143-466: Cosmo Kramer , usually referred to simply by his surname, is a fictional character in the American television sitcom Seinfeld (1989–1998) played by Michael Richards . The character is loosely based on comedian Kenny Kramer , Larry David 's ex-neighbor across the hall. Kramer is the neighbor of the series' main character, Jerry Seinfeld , and is friends with George Costanza and Elaine Benes . Of
286-485: A Frogger machine across the street, mimicking the action of the game itself. The last season included a story arc in which Elaine has an on/off relationship with Puddy . Despite the enormous popularity and willingness of the cast to return for a tenth season, Seinfeld decided to end the show after Season 9, believing he would thereby be able to ensure the show would maintain its quality and go out on top. NBC offered Seinfeld $ 110 million—a record $ 5 million an episode for
429-415: A Bob Hope television special , and the next four episodes were filmed. These episodes were highly rated as they followed summer re-runs of Cheers on Thursdays at 9:30 p.m., and the series was finally picked up. At one point, NBC considered airing these episodes on Saturdays at 10:30 p.m. but gave the slot to a short-lived sitcom called FM instead. The series was renamed simply Seinfeld as
572-412: A Cuban embassy official for several boxes of authentic Cuban cigars. Later on, he more famously adopts a similarly named alter-ego, Dr. Martin van Nostrand (in addition to "von" instead of "Van", "Nostrand" is also pronounced differently in this alias). As Dr. van Nostrand, Kramer tries to get hold of Elaine's medical chart to erase the negative comments her doctor has made in " The Package ". He also uses
715-594: A Harold Pinter play, Betrayal . Some stories were inspired by headlines and rumors, as explained in the DVD features "Notes About Nothing", "Inside Look" and "Audio Commentary." In " The Maestro ," Kramer's lawsuit is roughly similar to the McDonald's coffee case . " The Outing " is based primarily on rumors that Larry Charles heard about Jerry Seinfeld's sexuality. The series was often described as "a show about nothing." However, in 2014, Seinfeld stated: "The pitch for
858-606: A Nielsen rating of 10.9/19. The ratings did not exhibit the regional skew Tartikoff predicted, much to the encouragement of the show's supporters. Ludwin canceled one of the Bob Hope specials budgeted for that season so the entertainment division had the money to order four more episodes of The Seinfeld Chronicles , which formed the rest of the show's first season (the series was by then retitled to Seinfeld ) —a move without which Chicago Tribune columnist Phil Rosenthal later said there "would be no Seinfeld" . Although this
1001-501: A disabled badge , disabled placard , handicapped permit , handicapped placard , handicapped tag , and " Blue Badge " in the European Union , is a permit that is displayed upon parking a vehicle. It gives the operator of a vehicle permission to special privileges regarding the parking of that vehicle. These privileges include parking in a space reserved for persons with disabilities, or, in some situations, permission to park in
1144-566: A "pirate" shirt on The Today Show , " The Non-Fat Yogurt " featuring Rudy Giuliani , the Republican then-mayor-elect of New York, and " The Opposite " in which George, doing the opposite of what his instincts tell him he should do, lands a job with the New York Yankees and Elaine leaves "Pendant Publishing" because of a comedy of errors that led to its demise. Another story arc has George returning to live with his parents. Amid
1287-414: A 22-episode tenth season—but he declined. A major controversy caused in the ninth season was the accidental burning of a Puerto Rican flag by Kramer in " The Puerto Rican Day ." This scene caused a furor among Puerto Ricans, and as a result, NBC showed this episode only once. Seinfeld defused the protestors by not letting this episode continue in syndication, as revealed in "Inside Look" on DVD. However,
1430-403: A 75-minute episode (cut to 60 minutes in syndication , in two parts) written by co-creator and ex-executive producer Larry David, which aired on May 14, 1998. Before the finale, a 45-minute retrospective clip show, " The Chronicle ," was aired. The retrospective was expanded to an hour after the original airing and aired again on NBC as an hour-long episode, and has since aired in syndication. It
1573-518: A TV sitcom series named Jerry . The show within a show , Jerry was much like Seinfeld in that it was "about nothing," and Seinfeld played himself. The fictional Jerry was launched in the Season 4 finale, but unlike Seinfeld , it wasn't picked up as a series. Jerry is one of many examples of metafiction in the show. There are no fewer than 22 fictional movies featured, like Rochelle, Rochelle . Because of these several elements, Seinfeld became
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#17327938438851716-521: A coffee table. He also says that he has plans for a coaster to be built into the cover. Tom Gammill and Max Pross , writers of "The Cigar Store Indian", came up with the idea of the book, and Larry David added on the idea of the foldout legs to turn it into a coffee table. Kramer's physical eccentricities are a frequent source of humor. His entrance is a recurring gag. He frequently 'slides' into Jerry's apartment, often resulting in applause, as in " The Virgin ". In " The Revenge ", Kramer clumsily carries
1859-407: A comment about Kramer going to a fantasy camp, and how Kramer's "whole life is a fantasy camp. People should plunk down two thousand dollars to live like him for a week. Do nothing, fall ass-backwards into money, mooch food off your neighbors, and have sex without dating. That's a fantasy camp." As a younger man, Kramer had several jobs. In the episode " The Strong Box ", Kramer says he was briefly in
2002-480: A company called Brandt-Leland. Later in the episode, he is "fired" (without actually having ever been employed) when his "work" is assessed and found to be completely meaningless. He is a compulsive gambler who successfully avoids gambling for several years until " The Diplomat's Club ", in which he bets with a wealthy Texan on the arrival and departure times of flights going into New York's LaGuardia Airport . A struggling (and terrible) actor, Kramer's first gig
2145-456: A crossover to CBS show Murphy Brown , marking the first such cooperation between rival networks. " The Busboy " introduces George, Kramer and Elaine as having their own storylines for the first time. Although Castle Rock Entertainment's Glenn Padnick thought Seinfeld was too generous, showcasing his co-stars' comedic talent became a trademark throughout the series. Larry Charles wrote an episode for Season 2, " The Bet ," in which Elaine buys
2288-468: A disabled person's parking disc ("clock"). When parking on yellow lines or in other places where there is a time restriction, a clock showing the time of arrival should be displayed. When parking on a no waiting restriction (yellow lines etc.) a maximum of three hours is permitted. The clock should be sent to together with the Blue Badge. If not, a clock can be obtained from the same council that issued
2431-426: A dry sack of cement powder to the washing machine. In " The Foundation ", he takes on a group of kids at a karate school, and in " The Van Buren Boys ", after giving his stories to Elaine to write, he slips up on the golf balls and lands on the floor. In " The Subway ", Kramer fights to get a seat with several people on a subway. He falls a couple times and ends up not getting a seat. Kramer and Newman had been playing
2574-566: A full-season order. Ann Jillian lasted only a single season of 13 episodes and was off the air by the end of 1990. When NBC announced its 1989–90 (primetime) schedule in May 1989, The Seinfeld Chronicles was not included, but the show's supporters did not give up. The pilot first aired on July 5, 1989, and finished second in its time slot against the CBS police drama Jake and the Fatman , receiving
2717-408: A general rule include the use of any assistive device such as a wheelchair, crutches, or cane, as well as a missing leg or foot. Some states also include certain cardiovascular, pain, or respiratory conditions. About half of US states (26) include blindness as a qualifying disability enabling the person to obtain a disability parking permit for use as a passenger, and 14 states include a disabled hand as
2860-406: A guest character (e.g. Oh Henry! bars) or simply a conversational aside (e.g., Chuckles , Clark Bar , Twinkies ). A large number of non-candy products were also featured throughout the series. The show's creators claim that they weren't engaging in a product placement strategy for commercial gain. One motivation for the use of real-world products, entirely unrelated to commercial considerations,
3003-495: A gun from Kramer's friend. This episode was not filmed because the content was deemed unacceptable, and it was replaced by the episode " The Phone Message ". " The Stranded ," which aired during Season 3, was initially intended for Season 2. At the beginning of this episode, Jerry clears up the continuity error over George's real estate job. Season 4 marked the sitcom's entry into the Nielsen ratings Top 30. It contains several of
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#17327938438853146-426: A humorous focus on the atypical names of these characters, which often contain alliteration. In keeping with Seinfeld's reputation as a clean comedian, though the show frequently contains dialogue around sexual themes, the show notably avoids using almost all explicit sexual terminology. Notably, in the popular episode " The Contest ," whose plot line concerns a contest amongst the main characters to see which one can go
3289-684: A joke did not elicit the desired reaction, they rewrote it and performed it again. In at least one case, "The Marine Biologist," this led to David writing an entirely new scene requiring Alexander to memorize a monologue in only a matter of minutes. Laugh tracks were used only for matching shots, not for artificially adding laughter. Various locations used for establishing shots included Tom's Restaurant at 112th Street and Broadway (Monk's Cafe), Midtown West's Roosevelt Hospital (recurring exterior emergency room scene and indoor scenes in 'The Junior Mint' and 'The Bris'), Cornell Medical Centre at 525 East 68th Street, 22-39 37th Street, Queens (The Costanza's house),
3432-508: A local authority Parking Attendant (in addition to police and traffic wardens) has the power to inspect a Blue Badge; failure to allow this inspection is an offence. There are also proposals to extend the issue of badges to small children and a wider range of (temporarily or permanently) disabled people. In Australia, disabled parking permits are provided under the Australian Disability Parking Scheme, which
3575-542: A mail carrier who lives in the same building and is Jerry's nemesis. In addition to recurring characters, Seinfeld features numerous celebrities who appear as themselves or as girlfriends, boyfriends, bosses, and other acquaintances. A number of actresses made guest appearances as Seinfeld's love interests in single episodes: Compared to other family and group sitcoms of the era, Seinfeld stood out. The principal characters are not related by family or work-associated connections but remain distinctly close friends throughout
3718-471: A minute for advertising—a mark previously attained only by the Super Bowl . Elizabeth Magnotta and Alexandra Strohl analyze the success of Seinfeld with recourse to the incongruity theory of humor: "The Incongruity Theory claims that humor is created out of a violation of an expectation. For humor to result from this unexpected result, the event must have an appropriate emotional climate, comprised of
3861-515: A near-brotherly love for Kramer, and Kramer is not even prompted to look away from his current activity, merely responding in a rote tone, "I love you, too, buddy." He is close friends with Newman ; however, like the other main characters, Kramer and Newman frequently get into conflict with each other, most notably in " The Butter Shave ", in which Newman attempts to eat Kramer alive. Their get-rich-quick schemes appear in " The Old Man " and "The Bottle Deposit". One of Kramer's friends, Bob Sacamano,
4004-687: A nervous breakdown in " The Money ", followed by Elaine writing Peterman's biography in " The Van Buren Boys ", which leads to Kramer's parody of Kenny Kramer's Reality Tour seen in " The Muffin Tops ". The final season included episodes like " The Merv Griffin Show " in which Kramer converts his apartment into a talk-show studio and plays the character of talk-show host, " The Betrayal " that presents in reverse chronological order what happened to Sue Ellen's wedding in India, and " The Frogger " in which George pushes
4147-575: A one-man guide out of stereotyped sitcom behavior toward the nut-ball stuff that really happens. —Peter Goddard, The Toronto Star Though eccentric, Kramer is generally caring, friendly and kind-hearted; he often goes out of his way to help total strangers, and tries to get his friends to also help others and to do the right thing even when they do not want to. He is confident in his own unique way of doing things, yet he can be neurotic and highly-strung. His quirkiness, strange body movements and frequent gibberish mutterings have become his trademark. He
4290-441: A parking garage (" The Parking Garage "), committing mail fraud (" The Package ") or even hiring an assassin to get rid of a dog (" The Engagement "). Kramer is also known to mooch off his friends, especially Jerry. Kramer regularly enters and uses Jerry's apartment without knocking, and often helps himself to Jerry's food. Kramer also uses tools/appliances of Jerry's, only occasionally with permission, and often returning them in
4433-445: A permanent disability which does not fall directly within the more rigid statutory requirements but which seriously impairs their mobility. Great Britain 's Blue Badge scheme does not apply to parking away from public roads and local authority car parks, with the general concessions often not recognised at ports, airports and railway stations unless the operators have provided voluntary parking privileges. Until 2010 Directgov provided
Cosmo Kramer - Misplaced Pages Continue
4576-526: A person has and trying to make something funny out of it. Doesn't everybody do terrible things and have terrible thoughts? Just by trying to be as funny, you're going to deal with a lot of things that are real, so the show's really about something. The whole thing about the show being about nothing is ridiculous." Much of the show's humor is based upon repeated use of irony, incongruity, and (oftentimes unfortunate) coincidences. Additionally, guest characters are frequently introduced with little to no context, with
4719-547: A personal assistant to her eccentric boss Justin Pitt and George's parents' temporary separation. This was the first season in which Seinfeld reached No. 1 in the Nielsen Ratings. The use of Jerry's stand-up act declined, and the end stand-up segment no longer appeared because the storylines for all four characters grew denser. In Season 7, a story arc involved George getting engaged to his ex-girlfriend, Susan Ross, after
4862-479: A phrase that sounded like the tune Easy to Beat . Jerry Seinfeld and executive producer Larry David both liked Wolff's additions, and three episodes were produced with this new style of music. However, they had neglected to inform NBC and Castle Rock executives of the change, and when the season premiere aired, the executives were surprised and unimpressed and requested that they return to the original style. The subsequent two episodes were redone, leaving this episode as
5005-400: A pizza place where customers make their own pie (" Male Unbonding "), a bladder system for tankers that will "put an end to maritime oil spills " (" The Voice "), and a product that will put ketchup and mustard in the same bottle. In " The Friar's Club ", he creates a concept restaurant that only serves peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, which he calls P.B. & Js. He also comes up with
5148-410: A placard that hangs from the rear-view mirror. Plates are generally used for disabled drivers on their personal vehicle, while the portable disability placard can be moved from one vehicle to another with the disabled person, both when driving or when riding with another driver. The medical requirements to obtain a permit vary by state, but are usually confined to specific types of disabilities. These as
5291-588: A policy, 50% are planning on implementing one in the future. In England, there were 698 reported prosecutions in the year ending March 2021. A drop of 49% in prosecuted badges may have related to the effects of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on citizen behaviour, local authority enforcement practices, and resources availability. In England, 4,396 badges in the year ending March 2021 were reported to be lost or stolen. Of these, 76% were reported to be lost, and 24% were stolen. In England and Wales , Blue Badge holders are required (unless signs show otherwise) to display
5434-420: A precautionary measure due to the failure of the short-lived 1990 ABC series with a similarly sounding title, The Marshall Chronicles . After airing the remaining four episodes of its first season the summer of 1990, NBC ordered 13 more episodes. David believed that he and Seinfeld had no more stories to tell and advised Seinfeld to turn down the order, but Seinfeld agreed to the additional episodes. Season 2
5577-496: A prospective buyer interested in an elegant apartment in order to use its bathroom. Kramer also appears as Pennypacker to help Elaine get revenge on a Mayan clothing store, "Putumayo", by repricing all the merchandise in the store with a pricing gun in " The Millennium ", though due to a mishap with the pricing gun, Pennypacker instead removes the desiccants from clothes in the store in order to render them "noticeably musty in five years". In this latter capacity, he claims Pennypacker
5720-543: A prototype for a bra for men called the "bro" or the "manssiere". In " The Muffin Tops ", Kramer initiates The Peterman Reality Bus Tour, charging customers $ 37.50 for a tour of his life. Kramer also hatches a scheme to smuggle Cubans to the United States to make Cuban cigars , only to learn the "Cubans" are actually Dominicans (" The English Patient "). He participates in lawsuits against various people and companies and considers himself "very litigious". He
5863-624: A qualifying disability. Four states include deafness (Georgia, Kentucky, Virginia, Wyoming), and two states (Virginia and New York) include mental illness or developmental disabilities as qualifying disabilities. In the European Union (EU), a disabled parking permit allows partial or total exemption from charges or penalties associated with the parking of a motor vehicle used by a badge-holder, and shows entitlement to use of dedicated parking bays and off-street parking (where they are provided). The concession extends in some places to partial or total exemption from tolls or general prohibitions on where
Cosmo Kramer - Misplaced Pages Continue
6006-538: A result. In general, Kramer excels at persuading Jerry into doing things against his better judgment. Kramer has displayed an almost unbending loyalty toward Jerry, such as in " The Millennium " and " The Bottle Deposit ", risking the failure of his own plans for Jerry's benefit. Kramer also thought nothing of giving Jerry a large amount of his banked blood in " The Blood ". In the same respect, Jerry has helped Kramer out of good will and always seems to forgive and ultimately accept Kramer's mooching tendencies. At times, Jerry
6149-421: A screen door alongside plants and wind chimes in " The Serenity Now ". Kramer enjoys smoking Cuban cigars. In " The Abstinence " he sets up a smoking club in his apartment, which included a regularly-scheduled "pipe night" for those who preferred pipe tobacco to cigars and/or cigarettes. His face gets ruined after so much smoking and he hires Jackie Chiles to sue the cigarette company, but instead gets his image as
6292-409: A service that covered country-wide customised maps for Blue Badge Holders with different base colours reflecting councils' policies on Blue Badge parking. In addition to council policies this service also pinpointed the location of different features specific to disabled community. There are a few dedicated Blue Badge sat-navs available, mainly from the specialist company Navevo. Since the cessation of
6435-526: A state of disrepair (if at all). Kramer is known for his extreme honesty and lack of tact; in " The Nose Job ", he tells George's insecure girlfriend that she needs a nose job. In " The Kiss Hello " Elaine tries to take advantage of this personality quirk by inviting Kramer to meet her friend, Wendy, whose hairstyle she feels is outdated. Kramer rarely gets into trouble for his candor, but his friends often do; in " The Cartoon ", Kramer makes comments to Sally Weaver , who then blames Jerry for "ruining her life" as
6578-522: A tenth season. The offer NBC made to Seinfeld was over three times higher per episode than anyone on TV had ever been offered before. Seinfeld told the network that he was not married nor had children, and wished to focus on his personal life. As reported in July 2007, he was the second-highest earner in the TV industry, earning at the time $ 60 million a year. The episode became the first to command over $ 1 million
6721-682: A time-limited space for a longer time, or to park at a meter without payment. Member Countries of the International Transport Forum , an inter-governmental organisation within the OECD , would from 1978 grant the same parking concessions to people with disabilities as they offered their own nationals. The Resolution was updated and extended in 1997 by "Resolution no. 97/4 on Reciprocal Recognition of Parking Badges for Persons with Mobility Handicaps", and now applies to ITF member states as well as Associated Countries. The condition
6864-532: A touching lack of faith in one's fellow human beings." This leads to very few happy endings, except at somebody else's expense. More often in every episode, situations resolve with characters getting a justly deserved comeuppance . The show premiered as The Seinfeld Chronicles on July 5, 1989. After it aired, a pickup by NBC seemed unlikely, and the show was offered to Fox , which declined to pick it up. Rick Ludwin , head of late night and special events for NBC, however, diverted money from his budget by canceling
7007-754: A traffic accident. A storyline running throughout the fifth season is the development of one of Kramer's few successful ideas: a coffee table book about coffee tables . Kramer first thinks of the book in " The Cigar Store Indian ", although he later claims that he first had the idea when skiing. Throughout the season, his quest to get the book published becomes a running gag. Pendant Publishing (where Elaine and Kramer's then-girlfriend work) decides to publish it in " The Fire ". In " The Opposite ", Kramer starts his "book tour" with an appearance on Regis and Kathie Lee . By accidentally spitting his coffee over Kathie Lee Gifford ("All over my Kathie Lee Casuals!"), his book tour goes down in flames. Elaine inadvertently causes
7150-476: A vehicle can be driven. Council recommendation 98/376/EC recommended that member states issue parking permits adhering to the standardised Community model, and that the permit should be recognized in other member states. The recommendation has since been amended by Council recommendation 2008/205/EC. The recommendations are extended to the European Economic Area (EEA) through incorporation into
7293-420: Is "a wealthy American industrialist". In " The Nose Job ", Kramer uses the pseudonym Professor Peter Von Nostrand to pose as the betrothed son-in-law of an incarcerated man who once stole his jacket in order to retrieve it from the man's apartment; Kramer's jacket, to which he attributes at least some of his amorous success, is a minor plot point in other episodes until, in " The Cheever Letters ", he trades it to
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#17327938438857436-438: Is also known for his habit of bursting through Jerry's apartment door without knocking. His antics include frequent pratfalls and a penchant for noisy, percussive outbursts to indicate skepticism , agreement, irritation and a variety of other feelings. He has been described as "an extraordinary cross between Eraserhead and Herman Munster ". Kramer appears in all but two episodes: " The Chinese Restaurant " and " The Pen ", in
7579-474: Is also occasionally called "the K-Man" (" The Barber ", " The Bizarro Jerry ", " The Busboy ", " The Note ", " The Hamptons ", " The Scofflaw " and " The Soup Nazi "). A derogatory designation for Kramer has been " hipster doofus ", a moniker assigned to him by a woman in a wheelchair he once dated in the episode " The Handicap Spot ", and occasionally directed at him by Elaine, as in " The Glasses ". The nickname
7722-426: Is also well liked by Jerry's parents, whom he calls once a week, as if he were their own son. Kramer was originally envisioned as a recluse who never left his apartment except to visit Jerry. This was the original reason behind why Kramer helps himself to Jerry's possessions and food without any pushback and also why he is absent from the season two episode "The Chinese Restaurant", which takes place entirely outside of
7865-416: Is always represented in these lawsuits by Jackie Chiles . In " The Maestro ", he settles one such suit (though receiving no monetary compensation) against a coffee company whose beverages are too hot (a reference to the McDonald's coffee case ). In " The Abstinence ", Kramer sues a tobacco company for the damage its products cause to his appearance, and in " The Caddy ", he sues Sue Ellen Mischke for causing
8008-475: Is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, with a total of nine seasons consisting of 180 episodes . Its ensemble cast stars Seinfeld as a fictionalized version of himself and focuses on his personal life with three of his friends: best friend George Costanza ( Jason Alexander ), former girlfriend Elaine Benes ( Julia Louis-Dreyfus ), and neighbor from across
8151-416: Is based on Dan O'Keefe's dad, who made up his own holiday: Festivus . Other stories take a variety of turns. " The Chinese Restaurant " consists of George, Jerry, and Elaine waiting for a table throughout the entire episode. " The Boyfriend ", revolving around Keith Hernandez , extends through two episodes. " The Betrayal " is famous for using reverse chronology and was inspired by a similar plot device in
8294-411: Is entertained by Kramer's antics, which may also be a factor in the friendship's endurance. However, Kramer is also quick to assume the worst of Jerry, believing him guilty of everything from sabotaging a Miss America contestant (in " The Chaperone ") to having a double life as a Nazi leader (in " The Limo "), and is often oblivious to his sentiments. In " The Serenity Now ", an emotional Jerry declares
8437-486: Is hard to pin down. A profile in The New York Times described Kramer as "cartoon-like" in a piece with a headline calling him "Seinfeld's craziest neighbor". The Los Angeles Times calls him "eccentric" and "flipped-lid". To The Washington Post , he was "goofy". But he's more than so much concentrated comic schtick. Kramer is an attitude. Kramer's revolutionary far more than he's "funny". He's liberating,
8580-418: Is its theme music. Composed by Jonathan Wolff , it consists of distinct solo sampled electric bass riffs that open the show and connect the scenes, often accompanied by beatboxing . The bass music eventually replaced the original piano/synth music by Jep Epstein when it was played again after the first broadcast of the pilot episode . The show lacked a traditional title track and the riffs were played over
8723-531: Is referred to as Seinlanguage , which is also the title of Jerry Seinfeld's best-selling book on humor. These terms include " man hands ", " shrinkage ", " regift ", and " double dip ". A recurring feature of Seinfeld was its inclusion of specific products, especially candy , as plot points. These might be a central feature of a plot (e.g., Junior Mints , Twix , Chuckles , Jujyfruits , bite-size Three Musketeers , Snickers , Chunky , Oh Henry! , Drake's Coffee Cake and PEZ ), or an association of candy with
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#17327938438858866-582: Is referred to by Kramer on several occasions, yet never makes an onscreen appearance. Sacamano is used as a source for several weird anecdotes, nutty ideas, or inaccurate information. Lomez is another good friend of Kramer's who is mentioned, yet never makes an appearance. Kramer's apartment is the subject of numerous radical experiments in interior design . Oftentimes, the "experiments" never happen due to Kramer's inherent short-attention span, including his plan to eliminate all furniture and build "levels... like ancient Egypt" in " The Pony Remark ". He reconstructed
9009-420: Is revealed that Kramer has a GED . Kramer was estranged for a long period from his mother, Babs Kramer, who works as a restroom matron at an upscale restaurant. Unlike George and Jerry, Kramer's character does not have a well-developed network of family members shown in the sitcom. He is the only main character on the show whose father never makes an appearance; in " The Chinese Woman ", Kramer mentions that he
9152-502: Is the comedy value of funny-sounding phrases and words. "I knew I wanted Kramer to think of watching the operation like going to see a movie," explained Seinfeld writer/producer Andy Robin in an interview published in The Hollywood Reporter . "At first, I thought maybe a piece of popcorn falls into the patient. I ran that by my brother, and he said, 'No, Junior Mints are just funnier.'" Many advertisers capitalized on
9295-542: Is the display of a badge showing the international wheelchair symbol. The International Transport Forum was called the European Conference of Ministers of Transport (ECMT) between 1953 and 2007. In the United States, reserved spaces are mandated by the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines. Disabled parking permits generally take the form of either specially marked license plates or
9438-589: Is the last male member of his family, implying that his father had died. He also mentions in " The Lip Reader " that he has or had a deaf cousin, from whom he learned fluent American Sign Language. Like the other main characters, he has no children. In " The Strong Box ", it is revealed that Kramer spent a brief time in the Army , although info about this time is "classified". In " The Implant ", he says he lived in Los Angeles for three months. [Kramer's personality]
9581-512: Is torn between exact opposites of her friends and Jerry dates a woman who has the now-famous "man hands". Some notable episodes from Season 8 include " The Little Kicks " showing Elaine's horrible dancing, and " The Chicken Roaster " which portrays the Kenny Rogers Roasters chicken restaurant which opened during that time. A story arc in this season involves Peterman going to Burma in " The Foundation " until he recovered from
9724-638: The City of London . In these cities and boroughs special rules and parking spaces are provided for Blue Badge holders. Similar local schemes operate in other large towns or cities in the UK, for example Norwich operates a 'green badge scheme'. The standard scheme only generally applies to on-street parking and is outlined on the Roads Service Northern Ireland website. A "White Badge" is required for access to Pedestrian Zones. In Scotland ,
9867-709: The European Union will need to obtain a clock (obtainable from their issuing office in the UK) to validate their badge otherwise the vehicle will be treated as if no badge were displayed. In London , the volume of traffic has led to restrictions upon the national scheme in some areas with local colour schemes used to restrict standard concessions to local residents, for example the permits are green in Camden , white in Westminster , purple in Kensington and Chelsea , and red in
10010-670: The Marlboro Man on the Marlboro billboard in Times Square . He hires Cuban cigar rollers in an attempt to make his own Cuban cigars in " The English Patient ". Kramer's conversation sometimes contains onomatopoeia or nonsensical sounds in order to stress an emotional point or describe earlier actions. He sometimes expresses his agreement with a sentiment or suggestion via the word " giddyup ". He indicates pleasure with "Oh, Mama!" and frustration or disgust with "Oh... yeah!" Of
10153-587: The Soup Nazi and Jackie Chiles , who was based on Johnnie Cochran . Episodes have separate plot strands, but the characters' stories often intertwine at the end. The narratives reveal the creators' "consistent efforts to maintain the intimacy" among the small cast of characters. The show maintains a strong sense of continuity , as characters and plots from past episodes are often referenced or expanded on. Occasionally, story arcs span multiple episodes or entire seasons, such as Season 4 , which revolves around
10296-584: The United Kingdom , this scheme of permits was originally introduced (using Orange Badges) by the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970 . Badges are issued as a right if a person meets certain statutory requirements, most of which are associated with actually being in receipt of certain disability benefits from the national Social Security system; additionally, a local authority can make concessionary issues of badges to persons who have
10439-523: The Writers Guild of America voted it the second best-written TV series of all time (second to The Sopranos ). E! named it the "Number 1 reason [why] the '90s ruled". Quotes from numerous episodes have become catchphrases in popular culture. Seinfeld began as a 23-minute pilot titled " The Seinfeld Chronicles ". Created by Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David , developed by NBC executive Rick Ludwin, and produced by Castle Rock Entertainment , it
10582-522: The pilot pitch to NBC by Jerry and George. Another example is Jerry's girlfriend Vanessa, who appears in " The Stake Out " and with whom he ends the relationship when things do not work out in " The Stock Tip ". Larry David , the head writer and executive producer for the first seven seasons, was praised for keeping a close eye on minor details and ensuring the main characters' lives remained consistent and believable. Curb Your Enthusiasm , David's later comedy series, also had an overarching plot for all but
10725-515: The Americas, New York. The live stand-up comedy performed by Seinfeld at the beginning of most episodes was truly filmed at The Improv, a comedy club at 358 West 44th Street, Manhattan; though it closed in 1993, another comedy club operates at the site today. The Yankee Stadium exterior seen in the show has now been demolished. Most office building establishing shots are real businesses and locations. Various real street locations can be gleaned from
10868-665: The EEA Agreement. Since 2000, all general disabled parking permits in the EU have been standardised to a common style and blue colour, leading to the officially-used designation "Blue Badge". A Blue Badge issued in one country of the EU is generally given equal recognition in others with various exceptions as described for the countries below. The privileges vary by area, but some include parking in no parking zones, extended time limit on time-limited parking areas, waived parking fees, and using pedestrian areas in urgent situations. In
11011-604: The Taconic State Parkway exit to the Hopewell Junction, Dutchess County, New York (driving scene in 'The Bubble Boy'), and the Amagansett farmers market, Long Island ('The Hamptons'). The exterior shot used for Jerry's New York apartment building was actually located at 757 S New Hampshire Avenue, Los Angeles. The real-life exterior of Pendant Publishing, Elaine's workplace, is located at 1325 Ave of
11154-564: The actors walking in New York were also filmed at CBS Studio Center, on their New York Street backlot . Street scenes and park scenes were filmed in the CBS Studio Centre's New York Street and Central Park backlots, respectively. A source of problems for the cast was the small sets, especially that of Jerry's apartment; Alexander noted, "If you knew you were doing a series for nine years, you would never build that set." Adding to
11297-423: The army, and claims the reason for his discharge is classified. In the episode " The Muffin Tops ", Kramer mentions shaving his chest when he was a lifeguard. His long term unemployed status is explained in " The Strike ", when he goes back to work at H&H Bagels after being on strike since 1985. He is fired by the end of the episode. In the episode " The Bizarro Jerry ", Kramer accidentally begins working for
11440-410: The audience is never made to feel sorry for any of the characters. Even Susan's death in " The Invitations " elicits no genuine emotions from anybody in the show. Seinfeld does not shy away from making light of tough topics, from death to illness to disability. The show frequently engages in fourth-wall-breaking humor and self-satire. One such example is the story arc , where the characters promote
11583-421: The badge. The time clock must be displayed on the vehicle's dashboard or facia panel, so that the time can be seen clearly through the front windscreen. The clock should be set to show the quarter hour period during which the car was parked. If there is no dashboard or facia panel in the vehicle, the clock must still be displayed in a place where it can be clearly read from outside the vehicle. Badge holders from
11726-430: The beginning and end of each episode, even functioning as transitions during the show. A few episodes set a benchmark for later seasons. " The Deal " establishes Jerry and Elaine's relationship by setting rules about having sex while remaining friends. " The Parking Garage " was the first episode shot with no audience for the episode and, after " The Chinese Restaurant ", to not show Jerry's apartment. " The Keys " contains
11869-415: The biography of J. Peterman she was ghostwriting, Kramer develops a reality bus tour called "The Peterman Reality Tour" and touts himself as "The Real J. Peterman". Kramer was known only as "Kramer" during the show's first five seasons (from 1990 to 1994). In " The Seinfeld Chronicles ", Jerry referred to him as "Kessler", which was his original name for the show, until it was changed to "Kramer". However, in
12012-511: The building. However, in season three Kramer starts to join Jerry, Elaine, and George in various scenes outside of the building. As the series progresses, Kramer completely loses any hints of reclusiveness and becomes one of the most extroverted characters on the show. Kramer also gets his friends directly into trouble by talking them into unwise or even illegal actions such as parking in a disabled parking space (" The Handicap Spot "), urinating in
12155-514: The car windows during driving scenes. By the final season, each episode of the series cost $ 3 million to $ 3.5 million. More than 120 episodes make reference to the Superman franchise . Teri Hatcher, who played Lois Lane on Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman , plays Jerry's girlfriend Sidra. Paula Marshall , who played Christina Riley on the Superboy TV series , portrays
12298-452: The chest the way Abbott would hit Costello." The series includes numerous references to the team. George Costanza's middle name is "Louis", after Costello. " The Old Man " episode features a cantankerous character named "Sid Fields" as a tribute to the landlord on the team's TV show. Kramer's friend is named Mickey Abbott. A copywriter for the J. Peterman catalog is named Eddie Sherman, after the team's longtime agent. In Episode 30, Kramer hears
12441-572: The directgov service maps have been provided by online services. Some local authorities may use their own information and resources to help provide information for Blue Badges users. Nottingham City uses a popular map base. Misuse and abuse of Blue Badges in the UK can incur fines of up to £1,000. Between 1 April 2020 and 31 March 2021, prosecutions for misuse of the blue badge scheme were supported by specific or general policies in 74% of local authorities (110 authorities) in England. Of those without
12584-575: The earlier seasons. Most noticeably, David left the writing crew (but returned to write " The Finale " in 1998), resulting in Seinfeld taking over David's duties as showrunner , and, under the direction of a new writing staff, Seinfeld became a faster-paced show. The show no longer contained extracts of Jerry performing stand-up comedy—Jerry had no time or energy for this with his new responsibilities—and storylines occasionally delved into fantasy and broad humor. For example, in " The Bizarro Jerry ", Elaine
12727-440: The end of Pendant Publishing and therefore the end of Kramer's book. In the episode " The Wizard " it is revealed that the book is being made into a movie. The money Kramer makes allows him to briefly retire to Florida and run for president of the condo board at Del Boca Vista, Phase 3. The book itself is full of pictures of celebrities' coffee tables, and even had a pair of foldable wooden legs so that it could itself be turned into
12870-441: The episode would be added to the syndicated rerun package several years later uncut. After nine years on the air, NBC and Seinfeld announced on December 25, 1997, that the series would end production the following spring in 1998. The announcement made the front page of the major New York newspapers, including The New York Times . Seinfeld was featured on the cover of Time magazine's first issue of 1998. The series ended with
13013-457: The episode's events. As a rising comedian in the late 1980s, Jerry Seinfeld was presented with an opportunity to create a show with NBC. He asked Larry David, a fellow comedian and friend, to help create a premise for a sitcom. The series was produced by West-Shapiro Productions and Castle Rock Entertainment and distributed by Columbia Pictures Television . It was largely written by David and Seinfeld and scriptwriters. A favorite among critics,
13156-685: The episode. For instance, in "The Betrayal," part of which takes place in India, the theme is heard played on a sitar . The soundtrack was given a digital release on July 2, 2021. All music is composed by Jonathan Wolff. Many characters have made multiple appearances, notably Jerry's parents, Morty and Helen Seinfeld, who reside in Florida; George's parents, the overbearing Frank and Estelle Costanza; George's on-again, off-again fiancée Susan Ross; Jerry's Uncle Leo ; Elaine's variety of bosses, Mr. Lippman, Mr. Pitt and J. Peterman; Elaine's on-again, off-again boyfriend David Puddy; and Kramer's friend, Newman ,
13299-437: The famous Abbott and Costello line, "His father was a mudder. His mother was a mudder." Many terms were coined, popularized, or re-popularized in the series' run and have become part of popular culture, including " Yada, yada, yada ", " No soup for you! ", " Master of my domain ", and " Not that there's anything wrong with that ." The lexicon of Seinfeldian code words and recurring phrases that evolved around particular episodes
13442-561: The finale received mixed reviews from critics and fans of the show. The finale poked fun at the many rumors that were circulating, seeming to move into multiple supposed plots before settling on its actual storyline—a lengthy trial where the gang is prosecuted for violating a " Duty to Rescue " law and sentenced to prison terms. According to Forbes magazine, Seinfeld's earnings from the show in 1998 came to US$ 267 million, including syndication earnings. He refused NBC's offer of $ 5 million per episode, or over $ 100 million total, to continue into
13585-458: The first TV series since Monty Python's Flying Circus to be widely described as postmodern . Seinfeld is an avid Abbott and Costello fan and has cited The Abbott and Costello Show as an influence on Seinfeld : "Everybody on the show knows I'm a fan. We're always joking about how we do stuff from their show. George and I will often get into a riff that has the rhythm from the old Abbott and Costello shows. And sometimes, I'll hit George in
13728-437: The first draft of the script, he was named "Hoffman". In a flashback in " The Betrayal ", Kramer says that his name is incorrectly listed as "Kessler" in the apartment building. This retcons the pilot's use of "Kessler" as the character's name. George finds out his first name of "Cosmo" through an encounter with Kramer's long estranged mom, Babs, in " The Switch ". For the most part, characters continued to call him Kramer for
13871-439: The first moments of dialogue or action. They vary throughout each episode and are played in an improvised funk style, matching the timing of Seinfeld's stand-up comedy delivery or transitions in the editing. An additional musical theme with an ensemble, led by a synthesized mid-range brass instrument, ends each episode. In " The Note ," the first episode of Season 3, the bumper music featured a scatting female jazz singer who sang
14014-484: The first season. A major difference between Seinfeld and the sitcoms that preceded it is that the principal characters never learn from their mistakes. In effect, they are indifferent and even callous toward the outside world and sometimes one another. A mantra of the show's producers was "No hugging, no learning." Entertainment Weekly ' s TV critic Ken Tucker has described them as "a group dynamic rooted in jealousy, rage, insecurity, despair, hopelessness, and
14157-449: The four main characters, Kramer has the fewest on-screen romantic relationships. He has no trouble attracting women, but interactions with them usually begin and end with purely carnal encounters. What few relationships he has are short-lived. The character of Kramer was originally based on the real-life Kenny Kramer , a neighbor of co-creator Larry David from New York . However, Michael Richards did not in any way base his performance on
14300-419: The game Risk for a while. When they were done, Kramer drops the game off at Jerry's apartment. Before he puts it onto the table, he clears the table with his leg with papers flying off. When Kramer and Jerry were going to see a movie, Kramer hid his coffee under his shirt due to him not being allowed to bring it in. Kramer then spills the coffee on himself when he was about to sit down, burning himself in
14443-538: The hall, Cosmo Kramer ( Michael Richards ). Seinfeld is set mostly in and around the titular character's apartment in Manhattan 's Upper West Side in New York City . It has been described as "a show about nothing", often focusing on the minutiae of daily life . Interspersed in all episodes of the first seven seasons are moments of stand-up comedy from the fictional Jerry Seinfeld, frequently related to
14586-451: The idea of a beach-scented cologne in " The Pez Dispenser ", but a marketing executive for Calvin Klein tells him the idea is ridiculous. Despite this, it is revealed in the episode " The Pick " that Calvin Klein began making an ocean-scented cologne. Calvin Klein offers to allow Kramer to be an underwear model, which Kramer accepts. In " The Doorman ", Kramer and Frank Costanza co-develop
14729-651: The journalist Sharon, who Jerry says reminds him of Lois Lane. Sherman Howard , who played Lex Luthor on Superboy , portrays Roy. Superman logos and figurines frequently appear in Jerry's apartment. Seinfeld and Superman later appear in an American Express commercial. The show was written by David and Seinfeld, along with writers who included Larry Charles , Peter Mehlman , Gregg Kavet , Carol Leifer , David Mandel , Jeff Schaffer , Steve Koren , Jennifer Crittenden , Tom Gammill , Max Pross , Dan O'Keefe , Charlie Rubin , Marjorie Gross , Alec Berg , Elaine Pope , and Spike Feresten . Many Seinfeld episodes are based on
14872-437: The longest without masturbating, the word 'masturbation' is never mentioned. Seinfeld broke several conventions of mainstream television. David is credited with refusing to follow a predictable sitcom formula that would have a romantic relationship develop between Jerry and Elaine. The show offers no growth or reconciliation to its characters and eschews sentimentality. An episode is typically driven by humor interspersed with
15015-594: The memo for several years, but after they became aware of it, they hung it in a bathroom on the set. Seinfeld comments, "We thought, if someone goes in to use this bathroom, this is something they should see. It fits that moment." Around the time the show's pilot was filmed, Castle Rock Entertainment, which produced the show, had also produced another pilot for NBC that featured Ann Jillian in her almost-similarly eponymous TV series. When The Seinfeld Chronicles tested poorly with audiences, Castle Rock focused on Jillian's series, which tested better with audiences and received
15158-419: The middle of Seinfeld episodes was cut. Much publicity followed the controversial episode " The Contest ," an Emmy Award -winning episode written by David, whose subject matter was considered inappropriate for prime-time network TV. To circumvent this taboo, the word " masturbation " was never used in the script, instead substituted for by a variety of oblique references. Midway through that season, Seinfeld
15301-420: The most popular episodes, such as " The Bubble Boy " in which George and the bubble boy argue over Trivial Pursuit , and " The Junior Mint " in which Jerry and Kramer accidentally fumble a mint in the operating room. This was the first season to use a story arc of Jerry and George creating their own sitcom, Jerry . Also, at this time, the use of Jerry's stand-up act slowly declined, and the stand-up segment in
15444-454: The only one with additional music elements. In the commentary of "The Note," Louis-Dreyfus facetiously suggests it was removed because the perceived lyric related closely to the low ratings at the time. In the final three seasons, the bits were tweaked slightly with more frantic rhythms; a bass guitar was added in addition to the sampled bass from earlier seasons. Throughout the show, the main theme could be restyled in different ways depending on
15587-491: The pilot Jerry proved unsuccessful. In it, George spends most of the season regretting and trying to get out of the engagement. Along with the regular half-hour episodes, two notable one-hour episodes were " The Cadillac ," in which George plans to date award-winning actress Marisa Tomei , and " The Bottle Deposit ," with Elaine and Sue Ellen Mischke participating in a bidding war to buy JFK's golf clubs in an auction. Seinfeld's final two seasons were considered distinct from
15730-512: The pilot's performance among the respondents as "weak", which Warren Littlefield , then second-in-command in NBC's entertainment division, called "a dagger to the heart". Comments included, "You can't get too excited about two guys going to the laundromat", "Jerry's loser friend George isn't a forceful character", "Jerry needs a stronger supporting cast", and "Why are they interrupting the stand-up for these stupid stories?" Seinfeld and David did not see
15873-621: The popularity of Seinfeld . American Express created a webisode where Jerry Seinfeld and an animated Superman (voiced by Patrick Warburton , who played the role of Puddy) starred in its commercial. The makers of the Today Sponge created the "Spongeworthy" game on their website, inspired by " The Sponge ." An advertisement featured Jason Alexander in a Chrysler commercial. In this, Alexander acts much like his character George, and his relationship with Lee Iacocca plays on George's relationship with Steinbrenner. Similarly, Michael Richards
16016-410: The problem was that the scripts contained only minimal physical direction, leaving the actors needing help to come up with actions to perform while speaking. Eventually, they got into a routine of directing each other on how to make their movements look natural. Alexander said this helped them build chemistry with each other. Filming usually went long, as the cast and Larry David were perfectionists. If
16159-437: The process. Kramer became a model for Calvin Klein when he went to their office. He showed off his buttocks in white underwear in front of a few Calvin Klein executives. Just before they wanted to take him in to their studio, Kramer has a pratfall in the underwear. Like the other three characters, Kramer has pseudonyms he uses in various schemes. Under the name H.E. Pennypacker in " The Puerto Rican Day ", Kramer poses as
16302-407: The ratings of the 9:00 p.m. Cheers reruns that spring. The show won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in 1993, beating out its family-oriented, time-slot competitor Home Improvement , which was only in its second season on rival network ABC. Season 5 was an even bigger ratings hit, consisting of popular episodes, such as " The Puffy Shirt " in which Jerry feels embarrassed wearing
16445-444: The real Kramer, to the point of refusing to meet him. This was later parodied in " The Pilot " when the actor that is cast to play him in Jerry and George's sitcom refuses to base the character on the real Cosmo Kramer. At the time of the shooting of the original Seinfeld pilot , " The Seinfeld Chronicles ", Kenny Kramer had not yet given consent to use his name, and so Kramer's character was originally known as "Kessler". Larry David
16588-488: The remainder of the show's run. The name "Cosmo" was suggested by Larry David; he took the name from a boy who lived in the same apartment building as him and Kenny Kramer . The episode titled " The Bet " would have revealed Kramer's first name as "Conrad", not "Cosmo", but it was never filmed. Despite the failure of the majority of his schemes and his unwillingness to even apply for a normal job, Kramer always seems to have money when he needs it. In " The Visa ", George makes
16731-528: The role of "Kramer" in the pilot of a new sitcom called Jerry , using his stage name of Martin van Nostrand (" The Pilot "). He is unable to complete the audition due to an intestinal problem. Kramer later works as a stand-in on a soap opera with his friend Mickey Abbott in " The Stand In " and various other low-paying or non-paying theater projects, such as acting out illnesses at a medical school in " The Burning ". Kramer shows an entrepreneurial bent with "Kramerica Industries", for which he devises plans for
16874-464: The second and third seasons, respectively. For the pilot episode, Kramer was named "Kessler" to avoid potential legal issues; Kenny Kramer later authorized the use of his name. In " The Trip ", Kramer says a man in a park exposed himself to him when he was a young boy. In " The Big Salad " Kramer reveals to Jerry that he grew up in a strict household where he had to be in bed every night by 9:00PM. Kramer never completed high school; in " The Barber ", it
17017-726: The series led the Nielsen ratings in Seasons 6 and 9 and finished among the top two (along with ER of the same network) every year from 1994 to 1998. Only two other shows— I Love Lucy and The Andy Griffith Show —finished their runs at the top of the ratings. Seinfeld is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential shows of all time. It has been ranked among television's best shows in publications such as Entertainment Weekly , Rolling Stone , and TV Guide . Its most renowned episodes include " The Chinese Restaurant ", " The Soup Nazi ", " The Parking Garage ", " The Marine Biologist ", and " The Contest ". In 2013,
17160-458: The series would end. The episode's producers gave false information to the media, spreading a rumor about Newman ending up in the hospital and Jerry and Elaine sitting in a chapel, presumably to marry. The final episode enjoyed a historic audience, estimated at 76.3 million viewers (58% of all viewers that night) making it the fourth-most watched regular series finale in U.S. TV history, behind M*A*S*H , Cheers , and The Fugitive . However,
17303-482: The series' four central characters, only Kramer has no visible means of support; what few jobs he holds seem to be nothing more than larks. His character is that of a lovable rogue with his trademarks being his upright hairstyle, vintage wardrobe, impractical business ideas and eccentric personality, whose combination led Elaine to characterize him as a " hipster doofus ". He is obsessed with high-quality fresh fruit and occasionally smokes pipes and Cuban cigars . He
17446-514: The series. Many characters were based primarily on Seinfeld's and David's real-life acquaintances. Two prominent recurring characters were fictional depictions of actual well-known people: Jacopo Peterman of the J. Peterman catalog (based on John Peterman ) and George Steinbrenner , owner of the New York Yankees . Many characters were introduced as new writers got involved with Seinfeld . Other characters based on real people include
17589-603: The set of The Merv Griffin Show in " The Merv Griffin Show ". Inside views of Kramer's apartment are seldom seen, but it's known that he installed hardwood flooring and woodgrain-like wallpaper to, as he explains to Jerry, "give it the feel of a ski lodge." The apartment is centered around a large hot tub and couch styled after a 1957 Chevy . The apartment is decorated with many small statues of people, all made entirely out of pasta . Kramer has also experimented with his apartment entrance, including reversing his peephole "to prevent an ambush" in " The Reverse Peephole " and installing
17732-410: The setting, characters, prior discourse, relationships of the characters, and the topic." Specifically, Magnotta and Strohl focus on " The Marine Biologist ", where George is embroiled in yet another lie, and on " The Red Dot ," where George tries to save a few dollars at Elaine's expense by giving her a marked-down cashmere sweater. Disabled parking A disabled parking permit , also known as
17875-522: The show would work. A Jewish man from New York himself, Tartikoff characterized it as "Too New York, too Jewish" (a sentiment which would also lead to the Cosmo character's later surname change from the more Jewish-sounding Kessler to Kramer). Test audiences were even harsher. NBC's practice at the time was to recruit 400 households by phone to ask them to evaluate pilots it aired on an unused channel on its cable system. An NBC research department memo summarized
18018-408: The show, the real pitch, when Larry and I went to NBC in 1988, was [that] we want to show how a comedian gets his material. The show "about nothing" was just a joke in an episode many years later, and Larry and I to this day are surprised that it caught on as a way that people describe the show because, to us, it's the opposite of that." David similarly commented: "I like taking the worst qualities that
18161-584: The show. One DVD reviewer, Britt Gillette, wrote that "this initial episode exhibits the flashes of brilliance that made Seinfeld a cultural phenomenon." Other than the pilot, the series was filmed at CBS Studio Center in Studio City, Los Angeles . The first three seasons were filmed on Soundstage 19; it then moved to the larger Stage 9 for the remainder of its production. Despite numerous establishing shots taken in New York City, all scenes of
18304-434: The show. The series remained well regarded and produced some of its most famous episodes, such as " The Beard ", in which Jerry is put through a lie detector test to make him admit that he watched Melrose Place ; " The Switch ", in which Kramer's mom, Babs, reveals that his first name is Cosmo; and " The Understudy ", in which Elaine meets J. Peterman for the first time. Story arcs used in this season were Elaine working as
18447-554: The story arc, Kramer creates and promotes his coffee table book . The show was again nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series, but lost to the Cheers spin-off Frasier , then in its first season. Seinfeld was nominated for the same award every year for its entire run but, after its win at the 45th Primetime Emmy Awards in 1994, always lost to Frasier , which went on to win a record 39 Emmy Awards in its 11-season run. In Season 6, Andy Ackerman replaced Tom Cherones as director of
18590-510: The superficial conflicts of characters with peculiar dispositions. Many episodes revolve around the characters' involvement in the lives of others, with typically disastrous results. On the set, the notion that the characters should not develop or improve throughout the series was expressed as the "no hugging, no learning" rule. The characters are "thirty-something singles with vague identities, no roots, and conscious indifference to morals." Also unlike most sitcoms, there are no moments of pathos ;
18733-412: The van Nostrand alias in the episode " The Slicer ", posing as a " Juilliard -trained dermatologist" for a cancer screening at George's company, Kruger Industrial Smoothing. Mr. Kruger later recognizes him as Dr. van Nostrand in " The Strike ". Kramer uses the name Martin van Nostrand (without the "doctor" title) while auditioning for the role of himself on the show Jerry in " The Pilot, Part 1 ". Kramer
18876-406: The writers' real-life experiences, with the experiences reinterpreted for the characters' storylines. For example, George's storyline in " The Revenge " is based on Larry David's experience at Saturday Night Live . " The Contest " is also based on David's experiences. " The Smelly Car " storyline is based on Peter Mehlman's lawyer friend, who could not get a bad smell out of his car. " The Strike "
19019-407: Was a mix of Seinfeld's stand-up comedy routines and idiosyncratic, conversational scenes focusing on mundane aspects of everyday life like laundry, the buttoning of the top button on one's shirt, and the effort by men to interpret the intent of women spending the night in Seinfeld's apartment. The pilot was filmed at Stage 8 of Desilu Cahuenga studios, the same studio where The Dick Van Dyke Show
19162-529: Was a one-line part in a Woody Allen movie in " The Alternate Side " (his line, "These pretzels are making me thirsty", becomes the show's first catchphrase ). Although he is fired before completing his scene, he says he "caught the bug" because of it, and briefly moves to Los Angeles to pursue a career in Hollywood, where, in " The Keys ", he appeared on Murphy Brown as Steven Snell, Murphy Brown's secretary. After returning to New York, Kramer auditions for
19305-423: Was a very low order number for a new series—and the smallest sitcom order in TV history —Castle Rock failed to find any other buyers when it shopped the show to other networks, and accepted the order. Seinfeld did not return to the airwaves until May 30, 1990, and it was another three years before it became a Top 5-rated show. Preston Beckman, in charge of NBC's research department at the time, reminisced, "The show
19448-497: Was bumped off its scheduled premiere of January 16, 1991, due to the outbreak of the Persian Gulf War . It settled into a regular time slot on Wednesdays at 9:30 p.m. and eventually flipped with veteran series Night Court to 9 p.m. TV critics championed Seinfeld in its early seasons, even as it was slow to cultivate a substantial audience. For the first three seasons, Jerry's stand-up comedy act would bookend at
19591-461: Was different. Nobody had seen anything like it. It wasn't unusual for poor-testing shows to get on the air, but it was very rare that they became hits." When the program was first repeated on July 5, 1990, it received a rating of 13.9/26. These ratings were high enough to secure a second season. NBC research showed that the show was popular with young male adults, a demographic sought after by advertisers. This gave NBC an incentive to keep broadcasting
19734-512: Was filmed (seen by the crew as a good omen), and was recorded at Ren-Mar Studios in Hollywood . The pilot was first screened to a group of two dozen NBC executives in Burbank, California , in early 1989. It did not yield the explosion of laughter garnered by the pilots for the decade's previous NBC successes like The Cosby Show and The Golden Girls . Brandon Tartikoff was not convinced
19877-785: Was first used in The Atlantic Monthly review of Seinfeld . Ken Tucker wrote in a 1992 review in Entertainment Weekly that Kramer is "the most cartoonish, least-defined person in Seinfeld . Kramer is an earnest dope whose long, gangly body always seems to surprise his mind — he's always running, stumbling, bumping into things; he doesn't enter Jerry's apartment so much as he explodes into it." In 1999, TV Guide ranked him number 36 on its '50 Greatest TV Characters of All Time' list. Seinfeld Seinfeld ( / ˈ s aɪ n f ɛ l d / SYNE -feld )
20020-459: Was hesitant to use Kenny Kramer's real name because he suspected that Kramer would take advantage of this. David's suspicion turned out to be correct; Kenny Kramer created the "Kramer Reality Tour", a New York City bus tour that points out actual locations of events or places featured in Seinfeld . The "Kramer Reality Tour" is itself spoofed on Seinfeld in " The Muffin Tops ". In the episode, when Kramer's real-life stories are used by Elaine to pad
20163-445: Was moved from its original 9:00 p.m. time slot on Wednesdays to 9:30 p.m. on Thursdays, following Cheers again, which gave the show even more popularity. Ratings also sparked the move, as Tim Allen 's sitcom Home Improvement on ABC had aired at the same time, and Home Improvement kept beating Seinfeld in the ratings. NBC moved the series after Ted Danson announced the end of Cheers and Seinfeld quickly surpassed
20306-453: Was the first episode since the finale of season 7, " The Invitations ", to feature opening and closing stand-up comedy acts by Seinfeld. The finale was filmed before an audience of NBC executives and friends of the show. The press and public were shut out of the taping to keep its plot secret; those who attended the shoot of the final episode were required to sign written "vows of silence". The secrecy only seemed to increase speculation about how
20449-497: Was the focus of a series of advertisements for Vodafone , which ran in Australia , where he dressed and acted precisely like Kramer, including the trademark bumbling pratfalls. In addition, the show occasionally incorporated fictional products like a Scotch brand called "Hennigan's" (a blend of " Hennessy " and " Brannigans ") and a canned meat product called "Beef-a-reeno" (a parody of " Beef-a-roni "). A signature of Seinfeld
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