Jewish Journal of Los Angeles, May 10, 2010
Neil Strauss has a Jewish name: Tuvia, from the word tov, meaning good. It was given to him by a college buddy, Dustin, who became a religious Jewish mouthpiece in “The Game,” Strauss’ best-selling book about his exploits as a pickup-artist-in-training and bible to sexually frustrated men all over the world.
Dustin was proof that average-looking American Jewish men can be first-rate womanizers. With one simple glance, he could get a pretty girl at a bar to make out with him in a dark corner, almost like magic, while Strauss looked on with envy. Physically, Strauss painted himself as the classic Jewish neb (although he didn’t call himself that): short, balding and scrawny, with a nose that has a bump at the ridge.
Dustin has since gone from playboy to yeshiva boy. He went to Jerusalem, traded in one-night-stands for Ma’ariv, changed his name to Avisha and now focuses his energy on a rabbi’s daughter — his wife. Meanwhile, Strauss has gone from dateless dud to revered sage of the PUA (pickup art) community, men — and some women — who share knowledge, rules and terminology on the art of seduction. He followed up “The Game” with his L.A.-based “Stylelife Academy,” selling audio programs and tool kits. Last year, he released the paperback edition of “Rules of the Game,” a how-to book filled with self-help messages, field exercises, tested routines and short stories of seduction.
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