If you’re looking for them (and even if you’re not), there are certain distinctive social types that inhabit Manhattan and the boroughs. Noah Rinsky has dedicated himself to documenting what he calls Old Jewish Men (OJM). Rather than ridicule, he affectionately spotlights their diversity that makes New York City a continuously bubbling melting pot. I’d call Rinsky a 30-something self-styled socio-anthropological humorist who moderates the popular social media account @oldjewishmen. His book The Old Jewish Men’s Guide to Eating, Sleeping and Futzing Around, illustrated by Dick Carroll, is an ethnographic counterpoint to Lisa Bernbach’s 1980 Preppy Handbook, which raised another sizable demographic to satiric heights.
Rinsky’s book is a stylish and crotchety ode to this fascinating group of individuals (which I’ll eventually be a member of—if I’m not already) gathered under an extra-large chuppah. This includes the New York “Schlub”; the “Tough Guy” with James Caan bravado who takes meetings in the shvitz; and the highly irritable “Grumpy Intellectual” on the deli circuit, among others.
In this interview, Rinsky (below, right) explains why he has volunteered as an OJM chronicler-advocate, and the extent of OJM’s individual and collective impact on Greater New York.
OK, the first question is: nu? Why’d you do something that on the surface is the old Jewish stereotype? And what is nu or new about this book that makes Old Jewish Men interesting and funny?
Nu right back atcha. First of all, thanks for taking an interest in my book. As Woody Allen would say: (cough, hack, clears throat) OK, what’s nu about this book that isn’t ONLY playing on the stereotypes? Well, I’m not sure if there’s anything nu exactly in my material. I think it’s the way it’s been presented that is fresh. Not to toot my own sphincter, before Old Jewish Men I don’t think there were these distinct (mostly pointless) categories and archetypes. Not surprisingly, no one ever thought to categorize an already niche category of man. If there is anything nu, and again, I don’t think there is, perhaps it’s the extremely deep specificity of this one joke. But again, this is just doubling down on the minutiae of what makes a certain kind of man. For example, what does a Tough Jew have in his breast pocket that a Soft La OJM does not? Ya know? And then you can kinda just keep going. This material has limbs that can stretch. Where do they shop? Where do they sit? Where do they shit? The more specific it is, the more minute, the funnier and less cheap. If the book wasn’t ultra specific it would be cheap propaganda. But only a real nudnik could get their hands as dirty as the writer of The Old Jewish Men’s Guide to Eating, Sleeping and Futzing Around.
I would think that people of your generation—like mine, and even my first-generation Bronx-born parents—would avoid OJM like some biblical pestilence that hit the Pharaoh. Is this revenge or ironic fondness for the fakakta schlubs in your own life?
Hmmm. To see it as revenge is interesting … revenge against whom? My future self? The Jews? My father? If anything the project is preparatory … it’s gearing up for the inevitable next phase of life. I can’t explain exactly why I’m drawn to old men, but I am. There are levels to it, and my shrink can tell you more than I probably can (FYI, my dad is a shrink), but I don’t feel that it’s revenge. Self-loathing? Who knows. Probably? I think if you find the book hateful or malicious, then you’ve found something in the writing that I don’t necessarily feel. Or at least I’m not conscious of it. The project amuses me, both the videos and the writing. I don’t think it’s deeply meaningful work, but there’s value in being amusing. “Curb Your Enthusiasm” is amusing, wouldn’t you say? In its best moments, HIGHLY amusing is how I would describe the book. Most of the writing is meant to be nothing more than a halfway serious philosophy about a late stage in the game; a fun handbook to navigate a time in life where one should be able to fully relax and pass gas freely, without spousal judgement, guilt, or a deep loss of corpulent sexiness.
This is a book filled with overt schtick, but lots of nuances emerge as well. What are your favorite parts of the book—the lore, the myths, the helpful hints—and, in general, the OJM aesthetic?
It is a lot of schtick, whatever that means. I’m so lost in this OJM universe that I might not even recognize what’s real and what’s schtick anymore. However, when it comes to schtick, good schtick is based in reality—and there’s a LOT of reality in the OJM-a-verse. Luckily, I’ve learned how to stretch and bend it. If it bends it’s funny, if it breaks it’s not funny, right? If you’re asking me what my favorite part of the book is I would say the illustrations and then the short story. I think Dick Carroll is a fantastic cartoonist and a bit of a mind reader. Luckily for me, we barely have to do much back and forth. We’ve been trading pictures of Old Jewish Men for almost 10 years now, long before anyone was offering a book deal. I feel very lucky to work with someone I admire so much. His work, I mean. Not him as a person—hope you’re reading this, Dick.
As I read the book, I recalled the very popular Preppy Handbook from 1980. In fact, there are various books where cultural characterizations are showcased. Do you think, as Baby Boomers and Millennials are getting older (and in my case, decrepit), that it is time to face our fates?
I owe a lot to the Preppy Handbook. It was definitely the biggest influence, visually, for my book. We happen to have the same publisher, but it’s no coincidence. Workman (now owned by Hachette) saw another Preppy Handbook in OJM and pursued. As anti-OJM as this is, I believe that one should face the inevitable with optimism and curiosity. Without those things, you might as well just blow your brains out. I believe in celebrating people, their oddities and specificities. The more peculiar their lives, the more there is to think and write about. I was lucky enough to stumble upon a diverse, practically infinite generation of men as a subject. There’s seemingly no end in sight. To answer your question, yes, I think we should all face our fates, but with grace. Fuck, I sound like a Christian.
How is your OJM message being communicated?
Up until now OJM has only had one podcast, and it sort of petered out and failed. In fact, I think we only had one true fan—your son. But we’re currently working on building a talkshow that will air in a few weeks.
Are you surprised by the success of your OJM brand?
Extremely. I never thought we could get this thing off the ground—not really. I knew there was a select few who would be into this “cause,” and those people found me early. But the mainstream-ness of OJM is confusing. Obviously I love that it’s popular, but only in today’s media landscape could something as narrow take off the way it has. A large reason, and I’m sure you can relate to this, is because Old Jewish Men are more or less proprietary of New York. For whatever reason when you hear Old Jewish Men you don’t think of Jerusalem or Paris or even Boca, but New York. And anything that’s quintessential New York is automatically cool.
I once had an idea (a bad idea, as it turned out) for a book on one of those timely demographic genres. How do you feel about feeding a hunger for ethnic ridicule?
I’ve done some touring for this book—mostly in the tri-state and a few talks in the Midwest, and one thing I’ve found is that Old Jewish Men don’t connect me with the book. They feel that they themselves own it. I don’t even need to show up to do these talks anymore; they’re more than happy to do it without me. So I’m feeding a demographic of hungry men. Good to be of service. Finally, I have a use and I no longer need to travel. I can finally just stay home and pick my belly button.
Can a gentile be an OJM?
I guess the question is, do you need to be Jewish to be Jewish anymore? Or do you need to be Jewish to be an OJM? I’m no rabbi, but my answer is yes: A non-Jew can be an OJM, but it sure helps to be Jewish. Bitching comes naturally to us, but I find that a lot of my non-Jewish friends have this OJM-ness coursing through them, some even more than I do. It’s my damn optimistic spirit. Maybe I’m a Protestant at heart. But in all seriousness I believe that the Jews are an optimistic people. Without it we’d be history.
How long before you become an OJM? Or does this full-time job as advocate for OJM give you a get-out-of-the-ghetto-free card?
I’m certainly a future OJM, but my hairline is going fast. I’m fine with being an advocate, but now that I’m 35 I’ve moved into a more advanced medical category; no longer a young buck in the 22–34 medical class, I’m now perched in the 35–44 bracket. I think a lot more than I used to about my hemoglobin A1C.
The post The Daily Heller: How to Become an Old Jewish Man (Even if You’re Not Jewish) appeared first on PRINT Magazine.