With baseball writers buzzing this week about comedian Billy Crystal’s short stint with the New York Yankees, Jewish Week editor Gary Rosenblatt picked a good time for a column on his own stab at spring training glory:

As spring training moves toward Opening Day, rekindling in baseball fans everywhere the flickering and foolish hope that this could be the year for their team, I share with you my own story of child-like dreams rubbing up against reality. It’s a saga I like to think of as My (Almost) Magical Inning.

In this case it was the Baltimore Orioles (who went on to win the World Series that fall). And while it’s true that it was a spring training exhibition game, not a “real” game, and

it took place in a rundown ballpark in Miami, not Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, and it was to be in a “B” squad game, not an “A” squad game, and it was only for a fraction of the game, not the whole game, still — to play on the field with your heroes, in uniform, who wouldn’t jump at this chance of a lifetime?

So when a well-placed friend arranged for this to happen (long before Baseball Fantasy Camps became a booming business for affluent, grown-up kids), I flew down to Miami from Baltimore, excited and nervous, and clutching my weather-beaten fielders glove. …

The Connecticut Jewish Ledger has an article taking a look at how Irish Jews around the world mark St. Patrick’s Day.

The Lower East Side

The Loyal Yiddish Sons of Erin were a group of Irish-Jewish immigrants in New York City who, at least through the 1960s, would celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with green matzo balls. The Sons were actually Irish-born descendants of Polish and Lithuanian Jews who had stopped off in Ireland for a brief period on their migratory path to the U.S.

Ireland

David Briscoe experienced the day differently while growing up Jewish in Dublin as son of Lord Mayor Ben Briscoe and grandson of the city’s first Jewish Lord Mayor, Robert Briscoe.

“Irish Jews enjoy the day like everyone else and ensure it is a day to join in the celebration of Irish unity and culture,” says the associate professor of medicine at Harvard. “On a personal note, I plan to arrange a day of Irish music and dance for several of my colleagues to celebrate Irish culture.”

Israel

David Briscoe experienced the day differently while growing up Jewish in Dublin as son of Lord Mayor Ben Briscoe and grandson of the city’s first Jewish Lord Mayor, Robert Briscoe.

“Irish Jews enjoy the day like everyone else and ensure it is a day to join in the celebration of Irish unity and culture,” says the associate professor of medicine at Harvard. “On a personal note, I plan to arrange a day of Irish music and dance for several of my colleagues to celebrate Irish culture.”

Plus a list of prominent Irish Jews.

During her acceptance speech at the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame, Madonna reflects on writing her first song in an abandoned synagogue in Queens (4:45) and quotes some Talmud (6:15).

The Jeffersonian, Baltimore’s business newspaper, reports on a Jewish recovering drug addict and the community’s efforts to draw attention to the issue:

Samantha Schroeder’s life revolved around heroin for nearly a decade. The Pikesville native stole money from the bank where she worked and became a prostitute, watching her life deteriorate as she struggled to keep up with a $250-a-day addiction.

Her story echoes countless other stories of drug abuse. But because she is Jewish, many may see her as an anomaly.

“My grandmother would always say, ‘I bet you are the only Jewish person in Narcotics Anonymous.’ If she only knew!” said Schroeder, now 37 and free of heroin for almost 10 years.

The perception that Jews are more immune to the perils of substance abuse is one that Jewish leaders have been trying to change. Schroeder, who has spoken around town in connection with Baltimore-based Jewish Addiction Services, recently told her story at a March 2 sisterhood brunch at Reisterstown’s Temple Emanuel.

Goldie Hawn is heckled in Glasgow by pro-Palestinian protesters at a fund-raising appearance for KKL Scotland (the JNF equivalent).

The Harvard Crimson reports on the controversy stirred up by a multi-media exhibition at the Harvard Hillel featuring testimonials from Israeli soldiers about their time in Gaza and the West Bank:

“Breaking the Silence” — a traveling exhibit of over 100 photographs and videos testimonials curated by former Israel Defense Force (IDF) soldiers — drew a crowd of nearly 200 on its opening night on March 1. Critics have said the exhibit portrays only the extremes of military life — such as a picture of an IDF soldier smiling in front of several corpses — and offers little context.

“By hosting this exhibit, Harvard Hillel only promotes enmity and hatred towards Israel and gives legitimacy to these sentiments by stamping its approval on the biased, distorted collage of pictures,” said [ZOA's Mort Klein].

But Franklin M. Fisher — an MIT economics professor and chair of Americans for Peace Now, which advocates for peace in the Middle East and sponsors “Breaking the Silence” — said he disagreed with Klein’s view. Fisher said the exhibit does not constitute criticism of Israel, adding that “not all criticism of Israel is hostile.”

Ha’aretz peeks behind the curtain of a beauty salon where Haredi women come to indulge (modestly) in a guilty pleasure:

The Ye’elat Chen beauty salon, managed by Larrie, has been operating for 24 years in Jerusalem, not far from Mea Shearim and Kikar Shabbat. The side entrance on the main street is suited to women who want to steal in without being seen. Behind the simple door a surprise awaits. A pleasant and aesthetic space divided into cubicles. Several rooms have a secret exit to the salon’s backyard. They are meant for the wives of leading Hasidic rabbis, women from extremist Hasidic sects, along with several female MKs who have heard about Larrie. In other words, all those who have to maintain their privacy.

There is nobody more expert than Larrie when it comes to social sensitivities. “Sometimes a mother-in-law and her daughter-in-law come to us, or a sister and her sister-in-law,” says Larrie. “Neither of them knows that the other is being treated at the same time. It’s not legitimate to talk about it. We understand that the name of the game is discretion.” …

There’s been plenty of Jewish news the past few days over at the New York Times (and that’s before you even get to the Israel coverage) … (more…)

Along with the release of “The Other Boleyn Girl” has come several interviews with Natalie Portman.

She touched on a few topics of Jewish interest in her talk with Time magazine:

You take on a period piece in The Other Boleyn Girl. What is your favorite time in history? —Nikki Barrett, York, PA.
I’m really interested in 1920s Berlin. I read this great book by Amos Elon called The Pity of It All. It’s about Jewish life in Berlin right before the war. The whole environment of the salons and all this culture—there was a real openness and freedom. It’s scary to think the response to that was this incredible fascism….

As a native of Israel, what role do you think the U.S. government should play in its affairs? —Amy Lucio, Riverside, Calif.
I would love to see a government that made demands on Israel and the Palestinians to reach an agreement. Ultimately, it has to come from the people themselves, though. No one is going to like an externally imposed solution.

And then there was her interview with The Sunday Times of London:

I identify very strongly as Jewish, but I could be Indian, Puerto Rican . . . Anything that gives you a cultural identity makes you know who you are and grounds you, even as a young girl trying on identities.” She sighs. “Any time I see something about Britney, I close it. I can’t look at it. I’m usually interested in gossip, but this makes my stomach hurt.” …

And, of course, while Portman is famously Jewish, Johansson is a lesser-known Jew (because of her Scandinavian father, she’s called “the kosher Danish”). When Penelope Cruz and Salma Hayek made a movie together, all the headlines blared “the Hot Tamales”. What should the media label a film starring two Jewish girls? Portman doesn’t miss a beat.

“The Hot Knishes,” she says.

Hat tip: Bintel Blog.

The celebrity gossip Web site TMZ has a video segment on the latest wave of Jews to invade Hollywood: Israeli commandos.