Woody Allen Tonight: Part 2 of "Hassidic Tales" (from "Getting Even")

"While [Rabbi Yisroel] was on his way to synagogue to celebrate the sacred Jewish holiday commemorating God's reneging on every promise, a woman stopped him and asked the following question: 'Rabbi, why are we not allowed to eat pork?'

"'We're not?' the Rev said incredulously. 'Uh-oh.'"

-- from tonight's first "Hassidic Tale"

by Ken

Pursuing the matter of Rabbi Yisroel and the question of eating pork, the noted scholar concludes his "guide to the tale's interpretation": "Why pork was proscribed by Hebraic law is still unclear, and some scholars believe that the Torah merely suggested not eating pork at certain restaurants."

Last night we had the first three of Woody's "Hassidic Tales," in which we met three learned rabbis including Rabbi Raditz of Poland, "who was said to have inspired many pogroms with his sense of humor" -- "a man who has never read the Bible and has been faking it." Tonight more inconvenient questions for the rabbis, and a rabbi, Rabbi Yekel of Zans ("who had the best diction in the world until a Gentile stole his resonant underwear"), who has problems you don't want to know from.


FOR OUR FINAL THREE "HASSIDIC TALES," CLICK HERE

SO FAR IN "WOODY ALLEN TONIGHT"

from Getting Even (1971)
"A Look at Organized Crime"
"Death Knocks," Part 1 and Part 2
"A Twenties Memory"
"Hassidic Tales, with a Guide to Their Interpretation by the Noted Scholar," Part 1
Coming tomorrow: Part 1 of "The Schmeed Memoirs"
And coming soon: "Count Dracula"

THURBER TONIGHT (including WOODY ALLEN, ROBERT BENCHLEY, BOB AND RAY, WILL CUPPY, WOLCOTT GIBBS, RING LARDNER, S. J. PERELMAN, JEAN SHEPHERD, and E. B. WHITE TONIGHT): Check out the series to date

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