Seinfeld

by Oppenheimer, Jerry

• ISBN13: 9780060188726
• ISBN10: 0060188723
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-07-18
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publications

Summary

Based on scores of candid interviews with family members, confidantes, colleagues, and present and former friends and associates who have never spoken out before, this scrupulously researched and meticulously reported book reveals exclusive details and secrets about Jerry Seinfeld which will fascinate his fans. One show more than any other in recent history has reshaped the face of TV as we know it- And one man is responsible. Jerry Seinfeld. Jerry went straight from college graduation to amateur night try-out at New York's Catch a Rising Star in 1976. He continued to perform in local clubs and Catskill Mountain resorts, until his career was boosted by an appearance on a Rodney Dangerfield HBO special in 1976. But it was a successful spot on Carson's Tonight show which ultimately launched him as a stand-up comedian at age 27. He also appeared four times as "Frankie" on Benson TV sitcom, and after he was abruptly fired from the show, he swore never to do another sitcom unless he had greater control. This opportunity emerged when he was invited to create a sitcom for NBC in 1979, and teamed with one-time stand-up colleague, Larry David. The Seinfeld Chronicles finally appeared in 1989 and became the long-running Seinfeld series which dominated water-cooler conversation all over the world until its end in 1998.

Table of Contents

Prologue	p. xi
Family Roots	p. 1
Tojo, Television, and Holy Water	p. 6
And Betty Makes Two	p. 10
Near the Mall	p. 14
Moving On Up	p. 22
Tough Times	p. 26
Becoming a Man	p. 35
High School Loner	p. 42
Romeo and Juliet	p. 51
To Israel, with Love	p. 56
Sex, Drugs, and Suzukis	p. 64
Campus Odd Couple	p. 72
I Just Want to Be Funny	p. 81
Queens College Days	p. 87
Girl Trouble	p. 95
Catskills Forays	p. 102
I Want to Do Stand-up	p. 110
Peanuts on the Bar	p. 116
The Dianetics Kid	p. 123
Doctor Comedy	p. 133
Major Changes	p. 142
Strange Bedfellows	p. 148
Faster Than a Speeding Bullet	p. 156
Welcome to L.A.	p. 169
The Benson Fiasco	p. 177
Jerry Does Johnny	p. 184
Comedy Club Bonanza	p. 192
Love and Death	p. 199
Sex, Money, and Accolades	p. 206
L.A. Story	p. 218
Birth of Seinfeld	p. 232
Press War	p. 239
Fame Is Free	p. 246
Love in All the Wrong Places	p. 259
L'Affaire Lonstein	p. 271
Ups and Downs in TV Land	p. 280
Designing Woman	p. 287
The End of Life as We Know It	p. 301
The Marrying Kind	p. 315
Stop, Thief!	p. 331
And Baby Makes Three	p. 347
Acknowledgments	p. 361
Notes and Sources	p. 363
Index	p. 385
Table of Contents provided by Syndetics. All Rights Reserved.