Watercooler Stories

Rabbi's dreidel collection hits 600

PITTSBURGH, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- Rabbi Sara Perman says her 600 dreidels, each telling the Hanukkah story of escape from Hellenistic oppression, will be displayed at her Pittsburgh-area home.

The rabbi of Congregation Emanu-El Israel had been collecting dreidels since before her move to Greensburg, Pa., 25 years ago and discovered a crystal dreidel after schmying (meandering/wandering) around a furniture store, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported Tuesday.

After Perman took the crystal object to the desk to pay for it, the clerk was a bit confused as to why she would want it.

"It's a top," the clerk said.

"Yes, it's a top," the rabbi said.

"It's a top," the clerk said again, sounding perturbed.

"Yes, a top," said the rabbi, puzzled.

"There's no bottom for it," the clerk informed her.

Only then did Rabbi Perman realize the history-telling dreidel had been mistaken for the top of a crystal decanter, the newspaper said.

Each side of the dreidel has a Hebrew letter that stands for "A great miracle happened there" and is spun like a top while played in a game during Hanukkah.

In the Jewish religion, Hanukkah, is a relatively minor holiday but is rooted, like many of the religion's observances, in a fight for freedom against oppression -- in this case against Hellenized Syrians who, in 163 B.C. had forbidden the practice of Judaism, ordered Jews to worship the Syrian king and desecrated the temple in Jerusalem.

A small family of Jewish priests, the Maccabees, led a revolt fighting off their oppressors and rededicated the temple, lighting the candles with oil that lasted eight days instead of the expected one.

'Overzealous' worker censors TV titles

LONDON, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- A British TV listings said "a temporarily overzealous profanity checker" censored innocuous program titles, including changing the film "Hancock" to "HanC**k."

Virgin Media said the titles were fixed after visitors to the listings Web site noticed "Hancock" had been changed along with the children's show "Dick and Dom," which became "D**k and Dom," and the panel game "Never Mind the Buzzcocks," which was listed as "Never Mind the BuzzC**ks," The Sun reported Tuesday.

The Web site even changed the name of soccer team Arsenal to "A***nal," the British tabloid said.

A Virgin Media representative said the changes were the work of an employee described as "a temporarily overzealous profanity checker."

Dutch TV cannibalism stunt a hoax

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- The Dutch network behind a TV show featuring hosts claiming to eat one another's flesh said the stunt was a hoax to raise awareness of organ donation.

Broadcaster BNN-TV sparked a flurry of online controversy when it released a teaser trailer for Wednesday's episode of "Guinea Pigs" indicating hosts Dennis Storm and Valerio Zeno would be sampling one another's flesh after having pieces surgically removed and prepared by a chef, DutchNews.nl reported.

However, the network revealed Wednesday the events of the episode were a hoax designed to raise awareness of a shortage of organ donors, a British tabloid, The Sun, reported.

The network performed a similar stunt in 2007 when it announced a program would feature contestants competing for donated kidneys. Officials said that program also was a hoax to draw attention to organ donor shortages.

Bon Jovi jokes about death rumors

TRENTON, N.J., Dec. 21 (UPI) -- Rock star Jon Bon Jovi posted a picture to Facebook holding a sign reading "Heaven looks a lot like New Jersey" to dispel Twitter rumors of his death.

Bon Jovi posted the photo Monday after a fake news release circulated on Twitter claimed the 49-year-old singer had died during a tour stop in New Jersey, The (Newark, N.J.) Star-Ledger reported Tuesday.

"Rest assured that Jon is fine! This photo was just taken," the text accompanying the photo reads.

People magazine reported there were also false rumors on Twitter Monday claiming rapper Li'l Kim had died.