Nostalgia Sunday – Duets

July 25, 2010 by · 3 Comments
Filed under: A New Reality, General, History and Culture, Holidays, Israeliness, Music, Nostalgia Sunday, Pop Culture, tv 

Tonight is Erev Tu b’Av, the eve of a minor holiday that’s gained a great deal of popularity in recent years. To celebrate this so-called “Jewish Valentine’s Day” we present a few duets that are oldies but goodies. None of these male-female duos have stayed together (it’s a hard musical group structure to sustain) but the songs have withstood the test of time.

Perhaps it stemmed from Palmachnik prudishness but early Israeli romantic ballads were generally solo songs of longing sung by a lovesick youth, while boy-girl duets tended to be a bit hokey-jokey. Nonetheless, songs like Rina were hits — and the fashions can’t be beat.

Ani Holem al Naomi (I dream of Naomi) is a fun duet, performed by where-are-they-now duo Hedva and David. In its time, Naomi proved popular in other countries as well, with versions recorded in Korean and Japanese. More recently, a drag version was released.

Tni Li Yad (Give me your hand) is a very pretty song. Music is by the great Yoni Rechter with lyrics by Eli Moher, who performed the duet with his somewhat abashed daughter Sharon.

Pay no attention to the silly opener the precedes Shir Ahava Bedoui (Bedouin Love Song), one of the loveliest duets to come out of late 70s Israel. Try to ignore the costumes, too. Best to just shut your eyes, lean back and remember those summer nights on kibbutz…

Shuv (Once Again) is perhaps the most romantic of all Israeli duets. Performed by then husband and wife Josie Katz and Shmulik Krauss, the song describes the emotions of a couple reuniting after a long separation. This being Israel, the implication is that he has returned from reserve duty or perhaps a war. “Give me a moment… Let me catch my breath… Give me a chance to get used to you once again.”

And a happy belated birthday to Josie Katz!

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Nostalgia Sunday – Jerusalem the Center

July 18, 2010 by · 2 Comments
Filed under: Art, General, History and Culture, Holidays, Life, Nostalgia Sunday, Religion, Travel 

Jerusalem is central to Judaism. And no day is that fact made more evident than Tisha b’Av, the Ninth of Av, the day on which both the First and Second Temples were destroyed and the Jews exiled. It is a day of fasting and mourning, but also of study, prayer and hope that Jerusalem will one day be truly rebuilt and the Jews returned to their ancient homeland.

To mark the upcoming holy day, here are some pictures of Jerusalem, ancient and modern, courtesy of the excellent Jerusalem Shots website.


© trionfo


© RomKri


© trionfo


© Misha Burlatsky


© G. Eric and Edith Matson


© RomKri


© trionfo


© Олег Велобегов

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Nostalgia Sunday – Football… or soccer

July 11, 2010 by · 1 Comment
Filed under: General, History and Culture, Israeliness, Nostalgia Sunday, Pop Culture, Sports, tv 

Whether you know it as football, soccer or kadur regel, it’s the most popular sport in Israel. Let’s kick off with a video of the greatest highlights of Israel football, courtesy of the Israel Football Association YouTube channel.

Wikipedia has a nice summary of the history of football in Israel and the Israel National Football Team, starting with the pre-State period: “During the British Mandate for Palestine, organized football consisted of British and Jewish clubs.”

The first club was Maccabi Tel Aviv, which was founded just after Passover in 1906. As Wikipedia has it, “a group of boys between the age 14-16 were called to the Meir Dizengoff house. There they decided to found the first Israeli football team. They were called, ‘Maccabi Harishon Le-Zyion’. Their first match ended with a victory against a team of sailors from a French ship 3:0. After the city of Tel Aviv founded in 1909, the club changed its name to ‘Maccabi Tel Aviv’.”

In 1924, Hapoel Haifa was formed. “In February 1928, the first ever derby took place in the British Mandate between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Hapoel Tel Aviv. Maccabi won 3–0. Thus began the country’s oldest football club rivalry, one that still goes on today.

“Nine teams started the first league in 1932. The first winner of the league were the British Police, who, under the guidance of Police Chief Speiser, were the best organized club in the country; Speiser would later serve as the first chairman of the football association.”

Upon the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, the Israel Football Association (IFA) became the official association of the new state. “Just four months after Israel gained independence, the Israeli national team traveled to New York City to play their American counterparts in a friendly at the Polo Grounds. Over 40,000 spectators witnessed the newly formed Israeli side lose to the Americans 3–1.”

Israel initially competed in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) vying for European (UEFA) or Oceanian (OFC) World Cup qualifying tournaments. “In 1964, Israel hosted and won the Asian Nations Cup. In 1968, Israel went to their first Olympic Games and lost to Bulgaria in the quarterfinals. In 1970, Israel qualified for their first and only World Cup, via Oceania, but only earned two points after draws with Sweden and finalist Italy and a loss to Uruguay.”

Here’s a picture from the 70s of the Israeli team at the Asian Cup games in Teheran. Yes, that Teheran.

And a picture of Hapoel Haifa in 1974, when they won the Israel State Cup.

“In 1976, Israel went to their second Olympic Games and lost in the quarterfinals again, this time against Brazil. In 1972 and 1977 Israel attempted World Cup qualification as part of Asia, which both times ended in failure.” In 1974, Israel was expelled from AFC as many countries were unwilling to play against it (or acknowledge its right to exist).

Israel then began its bid to become part of the Continent. “During the 1980s, Israel played their majority of matches against European teams, and competed in the European leg of qualification for the 1982 World Cup… In 1991, Israeli clubs began participating in European club competitions and Israel returned to the European leg of World Cup qualifying in 1992… In 1994, Israel received full UEFA membership, 20 years since they had left Asia. Within Europe, Israel have been a relatively minor nation, though with some successes.” Israel’s highest FIFA ranking was 15th in November 2008.

Interestingly, the Asia-Europe switcheroo hasn’t gone unnoticed. “The continued presence of the Israeli Football Association in UEFA was a precedent cited by Australia to justify its transfer from the Oceania Football Confederation to the Asian Football Federation.”

The Ramat Gan stadium, by the way, is home to the Israel national football team. It seats 41,583 and hosts all Israel-international football matches. A virtual tour of the stadium is available here. And here’s a clip from a 1956 game between Israel and the USSR, which took place at the Ramat Gan stadium.


מצא עוד סרטים כאלה ב-Ein Hod עין הוד

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Nostalgia Sunday – American Colony in Jaffa

July 4, 2010 by · 8 Comments
Filed under: A New Reality, education, General, History and Culture, Life, Nostalgia Sunday, Profiles, Religion, Travel 

It seems only right on July 4th to celebrate the good things that Americans have done for Israel. And there are many, ranging from defense systems to granola and gourmet coffee (thanks Cafe Joe!). But most people don’t know that Americans brought the first steel plow to this region; a small group of Christian colonists who landed in Jaffa in 1866.

They came, guided by their spiritual leader, the Reverend George J. Adams, who had founded the Church of the Messiah in Washington County, Maine, in 1862. Much like today, the post-Civil War era was riddled with messianic movements whose followers were convinced that Armageddon had taken place and that a new age was about to dawn. And so, the charismatic Adams, a Shakespearean actor, excommunicated Mormon missionary and Methodist preacher, gathered his 150 followers — most from Jonesport, Maine — who packed their belongings, purchased household goods and pre-fab wooden houses, and set off on the good ship Nellie Chapin bound for the Holy Land.

What happened next was, as Mark Twain put it in The Innocents Abroad, a “fiasco”.

The Maine Historical Society (some great pictures here) describes their fate dryly: “Upon their arrival, colonists discovered that Adams drank heavily and that his claims of rich lands and prosperity were untrue. Those who could afford passage left Palestine. Many of the others became ill and died because of the poor conditions. Adams eventually disappeared as the colony disbanded.”

But of course, there’s more to the story. Although their spiritual leader had crawled into a bottle, the Maine colonists were determined to make a go of their settlement. According to Wikipedia, “The colony began by camping on the beach, relying on local Arabs for food and water… By November, the colony had erected a number of simple frame houses. The pilgrims secured a 10-acre (40,000 m2) plot of land outside of Jaffa, where they founded the American Colony…”

There are other fascinating aspects, such as the interrelations between the early Zionists to the Maine settlers. According to a 2009 Jerusalem Post article , “Interestingly, the growing Zionist movement in Turkish Mandate Palestine responded positively to Adams’ plans. A correspondent for the Jaffa-based Zionist newspaper Hamagid reported the ‘important news’ of the colonists, and praised their ‘noble purpose… to pave a way for the Children of Israel to make possible their return to the land of their fathers.’ Hamagid even printed a letter from Adams, who called on Jews to join in the effort.”

And then there was the progress they sought to bring. For example, the Jerusalem Post notes that Mr. Adams’ missionary efforts were reinforced by Mrs. Adams, “‘a large-sized lady with a decidedly military manner,’ was herself determined to transform Palestine into a ‘fit place for the residence of the Jews’ using the very latest in US agricultural technology, and boasted of such wonders as ‘Johnson’s patent shifting mold-board and gangplow.’”

The colonists also built the Immanuel Church, which still stands and operates today.

But the unlucky streak continued. Within a month of arriving, six children and three adults had died. They began to farm but “[the] Jaffa locals were apparently bemused by the colonists’ ultra-modern plows, and refused to hire them as farm laborers.”

According to the Wikipedia entry, (which is quite extensive and really worth reading), “scavengers ravaged their crops and the community faced famine heading into the winter of 1866-67. This and the climate, the insecure and arbitrary treatment by the Ottoman authorities, made many colonists willing to remigrate to Maine.”

Because George Adams had taken their money, the colonists were forced to appeal to the US government for assistance to return. “By October 1867, the U.S. State Department had appropriated $3000 for the return of any of the remaining colonists who wished to leave Palestine… Twenty of the original colonists remained in Palestine, some of whom remained permanently.” Much of the real estate was sold to newly arriving Templars in 1869 and the property became known as the German Colony.

Among those Americans who stayed, Rolla Floyd was the most prominent. He arrived in Jaffa with a stagecoach and immediately set up what was, more or less, the Holy Land’s first pony express. Floyd is mentioned in the travelogue, Young Folks in Bible Lands by B. W. Johnson: “Mr. Crunden, our London conductor, observing our delight said: ‘Rolla Floyd is here. He is an American who lives at Joppa, and makes it his business to conduct travelers over Palestine. He will furnish our outfit on our camping tour. He always carries the U.S. flag, and you will see that it floats over your camp every night while you are in the country.’

In June 1868, Adams and his wife left Palestine and sailed to England. Wikipedia states that “When confronted by his past exploits by former followers or others, Adams would deny his identity and past.” Many returnees went back to Jonesport and joined the reorganized Mormon Church; so ashamed were they of their failure that they never spoke of the American Colony in Jaffa, and their grandchildren and great-grandchildren grew up never knowing the story.

That is, until about a decade and a half ago when a few things happened. For one thing, the American-German colony, which had fallen into great disrepair, underwent a modest revival when one of the wooden buildings was purchased, the structure moved on rollers about 6 meters and reopened as a fine restaurant (Keren, which has since closed).

Another thing that happened was that an Israeli documentarian made a film about the American colonists* and got many of their descendants to open up about their family history — and begin to take pride in it. Several books were written on the subject. And in 2002, Maine residents Jean and Reed Holmes, saved one of the wooden houses from destruction and opened the Maine Friendship House museum to visitors and groups.

The American Colony is now undergoing some serious gentrification with The Village, a luxury development that will preserve 70% of the buildings on site. According to the developers, “Among some of the indulgences the project offers are a naturally lit swimming pool, a wine cellar, a lucrative (sic) spa and an advanced fitness room. In addition, the project’s residents will be provided with an underground parking spot.”

It’s may not be quite what George Adams and his followers had in mind, but a personal parking spot in Tel Aviv? We might be living in the End of Days after all.

* Unfortunately, I am unable to recall her name or that of the movie and IMDB is failing me here. If anyone has seen or knows about this film, please let me know.

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Nostalgia Sunday – Strange… I’ve seen that face before

June 27, 2010 by · 1 Comment
Filed under: design, General, History and Culture, Israeliness, Nostalgia Sunday, Politics, Pop Culture, tv 

Went out to dine, en famille, at local Jerusalem eatery Pinati and noticed a change in their corporate image. Instead of a photoshopped photo of a rather excited-looking young man in a Turkish tarbush, what we now have is a cartoon — or is it a caricature? — of a man, still wearing the traditional fez — but looking remarkably like a contemporary US president.

It got me thinking about other brands we’ve had, throughout the years, that were inspired — a nice way of putting it — by other, perhaps more well-known images.

For example, take a look at Dan Haschan (“Thrifty Dan”), the elf that throughout the 1950s, 60s and 70s, helped Bank Hapoalim to encourage young people to save their agorot. He might as well be the eighth of Snow White’s dwarves. I mean, I get that the bag he’s holding is full of money but if he’s not one of them, then what’s the pickax for?

BTW: Dan was recently revived by Poalim, sans tools and his bag upgraded to a cool moneybox. There’s a good blog posting about the comeback (in Hebrew) on Samlil, a site devoted to Israeli branding and its sister site, Safta, a fantastic Flickr photostream of vintage Israeliana.

I’ve always loved the Ama lady, the face that launched a thousand loads of laundry. But look carefully and what you’ll see is Betty Boop, had she been born in pre-State Mandatory Palestine, served in the Palmach, married, moved into a workers’ residence and had to do all her washing by hand in the communal laundry room.

And who can forget MacDavid, the little kosher fast food chain that could? Certainly not McDonald’s, who sued the now defunct franchise (8 outlets in it’s heyday) for trademark infringement — and lost!

We have to forgive Walla!, Israel’s answer to Yahoo!, for the close resemblance because at the time every country had its own local Nanas, Yallas!, Kartoos or other copycat search engine-cum-web portal.

Clearly, there’s no way that Zakumi, the 2010 World Cup Mascot, could have known about Strauss-Elite’s new chocolate-inspired foursome, the Elite-Team. They probably just go to the same hairdresser.

However, there’s every chance that El-Al’s branding and marketing team had seen a relatively uknown little film called Walt Disney’s Peter Pan. Check out the winged flight attendant and tell me there’s no resemblance to our favorite jealous fairy.

But the biggest “tribute”* around these days has got to be animated cartoon Ahmed & Salim.

The elevator pitch: would-be Palestinian terrorists meet South Park. It’s been narrowcasting on YouTube for a while, earning its share of media coverage, bans and death threats along the way, and last week made its Israeli cable debut on comedy channel Bip.

An 11-year old told me it was really funny. I am unconvinced. But I suppose it beats what they’re showing kids on Palestinian TV. And Israel hasn’t ripped off Mickey Mouse, Maya the Bee and Bugs Bunny… yet.

*Another nice word

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