Billy’s Blog: Access Bat Mitzvah (June 8, 2006)

And now, “Bat Mitzvah Crashers” starring Billy Bush and Nancy O’Dell (with our spouses). We all attended our first Bat Mitzvah this weekend. Our Access Executive Producer is the father of a perfect child, Jordyn, whose every quality I hope is imitated exactly in each of my daughters. It was her big day and his most expensive evening.

Pros:

There are beautiful songs, moments where people are singing and swaying, arm in arm, in the pews. Jordyn read a blessing of thanks to her family, about why she loved each member. The parents reciprocated. There was great joy in tradition.

The party afterward was unbelievable. Other than the one religious tradition of the Motzi, the breaking of the bread and toast by the senior member of the family, it was all dancing, cocktailing and fun. This all went down on our stage at AH – the video monitors were all running loops of the party and a live feed of all that transpired was on 30ft screen that towers over the stage.

Grandmothers were shimmying, uncles were sweating, the children were juiced with energy. There were touching toasts, immediate family members of Jordyn joined her in being hoisted and pumped up and down in a dinner chair by uncles, cousins and me…I had to, it was too much fun.

Cons:

Back to the service, I don’t speak Hebrew so I was lost most of the time, although I got the feeling most of my Jewish friends were too.

And man oh Manischewitz are these things expensive. For what is generally a celebration of one’s entry into adulthood, a gig like this can set you back. And the same theory that applies to having at least as nice a lawn as your neighbor applies here…as a parent paying the tab, you can’t hold back…you gotta impress.

The proud father, Rob, is our Exec. Producer, as I mentioned but he’s also a good friend, and I know that he knows that I know that he HAD to put on a show for the aunts and uncles and friends and everyone else…He’s a big time Hollywood producer, isn’t he?

He sure is.

Oh, he has 3 more children under 13, so if I play my cards right, there is a great deal more freeloading in style coming my way!