I actually attended one of their meetings and I’ve never heard so much arguing and bickering. And sometimes, it got a little testy. Don’t get me wrong. They didn’t fight each other. I mean, Jewish boys grow up being told not to fight. They should always find a way to work things out, which is probably why so many of them become lawyers.
Jewish Mother: “What are you doin’ out there in the back yard, Izzy?”
Izzy: “Nothing, mama, just playing ‘hospital’ with Becky.”
Jewish Mother: “That’s good. Don’t fight.”
And I think the FCA differs from the FJA in how they treat their female members. With the FCA the women are treated as equals. That’s not to say that the Jewish women athletes aren’t treated as equals in the FJA, but with the Jewish women athletes they’re sometimes called upon to make a pot of matzah ball soup or a nice roast.
There was one thing I noticed about the FJA meetings. Everybody’s cell phones kept ringing. And ringing. And ringing. And most of the calls were from their mothers wondering when they were coming home.
One day I overheard an argument about who was the most famous Jewish athlete. One of the guys had found a website that said it was Sandy Koufax. I mean, it’s true he got a lot of publicity when he refused to play in the World Series because of a Jewish holiday. But I wonder if his mother had anything to do with that decision?
Sandy’s Mother: “You mean to tell me you’re going to play baseball on Yom Kippur?”
Sandy: “Yeh, I’m thinking about it.”
Sandy’s Mother: “Well let me tell you something Mr. Big Shot, if you do your grandfather, may he rest in peace, is going to turn over in his grave.”
Sandy: “But mom…”
Sandy’s Mother: “Don’t But Mom me…if you play then I’ll be sittin’ shiva.”
Sandy (Sadly): “Okay. I won’t play.”
But I did find something interesting on a website, and it was a quote from the movie “Airplane” when the flight attendant was asking one of the passengers:
Attendant: “Would you like something to read?”
Passenger: “Do you have anything light?”
Attendant: “How about this leaflet, ‘Famous Jewish Sports Legends.”
