Claudia CoganIn his notorious Vanity Fair piece, Why Women Aren't Funny, Christopher Hitchens says that, of the few good female comics, most are "hefty or dykey, or Jewish, or some combo of the three."

I figured I'd use my last day on the blogging job to bring you more comedy coverage. Here is a hi-larious interview with Claudia Cogan. I'm not sure if Hitchens has Claudia's number ... but she definitely ain't hefty.

Jen: Claudia, I remember a joke from your performance at Pete's Candy Store about people thinking you're Jewish when you're not. Can you run that by me again?

Claudia: I ran into an old friend of mine. It had been a while and she asked, "How was your Passover?" And I answered truthfully: "Well, it sucked because I'm not Jewish."

Everyone thinks I'm Jewish. I got a Hannukah card from a man I've known my entire life so I called him up. "Dad, you know I'm not Jewish."

I think it's because I have an ethnically ambiguous nose. And people always want to guess what it is: "You're Armenian. Oh, I know! I know! You're a Wilson brother!"

Jen: Ha! Always a pleasure, Claudia. So, how much of this is comedy and how much of this is real life?

Claudia: It happens a lot in real life. Often, I ask about ingredients at restaurants because I can't really eat dairy and the server will assume I'm trying to keep kosher. No, I'm trying to keep from farting maniacally. I then order the pork to confuse them.

I've given it some thought why I'm construed as Jewish. It's multi-part. The big shnozz is factor. It's semi-cultural: I'm not one of the chosen people but I come from the strongest runner up category, the Italians, which features a lot of staggering guilt and upward mobility -- be something with a degree! You're still one of us, big shot. "Cogan" is confusing since it could easily be a variation on "Cohen." However, it's Irish, of which I'm only a little bit. Enough to sunburn well.

Jen: Thanks, Claudia. I have a real history of dating Jews and I'd do you, which is confusing on many levels. Anything else you'd like to add?

Claudia: Go easy on the novelty menorahs, folks. They're the Jewish equivalent of Christmas sweaters.

Find more Claudia at ClaudiaCogan.com