You don’t have to be Jewish to appreciate Jewish Ingenuity.
It’s 1961 New York & at the heart of the big apple, right smack in the middle of Brooklyn, a niche Jewish bakery named “Levy’s” who was popular with the local Jewish community, were eager to expand their business beyond the neighbourhood Hebrews. But where to start?
Enter the ingenuity of a Brilliant Jewish Copywriter named Judy Protas & William Taubin, two creatives -under legendary ad man, Bill Berbach at DDB- came up with a truly unorthodox campaign that was so clearly ahead of it’s time, all under the slogan “You don’t have to be Jewish to love Levy’s Real Jewish Rye”.
The visionary ad was conceived during a time when civil rights movements were emerging in response to the ongoing discrimination & racial turmoil that was still prevalent. It was created in one of the early truly multi-cultural & diverse cities. An ad campaign that not only displayed pride in being Jewish, but also celebrated other cultures & peoples as well. It’s simple, powerful, diverse, empowering, smart, creative & Jewish, very Jewish.
Few cultures and peoples have had such a consistent & wide-ranging effect as the Jewish people when it comes to contributions to humanity.
From Rye bread to the Laser, Seinfeld to the Pacemaker, schmoozing and schlepping all the way to figuring out the theory of relativity. Jewish people have always been a valuable asset to the human race throughout history. Now, It’s ridiculous but equally important that we have to time and time again tout their obvious merits. But, when idiots make idiotic, racist & marginalizing statements, it doesn’t just hurt Jewish people, it affects every minority in communities across the world, as it emboldens hate & baseless discrimination.
What is our world without Jewish contributions?
Well, for starters, I’m going to have to ask you to put that delicious Bagel down, because not only does that no longer exist, but you’ll need to brace yourself because in this world, there’s no immunology, vitamins, knowledge of the structure of DNA, antibiotics, polio vaccines, quantum physics, topography, neurology, anthropology and nano technology. Shocked? Frustrated? Too bad, there’s also no psychology & psychoanalysis to help you out either.
There’s also no matches, no gasoline cars, no ball point pens, no Hollywood, no google, no internet, no USB, no video games, no microprocessors, no Bittorrents, no condoms, no NASA, NBA, UNICEF & no musical records to put on a sad song to reflect how you must be feeling right now.
No Kubrick, Spielberg, Einstein, Strauss, Dylan, Guggenheim, Proust, Kafka, Asimov, Avedon, Coen Brothers, Schönberg, Kravitz, Winehouse, Wittgenstein, Gainsbourg, Superman or even Batman! Jesus!! Right? … wrong!! He doesn’t exist.
Simply put, I’m thankful that I live in a world where Jewish inventions, creativity, contributions and Jewish people exist & we’re surely way better off for having them around.
