Published Articles

Original Article Published on The JNS

The man who knows what it’s like to wait says he can’t wait for the post-COVID era, when he can return to getting to know the hockey players he has historically spent so much time with.

Legendary New York Rangers play-by-play sportscaster Sam Rosen is best known for his call in 1994 when the Rangers won the Stanley Cup for the first time in 54 years. New Yorkers can recite his call by heart: “The waiting is over—the New York Rangers are the Stanley Cup Champions! And this one will last a lifetime!” Yet this famous call is only one of many great moments in his 73 years thus far. The personable, knowledgeable Rosen recently spoke to JNS about his love and affection for the Rangers, sports, Judaism, coping during the coronavirus pandemic, and yes, his late mother.

Sam Rosen was born Samuel Rosenblum in 1947 in a DP camp in Ulm, Germany. His father left Poland just before the Nazi invasion in 1939 and escaped to Russia, where he worked as a tailor, sewing uniforms for the Russian army. Rosen’s brother, Stephen, five years Sam’s senior, was born in Russia in 1942.

The Rosen family immigrated to America in 1949, where young Sam quickly got his start playing and watching sports. “My father was a tailor and got into dry cleaning. My mother got us off to school and helped out in his store until 7 p.m. We lived in Boro Park, across from PS 160. Sports occupied our time. We’d go out in the mornings on Saturdays and Sundays, and over the summer and stay out all day—until our mother yelled for us to come in for dinner.” Rosen fondly recalls playing “all sports,” including stickball, punchball, baseball, softball and basketball. “It was a great way to avoid trouble and stay healthy,” he notes.

Rosen also went to Hebrew school in the neighborhood and had what he called a “fairly small” bar mitzvah, celebrated at a catering hall on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. He says he is proud of his Jewish identity—visiting Israel several times, where he has relatives, and reporting that his children and grandchildren also attended Hebrew school and celebrated b’nai mitzvahs. He and his wife have attended New City Jewish Center in New City, N.Y., for years, affectionately recalling their late, longtime Rabbi Henry Sosland, who died in 2019. “He was a mainstay and a rock. It was sad to see him pass,” says Rosen.

As Rosen became more active in sports as a teenager, his attendance at religious school and synagogue dropped precipitately, saying “it became too much with high school baseball.” Rosen attended the prestigious Stuyvesant High School, where the catcher served as captain of the baseball team, ran track and played intramural basketball. He also played baseball at the City College of New York.

Sam Rosen was inducted into the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame On June 8, 2008. Credit: MSG Network.

In addition to playing sports, Rosen began attending athletic events. His amazing recall for events that took place more than 60 years ago seems to reflect an encyclopedic knowledge and a deep love for all things sports. Rosen remembers attending various events at the old Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, including college basketball, NBA double-headers and Rangers games. “There would be a game at 6, and the Knicks would play at 8. We’d take the subway to MSG, get out at 49th Street and get in early when the doors opened at 4:30 to get a good seat—we’d run up the balcony!”

In those days, Rosen reports that hockey was played only on Wednesdays and Sundays. “I was a regular,” he says, looking back fondly on those days. “It was a different time. It was a great time!”

Even his Eastern European parents began to warm up to American sports. “My father became a baseball fan. He watched the Brooklyn Dodgers on TV. One time, we had an argument over curveballs. He said there is no such thing! He couldn’t understand.” The Rosen parents proudly attended Sam’s summer league and American Legion baseball games.

They even began to understand his broadcasting career—somewhat.

From an early age, Rosen taped himself doing play-by-play of Rangers games. Rosen, who still has a clear, booming voice, was the studio host on Rangers games from 1982 to 1984, and began doing play-by-play in 1984. He is known for his extensive knowledge of hockey and for his signature phrase: “It’s a power-play goal!” He reports that “my father understood my broadcasting career. He was proud of my work with Channel 8 in New Haven, Connecticut.” Rosen covered sports on the weekends.

He notes that his mother—not unlike many Jewish mothers at the time—encouraged him to go to law school. But he reminded her that he was “doing well in my MSG job, doing nicely.” He never did attend law school.

‘I miss sitting in the locker room’

While each season offers great moments and memories, Rosen acknowledges that “nothing beats taking part in the championship season.” He reflects on all of the highlights of that special season. “To have grown up following the Rangers and to see years of frustration until finally winning a championship season—54 years! To see it unfold at MSG with the building electric and literally shaking. To be part of it—the parade down the Canyon of Heroes and to City Hall for a huge celebration … ”

And he’s known some personal fame, too. On June 8, 2008, Rosen was inducted into the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. On Nov. 14, 2016, Rosen was enshrined as the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award winner for outstanding contributions as a broadcaster by the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The past two seasons, which have taken place during the pandemic, have been a bit frustrating as they have impacted Rosen’s ability to meet with the team and others in the sports world in person. “I remember when the season first got suspended on March 20,” recalls Rosen. “The team was in Denver, where we lost to them in overtime in an exciting time in front of a packed house. There were rumors that basketball was being suspended. When we got to the airport, we were either going to Phoenix to play in two days or back to New York; we went back to New York.”

The season was suspended, and Rosen and his wife spent March through the end of June in Florida during what he says was “a strange and unsettling time.” He returned to covering hockey on Aug. 1 last year as the Rangers competed in the first round of the NHL playoffs. He says he was more than happy to return to hockey this season “in our own arena and not in a bubble.” And while the schedule resuming in January was a relief, like so many others, he misses a full arena of fans.

He says he can’t wait for the post-COVID era, when he can return to getting to know and develop relationships with the hockey players he has historically spent so much time traveling and socializing with. “I miss sitting with them in the locker room, learning about a player growing up in Russia or Finland. I miss this part,” says Rosen. And while he hasn’t yet sat at length with Jewish Rangers player Adam Fox, he hopes to do so, noting that “Fox has become a star in his second season in the league. He is now a top player in the league.”

As far as Rosen goes, the septuagenarian has no plans to retire anytime soon. “I just love what I do—I still do as much as on my first day. And thank God, my health is still good!”

Read more

Original Article Published On The JNS

Dr. John Frank plans to attend Ramah Sports Academy in Connecticut—helping in the medical field and maybe telling some stories that other field with the NFL.

Some nice Jewish boys become doctors. One nice Jewish boy became a doctor while also playing in the National Football League.

When campers at Ramah Sports Academy in Cheshire, Conn., visit the infirmary this summer, they will get more than Band-Aids, throat lozenges and TLC from Dr. John Frank. They may also hear stories from the nice Jewish boy who began his medical studies while playing tight end with Joe Montana on two NFL Super Bowl San Francisco 49ers teams from 1984 to 1989. Campers may also learn that Dr. Frank was a founder of the Israel bobsled team.

Adam Benson and Graham Parker of New York City were thrilled when they learned their football-loving son, who is attending Ramah Sports Academy for the first time, would cross paths with Frank. Adam reports, “Max lives for football, and we think it is awesome that Max will be cared for by a camp doctor who is also a former NFL player.”

Camp director Rabbi Dave Levy could not be happier with Frank joining his staff this summer. “I was speaking with a pediatrician from Columbus, Ohio, whose two sons go to camp, and he said, by the way, I have a friend who might be up for coming to camp.” Frank, who splits his time between his practice in New York and his home in Columbus, is a board-certified otolaryngologist (ear, nose and throat doctor), as well as a diplomate of the American Board of Hair Restoration Surgery. He has treated more than 10,000 patients for hair loss and performed more than 2,500 hair transplants.

This summer, Frank, 59, will be attending camp along with his 12-year-old son, spending a week taking care of cuts and sprains, as well as oversee COVID-19 protocols. He will also coach flag football and share his wealth of stories about being a member of the NFL, sharing the importance of teamwork and his life as an observant Jew.

“I am excited to have him as a camp doctor and to use his football experience to create a positive experience for campers,” says Levy. “He will lead a multi-day flag-football experience and talk with the camp divisions about his NFL experiences, including what it was like being on a historic team in the 1980s and being Jewish in the NFL, and about whether it is worth the risk of playing football in its current form. I am excited to have the whole package; he is the embodiment of what our camp is about—Jewish life, sports and bringing those two things together!”

‘A strong legacy to uphold’

Frank grew up in Pittsburgh, attended Hebrew school and celebrated his bar mitzvah at Beth El Congregation of the South Hills. He reports, “I was into and not into Hebrew school, but was very much into learning for the bar mitzvah.”

He refers to his father, Alan, as “a celebrated athlete and Pittsburgh Jewish sports legend,” saying he “was a fantastic basketball player in college at Carnegie Tech,” which later became Carnegie Mellon University, and “a strong legacy to uphold.”

When it came time for John to become involved with sports, his mother was lukewarm at best with his desire to play football. His parents and grandparents insisted on examining his peewee football equipment to ensure they provided adequate protection. “I think my mother was terrified by the whole experience,” he recalls.

At every stage of Frank’s sports career, he was aware of just how good an athlete his father was. He feels his father “had it” innately, while he was “only an average football player until my senior year of high school. It just seemed to click.”

Frank attended Ohio State University, majored in chemistry and published academic papers while still an undergraduate. He always planned on attending medical school, even while playing football for the prestigious Ohio State football team.

The starting tight end at Ohio State from 1981 to 83, as well as a two-time Academic All-American, he caught more passes than any other tight end in the school’s history; became the team’s most valuable player; and was selected as a member of the All-Century Ohio State Football Team and Ohio State’s Varsity Hall of Fame.

Then Frank was invited to attend “the Combine,” the NFL’s major recruiting event and tryout in 1984, but he declined so he could study for final exams. Much to his surprise, he was drafted in June 1984 in the second round of the NFL draft by the San Francisco 49ers.

‘You know you are different’

In “NFL Films Presents,” Frank recounts the funny, somewhat embarrassing story of the telephone call from the 49ers coach. “Bill Walsh drafted me in the second round. I never anticipated playing in the NFL, so I didn’t know who he was. When I was in college, I wasn’t following the NFL—I was a chemistry major on the way to medical school. When the phone rang, he said it was the head coach to say congratulations. The only Coach Welsch I knew was the coach of Army at the time [George Welch]. I said, ‘Hi, Coach Welsh. He said, ‘No John, Coach Walsh. See you when you get out here.’

When Frank arrived at training camp, he was unfamiliar with the 49ers organization and didn’t know much about players on the team, though said he “had heard [quarterback] Joe Montana’s name since he was from Western Pennsylvania where I was from.”

He caught on to the organization and the team’s playbook quickly. His first catch in the NFL was for a touchdown at the Meadowlands in New Jersey during a Monday Night Football game.

Frank wasn’t the only Jewish player on the legendary 49ers team, which consisted of players from various religious backgrounds. “Harris Barton, the all-pro tackle, was the other Jew. We bonded. We had something special. We had fun on the team.”

While Frank says that he never experienced any difficulties being Jewish and notes that at the professional level, “it is a business,” and everyone is focused on the job, he observes: “When you are a Jewish athlete in the NFL, you know you are different.”

In fact, he recounts a touching story of Coach Walsh’s sensitivity. When Walsh read a story about anti-Semitic graffiti on a local San Francisco synagogue, he reached out to his player. “He pulled me aside, said he heard about the graffiti and said if you need to talk about the impact it is having, we are here. He was very sensitive,” remembers Frank.

During Frank’s first NFL season, he mostly worked as a reserve tight as the team went 18-1 and defeated the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl XIX. He saw limited action due to an elbow injury. By his fourth season, he became the starting tight end. In his fifth and final season, he played in Super Bowl XXIII. He caught two passes, including one thrown by Montana during the winning touchdown drive. Following the game and to the surprise of many, Frank announced his retirement to devote himself full-time to medical school. During his five-year pro career, he caught 65 passes for a total of 662 yards.

Frank earned his M.D. from Ohio State in 1992 and completed his training in Chicago. He then established a plastic surgery clinic in San Francisco, specializing in cosmetic facial plastic surgery and hair transplantation. The NFL film, “Why John Frank, M.D., Choose Medicine Over a Career in the NFL” featured on Frank’s professional website shows his gentle touch and playful banter with a patient who consults with him for an ear problem. He notes that on occasion, patients learn his “back story” and ask about his NFL career.

As for his involvement with the Israel bobsled team, Frank recounts that years ago, he and a friend “were on a ski chairlift and were talking about the Jamaican bobsled team. We got the idea for an Israel bobsled team. It developed organically. It was really special.”

Frank, who also holds Israeli citizenship, notes that the bobsled team made it to the world championships in the early 2000s.

For now, he is getting prepared for and even excited about Ramah, just as campers look forward to returning after a year of too much time inside. “I am looking forward to being outdoors in the summertime, to be with my son, and to be around Jews and sports.”

Read more

Original Article Published On The JNS

The 21-minute work was shot in one take over the course of a single night. “Everyone said it was crazy,” recounts writer and director Tomer Shushan.

When Tomer Shushan had his bicycle stolen, the Israeli-born son of Moroccan Israeli immigrants went through a range of complicated emotions. Once he started the process of getting the bike back, he began to feel sorry for the alleged thief, called off the police, paid the immigrant who took it 250 shekels and still witnessed the man continuing to cry, afraid the police come for him.

“That I almost cost someone to lose [livelihood and possibly] his life, that’s what they experienced. I felt so bad that I didn’t want to have the bike anymore,” recalls Shushan. The 33-year-old graduate of Tel Aviv’s Minshar School of Art, Shushan turned his feelings into “White Eye,” a poignant 21-minute film he says he wrote in less than an hour, and later directed, about an Eritrean worker getting by in Israel and wrongly accused of stealing a bicycle from an Israeli man.

“Released in October 2019, the short film has appeared in and received awards at such festivals as the Warsaw Jewish Film Festival (Best Narrative Short), the Haifa International Film Festival (Best Short Film) and the 2020 SXSW (South by Southwest) Film Festival, where it was awarded Best Narrative Short. It is one of 15 films nominated in the Best Live Action Short category for the 93rd Academy Awards, which take place on April 25 at 8 p.m. EST at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.

Shushan, lead actor Daniel Gad (who plays Omer, based on and closely resembling the name of writer “Tomer”) and cinematographer Saar Mizrahi recently discussed the film at an exclusive screening hosted by Daniel Glass, founder and CEO of Glassnote Records, and his son, Sean Glass, a filmmaker who has also had careers in music, tech and clothing (@sdotglass). Daniel Glass, who has seen the film many times, opened by noting, “I am sobbing and crying at this point,” in reaction to the thought-provoking film, which premiered April 20 on HBO Max.

The film was shot in one take over the course of a single night between 4 p.m. and 4 a.m. This means the movie was shot in its entirety multiple times. “Everyone said it was crazy,” recounts Shushan. “We believed it was the heart of the movie to do it in one take; it is just what we believed!” Despite his determination, Shushan playfully acknowledges that “until midnight, we had nothing, then magic. We got into the rhythm. We had six full takes and had to choose one before the sun came up.”

Much like Shushan’s painful personal stolen-bike story, lead actor Gad (Omer) spots his recently stolen bicycle in a run-down Tel Aviv neighborhood. He recognizes it due to a dent and a sticker his girlfriend had put on it and seeks ways to cut off the lock and reclaim it. Yunes, a black Eritrean immigrant on a break from his job in a nearby meat-packing plant, sees Omer and reports that he is the true owner of the bike, indicating that he paid 250 shekels for it. Two police officers respond and discover issues with Yunes’ visa, which could lead to possible deportation to his native country for him, his wife and their young child. Omer decides to withdraw money from a nearby ATM to pay for the bike. He returns to witness a painful surprise ending.

Gad, 31, is a well-known Israeli TV, film and theater actor. He served in the Israel Defense Forces Theater, studied acting at the Nissan Nativ acting studio in Tel Aviv, and has starred in the popular Israeli television sitcoms “Shababnikim” and “Galis.” He is currently starring in “Motel Bool BeEmtza,” has appeared in such movies as “The Damned,” and has performed in such plays as “Oliver” and “Shakespeare in Love.”

‘A story between two people’

As for his work on “White Eye,” Gad says “this was a very good challenge. It is the first time I did something like this. I really enjoyed the experience.”

Part of the experience involved not meeting Yunes until filming began. Shushan intentionally kept the actors apart until filming started.

Shushan also employed Eritreans who were not trained actors. “I met Dawit [Tekelaeb, who played Yunes] in the street when I saw him through the window of a hamburger restaurant washing dishes. I could see in his eyes he was so sad and not connected, so I approached him. He told me something—and I thought that the voice of immigrants should be non-actors and immigrants. Not everyone knows what it is like to wake in the morning and be illegal. So we used non-actors; they are the only ones who understand.”

Shushan also selected the title of the movie. “ ‘White Eye’ symbolizes blindness, which is what I feel the main character is in this moment; he is blind, and his vision comes back when he sees that his action causes harm to someone. This also happens from a white person’s eyes. The main issue is blindness, and how the Western world behaves toward refugees and immigrants.”

There are reportedly 40,000 to 80,000 migrants, illegal immigrants and asylum-seekers from Eritrea, Sudan and Somalia living in Israel with more than half living in the Tel Aviv area, mainly South Tel Aviv. The situation is politically and socially controversial, fraught for years with some locals complaining of a related increase in crime and rallying to move migrants out.

“I wrote [this film] because of the reality in Israel,” he says.

But he adds, “After it was in festivals, we understood it is a story about humans, about the international reality everywhere. It may have political aspects, but it is a story between two people—if one is more privileged, one can lose his life. There is no equality.”

The film raises important and timely issues about prejudice, racial bias, and the treatment of migrants and people of color.

The reality that Shushan has been nominated for an Oscar Award is slowly settling it.

“During this crazy year, it has been an amazing journey,” he says. “I am starting to believe. It is an amazing feeling you can’t put into words!”

Read more

Original Article Published On The JNS

It comes as the Wizards are enjoying a six-game winning streak, the longest since 2017.

On Wednesday night, 2,133 lucky Washington Wizards fans saw their hometown team in person at the Capitol One Arena for the first time this season and for the first time in 407 days. They cheered as the Wizards defeated the Golden State Warriors 118-114 for their sixth win in a row and eighth in their last nine games. The fans also gasped as 20-year-old rookie forward Deni Avdija from Israel went down in pain just before halftime, grasping his right leg.

The 20-year-old Israeli had just gotten a defensive rebound and went up for a layup at the other end of the floor. Warriors player Andrew Wiggins blocked the layup, possibly fouling Avdija, who came down and landed unnaturally on his ankle. Teammate Jordan Bell observed the fall from the bench, ran out, took off his training jersey and covered Avdija’s leg. He left the court in a wheelchair.

Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard reportedly walked to the locker room immediately to check on the injured player. The team announced that Avdija would not return to the game. An X-ray revealed that Avdija reportedly suffered a hairline fracture and is expected to undergo an MRI exam on Thursday. He will be out for the remainder of the season but is not expected to need surgery.

Despite leaving the game, Avdija reportedly told his teammates that he was pleased with their win. The six-game winning streak is the Wizards’ longest since their seven straight victories from Jan. 23, 2017, to Feb. 4, 2017. Washington improved to 16-10 against the Western Conference this season. Bradley Beal finished with a game-high 29 points, going 11-11 from the free-throw line.

Russell Westbrook finished with 14 points, 20 rebounds and 10 assists for his league-leading 27th triple-double of the season. He served as a mentor to Avdija this summer. Of his Hebrew-speaking charge, he reports: “He has been amazing. He has been great.”

He offered encouragement for his injured teammate, saying his “first reaction was to pray for him and for his mental health. We will get him through these tough times and be supportive.”

Daniel Gafford, recently acquired from the Chicago Bulls before the recent 2021 NBA trade deadline, had 19 points on 7-11 shooting, adding 10 rebounds and three blocks. He, too, is thinking about his injured teammate.

“Seeing a guy go down like that is scary. I felt his pain,” he said. Gafford acknowledged that it will be “a long road to recovery,” but feels “he will be in good hands.” He noted that “ankle injuries are one of the worst, especially being a rookie. It is just tough!”

Avdija had six points in 14 minutes before leaving the game. He has been averaging 23 minutes of playing time per game, and 6.3 points and 4.9 rebounds per game in his 31 starts this season.

Avdija is expected to remain in Washington, D.C., as he recovers and undergoes rehabilitation.

UPDATE: As of April 23, Avdija was diagnosed with a right fibular hairline fracture with no surgery required. He should be back at play in about 12 weeks, according to the team.

Read more