http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=4471386&page=1
By ANNE MARIE DORNING
NEW YORK March 18, 2008
It's every aspiring actor's dream -- the big break.
So 25-year-old Abraham Karpen was the envy of every Shia Lebouf wannabe when he was cast as Natalie Portman's husband in the film "New York I Love You."
But Karpen isn't going to be on the red-eye to La-la-land any time soon because last week the Hasidic Jew from Williamsburg, Brooklyn, said goodbye to his budding acting career and quit the film.
"He really didn't grasp that this was a movie and that Natalie Portman was a star. He thought it was more of a commercial, a short thing," said Isaac Abraham, a Hasidic community leader. "I think he was a little naive. He didn't grasp the magnitude of what he was doing."
The magnitude of what Karpen was doing became clear after photos of the budding actor walking with Portman under the Brooklyn Bridge surfaced in the media.
"We don't watch TV, use the Internet or see movies. It's against our religion and our traditions. There are strong guidelines about what you can and can't do," Abraham said.
Not surprisingly, getting a Screen Actors Guild card is not on the list of approved to-dos.
When Karpen's rabbis got wind of his activities, they ordered him to withdraw from the film or face the possibility that his children would be kicked out of their religious school.
The rabbis feared that Karpen's presence in the film would rattle the tightly knit and insular culture of Williamsburg Hasids.
"Once he got the role, I think the rabbis may have thought to themselves, well, you know, people know him. They might want to watch him on the screen. And then where does it end?" Abraham said.
If that sounds harsh, well, you have to understand the faith-based Hasidic community.
"It's a bit like the Mormons. If you're excommunicated, likewise it would be reflected on your children," said Brandeis University professor Jonathon Sarna, an expert on American Jewish history. "Most American Jews would consider Hasidic Jews to be ultra-orthodox. I prefer the term fervently orthodox. They want to recreate the world their parents knew. Innovations are bad because they take time away from religious learning."
Hasidism was a mystical movement of Jews that developed in Eastern Europe. There are many different groups, or sects, within Hasidism, and each group is attached to a rebbe, or Grand Rabbi, to whom they submit themselves.
Hasids limit their contact with outsiders, and while the lives of Hasidic Jews may be largely hidden from the rest of the world, their look is highly recognizable -- black hats, coats and long side curls for the men; head scarves and modest dress for the women.
This isn't the first time Hollywood has called on the Hasidic community. A 1981 film titled "The Chosen," starring Robbie Benson, revolved around the story of two Hasidic teenagers.
Sidney Lumet's 1992 movie "A Stranger Among Us" focused on Melanie Griffith as a cop who goes undercover in a Hasidic neighborhood -- a kind of Jewish "witness."
"New York I Love You" is a series of 12 short stories about love in the different neighborhoods of New York City. "It's a celebration of love and relationships," according to creator and producer Emmanuel Benbihy.
In an e-mail exchange, Benbihy said the controversy came as a "complete surprise."
The producers had been working "closely with representatives of the Hasidic community of Brooklyn in order to make sure that we are respectful of the traditions of a classic Hasidic wedding."
Portman and Karpen portrayed a young Hasidic couple about to get married.
Benbihy said, "Mr. Karpen was well-liked and highly regarded. We regret but respect and understand his choice to pull out from the movie. From our perspective, we felt very welcome in Brooklyn."
But, the welcome mat isn't always out.
For instance, filmmaker Pearl Gluck was forced out of a location in Williamsburg by about 200 protesters recently.
Gluck, who runs her own production company, Palinka Pictures, has a unique perspective because she was brought up in the Hasidic community. But in the 1980s in order to go to a college of her choosing, she left. Although Gluck still considers herself a part of the community, many Hasids do not.
Still her films, like "The Divan," focus on the traditions and culture of the community she grew up in. "The sense of community is very powerful, the sense of charity. There really is a sense that we're in this together. Our main goal is to bring up our children in a faith-based environment and expose them to the richness of our traditions," she said.
"The sense of community is very powerful, the sense of charity. There really is a sense that we're in this together. Our main goal is to bring up our children in a faith-based environment and expose them to the richness of our traditions," Gluck said.
The recent protests on her film, Gluck said, had to do with "people seeing film sets and crews coming from the outside world. There is a fear of a lack of continuity and thinking that the next generation won't be like the last one."
And that's the same fear that sparked the problem on the set of "New York I Love You," according to Abraham.
After all, most of the previous high-profile films about the ultra-orthodox community, including "The Chosen" and "A Stranger Among Us," had actors portraying Hasidic Jews. In this case, Karpen really was a Hasidic Jew -- and that made a world of difference.
תוקן על ידי יכול ב- 19/03/2008 1:32:58
צוריק צו האלטן ווען א אידיש מיידל וויל ברצונה הטוב זיך שמדן איך וואוינען מיט גוי רח"ל, דאס הייסט "קארפיציע" און "חילול ה", חלילה וחס !!!
האקאבו, I refuse to awnser you anymore אדער צו שטייען מיט דיר און ווארט.
א גרויסן דאנק פאר אונזערען חשובן מנהל, פאר ארבעטן אזוי שווער צו האלטן הויך די ניווא פונעם פארום.
תוקן על ידי געדאנקען ב- 19/03/2008 3:12:13
Abe Karpen, who is from a respected New York Jewish family, had already started work on 'New York I Love You'.
But news he was appearing in a Hollywood movie scandalized the Hasidic community - and the backlash was so bad he has been forced to take his family into hiding.
"The community wants to kill him," said his longtime friend Levi Okunov.
Karpen, 25, a married father of three, is usually a kitchen cabinet salesman but signed-up to play Portman's husband in the movie which is composed of 12 short stories about love in New York.
Before fleeing New York, Karpen confirmed: "I am backing out of the movie."
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He said the final straw came with rabbis telling him his kids would be booted out of their schools if he carried on with his acting dreams.
"It's not acceptable in my community," he said of acting.
"It's a lot of pressure I am getting.
"They [the rabbis] didn't like the idea of a Hasidic guy playing in Hollywood.
"I have my kids in religious schools and the rabbi called me over yesterday and said in order for me to keep my kids in the school I have to do what they tell me and back out."
He had already made it clear that his faith was his priority and there were certain things he would not do on film.
"They wanted me to hold Natalie Portman's hand, but I said 'no way,'" he said.
"It's against our religion. You can't even hold your wife's hand on the street."
He insists the community leaders' protests made him realize he was doing the wrong thing.
"This is when I woke up and saw that I made a big mistake," he said.
"My kids mean everything to me and my community where I live means everything to me."
Karpen had nothing but kind words for the film and Portman, who has been seen sporting a dark head-covering and a coat for her role as the Jewish wife.
"She's the only one I was willing to work with," Karpen said.
"I was shocked that she's a Hollywood big shot. We talked in Hebrew. ... She wants to become more religious."
Movie bosses were devastated.
"We are very sorry that this has created a problem for him personally and for the community," said the film's executive producer, Jan Korbelin.
"He's a great ambassador of his faith and it came out of the left field.
"This is the last thing this picture should be doing.
"This film is about love and understanding between different people and communities."
However Hasidic community activist Isaac Weinberger said Karpen should have known better.
"We don't watch television. We don't go to the movies, so to be in a movie is the worst thing. It's shame for any Hasid," he said.
http://nz.entertainment.yahoo.com/080316/6/4hh6.html
וויליאמסבורג און בארא פארק זענען היינט אין א שרעקליכן שפל המצב. עס פאנגט זיך אן זומער ווען פרויען זענען אין די קאנטריס ווען יונגעלייט גייען האצקענען אין בארס און אין קלאבס, און עס זעצט שוין אויך פאר ווינטער.
ווען ס'קומט צו פעמילי וועליוס זענען וויליאמסבורג און בארא פארק ערגער פון יעדע אנדערע געגנט.
אבער אנשטאט ס'זאלן זיין נארמאלע מענטשן וועלכע זאלן טאן און אויפטאן פאר אידישקייט און זיין א מוסטער פאר די גאנצע שטאט, ווערט די שטאט געפירט דורך ראדיקאלן, וועלכע שיסן אויס פענסטערס פון סטארס; שמירן אן לעגיטימע טאוולען פון געשעפטן; שמירן אן פענסטערס פון בוטשער סטארס; מאכן חרוב לעגיטימע פרנסות; פארוואנדלען א נארמאלן עסן טרעקל אין א פרעס טראק; שמירן אן א זיס עורה יונגל ווייל ער קוקט נישט אויס ווי א וויליאמסבורגער יונגל; צורייסן זיצן פון די בארא פארק-וויליאמסבורג באסעס.
וואס איז די רעזולטאט?
די רעזולטאט איז אז די אידן וואס וואקלען זיך שוין סייווי ווערן נאכמער אפגעקילט צו אידישקייט, ווייל די ראדיקאלן טוען פאר זיי פארגרוילן יעדע זאך וואס האט א שייכות מיט אידישקייט. זיי טראכטן אז פונקט אזוי ווי דער עסן טראק איז נישט קיין פראבלעם אזוי איז גיין אין בארס און אין קלאבס אויך נישט קיין פראבלעם, און צוביסלעך צוביסלעך פאלן זיי טיפער און טיפער אין שאול תחתית ביז זיי באנארישן זיך גאר מיאוס, און מיטאמאל ווערט די גאנצע שטאט אויפגעקאכט און יעדער פרעגט, וויאזוי האט אזא זאך געקענט געשען?
אזא זאך האט געקענט געשען פאר איין סיבות, ווייל וואס מער די ראדיקאלן ווערן ראדיקאלער אלץ מער ווערן די שוואכערע עלעמענטן שוואכער. עס איז פארבינדן איינס מיט'ן צווייטן.
בשעת די ראדיקאלן דרייען אן א שטינק איבער א נארישן קאנצערט וואס איז סייווי אפגעפרעגט ביים גאנצן ציבור, דרייען זיך די שוואכערע עלעמענטן אין פרעמדע פלעצער און זיי פאלן טיפער און טיפער אין תהום אריין, אבער קיינער ווייסט נישט דערפון ווייל מען איז ביזי מיט נארישקייטן.
אין די זעלבע צייט וואס ראדיקאלן זענען פארנומען מיט'ן באשאפן שערוריות וואס עקזיסטירן נישט, קומען פאר אמת'ע סקאנדאלן וואס ווערן איגנארירט וויבאלד די ראדיקאלן זענען ביזי מיט שטותים.
