Jewish World Review June 1, 1999 /17 Sivan, 5759
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| Boxer |
Tim Boxer
"IN MY TRAVELS to Israel I've come to realize the importance of
trees," New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman said. "My husband John and
I planted trees there."
She proudly displayed a Jewish National Fund pin on the lapel of
her red blouse as proof of her participation in tree planting in the Holy
Land.
At a JNF dinner at the Hilton in East Brunswick, N.J., Whitman
was pleased to learn that trees will be planted in her name.
Starting in June the Jewish National Fund will raise funds to
beautify Newark. And for every tree planted in Newark, one will be
planted in Israel in a planned Gov. Whitman forest.
JNF president Ronald Lauder was detained on business in Florida,
so he sent Shoshana Cardin, a former chairman of the Presidents
Conference, to pay tribute to the Whitman.
"The governor has been honored by many Jewish organizations,"
said dinner co-chair Hazel Frank Gluck. "Not bad for a Presbyterian."
"I've been to Israel three times," the governor told me.
"I led a trade mission of 80 people three years ago. It was the
largest New Jersey mission to any country. Israel is now our state's
eighth largest trade partner."
Stan Krangel, president of Lenox, the fine china manufacturer,
presented the governor with a collector's plate. He reminded her that
Lenox was established in 1889 in Trenton and then regaled her with a
story.
A father and son set out on a foxhunt. Later they met their
friends in a pub. "How did you do," a friend asked.
The father kicked him under the table.
"Okay," the boy recanted, "it was this big."
Again the father kicked him.
"Right, it was only this big."
The father kicked him again.
"Father," the son said, "if you don't stop kicking me the fox
will have no tail."
Up With Hadassah Women
Attorney Avrom Vann checks in with a tale about a busload of
Hadassah women that overturned, losing all aboard.
"Where are the Hadassah women?" G-d asks.
"They're down below."
"They don't belong there. Bring them up."
The angel goes down and tells the devil," Those Hadassah women
belong upstairs."
"You can't have them."
"You don't understand. The Big Boss wants them."
No, you don't understand. I need them down here. In two weeks
they raised $600,000 toward an air conditioning system."
Ladies Of Achievement
Film director Penny Marshal (best known as one-half of the comedy
series Laverne and Shirley) didn't think she was worthy to receive a
Spirit of Achievement Award from Bambi Felderbaum, president of the New
York chapter of the national women's division of the Albert Einstein
College of Medicine of Yeshiva University.
"I'm not a doctor - but I am a hypochondriac."
She said she was born in the Bronx. "That's where the Albert
Einstein thing is. Did Albert ever live in the Bronx?"
To illustrate the hazards of reading from theTeleprompter, Stahl
told about a deejay who announced, "Our next selection is dedicated to Ms
Madeline Bathgate who's 111."
He paused, cleared his throat and started again. "Our next
selection is dedicated Ms Madeline Bathgate who's ill."
Stahl said her brother, who suffered from cancer of the larynx,
lost his voice box.
"Over 12 years he's had every treatment that has come along. We
depend on you for research to keep him alive for another year."
Since she's been on the CBS program, she's grown younger.
Meryl Streep, who earned Oscars for Kramer vs. Kramer and
Sophie's Choice, also got the award from Einstein College of Medicine.
"Everybody's nervous," she said. "I'm experiencing shpilkes."
She too saluted the women for supporting cancer research.
"In this decade," she said, "more women will die of breast cancer
than all the people in the Civil War, the two World Wars, Korea and
Vietnam combined. We must make women's health care an important part of
the national agenda."
The other two awardees were Lily Tartikoff, whose late husband
Brandon was head of NBC programming and who personally raised $20 million
for cancer research, and Julie Taymor, the first woman to win a Tony
Award for directing a musical, The Lion King.
How To Make Friends
Abe Foxman is a tireless fund raiser as national director of the
Anti-Defamation League.
A couple of years ago he hosted an event for Minyan of the Stars,
an organization founded by the late Joe Papp to reconnect show business
people to their heritage.
That's when he met financial consultant Murray Koppelman, a board
member of the Minyan.
No matter. Ever since that time, Murray has been taking Abe to
the Pritikin spa in California once or twice a year.
Both gentlemen have been transformed into trimmer leaner
individuals. Murray, furthermore, has become a devoted supporter of ADL.
The story came out when ADL's New York regional board recently
honored Koppelman with its inaugural Generations of Justice Award at a
dinner at the Pierre Hotel.
Murray's greatest honor came recently at the Essex House where he
married Ellen Kaplan.
Proud of Zionism
Nell Carter was beaming so much she could hardly gulp down her
lunch at the Pierre Hotel. That's because Evelyn Sommers, president of
the Women's International Zionist Organization in the U.S., made her a
lifetime honorary member.
The event, which benefited the WIZO child care centers in Israel, was
hosted by Gail Perl, chairman of the Dor Hadash chapter.
Nell, who converted a dozen years ago, has visited Israel twice. In fact,
she once told me, she went to the Western Wall and put a letter in a
crevice. It was 12 pages long!
"I am raising the first Black-Jewish Republican president of the United
States," she told the luncheon ladies.
One day, Sam Levenson said, Adam came home late. First thing Eve
did was count his
05/17/99: Rock and religion
A Tree Grows In Newark
"The Talmud speaks of the importance of planting trees," Whitman
said. "My hope is that New Jersey and Israel will continue to plant
together."
Whitman
"We caught a fox with a tail this long," the boy bragged,
stretching out his arms as far as they would go.
Four more women received the same award at a luncheon at the
Waldorf-Astoria, including Lesley Stahl of television's "Sixty Minutes."
Streep, Marshall and Stahl
"You get younger working with people that old - Mike Wallace is
80, Andy Rooney is 80, and producer Don Hewitt is 77. It's a conflict of
interest if they want to do a story on Medicare."
"I can't give a gift to ADL in your honor," Murray told him,
"because I don't have enough money for all that you've done for the
Jewish people."
Foxman
Luncheon chairmen Ilene Sands and Lois Robbins congratulated Nell who was
proudly wearing a gold membership pin.
The House Wit
JWR contributor Tim Boxer is the celebrity columnist of the
New York Jewish
Week and author
of Jewish Celebrity Hall of Fame and Jewish Celebrity
Anecdotes. Send your comments to him by clicking here.
