Some of the best Jewish jokes from the best Jewish comedians
Joan Rivers on Christmas, Mel Brooks on Jewish dads, and Jerry Seinfeld’s favorite Jewish joke
Clockwise from right: Comedians Mel Brooks, Jerry Seinfeld and Joan Rivers. Photo by Getty Images
By Chanie Kirschner December 26, 2023
Jewish jokes. They’re hilarious, heartfelt and sometimes just what the doctor ordered when we need a break from the sobering reality all around us. Luckily for us, there’s no shortage of Jewish comedians and quintessentially Jewish humor. Some of the most famous comedians of all time are Jewish, making fun of themselves in a relatable and self-deprecating way. Here is a roundup of some of the best Jewish jokes from some of your all-time favorite Jewish comedians.
Jerry Seinfeld
As a child growing up in the 1980s and ’90s, I couldn’t get enough of Jerry Seinfeld, first in his stand-up comedy and then in his eponymous sitcom. Though Seinfeld is famously known as a show about nothing, Seinfeld and co-creator Larry David sought to make a show about how a comedian came up with his material based on the mundane activities of his daily life. His jokes weren’t specifically Jewish; they are about more universal things like airport security and late-night snacking. But his universality, relatability, and observational humor still earned him the title of the likely most well-known Jewish comedian. Seinfeld’s favorite Jewish joke? Hear him tell it below, with his caveat opener that a Gentile won’t get it.
Jackie Mason
Known as the father of Jewish comedy, Jackie Mason was born Yacov Moshe Maza in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, in 1928. Mason came from a rabbinical family. While his three older brothers all became rabbis — and he started his career as one as well — he took a sharp left turn into comedy instead because, as he jokes, “one of us needed to make a living.” Best known for his locution which belied his American upbringing and made him sound instead like a recent Russian immigrant, Mason often joked about the way Jews in his era related to the world around them. One of his most memorable routines is about a Jew in a restaurant.
Modi Rosenfeld
Another comic whose locution is reminiscent of Mason is Modi Rosenfeld, whose unique brand of comedy draws laughter from Jews of all religious affiliations. Though he was born in Israel, he grew up in Long Island, New York, and began his career as a banker for Merrill Lynch before taking on comedy full-time. Although it’s hard to narrow down Modi’s best Jewish jokes — there are just too many — one his best bits is about the difference between Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews when they make the Hamotzi blessing:
Joan Rivers
One of the best Jewish comediennes of all time was Joan Rivers, whose acerbic jokes sometimes drew ire from her critics for being too blunt and even offensive. One of her more vanilla jokes about being Jewish: “I’m Jewish. I don’t work out. If God had wanted us to bend over, He would have put diamonds on the floor.”
In this routine about a Jewish Christmas, watch her explain how she’d make changes to the nativity scene.
Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks, the mastermind behind famous films such as The Producers, Blazing Saddles, History of the World and cult classic Star Wars parody Spaceballs, from which we got this gem of a phrase:
One of his most iconic early stand-up routines was with his good friend Carl Reiner. In it, he plays a 2,000-year-old man while Reiner interviews him. Reiner, playing the straight man, asks him questions like where did applause come from and if he has any children.
“I have 4,200 children,” Brooks replies. “And not one comes to visit me.”
Hear more of the routine here:
One of my favorite Jewish jokes came from Brooks’ close friend Reiner in a 2018 episode of Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee two years before Reiner passed away in 2020. The episode mostly takes place in Reiner’s house with the three comedians kibitzing over deli sandwiches. Just before the end of the episode, when Brooks is saying a long goodbye to Seinfeld, Reiner calls out from the balcony above:
“Hey Jerry,” he said. “What’s the difference between a Frenchman and a Jew?”
“What?” Jerry asks.
“A Frenchman leaves without saying goodbye. A Jew says goodbye and never leaves.”
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