Amy Schumer’s childhood rabbi dishes on her Hebrew school antics

Comedian Amy Schumer’s childhood rabbi has dished up a few tasty, albeit kosher, tidbits about the foul-mouthed funny girl’s childhood, writing a sweet, joke-speckled post about her Hebrew school antics for Religion News Service. (Amy Schumer is related to Senator Chuck Schumer.)

The “Trainwreck” star, says Rabbi Jeffrey Salkin, the former rabbi of the Central Synagogue of Nassau County in Rockville Centre, N.Y., and more recently at Temple Beth Am in Bayonne, was “a religious school cutup. In this, she follows a noble tradition.”

The good rabbi goes on to note that Abraham himself was a rebel, always asking prodding questions, as was the great thinker Baruch Spinoza, who sat at the back of the classroom and taunted his teachers with jokes.

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Salkin also marvels at the fact that his synagogue has produced more than one famous comedian. Schumer’s sister and writing partner, Kim Caramele, standup comedian Dave Attell, and former “Daily Show” writer Rory Albanese all attended services, he says.

Schumer, a stand-up artist, writer and actress, catapulted to fame with her Comedy Central show “Inside Amy Schumer,” on which she developed her self-deprecating, tongue-deep-in-cheek brand of feminist humor. The Judd Apatow-directed romantic comedy “Trainwreck,” which she wrote and stars in, hit theaters Friday, July 24.

“I remember Amy as a sweet, funny kid, who often asked probing and humorous questions in religious school,” he concluded.

JTA Wire Service