Mayim Bialik's Kosher Comeback!

You probably remember Mayim Bialik for her lead role in the early-1990s NBC television sitcom Blossom. Wonder what she's been up to since? After starring in Blossom she earned a BS from UCLA in 2000 in Neuroscience and in Hebrew and Jewish Studies, and went on to earn a Ph.D. in Neuroscience, also from UCLA. Bialik was a dedicated student leader at UCLA Hillel, leading and starting a women's Rosh Chodesh group, chanting for High Holiday services, and conducting UCLA's Jewish a cappella group. She is currently a board member, co-founder, and chair of Jewish Free Loan Association's Genesis branch, and as an avid student of all things Jewish, she studies Torah on a weekly basis with a study mentor through Partners In Torah.

Lately, Mayim has been making what can best be described as a "Kosher Comeback." It seemed to have started with an innocent appearance of her Blossom doll in Pop Judaica's Passover segment on the Modern Jewish Mom show. Then there was this post on Jewcy, where she was interviewed about her growing level of religious observance. Today, her Jewish wedding is profiled on Jewish Wedding Network, and this Friday she'll be made over by the folks at What Not to Wear. (Shabbos observant Jews: Be sure to set your DVRs!) Word has it that they make sure to dress her modestly on the show. She'll also be playing a frum woman in an upcoming episode of Saving Grace, so stay tuned!

Mayim's interest in Judaism does not seem to be anything new though. We dug up this clip from 1989's Chabad Telethon which proves that even in her Blossom days, she was into mitzvot!


Mayim Bialik is schlepping the schlep tote from PopJudaica.com

Spock's Jewish Roots

Greetings Trekkies! Did you know that actor Leonard Nimoy, who starred as Star Trek's Mr. Spock, modeled the the famous "Live Long and Prosper" hand salute after the the sign of the Kohen? Watch this interview where he explains the Jewish origins of this Vulcan salute:

Barbie, Ken, and Moses!

We were recently featured in Modern Jewish Mom's Passover segment on The Jewish Channel (TJC) It highlights some of our quirky Passover traditions. Do you have any special Passover traditions of your own? Share them with us in the comments section!

Getting Dazed for the Holy Days

Well, we're in the midst of the High Holiday season, but we are never too busy to not keep you up to date on holiday happenings!

The Jewish Channel  -- dubbed the "Jewish HBO" -- is airing an interview series with a veritable who's who of Jews among contemporary pop culture, dishing out brisket jokes and detailing clever High Holiday resolutions all in a style of something you might catch on VH1. The current incarnation of the series, "Holy Dazed," might shock with talk about sex and drugs, but it offers a chance to peek into the Jewish lives of some popular figures, including Huffington Post columnist Rachel Sklar, Hasidic musician Matisyahu, and former New York City mayor Ed Koch.

The channel will be airing segments from the interview series during various holidays throughout the year, and if they're all as good as the snippet where the interviewees do their best (and worst) to blow the shofar, we can't wait to tune in!



If you really want to shine like these hip and savvy Jews (okay, Ed Koch might not be that hip), then we suggest you head to the store and pick up "Cool Jew: The Ultimate Guide" to start the new year out with a bang of Jewish sweetness and savvy. Shana Tova!

"90210" Aims for Accuracy Second Time 'Round!

The oft-used phrase "better luck next time" is probably ringing true for the writers of "Beverly Hills 90210" as the new and improved TV show "90210" is set to air next month. It seems that with a second try, the writers and creators of the 90's hit are getting the demographic of their fictional "West Beverly High School" a little closer to the actual Beverly Hills High. Yes, they'll be featuring Jewish and Iranian characters on the Beverley Hills campus!

The real Beverly Hills High student body is actually predominately Iranian and Jewish, and although there were Jewish students on the original program, there were no Iranians. So the new show will feature someone who is half-Jewish (a girl known as "Silver" played by Jessica Stroup), as well as an Iranian student -- Navid Shirazi, played by Michael Steger. And yes, you guessed it, Steger isn't Iranian.

On that note, everyone remembers brainy Andrea Zuckerman, but what most probably don't know is that the show's creators didn't know she was actually Jewish and that her outward Jewishness -- the actress, Gabrielle Carteris -- was reined in by the creators (they made her remove a Star of David necklace because "Middle America really doesn't want to see it." 

The original show's executive story editor, Amy Spies, said that times have changed since the 1990s:

"Because of cable, there's been all kinds of diverse, ethnic shows," said Spies. "It's much more the norm to have more accurate representations of their world."

So set your TiVO to record the new "90210," pull out your old middle school or high school yearbooks, remember the dreamy Jason Priestley and Luke Perry, and while you're at it, wear that Star of David necklace with pride -- Andrea Zuckerman would have wanted you to!

Baruch Yankel Obama!?

In case you missed this segment from The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, we wanted to let you in on the laughs. Daily Show correspondent Wyatt Cenac heads to a senior community in Boca Raton to feel out what it will take for Barack Obama to win the elderly Jewish vote!



Think it's about time we had a member of the Tribe in the White House? Check out the Jon Stewart for President T-shirt for men and women. Let's get him elected!

He's baaaaack!

After a long hiatus due to the writer's strike, Jon Stewart is finally back on the air tonight with a new episode of The Daily Show. We can't wait to hear what he has to say about recent politics and see how he fairs without his writers.

Oh, and if you believe like we do that Jon himself should run for president, be sure to pick up the "Jon Stewart for President T-shirt" here for men, and here for women.

How to make the perfect latkes

What is Chanukah without latkes? Meredith Jacobs, author of The Modern Jewish Mom's Guide to Shabbat appeared on iVillage TV yesterday and demonstrated the way it's done! Watch the segment here and see how Meredith attempts to teach Kim Coles how to pronounce "Shabbat."

Halle Berry's Jewish Nose

If you watched Jay Leno's interview with Halle Berry last night, then you saw an edited version of the interview. Word has it that when Berry was showing Leno distorted photos of herself, she showed a picture of herself with a big nose and exclaimed "that's my Jewish cousin." According to the NY Post, through which Berry issued an apology, she begged Jay Leno to edit the segment...and he did. View the edited segment here:

Jewish (Soap) Star

Finally, a Jewish character on TV..and one that is not nebbishy! Tune in to CBS's Young and the Restless soap opera September 21st to see history being made. Hunky Jewish character Brad Carlton will repent for his sins, apologizing to those he has wronged before Yom Kippur begins at sundown.
A calculated publicity stunt on CBS's behalf? Perhaps. But either way we hope this is the start of much more diverse Jewish characters on TV. We're sick of the Dr. Fleischmans already!

IBL on PBS

You don't have to shlep all the way to Israel to see the new Israel Baseball League! Tune in to PBS today at 11 am and 4:30 pm ET to watch the League's inaugural game. This ain't no amateur league - Art Shamsky and Ron Blumberg are among the team managers.

Want to score some cool Jewish sports products? Visit us at ChosenCouture.com

Kike Like Me

Hello to our friends from across the pond! Last night, the documentary Kike Like Me, which includes a segment on ChosenCouture.com, aired on the BBC. We know, the title made us cringe a little too. For those of you in the US, you can view the movie trailer above. We look forward to seeing the film in its entirety when it airs this Fall on the Sundance Channel!

Sopranos Shocker

No, we're not talking about anyone getting whacked on last night's episode of the Sopranos- we're talking about the use of the Yiddish word tsuris! Sure we've all hear oy, putz, and shmuck used on TV, but this might be a first for tsuris!

We Heart Josh

Hebrew hottie Josh Bernstein, host of the archaeology show show Digging for the Truth is interviewed in this Sunday's New York Times. Josh is one of those few people who has equal appeal to both men and women. The men like him for his Indiana Jones-esque adventures and the women love him for his resemblance to Indiana Jones. We Jews love him because he is Jewish, successful, and hot to boot. Who does Josh love? According to the article - tall, blond women. Thanks Josh. Thanks a lot.

Read the article here.

Get your Josh Bernstein screensaver here.

American Dad's Take on JDate

We're not that easily offended, but this episode of American Dad really got under our skin! They went all out with the stereotypes while depicting Jewish women, and in our opinion, they went a little overboard. Judge for yourself:

Matzoball on Letterman

We've loved Adam Sandler ever since he first sang The Chanukah Song on SNL. Last night, he continued to make the tribe proud when he filled in for David Letterman. His first guest? Sandler's adorable dog Matzoball. Check out the clip here:



Looking for some cute Jewish dog accessories? Check out ChosenCouture.com's dog yarmulke and tallis and chumitz bread toy for Passover.