If you’re of a certain age, Marc Summers was probably an indispensable part of your childhood. The TV personality is most famous for hosting the ’80s and ’90s Nickelodeon kids’ competition show “Double Dare,” infamous for making “getting slimed,” that is, when a bucket of neon green slime gets dumped on your head, so iconic. Summers has also hosted numerous Food Network shows.
Now in his 70s, Summers, who was born Marc Berkowitz in Indianapolis, Indiana, is making a new career foray into acting and his debut film role is profoundly and adorably Jewish. He stars as Jewish grandpa and “yenta” matchmaker Sam, who tries to find a bashert, or love match, for his grandson Jay (Darren Kagasoff), in the new Hallmark Hanukkah romance “Hanukkah on the Rocks,” premiering on the channel this Friday.
It only feels right that Summers launches his acting career in such a Jewish project, considering he first felt the draw of show business at synagogue. “After my bar mitzvah, I said, this is kind of cool, and I liked performing,” he recalled in a recent interview with Pix11, “and to me, being a rabbi was performing. I was just confused: should I go into entertainment, or should I become a rabbi? I rode my bike over to our synagogue, and Rabbi Weitzman, who was the assistant rabbi at the time, I knew he started in radio and TV and became a rabbi. And I said, I have a problem. I don’t know which I want to do.”
A good rabbi always knows how to ask the right questions, and so Rabbi Weitzman asked Summers why he wanted to be a rabbi. Summers recalls replying, “Because I want to help people.”
Rabbi Weitzman, who was obviously born for his role as a Jewish leader, then gave Summers the perfect answer. “He said, here’s the decision,” Summers reminisced. “If you are a rabbi, you can help a small amount of people a lot, and if you’re in the entertainment business, you can help a lot of people a small amount. Whatever you do is the right one.”
Letting the then teen know that whatever he did was right decision helped Summers pursue what he believed and what we now know was his true calling, entertainment. And I’m happy to report that in “Hanukkah on the Rocks,” Summers’ character imparts not only rabbi-like wisdom, but also the kind of warmth, support and humor you want from a rabbi or a doting Jewish grandfather. Here’s hoping we see him in even more (Jewish!) acting projects soon.
Here’s where and when to watch “Hanukkah on the Rocks.”
