January 2, 2024
This actor, filmmaker, and playwright who produced Young Frankenstein and The Producers was a U.S. Army combat engineer during World War II and participated in the Battle of the Bulge.
A - Steven Spielberg
B - Billy Wilder
C - Woody Allen
D - Mel Brooks
D - Mel Brooks. Before his illustrious entertainment career spanning over seven decades, Brooks was placed in the Army Specialized Training Program at Virginia Military Institute, where he learned combat engineering and other fighting skills. He participated in the Battle of the Bulge and was sent to the forward edge of the battle areas, helping to clear German land mines so Allied forces could advance. With the end of the war in Europe, Brooks joined the Special Services as a comic touring army bases. He was made acting corporal, was put in charge of entertainment at Wiesbaden, and performed at Fort Dix.
Who was the first Jewish Supreme Court justice?
A - Haym Salomon
B - Ruth Bader Ginsburg
C - Louis Brandeis
C - Louis Brandeis was the first Jew appointed to the Supreme court. He was born in Louisville, Kentucky, to Jewish immigrant parents from Bohemia (now the Czech Republic). Brandeis helped to develop the notion of the legal “right to privacy” in the United States. During his tenure on the court, he was instrumental in shaping modern American jurisprudence.
Which of these Jews were involved in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s?
A - Andrew Goodman
B - Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel
C - Rabbi Maurice Eisendrath
D - All of the above
Correct answer: D - Andrew Goodman was a social worker and activist who was murdered by the KKK during the Freedom Summer of 1964. Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907-1972) was a prominent rabbi and Jewish philosopher who was a professor at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, and was known for marching in Selma with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Rabbi Maurice Eisendrath was the head of the Reform Movement’s Union of American Hebrew Congregations and was a prominent anti-war and civil rights activist.
Who was the first Jewish American in space?
A - Ellen Baker
B- Judith Resnik
C- Bros Volynov
D- Neil Armstrong
Correct answer: B - Judith Resnik was the first Jewish American in space and the first Jewish woman in space (Boris Volynov of the Soviet Union was the first Jew to ever explore space). Judith died when the Space Shuttle Challenger was destroyed during the launch of mission STS-51-L. Resnik continues to be a role model for feminists trying to create more opportunities for women in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
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