Is John Travolta Jewish?

John Travolta is not a Jew. Travolta currently affiliates with the Scientology movement.

Travolta was born and raised in Englewood, New Jersey. His father, Salvatore Travolta was a semi-pro football player . His mother, Helen Cecilia Burke Travolta was an actress. Travolta grew up in an Irish-American neighborhood and was raised Roman Catholic. He converted to the Church of Scientology in 1975.

John Travolta’s lawyer Marty Singer is Jewish.

Is Ashton Kutcher Jewish?

Ashton Kutcher is not Jewish. Many people hold the belief that Ashton Kutcher is a Jew due to his status as a student of Kabbalah. His marriage to fellow Kabbalah follower Demi Moore was presided over by Yehuda Berg of the Kabbalah Centre. The couple is currently separated.

Kutcher was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He is the son of Diane Finnegan Larry Kutcher, a factory worker. His father is of Bohemian (Czech) descent and his mother is of Irish, German, and Bohemian ancestry.

Recently, Kutcher has come under fire for his brownface performance for an advertisement for Popchips.

Is Daniel Tosh Jewish?

Daniel Tosh is not Jewish. Some people think that Daniel Tosh is a Jew based on his comedy, but he's not Jewish. His father is a preacher.

Tosh was born in Boppard, Rhineland-Palatinate, West Germany and grew up in Titusville, Florida.

Is Maurice Sendak Jewish?

Maurice Sendak is Jewish. The famous children's author Maurice Sendak, who died on Tuesday, May 8, 2012, was born to Polish Jewish immigrants. Born in Brooklyn, New York  to Sarah Schindler and Philip Sendak. His father was a dressmaker.

Most of Sendak's extended family perished in The Holocaust. Sendak decided to become an illustrator after seeing Disney's Fantasia at twelve. Sendak's father would tell him tales from the Torah and the young Sendak would embellish these narratives into his own stories. His most famous book was the children's bestseller "Where the Wild Things Are".

Sendak was a gay man and lived with his partner, Eugene Glynn, a psychoanalyst. The couple was together for 50 years before Eugene Glynn’s death in May 2007. Maurice Sendak donated $1 million to the Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services to memorialize his life partner Glynn, who had treated young people there.

Sendak died on May 8, 2012 in Danbury, Connecticut, from complications of a stroke.

Is Adam Yauch Jewish?

Adam Yauch was Jewish. One-third of the rap group The Beastie Boys, Adam Nathaniel Yauch was born to a Jewish mother and a Catholic father. Adam Yauch died on Friday, May 4, 2012.

Yauch was a practicing Buddhist and a vegan. His wife is Dechen Wangdu. The couple has a daughter, Tenzin Losel Yauch. He recently lived in New York City. Yauch was treated for a cancerous parotid gland and a lymph node and has underwent surgery and radiation therapy.

Together with fellow Beasties bandmates Adam Horovitz and Mike Diamond, Yauch was inducted into the Music Hall of Fame in 2012 although for dire health reasons Yauch was not able to attend. Horovitz and Diamond, who are also both Jewish, have vowed not to perform live until Yauch is healthy again. He is suffering from throat cancer.

Is Jon Lovitz Jewish?

Jon Lovitz is Jewish. The Saturday Night Live alum was born to two Jewish parents. Jonathan Lovitz was born in Los Angeles, California.

Jon Lovitz's parents were of Hungarian, Romanian and Russian descent. Lovitz's father, a medical doctor, was the family doctor to Michael Jackson and his family during his youth.

Is Scarlett Johansson Jewish?

Scarlett Johansson is Jewish. Johansson was raised in a Jewish family. She was born in New York City on November 22, 1984 to her mother Melanie Sloan, who is of Ashkenazi Jewish descent and Karsten Johansson, who is not Jewish.

Is Jason Biggs Jewish?

Jason Biggs is not Jewish. The actor, who is a native of Pompton Plains, New Jersey, is Roman Catholic.

He was born to Angela and Gary Biggs. Though he is often mistaken for a Jewish man, Jason Biggs is an Italian American and was raised in the Roman Catholic faith. He is married to Jenny Mollen, who is Jewish. Biggs was in the American Pie movies and currently stars in Orange Is the New Black on Netflix.

Is Elie Weisel Jewish?

Yes, Elie Weisel is Jewish. The Holocaust survivor and Nobel laureate was born in Sighet, Transylvania (now Sighetu Marmaţiei), Maramureş, Kingdom of Romania, in the Carpathian Mountains. Elie Weisel's mother was Sarah Feig and his father was Chlomo Weisel.

Is Jason Segel Jewish?

Jason Segel is Jewish on his father's side. His mother is not Jewish.

Jason Segel was born in Los Angeles. His mother is Jillian Jordan and his Jewish father is Alvin G. Segel, who is a lawyer. Jason Segel was raised in the Jewish religion, but he also attended St. Matthew's Parish School, which is a private Episcopal school.

Jason Segel is reportedly dating Michelle Williams. Segel announced that Michelle Williams is his girlfriend in April 2012.

Is Dick Clark Jewish?

Dick Clark was not Jewish. Dick Clark was born in Mount Vernon, New York. He died on April 18, 2012. Dick Clark was the son of Julia Fuller (née Barnard) Clark and Richard Augustus Clark.

Is Levon Helm Jewish?

Levon Helm is not Jewish. The drummer and frequent lead singer of The Band is not a Jew. He was born Mark Lavon Helm in Marvell, Arkansas.

Elton John's song "Levon" refers to Levon Helm and Elton John named his son Zachary Jackson Levon Furnish-John.

It was announced on April 18, 2012 that Levon Helm is in the final stages of cancer.

Is Josh Radnor Jewish?

Yes Josh Radnor is Jewish. His father Alan Radnor is a medical malpractice lawyer and his mother is Carol Radnor.

Josh Radnor was born in Columbus, Ohio. He attended the Columbus Torah Academy, an Orthodox day school in Columbus, Ohio and was also educated at Congregation Tifereth Israel, a Conservative synagogue where he celebrated his bar mitzvah. He attended Bexley High School and then Kenyon College. He earned his Master of Fine Arts degree in acting from New York University's Graduate Acting Program at the Tisch School of the Arts.

Radnor's Broadway debut was in the stage version of The Graduate with Kathleen Turner and Alicia Silverstone. He has starred in How I Met Your Mother and he made his directorial debut with happythankyoumoreplease, in which he was also the leading actor and a writer.

Is Leonard Nimoy Jewish?

Leonard Nimoy is Jewish. Yes, Spock from Star Trek is a Jew.

Leonard Nimoy was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His parents were Yiddish-speaking Orthodox Jews who immigrated from Ukraine (former Soviet Union). Max Nimoy, Leonard's father, owned a barbershop and Dora Spinner, his mother, was a homemaker.

Playing Spock in both television and movie versions of Star Trek, Nimoy's character used the hand gesture used by kohanim (Jewish priests) for his Vulcan salute. Nimoy created the Vulcan sign from his childhood memories of the kohen blessing the congregation in synagogue.

Leonard Nimoy explains the Priestly Blessing while wearing a tallit (Jewish prayer shawl) and how he came to create the Vulcan salute (video below):

Is Gary Bettman Jewish?

Gary Bettman is Jewish. The current commissioner of the National Hockey League (NHL), Gary Bettman was born in Queens, New York. He attended Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, where he was a member of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity (AEPi). He graduated Cornell in 1974 and received his law degree from New York University School of Law.

Bettman lives with his wife, Shelli, and their three children Lauren, Jordan, and Brittany in Saddle River, New Jersey.

Is Bruce Springsteen Jewish?

Bruce Springsteen is not Jewish. He was raised Roman Catholic.

E-Street band mate Max Weinberg is Jewish.

 According to an April 2012 article in the New York Times, 18 fans of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band gathered around a table upstairs at Madison Square Garden before a concert to celebrate Passover with a seder. The seder attendees were joined for a short time by saxophonist, Jake Clemons, the nephew of deceased band member Clarence Clemons.

Is George Zimmerman Jewish?

George Zimmerman is not Jewish. The man accused of killing Trayvon Martin, the African American man who was unarmed, on February 26, 2012 in Sanford, Florida.

 

George Michael Zimmerman, Trayvon Martin's killer, has been identified in the news media as a 28-year-old Hispanic American. At the time of the shooting, Zimmerman was working as a community watch coordinator. He is the son of Robert Zimmerman Sr., an American, and Gladys Zimmerman, who is Peruvian. According to Zimmerman's voter registration, he self-identifies as Hispanic. On April 11, 2012 it was announced that George Zimmerman will face second degree murder charges.

Is Mike Wallace Jewish?

Mike Wallace was Jewish. The journalist Mike Wallace died Saturday, April 7, 2012 at 93 in New Haven, Connecticut.

Mike Wallace was born Myron Leon Wallace in Brookline, Massachusetts, to Russian Jewish parents Frank and Zina (Sharfman) Wallace. His father was a grocer and insurance broker. The family shortened their family name from Wallechinsky to Wallik and eventually to Wallace. Wallace earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan, where he worked for the Michigan Daily student newspaper and was a member of the Zeta Beta Tau fraternity.

Mike Wallace retired from his anchor desk on "60 Minutes" in 2006 after spending 38 seasons with the program. Wallace interviewed PLO leader Yasser Arafat and was accused of allowing Arafat to declare anti-Israel propaganda without rebuke.

Mike Wallace's son Chris is the host of Fox News Sunday for the Fox News network.

Is Adam Goldstein Jewish?

Adam Goldstein was Jewish. Known as DJ AM, Adam Goldstein was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to a Jewish family. Goldstein's stage name, "DJ AM" stands for his first and middle names, Adam Michael.

When Adam Goldstein was 20, he started deejaying. Following a long history of drug abuse, Goldstein was sober for more than 11 years before relapsing in 2009. Goldstein was found dead at his New York City apartment on August 28, 2009, from an apparent drug overdose.

Is Macaulay Culkin Jewish?

Macaulay Culkin is not Jewish. The child actor who starred in the Home Alone movies is the son of Patricia Brentrup and Kit Culkin, a former stage actor. Culkin was raised Roman Catholic.

Is Ringo Starr Jewish?

Ringo Starr is not Jewish. The Beatles member was once thought to be Jewish because there was a Starr family in his hometown that was a Jewish family, but Ringo Starr is not a Jew. 

Is Greg Smith Jewish?

Yes, Greg Smith is Jewish. The Goldman Sachs executive who famously published a New York Times op-ed excoriating the investment bank were he worked is Jewish. Greg Smith admonished Goldman Sachs for having a culture winning at any cost rather than putting the client's best interest first. Many are calling Greg Smith a real life Jerry McGuire.

The Former Goldman Sachs executive Greg Smith is Jewish (Photo: USA Today)

In his scathing NYTimes op-ed, Greg Smith wrote:

My proudest moments in life — getting a full scholarship to go from South Africa to Stanford University, being selected as a Rhodes Scholar national finalist, winning a bronze medal for table tennis at the Maccabiah Games in Israel, known as the Jewish Olympics — have all come through hard work, with no shortcuts. Goldman Sachs today has become too much about shortcuts and not enough about achievement. It just doesn’t feel right to me anymore.

Is Robert Sherman Jewish?

Yes Robert Sherman is Jewish. Robert Sherman died on March 5, 2012 at 88. He died in London.

He was one half of a pair of songwriting brothers who wrote "Mary Poppins" and the Disney theme song, “It’s a Small World.” Robert Sherman and his brother Richard Sherman worked for Disney in the 1950s and 1960s. They wrote the theme song for Mary Poppins and also the famous “Supercalifragilisticexpialadocius” from the same movie.

Robert Shermans was born in New York. He was among the first US soldiers at the liberation of Dachau.

Is Robert Levinson Jewish?

Robert Levinson is Jewish. He was born on March 10, 1948 and is an American private detective who was formerly a top FBI agent. Robert (Bob) Levinson disappeared in March 2007 when visiting Iran's Kish Island while apparently researching a cigarette-smuggling case.

On March 6, 2012, the FBI announced the offer of $1 Million for information leading to the direct and safe return of Robert Levinson. Because of Bob Levinson's 22 years with the FBI as a Special agent, the Agency is making every effort to get him returned safely. He is a husband, a father and a grandfather and suffers from diabetes and high blood pressure.

Is Robert Allen Stanford Jewish?

Is Robert Stanford Jewish? Robert Allen Stanford does not appear to be a Jew. Robert Allen Stanford, born on March 24, 1950 is better known as just Allen Stanford. According to Wikipedia he is a fifth-generation Texan who once resided in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, he holds dual citizenship, being a citizen of Antigua and Barbuda and a United States citizen. He has been the prime subject of huge Ponzi scheme investigation dating back to February of 2009.

It was reported today, March 6, 2012, that a Houston jury found him guilty on almost all charges involving a $7 Billion Ponzi scheme. Many of the investors that were bilked were charitable organizations.

Is Jerry Sandusky Jewish?

Jerry Sandusky is not Jewish. The disgraced college football coach at Penn State University is not a Jew.

Sandusky was born in Pennsylvania and is of Irish Catholic Descent.

Is Jack White Jewish?

Jack White is not Jewish. The former singer of the White Stripes who now has a solo career does not disclose his religion.

According to a Time Magazine article, "in 1996, John (Jack) Gillis and Megan (Meg) White, got married, and Jack took Meg's last name. Jack says he grew up with ten older siblings in the southwest Detroit house he currently shares with roommates, and this is rumored to be true. Meg, he claims, grew up in the suburb of Grosse Pointe. By 1997, they had formed The White Stripes, and over the next two years they recorded an obscure, worthy self-titled album and numerous obscure, worthy singles." The couple has since divorced and the band has split up. 

Is Regis Philbin Jewish?

Regis Philbin is not a Jew. Philbin was raised Roman Catholic.

Regis Philbin was born in New York City to an Irish father and an Arbëreshë  mother. His parents Francis "Frank" Philbin, a U.S. Marine who served in the Pacific and Filomena "Florence" Boscia raised Philbin in The Bronx, New York.

Is Kirk Cameron Jewish?

Kirk Cameron is not Jewish. The child television star best known for his role as Mike Seaver on the television sitcom Growing Pains is now a Christian evangelist.

He was born to Robert Cameron, a retired school teacher, and Barbara Bausmith, a stay-at-home mom. Kirk Cameron was an atheist until he turned 17-years-old when he developed a belief in God and became a born-again Christian. It is said that once he became born-again, he insisted that racy story lines be avoided in Growing Pains episodes.

In an interview with Piers Morgan Tonight on CNN, Kirk Cameron declared that "homosexuality is unnatural, detrimental and ultimately destructive to foundations of civilization."

Is Andrew Breitbart Jewish?

Was Andrew Breitbart Jewish? Yes Andrew Breitbart was Jewish, but it is more complicated than a simple answer. The writer and political commentator was adopted by Gerald and Arlene Breitbart. Andrew Breitbart died on March 1, 2012. Breitbart's father is a restaurant owner and his mother is a banker. Andrew Breitbart was raised Jewish because his adoptive mother had converted to Judaism before she married Breitbart's adoptive father.

There is no published information on whether Breitbart ever converted to Judaism after he was adopted by his Jewish parents Gerald and Arlene Breitbart. Just because his adopted parents were Jewish (his mother through conversion) doesn't mean that Andrew Breitbart was automatically Jewish when he was adopted according to traditional Jewish interpretation. Breitbart's biological father was a folk singer. Breitbart was ethnically Irish by birth, and his adopted sister is Hispanic.

Breitbart was also involved in the 2009 ACORN video controversy. Breitbart found himself enmeshed in controversy within the conservative movement relating to the participation of gay group GOProud in the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), an annual conference held in Washington, D.C. by the American Conservative Union. Breitbart also helped launch the NY Rep. Anthony Weiner sexting scandal when he showed a sexually graphic photo of Anthony Weiner naked (from Weiner's Twitter feed) in a radio interview with hosts Opie and Anthony. He also developed a reputation for

Breitbart died unexpectedly on March 1, 2012. A man saw him collapse while walking in Brentwood, California shortly after midnight and called paramedics, who rushed him to the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center where he was declared dead.

In an article announcing his sudden death, the Jewish Journal wrote:

Breitbart, who once proudly called himself a "biased journalist" worked at the Drudge Report and the Huffington Post before starting his own family of conservative web-based media outlets. He is best known for publishing the damning photographs in 2011 that forced Anthony Weiner, then a Democratic congressman from New York, to resign. Breitbart was adopted as a child and raised as a Jew, and he enjoyed needling the Jewish community for what he saw as its liberal leanings. At a Republican Jewish Coalition event in June 2011, Breitbart gleefully regaled the audience with the story of his being kicked out of Hebrew school at University Synagogue as a child. "That’s where the battle started with the liberal Jewish community," he said. Speaking at the Republican Jewish Coalition event in 2011, Breitbart said journalistic objectivity, when covering Israel, was misplaced. "You cannot be objective when it comes to right and wrong,” Breitbart said. “And Israel is in the right. So I’m a biased journalist, and I’m having a great time doing it."