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SPIELBERG, SEINFELD, MANDEL, WINKLER:
FOUR JEWS “MIT A PROBLEM”
Marjorie Gottlieb Wolfe
Syosset, New York
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How many times have we heard this Yiddish expression:“Gezunt iz beser fun gelt”? (Health is better than wealth.)
Jerry Seinfeld, Steven Spielberg, Howie Mandel and Henry Winkler have “groyse tsores” (big problems).
Seinfeld has been writing about doctors, “meditsin” (medicine), waiting rooms, and penicillin since 1992. He's written:
Doctor forms are getting more involved, aren't they? It used to be ‘measles, mumps, allergic to penicillin.' Now it's like, ‘What was the home address of your former employer? What was the name of the black guy on Ironsides? What do they need to know all this stuff for?
And it's so hard to write with those little golf pencils that they give you. I guess they're not making enough money ripping us off, they've got to steal the pencils from the golf course too. That's why they have to go every Wednesday, to get more pencils.
I'm always afraid to get something in that little box they have labeled, ‘For office use only.'....I hate the waiting room because it's called the waiting room so there's no chance of not waiting...But medically speaking, it's always good to be in a small room...Have you ever seen these operating theaters that they have with stadium seating? You don't want them doing anything to you that makes other doctors go, ‘Well, I have to see this. Are you kidding? Are they really going to do that? Are there seats? Can we get in?' (Source: “SeinLanguage” by Jerry Seinfeld)
Seinfeld, who is “zekhtsik” (60) suspects that he is on the “autism spectrum.” During a recent interview with Brian Williams, “der komiker” (the comedian) made a surprising admission: “On a very drawn-out scale, I think I'm on the spectrum.” Asked why Seinfeld made this conclusion, he said that he suffers from the widespread developmental disorder that impedes social interaction. “Basic social engagement is really a struggle (“gerangl”),” he said. He told Williams that he often finds himself floundering during casual conversations, and when people talk to him and use expressions, he doesn't know what they're saying.
Seinfeld says, “I don't see it as dysfunctional. I just think of it as an alternate mind set.”
Dr. Michael Rosenthal, a pediatric neurophysiologist, said that he's not convinced that Seinfeld is in fact on the autism spectrum. The symptoms the comic cited “are things that exist in a lot of people who don't necessarily have an autism spectrum disorder.”
Some people on the autism spectrum may feel uncomfortable socializing but excel in math and science. Others on the spectrum may not speak or make any eye contact at all, and shun human touch.
Wendy Fournier, president of the National Autism Association, says that Seinfeld's comments--and the risk of oversimplifying autism disorder-- can potentially harm the very serious effects that autism can have on a severely impacted individual and their loved ones.” Fournier says “Autism is not a designer diagnosis.”
Perhaps Seinfeld is still “figuring out who he is.”
Steven Spielberg (ET, Jurassic Park, Schindler's List) just recently discussed that he was diagnosed with dyslexia at the age of 60. He said that his hugely successful (“matsliakhdik”) career in film saved him from shame and guilt. He says he never felt like a victim (“korbn”) and that movies helped him from making it his burden (“mase”).
Spielberg was unable to read for at least two years and was embarrassed to stand up in front of the class and read. He dreaded going to school. In the 1950s he was bullied and dealt with it by making movies. Spielberg said, “When I felt like an outsider, movies made me feel inside my own skill set.”
Howie Mandel, the “komiker” (comedian), actor and game show host suffers from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). This is a disorder that produces inescapable repetitive thoughts. Four million people suffer from OCD. Mandel's obsession is germs on the set. So, instead of shaking hands, he does the fist (“foyst”) bump (“zets”)--his trademark greeting on “Deal Or No Deal.”
Off stage his OCD is all consuming. He won't touch his money unless it's washed and avoids hand rails like the plague (“di mageyte”). His autobiography is titled, “Here's The Deal: Don't Touch Me.”
Mandel once missed an appointment because he thought he didn't lock the door to his house. He checked the lock (“shlos”) 32 times before he took his fist and punched the handle (“hentl”).
Jewish actor, Henry Winkler (AKA “Arthur Fonzarelli,” “The Fonz,” or “Fonzie”) has the learning disorder, Dyslexia. This was first diagnosed when he was 31.
Winkler says that as a youngster, he couldn't ride a bike because his co-ordination was so poor--one symptom of Dyslexia. He said that “There are so many ways Dyslexia can affect you. For some, it means you don't always understand what's being said to you. Numbers can get transposed, so instead of 13, you get 31.”
Dyslexia was an unhappy (“umgliklekh”) part of his childhood (“kindhayt”).
Winkler's relationship with his parents (now deceased) was strained, due
at least partially by their attitude toward his Dyslexia. He stated his father
referred to him as “dumb dog.” He said, “My father spoke 11 languages
and knew how to insult me in every one of them.” He often punished him for difficulties in school. He wasn't allowed to watch TV. He couldn't go to school dances. His dad thought if he sat at his desk long enough, he'd
eventually get it. Such “mishegoss”--foolishness, nonsense, craziness.
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MARJORIE WOLFE wishes all of these comedians “A lebn oyf dayn kop!”
(A long life upon your head.)
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