Los Angeles is by nature the most celebrity conscious city on the planet. Houses of worship are, of course, supposed to be above such matters. Still, the unvarnished truth is that, as chronicled by historian Neal Gabler and others, Los Angeles's Jewish houses of worship and the entertainment business have grown up together. Famous, rich and powerful people want to pray, too. Below are a few of the places where they do just that. Temple Israel of Hollywood: This deceptively modest looking synagogue, located …More

Alicia Keys might very well be in a Holy Land state of mind this summer as negotiations are in full throttle to bring the R&B superstar to Israel for a concert. Israel’s concert promoter-to-the-stars, Shuki Weiss, is trying to lure Keys to Tel Aviv for the first of several international stops on her next tour. The 35-year-old Keys, one of the most successful R&B stars in the US, has sold over 50 million albums worldwide and won 12 Grammy awards. She performed a rousing and inspired rendition of the …More

Ancient manuscripts indicate Afghanistan once boasted a thriving Jewish community. [CBS] Meanwhile, Yemen's dwindling Jewish population faces extinction. [JWeekly] An Iranian-Jewish man has been murdered in Tehran. [JPost] Al Jazeera has purchased Al Gore's television network. [Forward] Did Jews play a crucial role in the popularity of chocolate? [JWeekly] Remember when Billy Eichner lost his mind over Madonna? We think he has a thing for Drew Barrymore, as well. [Jewcy] A "Downton Abbey" character is …More

Esther, aka Madonna, is wrapping up 2012 in a puff of anger after going on an anti-smoking rant during an MDNA tour stop in Santiago, Chile. During Wednesday’s pre-show sound check at Estadio Nacional, Madonna berated fans for smoking near her and threatened to cancel the show if the smokers persisted. “There are people smoking right now,” she said in a video that was caught by fans. “No smoking. If you’re going to smoke cigarettes, I’m not doing a show. You don’t care …More

A Palestinian youth in Hebron was killed when he pulled a fake gun on a border police officer. [Times of Israel] Are anti-Zionist policies in South Africa tarnishing the legacy of Nelson Mandela? [Forward] New clues surface in the 1982 bombing of Sydney Jewish sites. [Haaretz] A suspicious package was found at a Jewish center in New Jersey. [NJ] Israel and Canada have signed an agreement to strengthen ties and aid. [Algemeiner] Is there some sort of battle going on between Lena Dunham and Gawker we should …More

Becky Griffin is an Israeli-American television journalist living in New York. A basketball and music lover, Becky can be found on Twitter at @DorothyofIsrael. I remember the first time I saw you play in person. It was back in 2003, at Wimbledon, London, where I lived at the time. I felt lucky to be there and witness your greatness on the court. I admired your family’s story, and the way you and your sister found a way out of the ghetto through sports. But as the famous saying goes: “You can take the …More

You live, you learn. Alanis Morissette is returning to Israel and will play Tel Aviv’s Nokia Center on December 3 as the final stop on her “Guardian Angel” world tour. The Canadian-American singer/songwriter has been on the road since August, in support of her eighth studio album, “Havoc and Bright Lights.” But “you oughta know” (apologies, we couldn’t resist) that tickets for the concert won’t be cheap. The most affordable seats in the house will run NIS …More

Sukkot meals: sweet and sour stuffed onions. [Forward] A pro-US rally will take place in Tel Aviv. [Times of Israel] Israel's finance minister says Iran's economy is on the brink of collapse. [Jerusalem Post] JFK Airport experienced a terror scare, just as Benjamin Netanyahu arrived to fly home. [New York Post] An Iranian news source erroneously posted as fact an Onion piece last week, satirically stating Americans prefer Mahmoud Ahmadinejad over Barack Obama. [Tablet] Jewish groups are criticizing …More

Three Israeli universities make the world’s top 100 list. [Arutz Sheva 7] For modern use of water in Israel to continue, the country needs to develop a deeper awareness for it. [The Jerusalem Post] Chron’s disease is on the rise in Ashekanzi Jewish children. [The Jewish Daily Forward] Israeli soccer players apologize for laughing during a Holocaust lecture. [The Times of Israel] Israel begins its EuroBasket 2013 qualifying campaign today. [The Jerusalem Post] Arab-Israeli arsonists are viewed by …More

The Team Coco site uploaded a hilarious video last night, a must see for anyone who likes Israel, Madonna, or chicken shawarma. Conan Show correspondent Bill Eichner was on the scene in the Holy Land, primed to pump up both enthusiastic and couldn’t-care-less Israelis for last month’s Madonna concert in Tel Aviv. His techniques ranged from asking people to name their favorite Madge song to screaming randomly at passersby in the street. Ultimately, it looks like Bill had a good time. However, he does …More

A new Billboard.com poll asked visitors to name the sexiest men and women in music, and the results are in. Britney Spears topped the poll in the female category, and Adam Lambert won out in the male category (he must be happy since he only came in third for the Top 10 Most Fabulous Gay Jewish Personalities). The former American Idol star earned 26 percent of the male vote, beating second place winner Adam Levine with twice as many votes. Fellow Jew Drake only pulled in two percent of the vote, landing him in …More

Madonna is working to clear up that pesky peace problem in the Middle East. The start of her 2012 tour kicks off in Israel today, and she celebrated the occasion by donating 600 tickets to Israeli and Palestinian peace activists. Maybe she’s not so materialistic after all? The show was deemed a “Concert for Peace” last March, and it seems the pop icon has made good on her word. Madonna met with the activists on Wednesday, who are said to be taking part in a “peace tribunal,” …More