Jewperheroes: Rabbi Reclaims Jewish Roots To Superheroes — Interview With Rabbi Simcha Weinstein

NEW YORK CITY All Rabbi Simcha Weinstein wanted to do was some reclaiming.

He wanted to tell folks that the values of their favorite comic book superheroes were based in part by the traditions and culture of Jewish artists, writers, and publishers.

The links between these characters and Judaism is extensive.

Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, the two teenagers from Cleveland who invented Superman, were Jewish.

Bob Kane and Bill Finger, the two guys who created the Batman character, were Jewish.

Jerry Robinson, the inventor of Batman’s archenemies the Joker, Catwoman, Two-Face, and the Riddler, was Jewish.

Martin Nodell, the man behind the Green Lantern, was Jewish. (Nodell passed away late last year.)

Julius Schwartz, the man behind the revival of superheroes such as the Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, and the Atom, and the superhero team, the Justice League of America, all of which led to the Silver Age of comic books, was Jewish.

Will Eisner, the graphic novel pioneer and creator of The Spirit, was Jewish.

Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, the team that developed Captain America, were Jewish. (Simon is still alive and kicking.)

Stan Lee, the creator of Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk, the Fantastic Four, and the X-Men, is Jewish.

Max and William Gaines and Harvey Kurtzman, the men responsible for publishing Detective Comics (DC Comics) and the satirical MAD magazine, were Jewish.

Martin Goodman, the publisher of Marvel Comics, was Jewish, too.

And if I had more time and talent, I would have put the list to music like Adam Sandler’s “The Chanukah Song.”

But be that as it may, Rabbi Weinstein’s book “Up, Up and Oy Vey!: How Jewish History, Culture, and Values Shaped the Comic Book Superhero” documents how these Eastern European Jewish immigrants expressed their cultural heritage while entertaining American youths through comics starting back in the 1930s.

In an interview with the Iconoclast, Weinstein, 30, said he could relate to these artists since he himself is a Jewish immigrant to the United States from Manchester, England with a “vast” comic book collection.

Weinstein also said he wrote his book almost on accident. After a spiritual re-awakening, he quit his job in the film industry to live his life as a rabbi in Brooklyn Heights, N.Y., where he resides with his wife and two children.

Weinstein is the founder of the Jewish Student Foundation of Downtown Brooklyn and serves as the rabbi of Pratt Institute and Long Island College Hospital.

The Iconoclast caught up with Weinstein to talk about his trek through pop culture and spirituality.