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Here is the 927th episode of the long-running radio show/video podcast, Dave’s Gone By, which aired live on Facebook Saturday morning, Jan. 20, 2024.
Featuring: Dave chats with his cousin, David Levine and with old friend Ozer Teitelbaum; Dave Goes Away (NYC), Colorado Limerick of the Damned (Ophir), Today/Yesterday Trivia Quiz (w/ David Levine, Leslie (Hoban) Blake, David Sheward).
Guests: entrepreneur David Levine, theater critics Leslie (Hoban) Blake and David Sheward, old friend Ozer Teitelbaum.
00:00:01 DAVE GOES IN w/ Joyce (turning 60) 00:23:00 DAVE GOES AWAY: New York City 01:01:00 GUEST: David Levine 01:15:30 TODAY/YESTERDAY Trivia Quiz (Jan. 20 w/ David Levine, David Sheward, Leslie (Hoban) Blake 02:37:00 DAVE GOES FURTHER IN: potato hotel 02:56:30 Friends of the Daverhood 03:07:30 GUEST: Ozer Teitelbaum 03:36:30 COLORADO LIMERICK OF THE DAMNED (Ophir, CO) 03:39:00 DAVE GOES OUT
Click above to watch in-studio footage of the entire show
Host: Dave Lefkowitz
Here is the 676th episode of the long-running radio show/podcast, Dave’s Gone By, which aired live on Facebook Saturday, Dec. 8, 2020. More info: davesgoneby.com.
Featuring: Rabbi Sol Solomon interviews Romola Hodas, Greeley Crimes & Old Times, StoryTime (The Ernie & Bert Book), Colorado Limerick of the Damned (Crested Butte), Dave’s Big Dictionary (fudge), Saturday Segue (in the news).
00:00:01 DAVE GOES IN w/ Joyce (red eyes, toilet mug, menorah lighting) 00:26:00 GREELEY CRIMES & OLD TIMES 00:55:30 INSIDE BROADWAY 01:29:00 Sponsors 01:31:00 GUEST: Rabbi Sol Solomon interviews Romola Hodas 02:23:30 COLORADO LIMERICK OF THE DAMNED – Crested Butte 02:27:00 STORYTIME – The Ernie & Bert Book 02:45:00 Friends of the Daverhood 02:52:00 DAVE’S BIG DICTIONARY – Fudge 03:02:30 SATURDAY SEGUE – In the News 03:43:30 DAVE GOES OUT
Dec. 8, 2018 Playlist: “Copenhagen, Act 2, Part 15” (01:27:00; Copenhagen 2000 Broadway cast). “F-Troop Theme” (03:30:00; TV soundtrack). “Fancy Funeral” (03:08:00; Lucinda Williams). “Heather Heather” (03:13:00; Magnetic Fields). “Let’s have a P.C. Holiday” (03:18:00; Dottie Burman). “Homosapien” (03:37:00; Pete Shelley). “I Know it’s Over” (03:51:00; The Smiths)
Click above to listen to the interview (audio only).
Dave Lefkowitz interviews friends Fred Cleaver & Wendy Highby
Topics include: New York City, Karen Finley, Church & State, Karen Mason, Pacific Overtures.
Segment aired May 20, 2017 as part of the “Dave’s Gone By” New Year’s special radio program hosted by Dave Lefkowitz.
Please Note: Segments extracted from “Dave’s Gone By” may have music and other elements removed for timing and media re-posting considerations. For the full interview with all elements, please visit the audio of the complete original broadcast.
All content (c)2017 TotalTheater Productions. More information on Dave’s Gone By: http://www.davesgoneby.com
Here is the 460th episode of the long-running radio show/podcast, Dave’s Gone By, which aired on UNC Radio, March 1, 2014. Info: davesgoneby.com.
Featuring: Rabbi Sol Solomon interviews editor and producer Sherry Eaker (Bistro Awards, Backstage). Plus: Inside Broadway, Bob Dylan – Sooner & Later (march), Saturday Segues (Robyn Hitchcock, Lou Reed), Rabbi Sol on Kiev.
Guests: producer Sherry Eaker
00:00:01 DAVE GOES IN (snow again) 00:24:00 SATURDAY SEGUE – Robyn Hitchcock 00:53:30 Weather 00:57:00 INSIDE BROADWAY (News 00:57:30) / (Review (Jugged Rabbit Stew) 01:14:30) 01:30:30 GUEST: Sherry Eaker 02:37:30 Sponsors 02:42:00 Friends 02:51:00 BOB DYLAN – Sooner & Later (march) 03:17:00 Sponsors 03:22:30 RABBI SOL SOLOMON’S RABBINICAL REFLECTION #94 – Kiev 03:27:30 DAVE SAYS BYE – Harold Ramis 03:30:30 SATURDAY SEGUE – Lou Reed 03:58:30 DAVE GOES OUT
March 1, 2014 Playlist: “Saturday Groovers” (00:28:00), “I Feel Beautiful” (00:30:30), “You and Oblivion” (00:34:30), “I Saw Nick Drake” (00:39:30) & “Old Man Weather” (00:47:30; Robyn Hitchcock). “Human Music” (00:43:00; The Soft Boys). “A Tired Old Cliche” (01:28:00; Jugged Rabbit Stew 2010 Buntport cast). “Abandoned Love” (02:52:30), “Pretty Peggy-O” (02:57:00), “Little Maggie” (03:00:00) & “Caribbean Wind” (03:03:00; Bob Dylan). “The Walls of Red Wing” (03:10:30; Joan Baez). “Stethoscopist” (03:26:30; Second City Television w/ Harold Ramis). “Nowhere at All” (03:34:00), “Burning Embers” (03:37:00), “How Do You Think it Feels” (03:44:00), “Hangin’ Round” (03:47:30) & “Ride Into the Sun” (04:07:30; Lou Reed). “Starlight” (03:40:30; Lou Reed & John Cale). “Guess I’m Falling in Love” (03:51:00; The Velvet Underground).
Aired March 16, 2013 on Dave’s Gone By. Youtube clip: http://youtu.be/NUaspXp3-Kw
Shalom Dammit! This is Rabbi Sol Solomon with a Rabbinical Reflection for the week of March 17th, 2013.
How big is too big? This is a question asked by real-estate agents, businesses and gay men since time immemorial. Now the same question is being put to soft drinks – at least in New York. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, or, as I like to call him, Big Brotherberg, wants to make it illegal for restaurants to sell sugary beverages in containers bigger than 16 ounces. Places like McDonald’s and 7/11 and even Starbucks, with their grande-vente-sabado-gigante-ultra-maxi-mocha-poppachinos – would be subject to fines unless they gave customers less goliath-sized portions.
To give Big Brotherberg his due, his motivations are truly admirable. Obesity is a huge problem in this country. Not just that fat people are unpleasant to look at, or sit next to on a bus, or listen to when they’re not being jolly; no, it’s that bad eating sends healthcare costs through the roof. Billions of dollars are funneled into treating heart disease and diabetes and tooth decay, and Ritalin for kids who are so hopped up on sugar, we confuse their natural exuberance for ADHD.
The rationale of a soft drink ban is that if you put less crap in front of people’s mouths, they will pour less garbage into their guts. Psychologically, this is absolutely sound. If we see six pieces of cheese on a plate, we’re probably gonna eat all six even if we stopped being after hungry after four. And have you been to a supermarket lately? Shopping carts are bigger than Buicks. Why? Because the cart looks empty and lonely with only half a dozen items in it. But with 15 items, we consummate our urge to consume.
So the logic is, if you give people 16 ounces of Dr. Pibb with their 8,000 calorie happy meal, they’ll get used to having a little less fructose with their fries. And right there, that’s 200 calories staying in the fountain and out of your colon. It’s a really great idea – if it were voluntary. If chain restaurants and family-style eateries said, “Hey, we’ll charge a little less, and we’ll serve a little less.” Maybe, eventually, people will go back to portion control the way it was before America supersized everything from street pretzels to porn stars’ boobs.
But wait a minute – Americans have already been downsized, and it hasn’t done a damn thing to shrink their waistlines. For years, snack companies have been slicing candy bars just a notch smaller for the same price, hoping we won’t notice. Potato chip makers have kept their bags the same while putting fewer spuds in it. They’re just being health conscious, right? And it’s really made such a difference to people’s buying and eating habits, right?
But more than that, if we’ve learned anything from the failure of prohibition or Nancy Reagan’s war on pot, it’s that banning vices does not work. It just drives the market underground and turns cravings into criminality. And I don’t care how well-meaning his motivations, New York’s mayor is overstepping his bounds. If a mother tells a ten year old, “I’m doing this for your own benefit,” well, sure; she’s a mom and he’s ten. If a government official tells you, “I’m doing this for your own good,” you know it’s only a matter of time before everyone visiting City Hall has to bring frankincense and a sacrificial goat.
I realize my opposition to the soda ban can be viewed as contradictory to my support of reasonable gun control. After all, how can I support 32 ounces in a big gulp if I’m against 32 bullets in a chamber? The answer is, which would you rather come across: a psychopath pointing a semi-automatic at a classroom, or a chubby guy with a Mountain Dew asking you the time because his wristwatch doesn’t fit anymore?
In striking down Mayor Brotherberg’s soda ban last week, Judge Milton Tingling – love that name! – Judge Tingling said the law was arbitrary and capricious and virtually unenforceable. It’s also insulting to grownups who wanna make their own choices. Even worse, it turns presumably smart people into retards. Restaurants are complaining, “Oh, no! We can only serve 16 ounces now, we have to get smaller cups.” News flash: 16 ounces fits even better in a 24-ounce cup than it does in a 16. You can actually walk past the counter without spilling Pepsi on your fingers.
Most aggravating is the unfairness. If you can go in a bodega and buy 20 cartons of cancer-causing cigarettes; if you can pop in a liquor store and buy beer by the keg; if you can visit your local topless bar and get twelve lap-dances (and by the way, I recommend Tina; she does this thing with her kegels), if you can saunter into a supermarket and buy a 2-liter 7-Up for one-fifty – if you can do all of this – why turn fast-food managers into cup cops?
Mayor Brotherberg, if you truly wanna cure obesity, stop this nanny nonsense and make real change. New York City is so crazy expensive, poor and middle-class families can’t afford fresh, organic produce. Try giving people real salaries and livable budgets, and they’ll eat in better restaurants. They’ll save Burger King for a once-in-awhile guilty pleasure instead of eating there three times a week because it’s the only thing a single mother has time, energy or money to manage.
As far as portion control, tell ya what Mayor. Next time you try to get some cash out of your bank account, I want the bank manager to tell you, “No, you don’t need $30,000 at one time. I’m cutting you off at 20; you can come back tomorrow for the rest. I realize it’s your money, but I don’t trust some of the business deals you might make, so . . . I’m doing this for your own good. Have a nice day.” That noise you’ll hear from Bloomberg’s throat will be a very big gulp, indeed.
This has been a Rabbinical Reflection from Rabbi Supersize Solomon, Temple Sons of Bitches in Great Neck, New York.
RABBI SOL SOLOMON’S RABBINICAL REFLECTION #45 (9/30/2012): Subway Savagery
Aired September 29, 2012 on Dave’s Gone By. Youtube: http://youtu.be/5EnyHNhpAwA
Shalom Dammit! This is Rabbi Sol Solomon with a Rabbinical Reflection for the week of September 30th, 2012.
When was the last time you gave a rat’s tuchas about a subway advertisement? You’re walking on the platform at 42nd Street or 14th Street, and what do you pass? There’s an ad for a new horror movie that looks horrible. There’s an ad for a new Kevin James film that looks even more horrible than the horror movie. Then you get those ads from the MTA warning you to watch the gap or if you see something, say something. Which is ridiculous, because if you spoke out every time you saw something weird or scary on the subway, you’d never shut up!
But this past week has put the New York subways in the news in a way they haven’t been since those flash mobs had people climbing aboard wearing no pants. How I missed that, I do not know. I keep hoping I’ll see women with no pants on the M-4 bus, but no luck. I’ve seen one or two pantsless men, but that was not a political statement, those were homeless guys getting too friendly with my leg.
Anyhoo, this week, an organization called the American Freedom Defense Initiative won the legal right to put up posters in the New York subway system. In big white letters on a black background, they have this quote: “In any war between the civilized man and the savage, support the civilized man,” unquote. Underneath, in blue letters, it says, “Support Israel.” Under that, in red letters, “Defeat Jihad.”
As you might expect, a firestorm of controversy has greeted this ad campaign, with Arabs freaking out, and Jews who are afraid of Arabs freaking out even more. Now, it’s hard to argue with the basic message: When you have one country that is a friend to the United States and is the only democracy in the middle east, you have to support it. When you have an ideology that is bent on destroying Western civilization through fear, violence and torture, it’s probably a good idea to oppose it.
First, let’s put the quote in context. It originally comes from novelist Ayn Rand, a Jewish Russian who wrote two great and very, very, very, very, very, very long books called “Atlas Shrugged” and “The Fountainhead.” In 1973, Rand was upset about the Yom Kippur War – you know, the one where the Arabs attacked Israel on the holiest day of the year? And she made some seriously anti-Arab remarks that went a lot farther than the 18 words paraphrased in the subway ad. Still, considering the circumstances, her anger and racism were, if not excusable, certainly understandable in context.
And it’s hard to argue with the text of the ad. “Jihad” means religious war. It is the struggle of Muslims against anything remotely threatening to their way of life. Unfortunately, that could be anything from defending the ancient Byzantine Empire to putting a price on Salman Rushdie’s head. Or worse, cutting off Theo Van Gogh’s head.
And let’s not forget that happy little day in September 2001 when Al Qaida decided to teach America a lesson in religious tolerance and brotherhood.
But okay, I am not immune to the subtleties of language. If you call one group savages, and then you say “support Israel,” there is a coded message that over-generalizes. Even though the advertisement doesn’t say all Muslims are savages, there’s still a nasty undertone. It’s like when people say Midwesterners won’t get a joke because it’s too New York – we know what they really mean.
And so, the call has gone out to take the posters down, Arab-American protesters have been arrested for spray-painting over them, twats are tweeting on their twitters that the ad is just throwing gasoline on the fires of racial intolerance from both sides.
How do I feel about the whole thing? Thank you for asking. First of all, I agree with the message of the poster 100 percent, but only IF we take Jihad to mean the darkest, worst part of the Muslim credo. Others have pointed out that “holy war” does not have to be violent, and that an Arab rejecting a ham sandwich is obeying Jihad, just the way a Jew rejecting bacon is obeying Kashrut. Except the Jew has it harder because bacon is soooo good.
The wording of the sign is inflammatory, or at least uncomfortable, especially in the subway. It’s an underground, closed-in space, and if I were standing next to a Muslim next to that sign, I’d feel ooky – just as ooky as I do when I’m on the train and some asshole bellows a verse of “Amazing Grace” hoping people will give him money so he won’t sing the second verse.
There are better places and better ways to make the case for defending Israel, and for keeping our guard up against the Ahmadinejads and the Mullahs – and the Bin Ladens and the Arafats and the small number of Arab Muslims who force us to hate and fear the millions of Muslims who are not savages. Well, except when they’re watching soccer.
If only they would change the sign to read, “Support Israel. Stop Terrorism.” Or, “Support Peace, Ban the Taliban.” Something we can all get behind. In any war between the subtext and the urtext, be careful with both.
This has been a Rabbinical Reflection from Rabbi Sol Solomon, Temple Sons of Bitches in Great Neck, New York.
Click above to listen to the episode (audio only).
Here is the 351st episode of the long-running radio show/podcast, Dave’s Gone By, which aired on UNC Radio, April 23, 2011. Info: davesgoneby.com.
Host: Dave Lefkowitz
Guest: filmmaker Ari Gold Featuring: Dave chats with filmmaker Ari Gold (“The Adventures of Power”). Plus: Inside Broadway (NY reviews), Saturday Segue (NY songs), Bob Dylan – Sooner & Later (Bard on Bard) and Rabbi Sol Solomon’s Rabbinical Reflection on Easter.
00:00:01 DAVE GOES IN 00:12:30 SATURDAY SEGUE – New York City 00:34:00 DAVE GOES OFF – Back in NY 00:59:30 BOB DYLAN – Sooner & Later: “Bard on Bard” 01:32:00 GUEST: Ari Gold 02:24:30 DAVE – Sponsors & weather 02:37:00 Rabbi Sol Solomon’s Rabbinical Reflection – Easter 02:46:30 INSIDE BROADWAY (Arcadia (02:46:30), Jerusalem (02:49:00), Good People (02:52:30)) 02:56:00 DAVE – Friends 02:59:30 DAVE SAYS BYE – Ross Higuchi 03:04:00 DAVE GOES OUT
April 23, 2011 Playlist: “Dirty Boulevard” (12:30:30; Lou Reed), “Spring in New York” (00:16:00; Tony Bennett); “New York City” (00:18:30; Suzzy & Terre Roche); “New York, New York” (00:22:00; Tiny Tim); “Manhattan” (00:25:30; Jim Caruso); “The Only Living Boy in New York” (00:30:30; Simon & Garfunkel); “Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again” (live; 00:59:30), “Lone Pilgrim” (01:05:30), “Desolation Row” (alternate take; 01:08:00), “Floater” (01:19:30) & “Po’ Boy” (01:24:30; Bob Dylan); “New Jersey Nights” (01:28:30) & “We Are Power” (02:23:00; Ethan Gold).
Frances McDormand in Good PeopleMark Rylance in Jerusalem
Click above to listen to the episode (audio only).
Here is the 29th episode of the long-running radio show/podcast, Dave’s Gone By, which aired on NY’s WGBB-AM, April 20, 2003.
host: Dave Lefkowitz
Featuring: Dave has a day in New York, plus gets cultural and offers the satirical News Gone By. Note: The only extant recording of the first 10 minutes of this episode was taped from a radio broadcast. Apologies for the sound quality!
00:00:01 DAVE GOES IN – Dave’s Day (A day in Manhattan, with cops, hot dogs, fireworks, plus a visit to Urban Cowboy, Bartenders and Zanna Don’t!) 00:24:00 NEWS GONE BY (State Farm Cameras, Della Reese, Lesbian Kiss; Atkins Die-t; The Colossal Colon; Stutter Students; Chicken Chopper; Knife in the Terrier; Paint Theft; Rodney King Drives Away; Liquid Wrench; Government Surfing; Mammary Molars (w/ Bad Pun of the Week); Big Lurch; What Would Jesus Eat?; Rod McKuen’s Place; Carl Lewis’ Seoul Power; Bitches’ Ashes). 00:43:00 DAVE’S GONE CULTURAL (Jesus Christ Superstar) 00:53:00 DAVE GOES OUT
April 20, 2003 Playlist: “Easter Parade” (Al Jolson, 19:00), “Could We Start Again, Please?” & “John Nineteen: Forty-One” (Jesus Christ Superstar), “In the Mood” (Ray Stevens).
Dave Lefkowitz interviews friends Fred Cleaver & Wendy Highby
