'Rabbi of the Geeks' to Discuss Religion and Comics

Self proclaimed "Rabbi of the Geeks," Simcha Weinstein, will discuss the synthesis of pop culture and religion at Ramath Orah synagogue tonight at 6 p.m. at an event co-organized by Columbia University Chabad's director, Rabbi Yonah Blum, and the congregation.

Weinstein, who is the author of Up, Up and Oy Vey! How Jewish History, Culture, and Values Shaped the Comic Book Superhero, now serves as rabbi and religious advisor for Jewish and Muslim student groups at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.

After he graduated with a degree in film history from Manchester Metropolitan University in the United Kingdom, Weinstein worked for the British Film Commission on hundreds of feature films, including The Full Monty, Tomorrow Never Dies, and From Hell.

But he said that the "fakeness and backstabbing" of the industry left him feeling disillusioned.

"People were always schmoozing with the production manager to get their big break and trying to one-up each other," 30-year-old Weinstein said. "It made me cynical and I wanted more of a community."

After leaving the film industry, Weinstein, who did not grow up Orthodox, began to embrace a more Jewish life.

"I never even expected to write this book," he confessed. "It all really came from my talks with the students. But what paved the way for this to happen was the release of Kavalier and Clay," Michael Chabon's 2001 Pulitzer Prize winning book about two Jewish immigrants and their break into the fledgling comic book industry.

The events of Sept. 11, 2001, also had a lasting impact on bringing comic book icons to the mainstream, Weinstein said. "That following spring, Spiderman was the biggest opener in movie history. People were taking solace in pop culture. We needed heroes."

According to Weinstein, that same desire for comfort and a belief in justice and the American dream spurred young first-generation Jewish immigrants to create some of our most iconic heroes.

"The guys that were writing these stories were faced with a hostile and anti-Semitic world," Weinstein said. "They tried to be accepted as Americans, and their American dream took the form of masking their identities behind these characters."

Weinstein described his favorite comic book hero, Peter Parker, as a "neurotic, Jewish, Woody Allen type character," adding with a grin that "we're all a bunch of nebs-completely self-defeatist."

But it wasn't just the Jewish immigrant experience or biblical themes that made its mark on the comic book industry. New York City itself also had an indelible influence on comic book creators, including the creators of Batman and Superman, according to Weinstein.

"Guys like Bob Kane, Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, just looked out their windows and wrote and drew what was around them. New York has also always been the home of Jewish regeneration, and it didn't hurt that Marvel and DCs offices were in Manhattan either."

Jerry Robinson, famous for illustrating the Joker and co-creating Robin, attended Columbia University in 1939.

Weinstein claims that his book, recent museum exhibitions, and the emergence of biting Jewish political comedians such as Sacha Baron Cohen, Jon Stewart, and Sarah Silverman mark a reclamation of Jewish cultural heritage.

"The progression of the superhero in the U.S. has mirrored the life of Jews in America," Weinstein said. "Everyone can relate to superheroes, no matter who you are. I remember when I was on CNN they wanted to show that I was this crazy rabbi, but I'm not looking to proselytize through pop culture," he said.

Weinstein said he hopes that his national book tour will increase awareness of the contributions that Jews have made to the comic industry and provide an entertaining educational experience.

"The feedback I've gotten has been great so far," Weinstein said. "People take me more seriously now, which is laughable. I'm still just like any other shmuck who goes home and has his wife screams at him at the end of the day."