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Few cities can match the glory of Aleppo, Syria, a city that spans Jewish history from the days of King David over 3,000 years ago. Aristocratic and noble, Aleppo was the crown of Jewish splendor in the Sephardic world.
The Jewish presence in Syria dates back to Biblical times and is intertwined with the history and politics of Jerusalem. According to the book of Samuel and Psalm 60, Aram Soba, the Biblical name for Aleppo, was part of the extended area of Israel. Throughout the millennia, great Talmudic sages record Aleppo's unbroken record of communal peace and spiritual productivity. Early Jewish travelers to the area included Benjamin of Tudela in 1173, Sadai Gaon in 921, and Rabbi Petachya of Germany in 1170-80.
"It is hoary Aleppo legend, both Jewish and Muslim, that the patriarch Abraham had settled for a period in Aleppo
|"I t is hoary Aleppo legend, both Jewish and Muslim, that the patriarch Abraham had settled for a period in Aleppo in his wanderings from his native Ur. He is believed to have milked his cows there. Halab , the Arabic name for Aleppo, is the Aramaic, Hebrew, and Arabic for 'milked.' "
According to "the patriarchs Abraham and Isaac spent part of their lives in what is now Syria. During and after the late Biblical period, and until the late 19 th Century, Syria and Eretz Israel were often territories of the same superpower and were sometimes considered a single entity. The Talmudic Sages ruled that some of the religious laws that pertain only to the land of Israel (chiefly in the realm of agriculture) apply to Syria as well."
The foundation for the Great Synagogue in Aleppo is believed to have been constructed by King David's General, Joab ben Seruya (circa 950 BCE), after his conquest of the city (2 Sam 8:3-8); it is still sometimes referred to as Joab's Synagogue. The architecture of the synagogue was heavily influenced by the designs of Muslim mosques. For example, the ark of the synagogue is an exact copy of a mosque's mihrab.
Walter Zenner dates the building of the Great Synagogue to the fifth Century of the Common Era. The synagogue was destroyed during the rule of Tamerlane in 1400 and was rebuilt in 1418. In 1947 anti-Zionist groups burned the synagogue, which was in an abandoned state by 1995.
The politics of the region depended on the rulers. With the adoption of Christianity as the official religion of Rome, the Romans placed restrictions on Jews. These were lifted with the Arab conquest in 636 CE, when Islamic caliphates began ruling the region. From the seventh Century until the end of Ottoman rule, the Jewish community was self-governed. Self-government entitled the Jews to freedom of religion, a separate court system ruled by local rabbis to handle internal disputes, and military protection. In return for political and military protection, the Jews were given dhimmi status, meaning they had to adhere to certain rules and pay a poll tax, which was based on the number of men in the community, and did not have to serve in the military. Dhimmi status did not entitle Jews to the same or equal rights as Muslim citizens, however. They, along with their Christian counterparts, were of a lower status than Muslims and disputes between a Christian or Jew and a Muslim were settled in the government court, which was ruled by Islamic law.
By the tenth Century, many Jews emigrated from Iraq to Syria, due to political unrest. This brought about a boom in commerce, banking and crafts in Syria. During the reign of the Islamic Fatimids, the Jew Ibrahim El Kazzazz ran the Syrian administration and granted Jews positions in government. For many years, the Jews lived comfortably under Muslim rule, secure in their place as dhimmi , a protected people. Living in a non-democratic state, both Jews and Muslims remained apolitical.
"One aspect of this low profile was that new synagogues could not be built. Furthermore, Jews had to justify the existence of older houses of worship by stressing their antiquity, such as the Great Synagogue of Aleppo to Joab the son of Seruya. Ceremonies such as blowing the shofar and celebrating Purim had to be conducted so as not to disturb their Muslim neighbors."
The Jewish community that evolved in this setting developed a different kind of politics to govern their people. The community was governed by the hakham bashi , or chief rabbi. Paying and collecting taxes and obtaining patronage were forms of political participation. Yet the treatment of Jews was also based on the current Muslim ruler and the economics of the time. If things got worse economically, the treatment of Jews deteriorated. When times were good and the economy was booming, Jews were treated well, so long as they stayed in their place and did not upset the balance between the two religious groups.
Various historians confirm that "the situation for the Jews varied under successive conquerors, as rulers imposed and removed restrictive laws. At times, Jews reached great heights…"
Aleppo was the center of Jewish life for many centuries. Distinguished rabbis studied there and it was a center of significant Torah learning. Among the reasons for Aleppo's importance in Jewish learning is a document known as the Aleppo Codex. It is believed that a member of the famous Ben-Asher family wrote the Aleppo Codex over 1000 years ago. The text shows the final vocalization and punctuation of the Biblical text. Some believe it is the Biblical text, which Rambam refers to in his Hilchot Sefer Torah .
"The Aleppo Codex is the earliest known manuscript containing the entire text of the Bible.
|"T he Aleppo Codex is the earliest known manuscript containing the entire text of the Bible. Tradition states that Maimonides consulted the Aleppo Codex when he set down the exact rules for writing Torah scrolls. Recent research indicates that it is possible that Maimonides sanctified and codified everything he found in the Aleppo Codex.
The Codex was copied by the scribe Shlomo Ben-Buya'a in the land of Israel over 1,000 years ago. It was deposited with the Aleppo community at the end of the 14 th Century and kept in a small vault in the Cave of Elijah under the Joab Ben Zeruiah Synagogue of Aleppo. The community talisman guarded it for over 600 years."
For the most part, conditions remained good for Jews in Syria under the Fatimids and later under Ottoman rule. The Ottoman rulers favored the Jews, understanding that the Jews would contribute to a good economy and that they facilitated commerce.
There were two classes of Jews in Aleppo. The wealthier members of the community were bankers or merchants, while lower class members included brokers, grocers or peddlers. Aleppo-born Jewish author, Joseph Sutton, said, "Most Jews were either lower middle-class or very poor. They were craftsman, stall-keepers, cobblers, clerks, peddlers, porters, or others without skills." Besides life cycle events, recreation activities favored "gambling, particularly backgammon, dice, and cardplaying."
Walter Zenner describes how the social structure of the community was controlled.
"In Aleppo, women generally did not work outside the home, although some girls and women were domestics in Jewish homes."
The occupations of the Aleppo Jews determined their social class standing and their wealth. There was a social class structure that determined marriages.
"The movement of young girls was carefully controlled...Marriages were generally arranged by parents...Cousin marriage of all four kinds was practiced.
Aleppo is the second largest city in Syria. In the center of town there is an ancient fortress, or citadel, and a bazaar. The city lies in a semi-desert region in the northwest area of the country. When the Jews lived there, there was a market for grains, fruit, as well as wool and hides. Silk and cotton textiles were also manufactured in the town. Dried fruits and nuts, especially pistachios, were widely sold and eaten. Aleppo was a flourishing trade center during the 16 th Century, but its popularity declined when sea routes to India became more popular and efficient. The city was almost destroyed by earthquakes in 1822 and in 1830.
The Jews in Spain Come to Syria
The Umayad Islamic General Tariq conquered Spain in 711, after which the Jews began to grow in number. The Umayad kingdom in Spain soon became independent of Baghdad and by the 10 th Century had divided Spain into smaller caliphates (areas). Yet the Umayads retained the Islamic culture, foods and styles of Syrian life, planting the same trees, plants and food crops that their ancestors had in Syria, producing a Syrianization of the Andalusian countryside. Under the Umayads, the enjoyment of worldly goods was condoned and Jewish tastes mirrored those of Muslims. During the period, luxury commerce thrived and the economy flourished in Spain.
During the Golden Age of Spain (usually considered the 10 th and 11 th Centuries), such great Jewish minds as Maimonides, Rav Yehuda Halevi and Nahmanides produced important works. During this early period, Hasdai Ibn Shaprut (915-970), a Jew in the court of the Umayad dynasty emerged as the officially recognized leader of the Jews. He was a patron of Jewish learning and a statesman during his time. As the first of many statesmen for the Jews, he led and defended the Spanish Jewish community in Islamic Spain.
The highest point of the Golden Age of Spain was during the 11 th Century, when Talmudic scholarship, Jewish philosophy and Hebrew poetry peaked. A Sephardic school on the Talmud began in Lucena by Rav Alfasi, the Rif (1013-1103). His compendium, which attempts to arrive at a psak Halacha , appears at the end of each tome of the Talmud. Maimonides, a student of this school, along with his teacher and father Rav Maimon, wrote the Code of Jewish Law during the 12 th Century. One of the most important commentaries on the Chumash by Rav Abraham ibn Ezra (1088-1167) was written during this time. This period of Jewish scholarship and philosophy, during the Golden Age of Spain, was never again equaled.
It is widely believed that the first persecution of Jews in Spain occurred under the Christians. Rather the first persecution of Jews in Spain occurred under the Visigoths in the 7 th Century, not under Christian rule. The next persecution occurred in 1066, under Muslim rule, when more than 1500 Jewish families were killed in Granada, on the Iberian Peninsula. It was widely believed that Joseph ibn Nagrela, a Jew who served the king of Granada, was crucified at the gates of Granada. He was the builder of the Alhambra, and he based its architectural design on the Second Temple.
The next persecutions occurred under the Christians. In 1391, many Jews were forced to convert to Catholicism. The converted Jews remained in Spain and were called conversos or Marranos , the Spanish word for pigs. These New Christians could not openly practice Judaism without fear of persecution.
In the late 15 th Century King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella wed, uniting the kingdoms of Castille and Aragon. It wasn't long before they took back the last remaining Moorish Kingdom of Granada in the south. Devout Christians, the King and Queen could not tolerate non-believers in their kingdom. It was in the Alhambra that their edict expelling the Jews from Christian Spain in 1492 was signed. Jews had to convert to Christianity or leave the country.
Jews who left Spain fled mainly to the Islamic countries that bordered the Mediterranean Sea. They went to Italy, North Africa, Palestine and to the area we now know as Syria, which was controlled by the Ottoman Empire and whose rulers welcomed the Jews with open arms. Some went to Portugal, but were later expelled.
The Convergence of Two Communities
As Jews left Spain for the Mediterranean countries, many found themselves in areas of the Ottoman Empire that welcomed them. At the time, the Ottoman Empire included Palestine and what is now known as Syria, including Aleppo, Damascus and Beirut. The Ottomans believed that the Jews would inspire trade and encourage economic growth in the region.
The Ottoman Empire was particularly interested in efficient governance. A census was taken of its territories to determine ethnic composition and dispute claims concerning ethnic populations in the Ottoman territories. The empire was divided geographically into administrative units called vilayets , or provinces. Vilayets were further divided into sanjaks , or sub-provinces, which in turn were divided into kazas , or cities. A kaza might also include small villages that surround it. The chief town of a sanjak was called the merkez kasasi , or central kasa . Aleppo was a vilayet, and encompassed a vast area that included what is now Beirut, as well as numerous outlying villages.
Many Jewish families settled in Aleppo, as it was an established center for great rabbinical learning. During the initial settlement period, the Spanish Jews who had emigrated from Spain, remained separate and apart from the indigenous Aleppan Jews. The Spanish Jews spoke Ladino, a mixture of Hebrew and Spanish that was not understood in Aleppo, where the population spoke Arabic and read Hebrew with an Arabic accent. Added to the mixture of native Syrians and Spanish Jews from Sepharad, were Italian Jews, who were commonly referred to as "Francos."
Spanish grandee Señor Shlomo Kassin, who arrived in Aleppo in 1540, led the immigration to Aleppo. Señor Shlomo, who was wealthy, was an administrative genius and was soon appointed head of the community.
|Spanish grandee Señor Shlomo Kassin, who arrived in Aleppo in 1540, led the immigration to Aleppo. Señor Shlomo, who was wealthy, was an administrative genius and was soon appointed head of the community. Señor Shlomo's grandson, Rabbi Yom Tov Kassin, was the first Kassin family member to become a Chief Rabbi in Aleppo. Rabbi Yom Tov's son, Rabbi Yehuda Kassin (1708 - 1784), followed his lead and became a rabbi. He was buried in the courtyard of the Great Synagogue of Aleppo.
It took several centuries, but eventually the two communities – the new Spanish Jews and the Jews indigenous to Aleppo, converged into one and the Ladino language of the Spanish Jews died out by the middle of the 18 th Century. Yet the surnames of the families - like Kassin and Labaton - lived on into the 21 st Century.
Aleppo in the 19 th and 20 th Centuries
Until the end of the 19 th Century, cotton and silk were the primary exports from the Middle East to Asia and Europe as caravans traveled from East to West. The first signs of serious economic hardship came with the start of the Industrial Revolution, which caused a reversal in the flow of trade, compounded with the opening of the Suez Canal in 1867. The combination dealt a bitter blow and ultimately destroyed trading along the caravan routes, which included Aleppo and Damascus. Economic times became bad, then worse.
Culturally, little changed among the Syrian Jews in Aleppo, except their rulers. People became poorer or richer. Boys had a kittab school education until their bar mitzvah, after which time they worked. Women in this society were widely protected. Marriages were primarily arranged based on social and economic class.
In religious life, gender segregation provided women with an opportunity for social time and for leisure activities, such as card playing. It was unusual for girls to receive any formal education until well into the 20 th Century, although a limited number of girls attended Alliance Israelite Universelle schools. Marriages were generally arranged after a girl had her first cycle, often as young as 13 or 14. Teenage girls and marriage women adorned their arms with gold bangle bracelets, a tradition that carried forward to the present time.
Before a wedding took place, the groom's mother would send gifts to the bride, including money to go to the mikvah (ritual bath) where she would prepare herself for her wedding night, and a white handkerchief. The handkerchief was used to clean the bride after her first union with the groom. Girls were prepared for their lives as wives and mothers, learning sewing, meal preparation and how to manage a household. Cooking was a religious effort in order to uphold the laws of kashrut and convey the Syrian culture to their children through food and annual traditions.
Few women worked and they rarely shopped. In the Middle East it was customary for the husband to arrange for a stock of staple items and to market since it was assumed that he was the better negotiator. Women were highly respected and honored because their work as mothers and homemakers was important. They kept their heads covered, and if they went out in public, their faces.
Jews were observant as rabbis and community leaders governed the community. The Ottoman government did not keep birth records for the Jewish communities, although individual rabbis kept records of brit milahs, marriages and deaths.
According to Zenner, from the mid-19 th Century on, "the Ottoman government appointed a chief rabbi ( hakham bashi ). This individual represented the Jewish community before government agencies and could be a powerful individual in the community in his own right. Rabbis often came from families, which had a long tradition for providing the community with hakhamim ," as did the Kassins and the Labatons.
The hakham was distinguished by the size and color of his turban and the long-wide sleeves of his outer garments. While it was customary for everyone to wear an ankle-length robe with a sash around the waist, the hakham bashi was a government official and wore a finer robe with ceremonial orders and medals, and gold and silver embroidery. The hakham bashi had two government-appointed bodyguards who carried his Staff of Office and cleared the way for him.
Aleppan rabbis were learned in Kabbalah and Talmudic legal tradition. The rabbis dealt with cases of Jewish law ranging from spiritual to civil cases including marriage, inheritance, business contracts, torts, building regulations and Jewish rituals. Aleppan Jews had a well known reputation for respecting rabbinic authority.
Worldwide politics began having an influence on Syria in the early 19 th Century when European powers sought equal treatment for Christians and Jews. Jewish contractual positions with the government disappeared, but civil service positions were created. Heads of the religious communities such as the chief rabbi, were appointed positions. The jizha tax was a substitution for military service and was eliminated. In 1908 the Young Turks, who succeeded the Ottomans in certain areas, began conscripting Jews into their Army, spurring a mass emigration of Jews to the Americas.
Then, just prior to World War I, the Ottomans lost control of their empire. For the first time, Jewish men were being sought to serve in the army to fight in the Balkan Wars. Overnight, Jewish men were secretly being sent away to avoid military service. The first wave of Syrian Jews who went to America escaped military service in a conflict with which they did not agree. Syrian Jews arrived in Mexico City, Mexico, Buenos Aires, Argentina, New York, Chicago and other American cities, although most came to New York.
Emigration from Syria halted during World War I and many families were separated. After World War I, the French took control over Aleppo and it, along with Damascus, became a French Mandate. Travel required a French passport or travel paper. Jews who had passports from European countries were exempt from local taxation, which was a drain on the finances of the local Jewish community. Massive emigration from Syria occurred again during the period after World War I and continued until the mid-1920s, when the Great Depression began. The emigrés from the early 20th Century migration populate what is known today as the Syrian Jewish communities of Brooklyn and New Jersey.
The Ottoman Empire, which encompassed what is today Turkey, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and other territories, fell early in the 20 th Century. The region was divided into areas controlled by France and Great Britain. Palestine was under British Mandate. Syria was under French control. The Republic of Turkey was established in 1923. Syria gained its independence from France in 1946. Attacks against Jews, who remained in the Syria after World War I, increased. Pogroms in 1947 left Jewish shops and synagogues destroyed. Thousands of Jews left the country for America and Palestine.
The pogroms and destruction also placed the cherished Aleppo Codex in great jeopardy.
"When the synagogue was torched in 1947 during a pogrom, the Codex was saved and hidden. In 1957, it was smuggled out of Aleppo to Israel, where it was presented in 1958 to President Yitzhak Ben-Zvi.
|"W hen the synagogue was torched in 1947 during a pogrom, the Codex was saved and hidden. In 1957, it was smuggled out of Aleppo to Israel, where it was presented in 1958 to President Yitzhak Ben-Zvi. It is housed in the Ben-Zvi Institute. Of the original 487 leaves, only 295 leaves remain. The Aleppo Codex is believed to be the most authoritative, accurate and sacred source document, both for the Biblical text and for the vocalization and cantillation. It has greater religious and scholarly import than any other manuscript of the Bible."
After the birth of the State of Israel in 1948, persecution of Jews remaining in Syria was common. The Jews were no longer permitted to own property, travel or practice their occupation. Jews who tried to leave the country were persecuted. The Muslim dhimmi laws were strictly enforced. Those Jews who were permitted to travel for business purposes could not travel with family members because the Syrian government feared that they would flee. The Syrian government feared that Jewish men would join forces with Israel and fight against them in the Israeli Army.
During a 10-year period in the 1980s, a collection of Jewish Holy objects was smuggled out of Syria through the efforts of then-Chief Rabbi Avraham Hamra. The collection included nine ancient Bible manuscripts, known as the Ketarim , each between 700 and 900 years old. In addition, there were 40 Torah scrolls and 32 decorative boxes in which the Sephardic Torah scrolls were held. The collection was taken via Turkey, in stages to the Jewish National and University Library of the Hebrew University in Israel. The smuggling was necessary since official requests for permission to take them out of Syria were denied.
Never forgetting their Syrian brethren, community members from Brooklyn, New York often bribed Syrian government officials to help get those relatives still in Syria out of the country. Negotiations between America's President George H. Bush, with heavy lobbying from Jewish Americans of Syrian birth, and Syria's President Assad, resulted in Syrian Jews being granted exit visas to America as tourists in the early 1990s. Ironically, Assad's demand that they not leave the country as emigrés gave the Syrian Jews whom entered America yet another ten years of persecution. In the United States as tourists, they could not practice their chosen profession, obtain licenses, and apply for public assistance or travel outside the United States.
In the year 2000, Brooklyn's Syrian community, led by the Sephardic Voter's League and the Council for the Rescue of Syrian Jews, was able to gain passage of federal legislation to change the immigration status of the immigrants. Their new legal status allows them to work legally in the United States, obtain working documents (green cards) and apply for citizenship.
Brooklyn's Syrian Jewish Community
As the Middle East suffered economic depression, these Middle Eastern Jews began looking for a better life for their families. Syrian Jewish émigrés began arriving in New York City and the Americas in the early 20 th Century, about 1908. While many settled in Manchester, England, Mexico and South America, specifically Argentina, the majority settled in New York City, especially in the borough of Brooklyn, creating the largest Sephardic population outside of Eretz Israel .
The Jews of Aleppo and Damascus migrated to the United States in the early twentieth Century for three basic reasons. First, an economic decline in Syria crippled their ability to earn a living. Second, the Young Turks, a rebel group responsible for the overthrow of the Ottoman sultan, were conscripting Jews into the Army. Third, the rise of Zionism led to increase anti-Semitism in the Middle East region.
The Syrian Jewish community in New York originally consisted of two groups, Jews from Aleppo and Jews from Damascus, Syria. At first the convergence of the two groups was not easy. The Aleppan Jews thought of themselves as more knowledgeable, largely due to their history in Syria as a center of Jewish learning. The Aleppans, or Halabis , followed the traditions of Aram Soba . The Damascene Jews or shammies , prayed in a different house of worship, although in Brooklyn the two groups lived side by side and socialized.
As the Syrian Jewish community in Brooklyn grew, it established its own clearly defined infrastructure, including a cemetery, synagogues, religious schools, ritual baths, and a community center. At the same time, the Syrian Jews became assimilated into society, through dress, language and basic education. However, they continued to nurture and preserve their heritage, values and culture, as they knew them in Syria. While members of the community learned and did business with the secular world, they clearly established parameters under which they operated. Parents, concerned that their culture and religion not be compromised by secular influences, controlled social liaisons and marriages, although arranged marriages were no longer forced. Intermarriage with non-Jews was banned.
Moral values, including religious observance of kashrut and the Sabbath, as well as tzedekah , chesid and other mitzvot , were expected. Until the late 1950s, most Syrian children attended public school and boys received their Hebrew education from a Talmud Torah (a place for Jewish learning), at the k'nees or shul.
When the Syrian Jews came to America, they were limited in what they could do to support their families. Most men had no more than an eighth grade education and they did not know Yiddish or English so factory jobs were not desirable. Many became peddlers, an occupation that allowed them to observe the Sabbath, or small shopkeepers. They sold household items, linens, doilies, curtains and tablecloths. Both commercial and kin ties bound the immigrants from Aleppo with those who remained in Syria. Most had liquid assets.
In those early years, the New York-based Hebrew Immigration Aid Society helped to settle the newly arrived Jews. The Syrian arrivals were often placed in apartments on the Lower East Side with Ashkenazic families. Linguistic differences made it difficult for the two different types of Jews to co-mingle. The Ashkenazim did not understand the Syrians Arabic language and Hebrew accent. The Syrians were unaccustomed to the bland foods served by Ashkenazic Jews. The patrician Spanish Portuguese Synagogue on the Upper East Side did not welcome the immigrant Syrians, whom they considered low class.
When Syrian Jews first came to New York, men often came alone until they could afford to bring their families. The Arabic speaking Jews were uncomfortable with their Eastern European brethren and found solace and comfort in the kitchen of Rose Cohen Misrie of Beirut. Rose and her Aleppan husband, Israel Misrie, opened the Egyptian Rose, a Lower East Side restaurant that was a haven to Syrian Jews arriving from the Near East.
In addition to eating, there was talking, bargaining, trading, card games and toleh (Arabic for backgammon). Rose spun her tales and her storytelling made the restaurant feel like home. A different menu of Middle Eastern cuisine was prepared each day and everyone ate what was prepared. The Egyptian Rose was the place to be, especially for men who came to New York without their families.
It was common for Aleppan men with rabbinic training to work as merchants, rather than as judges or full-time scholars, since they considered it preferable to earn a living through secular means. Unlike East European Jews, trade rather than secular education was the road to economic mobility.
Eli Hedaya, a Syrian Jew, came to the United States in 1905 at age 12 and immediately became a peddler, or door to door salesman. "I used to buy supplies from Natan Labi, who was then on Washington Street, although Jewish. I would buy a dozen or dozen and a half 'pieces' at a time, which I sold as a peddler.... working at age twelve or so was common in Halab. At that age a boy went to work to support, help feed the family, [sic] among the poor."
Syrian Jews owned a number of retail ventures. Some opened stores at beach resorts in Rhode Island, Virginia and along the New Jersey shore, where they sold souvenirs, jewelry, sweatshirts and T-shirts. Many merchants sold linens, doilies, handkerchiefs and tablecloths. Others tried their luck in different cities around the country such as Buffalo and Nashville, but returned to New York City, when life as a Jew became difficult.
Atlantic City, New Jersey became a summer resort where many Syrian Jews had summer stores. Hedaya said "The Boardwalk at Atlantic City had a number of busy linen stores, some operated by Jews, some by Christian Syrians; Madeira Lace Shop was Jewish." Another Syrian Jew, Basil David Cohen recalled "I worked in the South for three years, and when I returned to New York, I brought back $3,000 or $4,000. I took out a peddling license..."
Before long, the Syrian Jews began praying in their own separate areas. In 1911, a dozen or so Syrian Jews united under the name Kehillat Shaare Sedek and built a synagogue on the Lower East Side. A Talmud Torah for the children opened from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. daily and on Sunday mornings. Members of the community, most of them businessmen, taught the classes. There was no rabbinical leadership until the arrival in 1910 of Rabbi Yitzhak Shalom zt'l, who helped and supported thousands of Aleppan immigrants as they established themselves in the New World.
Over time, the Syrian Jews opened more and more retail establishments, selling merchandise similar to what they had offered when they peddled door-to-door. The businesses were family operated and the merchants favored employing other members of the community. Some Syrians banded together and formed wholesale establishments or began to manufacture clothing. Importing children's clothing from the Far East became a tremendous source of income, particularly after World War II. Evidence of this is found today as the owners of manufacturing companies such as Catton Bros. (children's clothing), Baby Togs, the Children's Place, Lollitogs, Jet Set and Jordache jeans all bear Syrian surnames.
After World War II, Syrians expanded from the garment business into the electronics business and opened chains of stores like Nobody Beats the Wiz or wholesale outlets like Soundesign. Republic National Bank was owned by Aleppans, as well as chain stores like Duane Reade, Rainbow Shops and others. Syrian importers still sell to K-Mart, Wal-Mart, and J.C. Penney stores.
After living on the Lower East Side in the 1920s, the Syrian Jews began moving to Bensonhurst, a Brooklyn neighborhood, where they established a cemetery (in Staten Island), two synagogues, a Talmud Torah and a ritual bath on 67th Street near 20th Avenue. The Damascene Jews prayed at Ahi Ezer Synagogue on 71 st Street, led by Rabbi Murad Maslaton, while the Aleppan Jews prayed at Magen David Synagogue, built in 1921, on 67 th Street.
A souk or shopping area that specialized in Middle East imports , developed in Bensonhurst with all the stores the Syrians needed, carrying an array of items similar to those in Syria. The souk had food shops, grocery stores and kosher butchers operated by community members. Here women could purchase imported spices, such as kamoon (cumin), parhat (allspice), habtlebedegeh (a black seed ) , as well as grains such as smead (semolina) , that were needed for their cooking. They also purchased dried tamarind, a fruit used to make oot , a paste made from the tamarind fruit that is used to flavor lahamajene , meshe (stuffed zucchini) and other Syrian specialties.
Meyer's Ice Cream Store on Bay Parkway and 69 th Street was a common hangout for Syrian teenagers and young adults. Summers were spent with long days on the beach in Coney Island, then a popular summer resort.
In 1932, Brooklyn community leaders invited Rabbi Jacob S. Kassin of Jerusalem, to come to the New York as the chief rabbi of its growing community. Rabbi Jacob had established a reputation in the Bet Din , and as a Kabbalist , teacher and Gaon (great leader) . He was also the son of esteemed Rabbi Shaul Kassin, a Syrian rabbi from a long rabbinic dynasty. Rabbi Jacob agreed to become chief rabbi and moved to Bensonhurst with his family in 1933. His leadership and guidance was paramount to the shaping of the Syrian and Sephardic community in Brooklyn.
During these times, weddings and bar mitzvahs were simple, generally with the ceremony held in the synagogue and the reception held in the family home with food cooked by the women. Guests squeezed in and out like sardines, dancing to Arabic music and stuffed their faces with homemade Syrian delights, all the while enjoying the homelike atmosphere of being among family and friends. One photo of the bride and groom recorded the event for posterity. Those who could afford it held wedding and bar mitzvah receptions in Ahi Ezer Congregation on 71 st Street in Bensonhurst, and hired professional musicians and a photographer.
Many Syrian Jewish families who hosted receptions in their homes, purchased foods from Esther and Selim Salem, son of Rabbi Abraham Salem. In the 1940s, the couple built a commercial kitchen in the backyard garage of their home on 63 rd Street just off 21 st Avenue. The family's seven children and Rabbi Abraham Salem lived in the house. The basement was converted into a storage area for gallons of pickles and imported Syrian spices. There were huge ovens, trays and freezers to store the food.
Theirs was the first kosher Syrian catering available in New York. The Salems catered weddings, bar mitzvahs, a sebit (Saturday lunch meal ) after Saturday morning services, and numerous parties throughout the growing Syrian Sephardic Jewish community in Bensonhurst. Members of the Sephardic community would trek up the narrow side alley to the Salem's backyard kitchen, especially in preparation for holidays and special events, to purchase her goodies. The smells would emanate from the kitchen and greet you like a breath of fresh air.
Summer vacations in Bradley Beach, along the New Jersey shore, became commonplace, as hundreds of families rented or purchased summer homes there. This started a popular social season where young boys and girls could meet and find a suitable spouse.
The Syrian Jews made their next move in the 1940s. The wealthiest members of the community moved to the Ocean Parkway section of Brooklyn where they purchased private homes. In just a few years the entire community became clustered around Ocean Parkway, which was later dubbed by author Joe Sutton, "Aleppo in Flatbush."
By the mid-1950s, there was widespread community feeling that the Talmud Torah education offered was not sufficient to satisfy the need for religious education of the children.
Sutton says: "A few hours each day in the afternoon Talmud Torah were perceived as inadequate, insufficient to foster the development of young men and women who would perpetuate the Syrian community's accustomed pattern. A Syrian day school was a revolutionary innovation; none had ever been remotely conceived of in Aleppo and Damascus."
Chief Rabbi Jacob S. Kassin, whose own children attended public school, called for the opening of a Jewish day school or elementary yeshiva. In response, the Syrian community built two yeshivas - Magen David Yeshiva , which was primarily Aleppan, and Ahi Ezer Yeshiva, which primarily served the Damascene Syrian community, although the separation between Damascene and Aleppans dissipated in later years.
In the first and second generations, most parents did not consider a college education necessary or desirable for their children. Most sons went into family businesses, thus the argument for higher education as an economic necessity was weak. Parents did not want their children to be exposed to secular influences, as this might promote too much assimilation. But over time this trend was reversed and today most young people from the community attend schools of higher education. The community boasts artists, dentists, psychiatrists, physicians, attorneys, writers, decorators, real estate professionals, photographers, social workers and even a Harvard physics professor.
Many of these professionals remain in the community with their client base. The insular nature of the community was clearly preserved by Rabbi Jacob Kassin during and after his lifetime. He was able to encourage intramarriage among Syrian Jews through approved social occasions that encouraged young people to meet.
The Syrian Jews continued in Brooklyn as a cohesive group. Their religiousness and devotion to Judaism is evidenced by the infrastructure of synagogues, yeshivas, high schools, mikvehs (ritual baths), a community center and several community subsidized senior citizen apartment buildings.
In the late 1950s, the community opened Shaare Zion Congregation, a large synagogue with a magnificent domed sanctuary and social hall on Ocean Parkway between Avenues T and U. Rabbi Jacob, his son Rabbi Shaul, his assistant Rabbi Abraham Hecht and his son-in-law Rabbi Baruch Ben Haim, married thousands of couples there. The community also used the 67 th Street synagogue for funerals and Sabbath services.
By the 60s, the community had grown more affluent. Bar mitzvahs and weddings were celebrated with fancier parties and receptions. Shaare Zion acquired a dedicated kosher caterer for its magnificent social hall, where receptions were commonly held.
With the increased affluence, homes were refurbished or rebuilt with the finest materials. Women dressed in the latest designer fashions. More affluent members of the community were spending their summers in Deal, New Jersey, an area much more prosperous than Bradley Beach. Before long, the entire community abandoned Bradley Beach as a summer retreat and began their summer vacations in and around Deal, in Long Branch, West Long Branch and Oakhurst.
The influence of the Kassin rabbinical leadership led Brooklyn's Syrian community to shed secular education in favor of more Jewish and Torah learning in a controlled yeshiva environment. Talmud Torah education, or after-school Jewish study programs, were virtually eliminated from the community by the late 1960s. Most children attended one of the two community yeshivas or Yeshiva of Flatbush, an Ashkenazic school with an excellent reputation. As the community grew, other yeshivas opened to meet the demands of different religious and educational philosophies as well as economic circumstances. Today there are over a dozen yeshivot , as well as high schools.
Leading the movement towards yeshiva education was the Kassin family. Rabbi Saul Kassin, eldest son of Rabbi Jacob, taught for over 32 years as a teacher at the Magen David Talmud Torah and then the Yeshiva. The children and grandchildren of Rabbi Saul Kassin attended Magen David Yeshiva , as did the children and grandchildren of his sisters and brothers.
At the beginning of the 21 st Century, marriages are rarely arranged, and marriage to non-Jews is uncommon. Most Jews in this community maintain their Orthodoxy with full knowledge received from their yeshiva education of the reasons for their customs and traditions and a full understanding of Jewish law. Secondary education is much more common and widely accepted than it was 30 years ago.
Some traditions have grown depending on a family's means. For example, the tradition of sending money to a bride so she can prepare for her wedding night by visiting the mikvah , has grown into swanee . The swanee maintains the same tradition of sending gifts to the bride, such as a nightgown or peignoir set, perfumes, an evening purse and jewelry. But over time the gifts have become more and more elaborate and today it is widely accepted that gifts are also bought for the groom by the bride's parents. The swanee , or collection is sent to the home of the bride where it is put on display for friends and relatives and is an occasion for celebration. The celebration can be a tea, held during the daytime, where coffee and desserts are served, or in an evening. Generally, shob el boz (made from cornstarch and sugar) or el mazee , a white drink made from almond juice is served. In addition, two desserts, knafe and baklava , are a must. Knafe is a dessert made from shredded phyllo dough and ricotta cheese. Baklava is a dessert made from pistachio nuts flavored with sugar and rose water and wrapped in phyllo dough.
Today's weddings have come to meet a certain set of standards, generally a formal reception held in a social hall. Women shop for dresses, each trying to outdo the next one with up-to-date styles. They take great care with personal grooming. While a band may have been acceptable entertainment for a wedding in the 70s, today it is common to see multiple types of music, including violins and harps during the ceremony, a disc jockey for the reception and Arabic music in a separate area for more senior guests. The events are recorded with both still and video photography.
Interestingly, the opposite has happened in the celebration of bar mitzvahs . A bar mitzvah , which occurs just prior to the boys 13 th Hebrew birthday, is a rite of passage. The bar mitzvah reads his Torah or Haftorah passage in shul and can then be counted as a man for purposes of a minyan , which requires 10 Jewish men for the saying of certain prayers.
There are far fewer formal bar mitzvah celebrations with elaborate receptions than before. Since most children attend yeshiva , nearly every synagogue has a youth minyan , where young boys are expected to attend and pray, providing them with a routine that evolves into a lifelong practice of praying and religious observance. By the time the bar mitzvah occurs, the boy is usually so skilled at reading the Torah in synagogue that the rite of passage is a formality. For others, the bar mitzvah has the same significance it always did, but is celebrated differently. Celebrating the event with a trip to Israel where the bar mitzvah boy can read his passage at the kotel in Jerusalem is preferred. Many believe that the experience of a bar mitzvah in the Holy Land combined with traveling in Israel will solidify the foundation of Jewish learning in preparation for lifelong observance of Judaism.
Today, Rabbi Shaul J. Kassin, eldest son of Rabbi Jacob S. Kassin, is the Syrian community's chief rabbi. The community has built an admirable infrastructure of Jewish life in Brooklyn, New York, with linkages that spread all over the world.
Sarina Roffé
Brooklyn, New York, USA
All Rights Reserved
Sephardic Genealogy Resources


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Bible study, prayer, coffee and chat
Oct 9, 2019 at 19:30
At 15 Church Croft, Pooley Bridge, Alan to lead
Our Parishes ...
.. the four parishes of Barton, Pooley Bridge, Martindale and Watermillock lie South-West of Penrith within easy reach of the M6 and A66 at Junction 40 as well as the West Coast main line and are grouped around the northern end of Ullswater.
We welcome ...
... everyone; special provision is made for children and young people within our monthly cycle of services and we particularly invite visitors to the area to come and join us during their holiday time in Cumbria.
We want ...
... to grow as the Lord's people in this place, recognizing the privileges and responsibilities we have in Jesus the Messiah. We are working to recognize God's gifts in one another and to utilize and develop these gifts. We believe that by His grace, God has called us to be part of the 'new heaven, new earth' plan that he has for his creation and we try to work out our part in that project.

subset: commoncrawl


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Re: Add a spare tire!
Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 2:20 pm
Why is inside patch better than plugging method?powersurge wrote:
With the Leaf, and other no-spare tire cars, I would recommend the following tire repair kit... Gloves, tire plugging kit (hole reamer, plug inserting tool, pack of plugs, and rubber cement), several flat screwdrivers and needle nose pliers (to pull out the screw or debris of the flat), and cigarette lighter air compressor. That will permanently repair a flat. It is not as good as the inside patch, but will do for most beginners at tire repair...
I want to hear technical explanation between good and better?


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Sunday, November 15, 2015 - 1 comment
Istanbul: Row by Row
For a country in which a post office "line" is more of a "blob" and driving the wrong way down the road doesn't cause anyone (except perhaps the odd traffic cop having a slow day) to bat an eye, Turkey actually has a surprising amount of order. You just have to know where to look for it.
Take the weekly pazar, for example. I love to get there first thing in the morning and watch the painstaking precision of the guys arranging their apples in perfect, shiny rows, or piling their figs in little purple pyramids. I always hate to be the first one to marr their masterpieces by pulling a kilo or two from the artistic arrangement. :)
On a recent trip to Istanbul, I had the chance to show some first-time visitors some of my favourite haunts. My eye was drawn, as usual, to the patterns that emerge in the midst of an otherwise rather chaotic city. From the Grand Bazaar to the textile district to the Spice Market, my lens got its fill of lines, rows and perfectly-piled stacks. A camera could never be bored in that city...
(And, apparently, in honour of my love of nicely arranged lines, the formatting of this post has gone awry and refused to be anything but centred. Long live symmetry, I guess!)
|They may have been banned by the Hat Law of 1925, but fezzes are still in high demand
at the Grand Bazaar. At least among people wearing "I Heart Istanbul" t-shirts. :)
|We hit the Bazaar just after Republic Day. Atatürk, Atatürk everywhere....
|Boxes and boxes of "apple tea" and its relatives. None of which
you will find in any real Turkish cupboard.
|I can never resist a stop at the Button Man!
|Scarves a'plenty
|Prayer beads
|A weapon when wielded by an over-excited tourist,
selfie sticks still make for a pretty nice "row of colour."
|Feed the birds, tuppins a bag...
|Pickle juice!
|Fresh bait
|Fishing rods off the Galata Bridge
|Freshly packaged Turkish coffee, piled high in a shop
window. Those guys were skilled - they were running
about one bag every ten seconds!
|Ottoman-style coffee sets
|The interior of the Aya Sofya
|Okay, not exactly an organized row. But since the corn made the cut,
I didn't want the pretty chestnuts to be jealous!
|Rolled up Turkish carpets
|I am always in absolute awe at the talent of the women who weave these carpets!


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COPENHAGEN - Denmark's Lego increased sales and operating profit by 10 per cent in a sluggish global toy market in 2013 and said it expected to continue to outperform the market by launching new products and expand in emerging markets aided by a successful movie.
Strong performance by its Chima, Friends and City brands helped Lego, mostly known for its colourful bricks, to increase sales to 25.38 billion Danish crowns (S$5.89 billion) in 2013.
This puts the unlisted Danish toymaker ahead of United States' Hasbro which sold for $4.08 billion in 2013, but still far behind the $7.1 billion revenue of Mattel, the US maker of Barbie dolls and Fisher-Price.
Lego said that in the coming years it expected to grow"moderately ahead" of the global toy market, which is expected to grow by a low single-digit percentage annually. "We are getting very strong feedback from the market and from our customers and from the children," chief executive Jorgen Vig Knudstorp said at a presentation.
He said that in order to fulfil the ambition "to take the bricks all over the world", Lego has established major sites in Singapore, Shanghai and London, besides its existing hubs in Connecticut, US and in Billund in western Denmark.
Knudstorp said Lego aims to increase its sales outside the developed countries, and that the global success of its "The Lego Movie" could help to strengthen its brand there.
"We are, of course, noticing a very considerable amount of excitement surrounding 'The Lego Movie', even in places where Lego is not so well known," Knudstorp said.
The animated film that depicts a world based on the colourful toy blocks has led the United States box office charts for three consecutive weekends.


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I spotted this heavenly dessert in my latest edition of Delicious magazine and it was love at first sight! This is definitely something my boys and I would enjoy for that weekend dessert fix and what could be better than ice cream in this summery weather but not just any ice cream. The following may cause a dangerous craving!!! These ice cream bars come in the form of a buttery shortbread base, good quality vanilla ice (Haagen Dazs), dulce de leche, raspberries and more shortbread! I did warn you!!!
Saturday, 5 July 2008
Chicken Curry and Raspberry & Toffee Ice Cream Bars
15 comments:
- Jules said...
I spied these ice cream bars in Delicious and you make them look even more delicious than the magazine did! If only I had room in my tiny freezer to try them.
- 5 July 2008 at 22:52
- Beth (jamandcream) said...
I saw the ice cream bars in delicious too. My ice cream maker arrived on Friday so was going to have a go at making the ice cream myself! I'll let you know how it goes!
- 6 July 2008 at 13:29
- hungryandfrozen said...
The curry is such a good recipe :) And that ice cream...WOW. Looks incredible!
- 7 July 2008 at 03:00
- Coby said...
Maria, your dessert looks like a piece of art! How fabulous:) You've also given me a craving for curry;)
- 7 July 2008 at 06:24
- Emily said...
I love curry! That looks so good, with the rice.
- 7 July 2008 at 09:34
- Thinking About Food said...
That is one goooood looking dessert Maria, yum!
- 7 July 2008 at 11:30
- Nickki said...
Yum, yum yum! That curry looks delicious and the ice cream bars look so good! Perfect dessert for a summer's day :)
- 9 July 2008 at 11:36
- Maria♥ said...
Thanks everyone for the lovely comments.
- 9 July 2008 at 12:09
- Maggie said...
We too love to eat curry outdoors on a 'sunny evening'.
The ice cream bars look wonderful too.
- 9 July 2008 at 12:41
- Dee said...
Swoon. Maria, that dessert is just perfect :)
- 9 July 2008 at 15:20
- Kelly-Jane said...
Nigella's curry is lovely isn't it, light, but good. Those bars looks seriously fantastic!
- 9 July 2008 at 16:48
- Ivy said...
Both recipes look fantastic especially the raspberry and toffee ice cream bars.
- 10 July 2008 at 21:26
- Mike said...
Both look stunning, I think I'm gonig have to follow suit with that dessert.
- 11 July 2008 at 20:15
- Unknown said...
those ice-cream bars look absolutely amazing...now jus wish we were having the summer to go with them!
- 16 July 2008 at 12:49
- Ruth Strong said...
When i first read the title of this post i thought it was chicken curry with raspberry and toffee in it! Could be interesting!
What you've actually made looks and sounds delicious though... i can see why you would want to make them!
- 16 July 2008 at 20:01


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Occasional Table and Storage Unit:room Hub by Clive Bullivant
Clive Bullivant Presents The Room Hub Occasional Table and Storage Unit
Clive Bullivant, the maker of the award winning project Room Hub by Clive Bullivant illustrates, This furniture reflects the lifestyle and changing interests of a generation living in their first home. It is designed to make a contemporary room statement but with the flexibility for the user to personalise a range of function options to suit their individual needs and preferences. The modular nature of the components allows the user to change and adapt the unit extending its potential lifespan..
Occasional Table and Storage Unit:room Hub by Clive Bullivant Images:
End of the article, click here to go back to previous page, or alternatively go back to Architecture Today homepage.


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HOUSTON — After striking a loan deal last week for forward Carlo Costly, the Houston Dynamo reinforced their central midfield with the signing of Brazilian Luiz Camargo on Tuesday.
While terms of the deal were not disclosed, MLSsoccer.com confirmed that, like Costly, Camargo is coming to Houston on loan.
The 24-year-old joins the Dynamo from Clube Paraná, who currently sit in fourth place in the Brazilian second division, and has the characteristics of being able to contribute on both sides of the ball. His first day to participate in team activities is dependent on the approval of his P-1 visa and obtaining an international transfer certificate.
The move makes sense on a few levels for Houston. The club has undergone significant personnel changes with trades and injuries affecting the club in recent weeks. With the team keen to reinforce its roster, bringing the Brazilian into the fold was an easy decision.
"I liked the way he played when I saw him," said Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear, who first saw Camargo during a scouting trip to Brazil in January. "He can play in central midfield and gives us some options and flexibility in there."
Kinnear was impressed with the midfielder's work rate and versatility during his time in South America, but Houston were unable to strike a deal with the 5-foot-9 Brazilian. Camargo resurfaced on Houston's radar within the last month and, still seeking reinforcements, the club pounced on the opportunity to add another quality player.
"He has pace and can close down space and uses the ball well," Kinnear said. "He was very good in man-to-man marking and I liked the way he played the game. He kept the ball and played very simple."
From Kinnear's comments, the midfielder should be able to provide Houston with another option in the center of the pitch who can be effective playing in defense and can contribute in the attack.
The move to bring a versatile player like Camargo to Houston provides depth at a position that currently is short on numbers.
Camargo joins a midfield that includes Adam Moffat, Geoff Cameron and Je-Vaughn Watson. When examining the group, there is a combination of players who can provide different skill sets with players who can break up play and go forward. The diverse group provides Kinnear & Co. with room to mix and match.
"I think he'll be a good addition to the team with a lot of games coming up," Kinnear said. "If he brings what we saw in Brazil here, I think he'll be a nice addition."
Darrell Lovell covers the Houston Dynamo for MLSsoccer.com. Follow him on twitter at @Dynamoexaminer.


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Get your body beach ready! Get your bikini body now!
What? Why? My body IS beach ready thank-you, lumps, pale skin, wobbly bits and all. I just want to swim, not to enter Ms South Beach. I'm not going out there to titillate the surfers. I simply want to build an enormous moat with the kids, skim perfect pebbles, and maybe look for interesting critters in the rock pools.
What I do want though is a new swimsuit. No, actually I want genuine fullblown swimming costumery, preferably Victorian, something that ends at my knees, that blooms over my bumps, that shovels up the ole boobs into a grand shelf and hides at least some of my sins.
I want to be comfortable.
I want it in stripes.
I want.
I suspect Nigella Lawson wanted the very same when she tossed her languid, luscious self into the ocean off Australia dressed from head-to-toe (quite literally) in a startlingly unflattering black burqini. You've seen the photos taken by the paparazzi she was doubtless trying to avoid: our lovely Nigella plopped about in the waves looking remarkably like a clumsy sea lion with her button nose and shiny black roundy body, and I sighed in deepest sympathy, along with thousands of women on the curvy-to-morbidly-obese spectrum the world over.
Nigella, I feel your pain. I don't want to prance about on the beach in the equivalent of Lycra underwear either.
Hold on a sec though: did I say I want a new swimsuit? Actually, I want a swimsuit full stop, with no "new" about it, for I currently don't own one. Several years of swimwear shopping trauma, changing-room rage and scuttling to the water in baggy T-shirts worn over whatever I can borrow have brought me to this sorry point.
See, swimwear is not made for women like me and Nigella, women with hips and thighs and, dare I say, real-life labia. Swimwear is all bikinis and tankinis, with tummy-tucking ruching and breast-hoiking cups for those jugs, but I have yet to find a cossie for the classic pear: smallish on top but abundant down below. Equally, there's nothing out there for the Nigellaesque hourglass either, unless she's a size eight.
The hot-pant style often suggested to us pears simply cuts straight through the meaty hip-thigh circumference like a rubber band, causing the sections above and below the elastic to bulge much like a squeezed balloon. The legs (often dumpy on a pear) are foreshortened, the bum oozes out and the body is often too short (we pears are long-trunked). Trying on a longer body and bigger size means the straps are too long and sad little boobs are left stranded, a couple of floppy fish sagging in spandex.
You can get two-pieces that are meant to do the job, with high-waisted bottoms to marshall the gut and a cute, padded bikini top — handy because two-pieces can be ordered in separate sizes for each half — but again, the bottom cuts straight through the leg at its widest point. There are great 1940s and 50s styled swimsuits out there too, but I just look squat in them all.
So I want a modern take on a Victorian swimsuit, only body-fitted, and with Lycra and support. All my friends want one too. It must end at my knees, lift my boobs, support my tummy and not go transparent when it hits the water. A cute frill (sewn down so it doesn't billow in the water) or a bit of ruffle is optional. It must fit a size ten on the top and a size twelve… okay… size fourteen at the bottom, with a long body.
I have scoured the internet. The closest I've come so far is a picture of a cartoon hippopotamus doing ballet. It's either that or a wetsuit.


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- Fast on-time delivery & pick-up
- Best Deals On The Market
- Professional and friendly staff
- Licensed and fully insured
Figuring out the process
It is important to be kept informed when it comes to Floor Stripping in Whiteville, TN. We will not let you make poor decisions, because we understand what we'll be doing, and we ensure that you know exactly what to anticipate from the project. This is why we try to make every attempt to be sure that you are aware of the project and aren't confronted by any kind of unexpected surprises. The first step is to call at 888-331-9155 to arrange your task. In this call, you get the questions you have answered, and we will arrange a time to get started with work. We consistently appear at the scheduled time, prepared to work closely with you.
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You've got a lot of great reasons to use Floor Stripping Guys for your requirements involving Floor Stripping in Whiteville, TN. We have the best customer care ratings, the very best quality resources, and the most helpful and successful cash saving strategies. We are aware of your preferences and intentions, and we're here to help you using our experience. Contact 888-331-9155 when you want Floor Stripping in Whiteville, and we are going to work together with you to expertly finish your job.


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A browser plugin called WhoIsLive is looking to make the experience of Web browsing a whole lot more social — adding live chat and more to sites that didn't have it previously. The idea is sound, and could be either awesome or awkward, depending on what site you're on. Here's how it works.
Because WhoIsLive is a plugin for your browser (it looks like the service currently supports Firefox, Internet Explorer and Chrome), it doesn't need to get the permission of individual websites. An app for Facebook, for instance, would have to work within the site's privacy requirements, such as they are. Not WhoIsLive. WhoIsLive doesn't play by the rules.
So, say you're looking at Facebook, or your favorite tech blog or some embarrassing porn website. If other folks using WhoIsLive are looking at the same page, you'll be able to see them, send them status updates and even chat in real-time.
U.S. & World
In a lot of ways this could be really cool and useful. Folks could engage one another over the review of a new gadget, or discuss a recipe or album release or anything at all. Of course, just how useful it really is depends on how many people use it, as WhoIsLive users can only interact with others on the service.
Just think of all the new friends you could meet with similar interests! Say, that girl with the cute buddy icon is into the same conceptual cooking gadgets as you are! And hey, maybe you're not the only one with a fascination for bizarre vending machines! And lo, the world's not so big and scary after all.


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Hair salon's Kim Jong Un poster riles embassy
Associated Press
LONDON — Staff at a London hair salon say they had a close shave with North Korean officials after using the country's leader, Kim Jong Un, to promote discount haircuts.
M&M Hair Academy says it received a visit by two men from the nearby North Korean embassy after putting up a poster last week featuring a picture of Kim — who sports a distinctive undercut — and the slogan "Bad Hair Day?"
Barber Karim Nabbach said the manager refused to remove the poster and reported the incident to police.
London's Metropolitan Police confirmed Tuesday that officers had spoken to both sides of the dispute and concluded "there were no offenses for us to investigate."
Embassy officials could not immediately be reached for a comment.


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3 Doors Down bassist Todd Harrell suspended indefinitely
The bassist for 3 Doors Down has been suspended indefinitely by the band following his DUI arrest.
Todd Harrell was charged Tuesday in Mississippi with a second-offense DUI involving a substance other than alcohol. The rock group said in a statement Thursday that Harrell was suspended to protect the band's "image and integrity."
In 2012, Harrell's Cadillac rear-ended another vehicle. He was later found to be driving under the influence of prescription drugs and was convicted.
The band says it is encouraging Harrell to "address and resolve his problems."
3 Doors Down's Top 10 hits include "Kryptonite," "When I'm Gone" and "Here Without You." The band's first two albums, 2000's "The Better Life" and 2002's "Away From the Sun," have sold 6 million and 4 million units, respectively.


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A Different Person: A Memoir
HarperSanFrancisco, Sep 1, 1994 - Biography & Autobiography - 271 pages
James Merrill--winner of the Pulitzer and National Book Award--is one of America's most celebrated poets. This acclaimed memoir--nominated for the National Book Critics Circle Award--traces Merrill's painful yet often hilarious life as a young man. "Stands with Merrill's finest work".-- Los Angeles Times Book Review.
What people are saying - Write a review
A different person: a memoirUser Review - Not Available - Book Verdict
As much a storyteller as a poet, Merrill, the Pulitzer Prize-winning heir to the Merrill-Lynch fortune, delights with this graceful account of a 30-month stay in Europe in the 1950s that was to become ... Read full review
Decision to go abroad My dearest friend
Tony puts one over on the French Visit
With my father in Italy Dr Simeons
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American asked Bill Bill Cannastra Bill Plummer called child Claude Claude's couldn't couple didn't dinner Dr Detre Dr Detre's Dr Simeons dream eyes face father feel felt fifty figures filled final find fingers finished fire first fish five flash floor Freddy Freddy's friends gave glass glow Greek Hagia Sophia hand Hans's he'd heart I've Irma Istanbul Italian James Ingram Kimon knew later laugh letters light live look lover Luigi lunch man's Mina's Montale months morning mother mother's never night once one's opera Oscar Wilde parents Paris party person Peter Hooten photograph pillow book play poem poet poetry Poros Ravenna Robert Rolf Roman Rome smile Southampton stay talk things thought told Tony Tony's took turned Umberto voice wanted wasn't weeks woman words York young


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Dwyane Wade Gets a Ball to the Head Courtesy of Celtics Fan
When we last checked in on the Miami Heat they were getting words of encouragement from the home crowd after they suffered a surprising defeat to the Boston Celtics in Game Five of the Eastern Conference finals.
They got a better result last night, returning the favor by beating the Celtics on their home court and forcing a Game Seven. However, Miami's interactions with the crowd at the Boston Garden did prove to be a little more dicey.
Watch what happens when Dwyane Wade's head gets in the way of a Celtics' fan who is trying to toss a wayward ball back onto the court.
Ouch! First you turn the ball over, and then you take one to the noggin!
In defense of the nattily-attired fan who struck Wade with the ball, it's pretty clear he was trying to toss it to the ref and just has terrible aim.
But there is no defending the Celtic fan who dumped his beer on Lebron James' head as the Heat star went through the tunnel to the locker room after the game. That's just cold. Check out video of that incident below.


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Kitty Flanagan: Thick
Note: This review is from 2003
Kitty Flanagan gets off to a very slow start, quickly identifying herself as yet another of the scores of Fringe comedians padding their set by finding out where everyone's from and pulling out the same old regional traits. Her favourite is that people from Newcastle don't wear many clothes on a night out.
It's reasonable enough material, but nothing you won't have heard before - possibly even earlier the same day.
In fact, much of Flanagan's observational material is formulaic in approach - clinically executed and bolstered by her lively, likeable personality - but formulaic nonetheless.
Elsewhere, though, she plays with some original, clever ideas, such as her explanation of the American psyche or the fact that the French language makes no distinction between the words for monkey and ape,
At times, she can be slyly cynical, even a tad nasty, although she usually feels the need to follow the more cutting lines with some explanation to ensure the audience still love her.
Her strongest suit is her admission that, at 34, living in a shared house with students, her life hasn't turned out quite how she planned.
It's just that the show is inconsistent, with tight routines nestling next to flabby ones - the hallmark of a 20-minute set honed over years on the circuit sitting alongside 20 minutes of new material and 20 minutes of audience banter.
An in the competitive Edinburgh environment, that just doesn't make her distinctive enough.
Review date: 1 Jan 2003
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett


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If bonobo Kanzi can point as humans do, what other similarities can rearing reveal?
You may have more in common with Kanzi, Panbanisha and Nyota, three language-competent bonobos living at Great Ape Trust, than you thought. And those similarities, right at your fingertip, might one day tell scientists more about the effect of culture on neurological disorders that limit human expression.
Among humans, pointing is a universal language, an alternative to spoken words to convey a message. Before they speak, infants point, a gesture scientists agree is closely associated with word learning. But when an ape points, scientists break rank on the question of whether pointing is a uniquely human behavior. Some of the world's leading voices in modern primatology have argued that although apes may gesture in a way that resembles human pointing, the genetic and cognitive differences between apes and humans are so great that the apes' signals have no specific intent.
Not so, say Great Ape Trust scientists, who argued in a recently published scientific paper, "Why Apes Point: Pointing Gestures in Spontaneous Conversation of Language-Competent Pan/Homo Bonobos," that not only do Kanzi, Panbanisha and Nyota point with their index fingers in conversation as a human being might, these bonobos do so with specific intent and objectives in mind.
The difference between pointing by the Great Ape Trust bonobos - the only ones in the world with receptive competence for spoken English - and other captive apes that make hand gestures is explained by the culture in which they were reared, according to the paper's authors: Janni Pedersen, an Iowa State University Ph.D. candidate conducting research for her dissertation at Great Ape Trust; Pär Segerdahl, a scientist from Sweden who has published several philosophical inquires into language; and William M. Fields, an ethnographer investigating language, culture and tools in non-human primates. Fields also is Great Ape Trust's director of scientific research.
Because Kanzi, Panbanisha and Nyota were raised in a culture where pointing has a purpose - The Trust's hallmark Pan/Homo environment, where infant bonobos are reared with both bonobo (Pan paniscus) and human (Homo sapiens) influences - their pointing is as scientifically meaningful as their understanding of spoken English, Fields said.
The pointing study supports and builds on previous research on the effect of rearing culture on cognitive capabilities, including the 40-year research corpus of Dr. Duane Rumbaugh, Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh and Fields, which is the foundation of the scientific inquiry at Great Ape Trust. Those studies included the breakthrough finding that Kanzi and other bonobos with receptive competence for spoken English acquired language as human children do - by being exposed to it since infancy. The bonobos adopted finger-pointing behavior for the same reasons, because they were reared in a culture where pointing has meaning.
"We have argued that apes and humans, while very closely related genetically, differ most dramatically in culture," Fields said. "Pointing is a function of culture. If Kanzi can do the kinds of things that he is able to do as a function of rearing, what does that mean for humans?"
Fields said studying the effect of culture on great apes' cognitive capabilities might help scientists learn more about human disorders that cause developmental delays. "This opens the entire question of how you push the limits of genes by cultural forces, for instance in Down's Syndrome or other genetic variations that limit normal human expression," he said. "What is the role of culture as a mitigating strategy for Autistic Spectrum Disorders? Is IQ a function of culture?"
Answering those questions brings scientists a step closer to determining the role of epigenesis - the influence of the environment on the expression of the genetic code - in a variety of disciplines, including medicine, education and technology.
The Great Ape Trust scientists conducted the study in rebuttal to a paper written by Michael Tomasello, a leading expert on evolution and communication. Tomasello, co-director of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany, asserted in "Why Apes Don't Point" that though captive apes may appear to point, the genetic and cognitive differences between apes and humans are so great that there is no specific intent behind the gesture.
Pedersen et al. argued that an ape that was not reared in a culture where index finger pointing was common, including most captive apes, would not be expected to exhibit that gesture. The scientists also noted that although pointing isn't a behavior that wild bonobos and other great apes acquire on their own, it does not mean that they are genetically or cognitively incapable of learning the behavior.
"Tomasello's argument rests upon questionable empirical evidence," Pedersen and her colleagues wrote, "since the apes in the referred experimental studies have not been relevantly reared. By providing evidence that language-encultured apes do point, the assumptions about the cognitive differences between humans and apes need to be called into question on both theoretical and empirical ground."
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Faithful to Nature- The Nutcracker Bundle
- 4 Piece Set


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After a long sabbatical, I plan to post new snippets with some holiday recipes from around the world. May your upcoming holiday preparations be interesting and fun. Stay happy and healthy until I write again.
Category Archives: special occasions
Italian Ricotta Pie
Usually during this time of year, holiday tables are full of dessert pies made of a variety of fruit fillings. On our table for Thanksgiving Day is a variety of ethnic dishes including one for this Italian basic ricotta pie. It's very rich, but it can be made with part-skim ricotta to cut down a bit on calories. This is a quick and easy pie to make and should add a very distinct flavor to your holiday meal.
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 stick margarine
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 egg yolks (from large or extra large eggs)
2 pounds Ricotta cheese (or part-skim_
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
2 egg whites (from large or extra large eggs)
2 teaspoons lemon and rind
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract (not imitation)
Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit
For the crust, place 2 cups flour in large mixing bowl with baking powder, stir dry ingredients to blend. With fork, cut in margarine until small balls form. Add vanilla and slowly put milk in while blending with fork until ball forms. Add egg yolks and continue stirring until a large ball forms. If it is too dry to roll, add just a small amount of milk until of rolling consistency. Roll out dough onto waxed paper – one for top and one for bottom. Put half of dough into bottom of 10 inch pie plate. Reserve other half for top of ricotta pie.
For the filling, in mixer bowl place ricotta cheese, egg whites, lemon and rind, mix. Then add the confectioners sugar and vanilla extract. Blend for approximately 7 minutes of medium speed or until smooth. Pour into pie crust. Place reserved pie crust on top of filling and crimp the edges as desired. Brush top crust lightly with egg white and place four small cuts to vent steam. Cover edges with aluminum foil to protect rim of pie.
Bake at 425 degrees for 40 minutes or until lightly browned.
Over the River…….
For this post I don't have to go far from home to remind me of the holiday season, of Thanksgiving and Christmas. I'm reminded of one day in the 1980's when I toured the home of Lydia Maria Childs' grandparents who had owned an old Georgian Colonial on the other side of the Mystic River in Medford, Massachusetts in the U.S.A. I had saved up enough money for a down payment on a house and Lydia Maria Childs' grandparents old home was for sale. I toured the house with my husband and I was extremely excited by the prospect of owning such a wonderful piece of American history. I said yes to the real estate agents offer of a purchase price of only $42,000. Unfortunately, after adding up the costs of owning and maintaining such a large structure, we decided against the purchase and moved on to other options. At a later date, Tufts University bought the home for a huge sum and the house remains on the U.S. Trust for Historic Preservations' registered historic homes list.
Lydia Maria Child was a author, abolitionist and activist who was born into a prominent New England family in Medford, Massachusetts. She was schooled in her early years in Medford Schools. She would often visit her grandparents at their home and wrote this song as an adult. Sometimes when the snow is deep and the air is chill, you can almost see the her sleigh coming across the old Craddock Bridge in Medford Square.
Over the River and Through the Woods to Grandfather's House We Go
By Lydia Maria Child
Over the river, and through the wood,
to Grandfather's house we go:
the horse knows the way to carry the sleigh
through the white and drifted snow.
Over the river, and through the wood,to Grandfather's house away!
We would not stop for doll or top,
for 'tis Thanksgiving Day.
Over the river, and through the wood
oh, how the wind does blow!
It stings the toes and bites the nose,
as over the ground we go.
Over the river, and through the wood,
and straight trough the barnyard gate,
We seem to go extremely slow,
it is so hard to wait!
Over the river, and through the wood,
when Grandmother sees us come,
She will say, 'o, dear, the children are here,
bring a pie for every one.'
Over the river, and through the wood,
now Grandmothers cap I spy!
Hurrah for the fun! Is the pudding done?
Hurrah for the pumpkin pie!
May your holidays be as filled with joy as the young Lydia Maria Childs' was on that long ago Thanksgiving Day.
Mexican Christmas Eve Salad
In this salad I use the original beets as it lends a festive air to this Mexican style salad. If you want to use this for a dessert instead, leave the beets out. Fresh beets are best, but for ease of preparation canned beets may be used if thoroughly drained. Fresh fruit is preferred. Sugar is the only sweet added or it may also be served with a thinned mayonnaise. I like the following combination, but you can substitute a fruit ingredient for some other that you prefer.
1 3/4 cups orange sections or mandarin orange sections
1 cup apples, unpeeled, cored and thinly sliced
1 3/4 cups pineapple chunks
1 cup sliced bananas
3/4 cups roughly chopped unsalted peanuts
seeds from 1 medium pomegranate
1 cups cooked sliced or diced beets
1/4 cup finely chopped peanuts
Mix all fruit pieces together. Top with pomegranate seeds and chopped nuts
Sprinkle with superfine sugar (or granulated) or serve with thinned mayonnaise.
This makes a wonderful dessert or dinner starter served before a holiday meal. It is usually served as part of the Christmas Eve meal in some parts of the world.
Aunt Julies' Roast Turkey Stuffing
As promised, here is Aunt Julie Martins' turkey stuffing recipe that was handed down for generations. It is a very simple stuffing and one that does not present too much of a challenge for the everyday cook. You can vary some of the add-in ingredients to suit your taste and mix them up for different flavor combinations.
1 1/2 long loaves of white bread (Giant loaf or sandwich bread, fresh)
1 large onion
2 sticks melted butter or margarine
1 to 2 cups chicken or turkey broth ( or enough to moisten stuffing; homemade stock can be used)
2 Tablespoon dried sage
1 Tablespoon dried rosemary leaves
2 Tablespoon dried parsley
1 Tablespoon dried thyme
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons pepper
1 1/2 cup raisins (or dried cranberries, light or dark raisins, snipped dried apricot)
1 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Put washed, dried and dressed turkey on rack in roasting pan. To prepare stuffing, tear bread into bite size, irregular shaped pieces and place in a stock pot, very large metal bowl or another roasting pan. Add the large finely chopped onion. Season stuffing with sage, rosemary, parsley, thyme, salt and pepper. Add salt and pepper and mix together well. Put in your choice of cranberries, raisins or dried apricot. Add chopped nuts. To this add just enough butter or margarine to moisten. Add a small amount of broth to this to moisten it just slightly more. Remember that the liquid from the turkey will permeate the dressing, giving it more volume. Stuff turkey with dressing. If you have extra mixture, stuff neck cavity by loosening skin to form a pocket.
Cook as directed in previous post for Real Roast Turkey. After cooling turkey, remove stuffing immediately. Do not store finished turkey with stuffing inside. The internal temperature of stuffing should read 165 degrees on a meat thermometer.
I hope you enjoy this turkey stuffing. We've been making it this way in my family for over 100 years. It's very simple and straightforward. This is very good to use in turkey sandwiches after the holiday is over.
A Real New England Roast Turkey
Having been raised in the land of the Pilgrims and the first Thanksgiving feast here in New England, I know firsthand that we take our selection of a Thanksgiving turkey very seriously. It is that time of year again when the markets and supermarkets stock turkeys of all brands and varieties making selection a daunting task. I don't have room in a small post to list everything there is to know about selecting, thawing and preparing a turkey dinner, but I'll try to break down the process into several smaller writings.
To those unfamiliar with the process of selecting and handling poultry, especially large American bred turkeys that can weigh over 24 pounds, I will simply give you this link to the United States Department of Agricultures' fact sheets on the safe handling of turkey and poultry products:
Here's my familys recipe for roast turkey which is the way it was done by my great-aunt Julie.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahreheit.
15 – 16 lb. thawed turkey
Aunt Julies' stuffing (or of your choice to fill cavity of turkey)
1 1/2 sticks margarine or butter
1 1/2 Tablespoons sage (dried is fine)
1 Tablespoon thyme (dried o.k.)
1 Tablespoon rosemary (dried o.k.)
2 teaspoons pepper
2 teaspoons salt
1 can chicken broth (16 ounces)
1 1/2 cups water
Remove giblet packet and neck from inside of cavity of turkey. Sometimes the neck is loose inside the neck cavity. Thoroughly wash turkey with cold water and place on counter on a platter and dry it completely with clean cloth or paper towels. Do not let the raw turkey touch surfaces of counter. Wash up behind yourself and periodically wash your hands with hot soapy water.
Stuff the turkey with stuffing mixture and place on raised roasting rack in a deep sided large roasting pan. Baste the turkey with melted butter or margarine, then sprinkle liberally with dried herbs, salt and pepper. Pour broth and water into the bottom of the pan and cover with heavy duty aluminum foil, tenting slightly in the middle away from the top of turkey. Place the stuffed turkey in the oven on the lowest oven rack and roast for 5 1/2 – 6 hours. About 40 minute before roasting is complete, uncover the turkey so that it may brown. Cook for additional 40 minutes until turkey is golden. Remove turkey from oven and check internal temperature with meat thermometer. The thermometer should read 165 degrees when place in the thickest part of the thigh and, also, it should measure 165 degrees when placed in the thickest part of the breast. Stuffing, likewise should be thoroughly done at 165 degrees. Juices at leg joint should run clear. Let stand for 30 minutes. Carve and serve.
Serves 12 with leftovers
My hopes are that you have a very happy Thanksgiving season.
Aunt Julie's Stuffing recipe follows in my next post.
Thank you for following my blog.
Chocolate Liqueur
Here's a quick recipe for a liqueur that can be used for any special occasion. I've found it an easy recipe to make and it is can be enjoyed after things have settled down after your holiday meal.
In a saucepan, mix together the sugar and corn syrup, stirring occasionally. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, being careful not to burn it. Remove from heat and let stand for 30 minutes. Mix in the vodka; stir in the
vanilla and chocolate extracts. Pour finished liqueur into glass bottles with corks or into other fancy glass containers. Cover and let stand for 2 or more days for the flavor to develop.
This is good served with a shortbread cookie or Biscotti's.
Scrappy Pie
Remembrance Day falls this year in Canada on November 11th. Some provinces and territories celebrate it, also, on November 12th. My Dad hails from Newfoundland, and at times he made what he called scrappy pie to celebrate it. It is on Remembrance Day there that Canadians remember all of the fallen soldiers from past wars.
My great-uncle Charles was killed in Belgium in the first World War and is buried where he was killed defending his fallen comrades. His name is called out and his memory is saluted by a contingent of military members at Parliament every year on this day. For this I simply give you my father's Americanized version of Scrappy Pie (or Newfoundland Seafood Pie):
Potato topping ingredients: 1 cup all purpose flour, 1/2 cup fresh mashed potato, 4 ounces butter, 1 tablespoon milk, 2 Tablespoons dried breadcrumbs.
Filling: 16 ounces whitefish (cod, haddock, whiting or your choice), large cooked shrimp (8 ounces), 1 small onion- chopped fine, 1 cup frozen peas, 2 tablespoons fresh parsley – chopped fine, zest of a lemon – grated, 1/4 cup cornstarch, 2 cups milk.
Sift flour into a large bowl. Using a pastry blender or fork, mix this with the mashed potato until thoroughly blended. Blend in the butter, then draw into a dough, adding a bit of water until dough sticks together. Wrap dough in pastic and chill in the refrigerator for 1/2 hour.
Prepare filling by cutting fish into chucks and putting them into a 10 inch pie pan or baking dish. Mix in the seafood, onions, peas, parsley and zest. Blend the cornstarch with a bit of milk in a bowl. Heat the remaining milk almost to boiling and stir it into the cornstarch mixture. Return mixture to pan and stir until the mixture thickens. Add seasoning and pour over fish filling. Cool for 20 minutes. Bring oven to 400F (200C).
Roll out the dough between sheets of wax paper to overlap to of pie plate. Remove the top of the waxed paper and use the bottom sheet to help position dough on top of seafood mixture.
Press dough around edges of pan and clean up the edges. Slash center of pie with small knife to vent steam. Brush the crust with milk and sprinkle liberally with plain breadcrumbs.
Put pie on a baking sheet Bake for 10 minutes – then drop temperature to 350F (180C). Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
My father cooked this for us when we were very young and it's the closest I can come to the original recipe. I sought out Scrappy Pie recipes everywhere to no avail, so if someone could forward me more from the great nation of Canada, I would greatly appreciate it.
May you stay safe and sound on Remembrance Day. And to my remaining Newfoundland cousins, may the sea treat you right and the cod keep running.


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Kikaida: Hawaii's Favorite Superhero
After all these years, Hawaii's favorite superhero is still kicking monster tail and inspiring local fans.
(page 1 of 3)
Earlier this summer, The Avengers saved the earth and destroyed a few box-office records in the process. Here in Hawaii, though, there will always be only one truly super superhero. Decades before Batman became a dark knight, before Spiderman had girlfriend problems, Kikaida was kicking robot ass. Every Saturday night at 8, Hawaii kids tuned in to watch the half-man/half-machine android use trampoline-assisted leaps, double chops and a death blow called denji endo (electro end) to destroy a monster every week and save Japan—and the rest of the world—from the DARK forces. Featuring a catchy theme song, a matinee-idol star and monsters that looked like giant chew toys, Kikaida first aired on Honolulu's Japanese-language television station KIKU in February 1974, two years after its debut in Japan on the NET network. It was an immediate hit here, eventually attracting more than a quarter of Island viewers and routinely winning its Saturday night time slot by beating network shows such as Mission Impossible and Chico and the Man.
In an era before the Internet or even the VCR, fans couldn't get enough of their robot hero. They flocked to public appearances that featured star Ban Daisuke, costumed characters and even an occasional polyurethane monster. An August 1974 autograph session at Pearlridge Shopping Center was shut down after a crowd of 10,000 showed up and clogged the mall's thoroughfares, creating a fire hazard.
Kikaida's run lasted 43 episodes. Reruns followed, along with a sequel, Kikaida 0-1 (pronounced zero-one), as well as a succession of other Japanese imports: Rainbowman, Kamen Rider V-3, Denjin Zaboga and Inazuman. However, none of the other heroes won the hearts and minds of Island kids like Kikaida had. Viewership numbers tumbled and only three years after it all began, KIKU's kiddie experiment ended. The station's Saturday night schedule returned to a reliable lineup of sumo matches, samurai dramas and detective shows.
The series may have concluded, but Kikaida never died. The show was rebroadcast here in 2001, and a nine-volume DVD set was released in 2002. This year, Kikaida turns 40. By today's standards, the show's special effects seem primitive and the costuming unfortunate. Yet, despite its age, the show continues to hold on to a loyal core of fans while picking up a steady stream of new devotees. What is it about the robot hero that inspires such love and loyalty? We spoke with some of the show's most ardent followers to learn how Kikaida captured their imaginations so many decades ago and why their robot hero will live forever.
The Godmother
Hawaii has Joanne Ninomiya to thank for bringing Kikaida into Island homes, and many people—mostly nerdy men in their 40s such as the author—often thank her profusely. Ninomiya, the godmother to a legion of local fanboys, was the longtime general manager of KIKU. In 1972, she went to Japan to purchase new shows for the station when she heard of a new tokusatsu (literally "special filming," but refers to a television show or film that features superheroes) that was about to air in prime time, a first in Japan at the time.
Ninomiya quickly learned that the bold scheduling wasn't as risky as it sounded; the show had pedigree. It was created by Shotaro Ishimori, an already famous tokusatsu writer and manga author, as a high-tech cross between Frankenstein and Pinocchio. Kikaida's Dr. Frankenstein/Geppetto is a scientist named Dr. Komyoji, who is kidnapped by the evil Professor Gill and ordered to create an army of robot monsters. Komyoji's last robot is his best, Kikaida, who is designed to protect Komyoji's children, Mitsuku and Masuru, along with the rest of Japan.
Kikaida is actually two robots in one. Most of the time, he is the dashing, guitar-playing, motorcycle-riding Jiro. When evil androids and monster robots attack, he transforms himself into a multi-colored, yin-yang robot with a half-transparent head and lethal karate chops.
"When I first saw the show, I knew immediately that it would be a hit. The story was simple, the characters were strong and there was all that action," says Ninomiya. "We beat the network shows. That never happened at KIKU before."
Ninomiya left KIKU in 1980 to start JN Productions, which, in the '80s and '90s, produced videos for the tourist industry but now translates manga and anime for distributors on the Mainland. Twenty years ago, Ninomiya started to get calls from fans urging her to bring back Kikaida. She didn't put much stock in the occasional requests. But she eventually changed her mind when her staff of Generation Xers put down their collective foot and demanded their Kikaida. In 2001, Kikaida was back on the air, and a year later, JN Productions released the first of nine volumes of the show. In 2003, it released Kikaida 0-1 on DVD.
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Our consumer advocates in recent weeks have heard from a handful of consumers that medical providers have refused to see them because they purchased health insurance through Washington Healthplanfinder, our state's health benefit exchange. The consumers reported a couple of scenarios:
- They scheduled an appointment with a medical provider. The provider's office later canceled the appointment because they say they are not accepting insurance that was purchased through the Exchange.
- Consumers contact providers listed as being in their network to find out if new patients are being accepted, and are told yes. The provider's office later calls the consumer and tells the consumer they aren't accepting plans purchased through the Exchange. In most cases, the insurance plans are confirming the providers are in the plan's network.
We've heard of this happening with several plans and in several areas of the state. If you experienced one of these scenarios or something similar, please contact our consumer advocates at 1-800-562-6900 or file a complaint online. We regulate insurance companies and we want to make sure consumers receive the services they are entitled to in their insurance policies.