Father’s Day
Billy Crystal on being Jewish, playing ball and his family Cindy Sher
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12 | Jewish News | June 12, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org
(JUF News via JTA)—The inimitable Billy Crystal was back on the road a few months ago. The six-time Emmy Award-winning comedian, actor, producer, director and writer—most recently of a book of essays, Still Foolin’ ’Em: Where I’ve Been, Where I’m Going, and Where the Hell Are My Keys— toured the U.S. with his new show, Spend the Night with Billy Crystal. The show felt like an intimate chat with the audience—a blend of standup with a “sit-down” interview with Crystal. Crystal, who lives in Los Angeles, told stories, talked about the world as he sees it, reflected on his life, and showed some film clips from his long career. Of course, the popular nine-time Oscar host has numerous iconic films and roles to choose from: The title character in the quintessential rom-com When Harry Met Sally; the grouchy “miracle worker” in The Princess Bride; Mitch, a New Yorker heading toward a midlife crisis who goes on a cattle drive with his buddies in City Slickers; and in Analyze This, a shrink to Robert De Niro’s mob boss. But before he was charming millions, Crystal, 68, was entertaining his family and friends while growing up in the quaint beach town of Long Beach, New York. Then a predominately Jewish and Italian town, Crystal describes it as the “perfect place to grow up.” He often references his beloved hometown in his act, and in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy’s battering of New York in 2012, Crystal and his wife of nearly 47 years, Janice, helped raise more than $1 million to help Long Beach rebuild and rebound. Crystal’s early childhood, back in the 1950s, was filled with music and laughter. His mother, Helen, was a talented tap dancer and singer. His father, Jack, worked six days a week at two jobs—as a jazz promoter and manager of the family’s popular New York City record store. Jazz greats like Billie Holiday—who were friends of his parents—would frequent their home.
Crystal and his dad would spend most Sundays together watching baseball games. Their relationship was chronicled in Crystal’s Tony Award-winning oneman show 700 Sundays (also adapted into a book and HBO special), named for the number of Sundays he spent with his father before his dad died of a heart attack when Crystal was only 15. The only thing Crystal ever aspired to do as much as comedy was play baseball for his beloved New York Yankees—in fact, he says the highlight of his long career came in 2008, when he signed a one-day contract with the team in honor of his 60th birthday. In a phone interview with JTA, Crystal looks back on his family, his Jewish identity, his long career and the “one thing” that keeps him going. JTA: You seem to be a celebrity who wears your Judaism as a badge of honor, and not in a self-hating sort of way. Would you agree? Billy Crystal: I do. I mean, I still make fun, but it’s not about Jews—it’s about my Jews, it’s about my relatives. It’s not generalizations. What are some of your favorite parts about being Jewish? You mean, besides the circumcision? You remember that, huh? Yeah, oh yeah, that’s why I’m an insomniac. What else do you love about being Jewish? The storytelling, the warmth, the sense of humor. My dad was strict about the holidays. We honored them, we went to temple. I like the ritual, and the caring for our planet that’s written into so many of the works I read in Hebrew school. How do you compare when you were just starting out in showbiz 40-plus years ago to touring with your new show? It all feels the same. I don’t think I’ve stopped working since the eighth grade.