If you’ve noticed that, for the most part, Jerry Seinfeld seems to have disappeared from public view since the end of his all-time great sitcom, you’re right. And it’s not because he couldn’t repeat his success; he just didn’t feel comfortable with it in the first place.
He was the king of TV comedy, with millions repeating his witty one liners and weekly-coined catchphrases, but as a trained standup comedian, Seinfeld was more used to self-loathing than congratulations. As he tells Showtime’s new series, “Inside Comedy,” being “a thing” wasn’t exactly his thing.
“There’s nothing better for comedian than being penned in, closed off, shut out, not welcome, that’s nutrition. That’s what you want as a comedian. Acceptance is a very dangerous thing for a comedian,” he says. “Standup is a loud desperation.”
Once “Seinfeld” was over, Seinfeld went back on the road; aside for producing and starring in the animated “Bee Movie,” and the short lived reality game show “The Marriage Ref,” he’s largely done standup and behind-the-scenes work.
“I left LA and I tried to break back into the middle… and that’s made me feel comfortable. To be honest with you, I never felt great being at that pinnacle. There was a point where the show was really at a very high level of, it was a thing. It was the thing for a period of time. And I thought, this is not good, because it’s not where I belong. This is not comedy. I always thought comedy and star are mutually exclusive.”
by Jordan Zakarin
