It’s hard to believe, but 30 years ago, a show about nothing quickly became a show that everyone talked about. When Seinfeld debuted on July 5, 1989, no one imagined that the NBC sitcom, created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld about friends living in Manhattan, would go on for nine seasons. It spanned 180 episodes and was nominated for a whopping 68 Emmys, winning 10.
However, the show’s inception was a bit different in the beginning. The group of four — Jerry Seinfeld’s Jerry, Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ Elaine, Jason Alexander’s George and Michael Richards’ Kramer — was originally a trio. “The pilot actually only had three. There was going to be a cast of four and the woman was going to be a waitress, and when the series got picked up, we changed the waitress to Elaine,” David revealed to Rolling Stone in 2014.
As for the concept, David and Seinfeld came up with it while grocery shopping together, talking about the products on the shelves and realizing the conversation they were having was funny. “We both realized that this is the kind of dialogue we never really heard on television, or even movies, for that matter,” the Curb Your Enthusiasm star said. “So that was sort of the basis — that was just the way we communicated and the things that we talked about.”
The pair also wanted the stand-up routines — which began every episode — to be part of the show’s premise, to show how comedians source their material from their friends. In fact, the title was almost Seinfeld (How a Comedian Gets His Material).
Despite the title, the series had a tremendous impact on audiences and on the cast, which is, in part, due to their tremendous chemistry.
“It was great, right from the get-go. It was the perfect blend — all great actors, all really funny,” the comic shared. “And even the additions that we made — Newman [was] spectacular, both sets of parents. Everybody just fit in so well. It just really worked, which is an understatement.”
David also reflected on the show’s legacy. “I get comments a lot, people thanking me [laughs], I go, ‘You’re welcome.’ To be perfectly honest, I don’t really think about it, but if someone says something to me, it’s nice to hear,” he noted. “I guess it’s hard to imagine that it could have that effect on people, but I suppose it does. Because it doesn’t necessarily make me so happy, you know what I mean? So I’m wondering how it can make other people so happy, but I’ll take their word for it.”
See where the cast is today in the gallery below.
It’s hard to believe, but 30 years ago, a show about nothing quickly became a show that everyone talked about. When Seinfeld debuted on July 5, 1989, no one imagined that the NBC sitcom, created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld about friends living in Manhattan, would go on for nine seasons. It spanned 180 episodes and was nominated for a whopping 68 Emmys, winning 10.
However, the show’s inception was a bit different in the beginning. The group of four — Jerry Seinfeld’s Jerry, Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ Elaine, Jason Alexander’s George and Michael Richards’ Kramer — was originally a trio. “The pilot actually only had three. There was going to be a cast of four and the woman was going to be a waitress, and when the series got picked up, we changed the waitress to Elaine,” David revealed to Rolling Stone in 2014.
As for the concept, David and Seinfeld came up with it while grocery shopping together, talking about the products on the shelves and realizing the conversation they were having was funny. “We both realized that this is the kind of dialogue we never really heard on television, or even movies, for that matter,” the Curb Your Enthusiasm star said. “So that was sort of the basis — that was just the way we communicated and the things that we talked about.”
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The pair also wanted the stand-up routines — which began every episode — to be part of the show’s premise, to show how comedians source their material from their friends. In fact, the title was almost Seinfeld (How a Comedian Gets His Material).
Despite the title, the series had a tremendous impact on audiences and on the cast, which is, in part, due to their tremendous chemistry.
“It was great, right from the get-go. It was the perfect blend — all great actors, all really funny,” the comic shared. “And even the additions that we made — Newman [was] spectacular, both sets of parents. Everybody just fit in so well. It just really worked, which is an understatement.”
David also reflected on the show’s legacy. “I get comments a lot, people thanking me [laughs], I go, ‘You’re welcome.’ To be perfectly honest, I don’t really think about it, but if someone says something to me, it’s nice to hear,” he noted. “I guess it’s hard to imagine that it could have that effect on people, but I suppose it does. Because it doesn’t necessarily make me so happy, you know what I mean? So I’m wondering how it can make other people so happy, but I’ll take their word for it.”
See where the cast is today in the gallery below.
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Jerry Seinfeld
After Seinfeld ended in 1998, he returned to stand-up comedy in New York, releasing an HBO special the following year and a Netflix special titled Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill in 2020. He appeared in many series through the years and created The Marriage Ref in 2010, which aired for nine episodes. Then, in 2012, he created Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee.
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Julia Louis-Dreyfus
It’s safe to say that Louis-Dreyfus’ career was just getting started on Seinfeld. In 2006, she landed the title character on CBS’ The New Adventures of Old Christine, which ran for five seasons and landed her an Emmy win. Then, in 2011, she was cast as Selina Meyer in HBO’s Veep. The series ran for seven seasons on HBO. She won six Emmys for her political satire role, making her the only woman to win Emmys for three separate comedy series.
In 2017, she revealed she was diagnosed with breast cancer, but she continued working while in treatment. In October 2018, she said that she was in remission and was cancer-free.
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Jason Alexander
While Alexander (real name Jay Scott Greenspan) is best known as George, he also is famous for his role in 1990’s Pretty Woman, as well as his many Broadway roles. After Seinfeld wrapped, he landed the lead in Bob Patterson, a sitcom that ended after one season on NBC. He appeared in dozens of other shows and films and stepped behind the cameras; he directed episodes of Franklin & Bash, Criminal Minds and Mike & Molly.
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Michael Richards
Following Seinfeld, Richards returned to stand-up comedy, then launched The Michael Richards Show, which only aired for one season. In 2006, he allegedly used racist slurs following a stand-up routine in Hollywood, causing him to apologize and ultimately step out of the public eye. In 2013, he returned to TV to appear in Kirstie Alley’s sitcom Kirstie, but it was canceled after one season.
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Wayne Knight
Knight first appeared in Seinfeld as Newman in season 2, in a guest role. However, fans loved him so much he became a recurring character from season 3 until the end of the series. He’s also known for his roles in Jurassic Park, 3rd Rock from the Sun and Space Jam. He has done a great deal of voice acting over the years, including in the Bee Movie, Kung Fu Panda and Toy Story 2. From 2011 to 2015, he was part of the main cast of TVLand’s The Exes.
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Larry David
David continued to create after the sitcom ended. In 2000, he launched Curb Your Enthusiasm, as the creator, writer, producer and star. He also appears frequently on Saturday Night Live as Bernie Sanders.
