Treasure Trove enjoys a light summer read with the comic exploits of the Jewish Hero Corps

It was 1965, and eight-year-old Alan Oirich was standing in the schoolyard of his Long Island synagogue when his friend David told him he didn’t plan to celebrate Hanukkah that year because Christmas was more fun. To change David’s mind, Alan, a comic book fan and aspiring illustrator, went home and drew a series of Jewish superheroes to send a public message about Jewish holidays.

And so the Jewish Hero Corps was born.

Almost 40 years later, in 2003, a real comic book was printed featuring the characters developed to change David’s mind. The members of the Corps in #1 are:

• Menorah Man: He can grow six additional arms, giving him eight in total, and each of these arms can emit flame-like energy blasts.
• Dreidel Maidel: She can spin at the speed of electrons.
• Minyan Man: He has the ability to divide himself into ten men.
• Magen David: He has an invincible shield.
• Kipa Kid: Also known as “Yarmulke Youth” or “Capped Crusader,” he wears a number of ingenious headgear.
• Shabbas Queen: With her magic wand, she can stop machines for 25 hours and give them a rest.
• Matzo Woman: By eating radioactive matzo she has microwave vision.

Additional heroes were added in #2 (‘Secret of the Solar Sukkah’, published in 2013) and #3 (‘Crisis in Time’, published in 2024). The series can be found at jewishsuperheroes.com.