Gil Hovav

Today, Gil Hovav is a topic that has become increasingly relevant in our society. With the advancement of technology and globalization, Gil Hovav has become a point of interest for a large number of people around the world. Whether due to its impact on health, the economy or the environment, Gil Hovav has managed to capture the attention of academics, experts and ordinary citizens alike. In this article, we will explore the different facets of Gil Hovav, from its origins to its possible implications in the future.

Gil Hovav
גיל חובב
Born (1962-03-17) March 17, 1962 (age 63)
Jerusalem, Israel
Alma materHebrew University of Jerusalem
Occupation(s)TV presenter, culinary journalist, restaurant critic, and author.
Years active1989–present
Children1
Parents
Relatives

Gil Hovav (Hebrew: גיל חובב; born March 17, 1962) is an Israeli TV presenter, culinary journalist, restaurant critic, and author. The Jewish Chronicle described him as "Israel’s most famous television chef and cookery-book writer," and The Forward calls him "Israel's top foodie."[1][2] He is the grandson of Itamar Ben-Avi, a Palestinian who began modern Israeli journalism, and the great-grandson of Eliezer Ben-Yehuda, who revived Hebrew as a modern language.

Early life

Hovav was born in Jerusalem, Israel. In his youth he lived there in the Katamon and Kiryat Shmuel neigborhoods, and he is Jewish.[3][4] His parents, Yemenite-Israeli Moshe Hovav and Ashkenazi-Israeli Drora Ben Avi, were among the first members of Kol Yisrael, the first public radio in Israel. His father was the chief news announcer and head of radio, and his mother headed radio stations Reshet Bet and Reshet Gimel.[5][6][7]

He is the maternal grandson of Itamar Ben-Avi, a Palestinian journalist born in Jerusalem in 1882 who began modern Israeli journalism.[5][4][8] Also on his mother's side, Hovav is the great-grandson of 19th century Zionist scholar Eliezer Ben-Yehuda, who revived Hebrew as a modern language.[9][10][5] Hovav said that his family ranks cities in Israel according to the size of Ben Yehuda Streets in each of them.[11] In the late 19th century his Yemenite family walked from Yemen to Palestine.[12]

When he was five years old, during the battle for Jerusalem in the Six Day War in 1967, he and his family lived in their building’s shelter for four days.[4] Hovav graduated from the Rehavia Hebrew High School in Jerusalem.[4][8] He then graduated from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, which he attended to study Arabic, and completed a graduate degree in French literature and general studies.[4][8] He initially supported himself as a bartender at the Jerusalem Sheraton Hotel, by teaching Arabic, and by cleaning homes.[10]

Journalism career

From 1989 to 1993, Hovav worked for the newspaper Hadashot as a reporter in the Shabbat supplement, critiquing restaurants and culture. [13][14] He then worked for the newspapers Ha'ir and Haaretz as a restaurant critic.[13][14] He also worked as a restaurant reviewer and deputy editor of the weekly supplement for Israel's largest circulation daily, Yediot Achronot.[15][16][17] He said that he preferred to inform those who read his reviews where they might like to eat, instead of which restaurant gave him "heartburn."[18] The Jewish Chronicle described him as "Israel’s most famous television chef and cookery-book writer," and The Forward calls him "Israel's top foodie."[2][1]

In 2000, Hovav founded the book publishing and production house "Toad", which publishes the cookbooks, novels, and collections of short stories that he wrote and compiled.[19][20] In 2001, while at Ground Zero after the 9/11 attack, he cooked a breakfast of shakshuka for 500 firefighters who were working at the fallen World Trade Center.[8][21]

Television career

Hovav has created, written, produced, and presented a number of cooking programs and food programs on television.[22][4][8] These include the first two seasons of the food series "Garlic, Pepper and Olive Oil" on Channel 1 (1998–2000),[23][24] "Going to the Market" ("Ossim Shuk," with him visiting different food markets) on the Channel 2 concessionaire Telad (2001),[25][26][27] "Captain Cook" (with him globetrotting and exploring the world’s best restaurants) on the Channel 10 (2002–03),[28] "Making a Holiday" on Channel 3, "Gil Hovav and the Extras" on Channel 3 (2005), "The Israeli Food Parade" on Channel 2,[29][30] "The State's Dish" on Channel 2 (2008),[31] and "The Flying Chef" (2009–11).[32][4][8]

From 2009 to 2013, he presented the program "Food for Thought" on Channel 23, in which he interviewed 20 Nobel Prize laureates including Daniel Kahneman, Eric Kandel, John Nash, and Elie Wiesel.[33][34] On the show, Hovav met with interviewees in their home, cooked dishes from literary classics, and took his interviewees to a bookstore where they discussed their favorite books.[35] In 2011 to 2012, Hovav was a presenter for the Israeli Army Radio program "Roaring Night Birds".[17][36] Asked in late 2012 why he wasn't on television of late, he said "I think I'm not very suitable for this decade's television. Because I'm not a blonde with big tits... There used to be a place for bald people on TV, but now there isn't."[37]

In 2013, Hovav presented the program "Meals that Made History" on Channel 23.[38] Each episode depicted a recipe related to a historical period covered in the episode, such as shrimp in orange sauce at the Last Supper (according to the painting by Leonardo da Vinci), and featured interviews with historians and archaeologists.[38][39]

As of 2016, he was the voice of the announcements at Ben Gurion Airport.[10] Annoyed by small grammatical errors in the airport's announcements in Hebrew, he called the airport's management and complained.[10] The management responded by inviting him to come and read the announcements himself.[10] Management then clarified that they were not going to pay him, and Hovav said "who wants money for that?”[10] So he now reads the announcements at Ben Gurion Airport.[10][40]

In 2017, Hovav directed the tourism program "Open Skies" on the Israeli "Keshet 12" channel.[41][42] In 2019, he started presenting the "Ochel Israel" podcast belonging to the Making History Network.[43] The podcast includes restaurant recommendations, recipes, and other food-related tips.[43]

Personal life

Hovav is gay, and lives in Tel Aviv, Israel.[44][8][45] His partner of over 30 years is professor Danny Halperin, a computer scientist and professor at Tel Aviv University.[44][8][45] They met when they were both in the intelligence service in the Israel Defense Forces, and were both straight.[8][4][45]

He came out at 25 years of age, and says "it was so easy it was embarrassing."[8] While Hovav is not a very political person, when asked to join one LGBT issue or another he does, but he says he is "not a picket-sign holder."[46] He did, however, once grab a sign at a protest supporting the LGBT movement, and chanted slogans as he marched with the sign, only to discover later when he looked at the sign that written on it were the words: “I’m a proud lesbian!”[8] He opined on the subject of LGBTQ rights in Israel: "In gay rights, Israel is a beacon and especially in the neighborhood it is in, in the Middle East. Also, when you compare it to the United States, Europe, or Uruguay, Israel is really progressive."[47]

The couple lived in San Francisco, California, for three years as Halperin completed postdoctoral work at Stanford University.[8][48] They have a daughter whose mother is Deborah Frishberg (a former basketball player for Hapoel Haifa and the Israeli national team, and a member of Kibbutz Ein Dor).[49]

Written works

By 2013, Hovav had published 16 books.[38] Among his writings are:

  • Kitch (קיטש): Jerusalem, Keter Publishing House. 1995[50]
  • My Family's Kitchen: (illustrations–Noam Nadav). 1996[51]
  • Sun, Sea and Food: Mediterranean cooking (together with Ayelet Latovitch, Dalia Penn-Lerner; photos–Nelly Shafer; (Moden, 1998)[52]
  • Gifts from the Kitchen (Moden, 1999)[52]
  • Going to the Market (עושים שוק; together with Tzipi Lavi; photos–Billy and Aviram; Toad Publishing; 2001)[53][54]
  • Ten Diets: how to choose the diet that suits you best. (together with Ruthi Aviri Bar-El; illustrations–Yizhar Cohen, photographs–Ariel Shafran, Toad, 2003)[52]
  • Red, White and Everything in Between: wine for people like you and me (Ther, 2004)[52]
  • Gil Hovav and the Extras: The Recipe Book of the TV Show (Toad, 2005)[52]
  • Candies from Heaven (in Hebrew; illustrations– Noam Nadav; Toad, 2007)[55][56][57]
  • The Sweets of Gil Hovav (photos–Moti Fishbein); Toad, 2008)[52]
  • Grandma's Food (dish photography–Itiel Zion; portrait photography–Reli Abrahami; recipe research and editing–Eli Hoffner; Toad, 2008)[58]
  • How to Have Fun (Moden, 2009)[59]
  • Cooking with 5 Ingredients (Toad and Moden, 2012)[60]
  • Confessions of a Kitchen Rebbetzen (in English; Toad and Moden, 2012)[61][62][63]
  • Twenty-four Doors (Moden, 2015)[64]
  • Candies from Heaven (in English; Hovav, 2017)[65][44]
  • A Little Book About the Big World (Moden, 2020)[66]
  • Closer from Afar: Short stories and novella (2021)[67][44]
  • To Love in Hebrew: The Love Letters of Itamar Ben Avi and Leah Abushdid (Karpad and Modan, 2023)[68]

References

  1. ^ a b Alex Kasriel (April 24, 2008). "Meet Israel’s Jamie", The Jewish Chronicle.
  2. ^ a b Michael Kaminer (August 4, 2015). "Israel’s Top Tables and All the Weekly Dish," The Forward.
  3. ^ Itzchak Tessler (November 27, 2022). "Dietary Kosher laws from the Jewish kitchen: Poles missing Jewish culture," Ynet News.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Jessica Steinberg (February 11, 2018). "Celebrated Israeli foodie blends grub and family in new memoir; In ‘Candies from Heaven,’ TV personality Gil Hovav reminisces about coming of age in Jerusalem, peppered with recipes from his childhood," The Times of Israel.
  5. ^ a b c Adeena Sussman (June/July 2016). "Gil Hovav, Israel’s Leading Foodie," Hadassah Magazine.
  6. ^ "In Conversation with Gil Hovav". Taube Center for Jewish Studies, Stanford University. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  7. ^ Amy Spiro (January 11, 2018). "Sweet stories of Jerusalem; TV personality Gil Hovav’s memoir of youth in the capital can now bring joy to English-speaking audiences," The Jerusalem Post.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Dan Pine (April 9, 2010). "Funny Israeli TV star wont be using a non-shtick pan when stirring the pot at S.F. restaurant," The Jewish News of Northern California.
  9. ^ "Izraelská osobnost, kterou možná neznáte: Gil Hovav," PROTIŠEDI, July 29, 2012,
  10. ^ a b c d e f g Florina Pîrjol (July 8, 2016). "Scriitorul Gil Hovav: „Bucătarii din ziua de astăzi sunt adevărate staruri rockm"", Adevărul.
  11. ^ Mordechai Haimovich (October 18, 2004). "The Ben Yehuda Tribe: A Journey to the Quarry of the Revival of the Hebrew Language; Mordechai Haimovitz and Yossi Aloni joined Gil Hovav in Belarus for a fascinating journey through time to the roots of the renewed language, to the turbulent novels, to the harassment of the Haredim, and to the fascinating stories of the family thanks to which we are born Hebrew," Maariv.
  12. ^ Dorothy Kalins (2021). The Kitchen Whisperers: Cooking with the Wisdom of Our Friends.
  13. ^ a b Steven Gruzd (July 28, 2022). "Israeli foodie promises delectable discussions," South African Jewish Report.
  14. ^ a b Shiram, Matan (August 13, 2007). "ללקק את האצבעות". Globes (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  15. ^ "עושים שוק עם גיל חובב", שפים ישראלים.
  16. ^ Hammond, Gretchen Rachel (November 28, 2017). "A Recipe for a Sweet Childhood". Tablet Magazine. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  17. ^ a b Victoria Prever (May 2, 2014 ). "Tasting the real, rude Israeli food," The Jewish Chronicle.
  18. ^ Matan Shiram (August 13, 2007). "Lick your fingers,"
  19. ^ ""אתה האחרון בשושלת של נשים גדולות!"". Haaretz (in Hebrew). March 26, 2007. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  20. ^ Gabriel Steinberg (October 25, 2022). "Modern Hebrew founder's great-grandson to speak about family legacy at Hillel event," The Daily Pennsylvanian.
  21. ^ Amy Klein (February 5, 2015). "FOOD FOR THOUGHT; Exploring Israel's 'ethnic' cuisine," New Jersey Jewish News.
  22. ^ "Hummus, Hebrew, and the Holyland," The Melbourne Jewish Report, August 2019, p. 2.
  23. ^ Kipness, Nir (September 5, 2000). "שיעור בכלכלת בית". Globes (in Hebrew).
  24. ^ Kopper, Roteh (September 13, 2002). "טעם של פעם". Haaretz (in Hebrew).
  25. ^ Aviva Carol (June 25, 2000). "Gil Hovav is doing a market in Telad," Globes.
  26. ^ Kroll, Aviva (June 25, 2000). "גיל חובב עושה שוק בטלעד". Globes (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  27. ^ Koren-Dinar, Roni (February 18, 2001). "סדרה חדשה בטלעד: "עושים שוק" עם גיל חובב". TheMarker (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  28. ^ Alper, Rogel (February 12, 2002). "נודניק פרום איזראל". Haaretz (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  29. ^ Ruthie Zuaretz (November 15, 2007). "Shas vs. Gil Hovav," Globes.
  30. ^ Beninson, Mariana (November 11, 2007). "ערבב את הרוטב, אחמד". Akhbar Ha'ir (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  31. ^ Herzog, Hila (May 13, 2008). "הטבחים בישלו והרייטינג רתח: "המטבח" של קשת בראש הטבלה עם 21.3%". Haaretz (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  32. ^ Bar Shalom, Or (April 24, 2012). "גילה את אייל שני: ערוץ 8 מומחה בתוכניות אוכל אינטליגנטיות". Haaretz (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  33. ^ "Gil Hovav,", Consulate General of Israel in San Francisco, May 15, 2019.
  34. ^ "30 Days, 30 Authors: Gil Hovav," Jewish Book Council, November 28, 2017.
  35. ^ קיפניס, ניר (October 1, 2009). "הזדמנות שנייה לרושם ראשוני, ניר קיפניס". Globes. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  36. ^ סויסה, ערן (June 29, 2011). "ציפורי לילה מתחלפות". Makor Rishon. Retrieved August 26, 2024.
  37. ^ Dafna Arad (November 1, 2012). "When Gil Hovav pretended to be a rabbi," Haaretz.
  38. ^ a b c Gail Ciampa (November 12, 2013). "Star Israeli chef shows his wit, shares Hanukkah recipes; Gil Hovav is a force of nature, full of energy and warmth. He blew into Providence this fall for a visit and shared recipes for Hanukkah as well as his newest cookbook, the first one published in English," The Providence Journal.
  39. ^ Laura Blum (October 9, 2013). "Israeli Cuisine: Interview with Gil Hovav," UJA-JCC Greenwich.
  40. ^ Sapir Peretz (February 15, 2015). "New poster at Terminal 3 at Ben-Gurion Airport: Gil Hovav," Globes.
  41. ^ "שמיים פתוחים עם גיל חובב - תכנית חדשה בקשת 12". Mako (in Hebrew). November 2, 2017. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  42. ^ "What was the Israeli culinary star doing on the roof in Vilnius?," Made in Vilnius, November 29, 2017.
  43. ^ a b "אוכל ישראל עם גיל חובב Ochel Israel With Gil Hovav," podtail.com.
  44. ^ a b c d Anat Lev-Adler (August 26, 2021). "Gil Hovav: "Today Israel is a beacon of progress in gay rights,"
  45. ^ a b c Ciara Dwyer (March 19, 2017). "Gil Hovav: 'I started cooking the day my grandmother died - I wanted to remember her'," Irish Independent.
  46. ^ Charlotte Robinson (November 12, 2012). ""Celebrity Chef Gil Hovav on Being Out in Israel, LGBT Issues and Gaza (AUDIO), The Huffington Post.
  47. ^ "“Los chefs son las nuevas estrellas de rock”: Gil Hovav," Enlace Judío, September 18, 2017.
  48. ^ Dalit Gvirtzman (April 25, 2019). "On the Tip of the Tongue: A Conversation with Gil Hovav," BA-Inyanim.
  49. ^ Chaimovich, Mordechai (October 18, 2014). "שבט בן יהודה: מסע לכור מחצבתו של מחייה השפה העברית". Maariv (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  50. ^ קיטש, 1995.
  51. ^ ונגר, דור (September 11, 2020). "בראש השנה הזה תבשלו בספניולית עם מתכונים של גיל חובב". Haaretz (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  52. ^ a b c d e f "Gil Hovav," Lexicon of Modern Hebrew Literature.
  53. ^ הארץ (May 23, 2001). "מהומה שמחה". Haaretz (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  54. ^ "עושים שוק עם גל חובב / ʻOśim shuḳ ʻim Gil Ḥovav," WorldCat.
  55. ^ "Candy for Salome," Tablet Magazine, March 8, 2018.
  56. ^ Jeffrey Barken (January 17, 2018). "Israeli culinary journalist Gil Hovav’s memoir is a heartwarming and earnest slice of life ," JNS.
  57. ^ Jeffrey Barken (January 11, 2018). "Israeli Culinary Journalist Gil Hovav’s Memoir Is a Heartwarming and Earnest ‘Slice of Life’," The Algemeiner.
  58. ^ קנר, אורן (November 26, 2008). "אוכל של סבתא, גיל חובב". Haaretz (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  59. ^ Liebovitch, Hadas (May 1, 2009). "משפחות החוצה: גיל חובב יוציא אתכם מהבית". Haaretz. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  60. ^ גורפינקל, חיליק (November 22, 2012). "ביקורת: למה אין לי ציפיות מספר הבישול החדש של גיל חובב?". Globes. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  61. ^ ארד, דפנה (November 1, 2012). "כשגיל חובב התחזה לרבנית". Haaretz (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  62. ^ Barry Davis (August 23, 2012). "Confessions of an ex-TV cook; Through a world-weary rebbetzin, media star Gil Hovav presents the simpler side of the country's cuisine," The Jerusalem Post.
  63. ^ Dafna Arad (November 9, 2012). "Tel Aviv's Favorite Foodie Finally Caters to English Readers With New Cookbook; Assuming the persona of a devout Orthodox woman, Hovav offers a juicymix of recipes, confessions and theater," Haaretz.
  64. ^ חובב, גיל (April 23, 2015). "ספרים על ירושלים שכדאי לכם לקרוא". Haaretz (in Hebrew). Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  65. ^ "Gil Hovav". Jewish Book Council. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  66. ^ "ספר קטן על העולם הגדול / Sefer ḳaṭan ʻal ha-ʻolam ha-gadol," WorldCat.
  67. ^ "יותר קרוב מרחוק : נובלה ואחד־עשר סיפורים קצרים", WorldCat.
  68. ^ Tamar Rotem (May 31, 2023). "Gil Hovav returns to the drama of the developing relationship between his grandfather and grandmother," Haaretz.