeah.
Raanan
And he had asked to get ready before the get ready. Said no. No. Because something will become like, you know trace, you know, that will.
Noam
Stop keeping things.
Raanan
Yeah. And then after the kid got killed, he asked in the garage, like, you should probably leave.
Noam
Wow.
Raanan
But they were right. I do not keep kosher.
Noam
Now.
Raanan
But that was okay. Either die in the house or watch their great grandkids eat a hot pocket.
Noam
Well, there are other choices as well.
Raanan
You have to watch their grandchildren look at Hot Pockets in the oven.
Noam
All right. Too soon. Way too soon. Anon Hirschberg, thank you so much. It’s been so awesome having this conversation with you. Thank you for for doing everything you do. Thank you for making people laugh, for bringing joy to the world and for for for being you. So thank you.
Raanan
Thanks for having me.