From Law & Order to the Holy Land: Diane Neal's Unfiltered Life Story

The Million Dollar Matchmaker Still Believes in Love — And She's Not Done Looking

For our series finale, No Reservations heads to Los Angeles, shutting down the iconic Milky Way restaurant for an intimate conversation with Patti Stanger, the Million Dollar Matchmaker. Patti comes from three generations of matchmakers and has spent her career helping others find love. But today she gets honest about her own journey: the trauma she's healed, the patterns she's broken, and why, after everything, she still believes her person is out there. Over halibut chowder, trout almondine, and New York cheesecake, Jamie and Patti talk soul contracts, the Ketubah, Jewish identity, and the courage it takes to keep believing in love. This is No Reservations. This is the finale. This is Patti Stanger.0:00 — Welcome to the Finale1:16 — Jewish Food & Holiday Memories3:10 — The Milky Way Menu Arrives4:47 — The Ketubah & Why Jewish Men Love Whole6:08 — Dating in the Modern World7:00 — Ahi Tuna, Trout & Cooking at Home8:32 — Soul Contracts & Soulmates10:22 — Patti's Healing Journey11:07 — What Patti Is Looking For Now13:23 — Three Generations of Matchmakers17:07 — Cheesecake & Closing Toasts17:38 — Jamie's Final Reflection

She Photographed the Worst Massacre Since the Holocaust — and Found Something Unexpected

She went places most journalists refused to go. She saw things the soul was never meant to see, and she went back again and again. Chen Schimmel is a photojournalist who spent the year after October 7th documenting the worst massacre of the Jewish people since the Holocaust. Her photograph "Holy Work" an ultra-Orthodox Zaka volunteer cleaning blood from a secular kibbutz, won Photo of the Year in Tel Aviv. In a single frame, two worlds collapsed into one people. In this conversation with Jamie Geller on No Reservations, Chen steps out from behind the lens. She talks about photographing hostage families, injured soldiers who lost limbs, mass funerals — and what she found inside all of it: not light conquering darkness, but light and darkness living side by side, inseparable, the way the Jewish people have always lived.This episode will stay with you. Chen's book is available now. All proceeds go to injured soldiers.🔔 Subscribe and hit the bell so you never miss a conversation like this. Chapters 0:00 Intro — who is Chen Schimmel?Jamie introduces the episode and what Chen witnessed 4:50 From London to Tel Aviv — Aliyah at 18. Her Swiss mother, British father, and brothers who led the way 8:30 The first camera — passion becomes a callingFrom weddings to disaster zones; Haiti, Morocco, and the moment she knew 13:10 October 7th — the morning everything changedWaking to sirens, her brother's words, her father joining Zaka 16:00 Inside Zaka: what "cleaning" actually meansThe spiritual and physical weight of collecting remains for Jewish burial 21:00 The book — documenting before it's deniedWhy she made it beautiful on purpose, and why the world needs to hold it 26:00 "Holy Work" — Photo of the YearAn ultra-Orthodox volunteer in a secular kibbutz; two worlds, one people 30:00 The hardest days: funerals and what you can't photographThe sounds and smells no camera can ever capture 35:00 Eden's mother and the miracle that didn't come. A cup of tea, a Hanukkah prayer, and a funeral by the sea 40:00 Soldiers who lost limbs — more full of life than anyoneSheba Hospital and Morton, the ninja athlete with no legs 44:30 One year on — at the Nova site at dawn, October 7th 2024. Families, photos of the lost, and the sound she tried to put into words 48:00 Light and darkness live side by side. The realization at a soldier's second burial that changed everything Jamie Geller is the Chief Communications Officer and Global Spokesperson for Aish. As a key member of Aish's senior executive team, she brings extensive experience in building a media empire that influences millions daily. An award-winning producer, eight-time bestselling author, and media and marketing executive, Jamie’s career spans renowned networks including HBO, CNN, and the Food Network, where she earned numerous awards as a producer and marketing executive.Follow Jamie on social media for regular new uploads and updates: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamiegeller/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jamiegeller.com/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jamiegeller LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-geller/Website: https://www.jamiegeller.com/----------------------Chen G. Schimmel is a rising voice in photojournalism, capturing the human spirit in moments of profound crisis. At just 25, her work took on urgency after October 7th. As a staff photojournalist for The Jerusalem Post, she documented the war through the lives of displaced families, wounded soldiers, hostage families, and survivors of terror—revealing moments of resilience and humanity amid devastation.Her series October 7th: Bearing Witness has been exhibited internationally, and in 2024, her photograph Holy Work was named Photojournalistic Photograph of the Year by Edut Mekomit.Follow Chen on social media for regular new uploads and updates: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chen_schimmel/Website: https://www.chengschimmel.com/

From Law & Order to the Holy Land: Diane Neal's Unfiltered Life Story

What does it look like when a woman builds a 25-year Hollywood career, on her own terms, and then loses almost everything, only to discover she's exactly where she was always meant to be? Diane Neal, best known as District Attorney Casey Novak on Law & Order: SVU, joins Jamie Geller at the Aish World Centre overlooking the Western Wall in Jerusalem for one of the most raw, real, and riveting conversations you'll hear this year.Diane opens up about turning down multi-million dollar roles because of her values and never once regretting it. She talks about what it was really like to work with Robin Williams, how she survived cancer, a plane crash, 9/11, a devastating divorce, and a very public congressional run, and what it felt like to go from a penthouse apartment to not knowing where her next meal was coming from. She shares why she sold her grandmother's Holocaust-era silver to make Aliyah and why, given the chance, she would do it again in a heartbeat. She tells the story of a six-year-old boy who said something so simple it changed how she thought about every role she ever played. And she shares the Maimonides quote that keeps her going when life falls apart.This is not a Hollywood story. This is a human story about faith, identity, resilience, and what it means to stick around to see how the story ends.Tell us in the comments what moved you most. If this conversation resonated with you, please like, subscribe, and share, it helps us bring more stories like Diane's to the world.00:00 Cold Open — The Lady Who Waits01:39 Welcome to No Reservations + Diane Neal Introduction03:42 From Academic Prodigy to International Model at 1807:11 Traveling the World, Staying True to Her Values09:57 Breaking Into Hollywood: Atlantic Theater & SVU11:53 25 Years of No Nudity, No Sex Scenes — No Compromise13:38 The Price of Principles: Turning Down Millions16:10 From Penthouse to Mopping Up Flood Water20:07 The Maimonides Quote That Changed Everything22:25 Becoming Observant & Leaving HBO Behind38:39 Robin Williams: What He Was Really Like43:52 The Neuroscience of Creativity & Why Brilliant Minds Suffer51:11 Surviving It All: Cancer, Divorce, 9/11, and a Plane Crash55:36 The Vision: Bringing Jews Home to Israel59:37 Closing Reflections + Bar Mitzvah Plans! ------------------------ No Reservations is where host Jamie Geller sits down with people who made big, bold, beautiful, life-changing choices, and are finally ready to talk about why. From the rooftop overlooking the Western Wall, where heaven and earth meet, we have conversations with no filters, no fear, and no reservations. Find No Reservations on your favorite platforms: https://pods.link/noreservationsjamiegeller Find Jamie In The Rova on your favorite platforms: https://pods.link/jamieintherova ------------- Follow Jamie on social media for regular new uploads and updates: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamiegeller/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jamiegeller.com/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jamiegeller LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-geller/Website: https://www.jamiegeller.com/ ---------------------- Follow Diane on social media for regular new uploads and updates: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dianeneal/X: https://x.com/DianeNeal

From Cocaine & Juilliard to 16 Years Clean: Ariella Zeitlin's Untold Story | Jamie Geller presents No Reservations

She was on track for Juilliard. She was also buying cocaine and climbing out her bedroom window at night. Nobody knew. This is Ariella Zeitlin's story.In this episode of No Reservations, Jamie Geller sits down with Ariella Zeitlin — musician, performer, and healer — whose life story most people who've watched her on stage have never heard.Ariella grew up inside two worlds that didn't fit together: an Orthodox Jewish home in Baltimore and an intense classical music track shaped by her grandfather, a Juilliard prodigy who became her entire world. The collision between those worlds sent her somewhere dark. By 17 she was on a path toward Juilliard and a serious drug addiction at the same time — and almost nobody knew.This conversation traces how that happened, what it cost her, and what finally changed. A year in Israel that quietly redirected everything. A car crash on the road to the Dead Sea that became the moment she made a promise to God. And sixteen years of doing the quiet, unglamorous work of actually keeping it.Ariella now works with trauma survivors, hostages, and people rebuilding their sense of self — helping them find language for what they've been through and the courage to share it. She didn't arrive at that work from a distance. She arrived at it from the inside.This isn't a story about rock bottom. It's about what you do when you survive it — and what becomes possible when you stop hiding the parts of yourself you're most ashamed of.If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear that it's not too late to rewrite the story.Like, subscribe, comment, and share this episode.00:00 The girl who almost didn't make it 01:18 Meet Ariella Zeitlin 03:36 A family of spies, rabbis & prodigies 13:00 The violin, the grandfather & the impossible choice 16:38 The light switch that started it all 19:00 Juilliard dreams & a secret double life 21:03 Why Israel saved her life 28:30 The mentor's devastating public betrayal 36:50 The car crash that changed everything 41:00 16 years clean — the turning point 44:30 Using trauma as a superpower 54:35 Kumi Ori — the movement she's buildingNo Reservations is where host Jamie Geller sits down with people who made big, bold, beautiful, life-changing choices, and are finally ready to talk about why. From the rooftop overlooking the Western Wall, where heaven and earth meet, we have conversations with no filters, no fear, and no reservations.Find No Reservations on your favorite platforms: https://pods.link/noreservationsjamiegellerFind Jamie In The Rova on your favorite platforms: https://pods.link/jamieintherovaJamie Geller is the Chief Communications Officer and Global Spokesperson for Aish. As a key member of Aish's senior executive team, she brings extensive experience in building a media empire that influences millions daily. An award-winning producer, eight-time bestselling author, and media and marketing executive, Jamie’s career spans renowned networks including HBO, CNN, and the Food Network, where she earned numerous awards as a producer and marketing executive.Follow Jamie on social media for regular new uploads and updates: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamiegeller/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jamiegeller.com/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jamiegeller LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-geller/Website: https://www.jamiegeller.com/ Follow Ariella on social media for regular new uploads and updates: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ARIELLAVIOLINYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOGH-U5nJ0XLknU6bXC70owWebsite: www.violinlikethat.com

She Does Not Ask "Why Me?" She Asks "What Now?" | Bari Erber

In this episode of No Reservations, I sat down with Bari Erber to talk about the journey behind one of the most influential Jewish philanthropic families in the world and the personal story that shaped her along the way. Bari spoke openly about the difficult chapters she has lived through, the moments that could have broken her, and how those experiences reshaped her understanding of faith, responsibility, and purpose. Instead of turning away from pain, she chose to channel it into building, giving, and helping others. This conversation is about what it means to carry both grief and gratitude at the same time, and how the hardest moments in a life can sometimes become the very things that shape the legacy we leave behind. If this conversation resonated with you or made you think about the impact one person can have, share it with someone who might appreciate hearing it. Because stories like this don't spread by accident. They spread when people like you decide they're worth amplifying. Like, subscribe, comment, and share this episode. --- 00:00 Introduction 03:42 The values that shaped her upbringing 09:20 Bari’s life and the people that shaped her 18:15 A family having to build from nothing 30:04 Trying again after traumatic experiences 33:30 Accidentally starting a company 41:00 The Erber family gift to Aish 48:11 Showing up for her children 53:13 Writing Torah scrolls post-October 7 58:33 Legacy and passing the baton --- No Reservations is where host Jamie Geller sits down with people who made big, bold, beautiful, life-changing choices, and are finally ready to talk about why. From the rooftop overlooking the Western Wall, where heaven and earth meet, we have conversations with no filters, no fear, and no reservations. Find No Reservations on your favorite platforms: https://pods.link/noreservationsjamiegeller Find Jamie In The Rova on your favorite platforms: https://pods.link/jamieintherova Jamie Geller is the Chief Communications Officer and Global Spokesperson for Aish. As a key member of Aish's senior executive team, she brings extensive experience in building a media empire that influences millions daily. An award-winning producer, eight-time bestselling author, and media and marketing executive, Jamie’s career spans renowned networks including HBO, CNN, and the Food Network, where she earned numerous awards as a producer and marketing executive. Follow Jamie on social media for regular new uploads and updates: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamiegeller/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jamiegeller.com/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jamiegeller LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-geller/ Website: https://www.jamiegeller.com/ --- Bari Erber is a New York-based entrepreneur, philanthropist, and Jewish advocate who turned a dining room table hobby into the global children’s luxury brand, Bari Lynn. As the founder and president of a company featured in retailers like Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom, Bari balances her business success with a deep commitment to her community and heritage. A mother of seven and a granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor, she is a prominent leader and board member for organizations like Aish Global, Chai Lifeline, and United Hatzalah. Through her work and public speaking, Bari inspires others by blending modern entrepreneurship with timeless Jewish values and a passion for Zionism. Follow Bari on social media: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barilynnnaccessories/ Website: https://www.barilynn.com/