The Comedians Who Turned Being Jewish Into Their Best Material - Modi, Tiffany Haddish Yohay Sponder

Jonah Platt has been thrilled to talk with some of the greatest Jewish Comedians of our time. Here's a special episode featuring Howie Mandel, Tiffany Haddish, Yohay Sponder, and Modi Rosenfeld. Howie opens up about writing a sundown clause into his own tour contract so he could find a minyan and say Kaddish for his father in whatever city he was playing, the Talmud lessons he picked up from strangers at makeshift services along the way, and why the stage is the one place his mind actually goes quiet. Tiffany traces her path into Judaism back to her days as a bar and bat mitzvah party dancer, her grandmother's line about "getting closer to your people," and how her own bat mitzvah at 40 — studied with Susan Silverman — became the basis for her special Black Mitzvah. Yohay explains how expanding from Hebrew-only sets into English changed his career and his material, breaks out his signature "half Moroccan, half Polish" bit, and makes the case for why Israeli crowds are actually tougher than American ones. And Modi draws the line between being "a comedian who happens to be Jewish" and being a proudly Jewish comedian, then tells the story of spotting three hijab-wearing nurses in his audience, brought by their Jewish coworkers — a moment he calls pure magic. This is Being Jewish: Best of Comedy. If you want to go deeper beyond the podcast, join the Being Jewish Kehillah -- our subscriber community that gives you access to exclusive bonus content, merch discounts, live office hours with Jonah, special community events, and more. Join the Kehillah today at http://beingjewishpodcast.com/join 00:00 - Howie Mandel on Kaddish, Talmud & Being "Chosen" 04:49 - Why the Stage Calms His Mind 06:06 - Tiffany Haddish Falls in Love With Judaism as a Bar Mitzvah Dancer 10:14 - Her Bat Mitzvah at 40 & Becoming "Black Mitzvah" 13:49 - Yohay Sponder on Taking His Comedy From Hebrew to English 20:13 - His Signature "Half Moroccan, Half Polish" Bit 21:44 - Modi Rosenfeld on Being a "Jewish Comedian," Not Just a Comedian Who's Jewish 24:25 - The Hijabs in the Audience Story: "That's Magic" #BeingJewish #JewishComedy #JonahPlatt #HowieMandel #TiffanyHaddish #YohaySponder #ModiRosenfeld #JewishPodcast #StandUpComedy #JewishIdentity