Rivers’ Jewish source: Joan Rivers (nee Molinsky) unapologetically displayed a Christmas tree and didn’t speak Yiddish, but her Jewishness played a central role in her humor, Antonia Blumberg writes. (Huffington Post)
Joan and Judaism: In an excerpt reprinted from Abigail Pogrebin’s 2005 book “Stars of David,” Joan Rivers talks about everything from her Brooklyn childhood to shopping on Yom Kippur to sitting shiva after her husband’s suicide. (Tablet)
Bachman won’t forget Jerusalem: In an interview, Andy Bachman, an influential Reform rabbi who is leaving his Brooklyn pulpit to pursue anti-poverty work, takes on far-left criticism of Israel and says he plans to keep advocating for the Jewish state. (N.Y. Jewish Week)
Breast cancer gene’s prevalence: A new study indicates that more Ashkenazi Jewish women carry the BRCA mutation than had previously been thought, leading some experts to recommend more aggressive screening. (N.Y. Times)
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