Israel, intermarriage and the Holocaust aren't enough for a new generation of hip, urban young Jews. Tonight begins a new series about them, starting with . . .
As a self-labeled voice for "the plugged-in and preached-out," New York-based Heeb is aggressively urban, dazzled by music, art, film, fashion, food and nightlife.
It's full of chatty reviews, tips on new trends, contributors' comments on people like Sarah Silverman (good) and Sarah Palin (take a guess). There are photo galleries on Heeb's West Coast music festivals, its Storytelling roadshow and its sponsored causes, like efforts by the Joint Distribution Committee to aid Jews in Cuba.
The magazine carries an interview with Oliver Stone on the occasion of W., his new film about George W. Bush; but the story sounds as much about the writer himself. And a profile of Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman suggests he could become the first Jewish U.S. president, but offers no evidence.
So where's the Hebrew in Heeb? Mostly tongue-in-cheek, it seems. You can buy T-shirts with slogans like "Jesus Saves; Moses Invests" or a big shin in a Superman style. A back article tells of famous Jewish "playboys," like James Caan, Woody Allen and Nicolas Sarkozy. And its campy Night of the Living Jews DVD promises "a hellish night of terror, romance and a frighteningly non-kosher diet."
But maybe the most revealing item is a promo of Heeb's annual film festival, held in New York on Nov. 22-23. The 12 selections include a story of Judaic awakening, parables about interfaith love and anti-Semitism, an adaptation of stories by Isaac Bashevis Singer, and two films dealing with the legacy of the Holocaust.
Hmmmm. Maybe the challah doesn't fall so far from the table.
COMING MONDAY: Swaggering ass-kickers?