In a world where it seems like the entirety of stand-up is either facing a controversy or creating it, Jerry Seinfeld has remained a steady force in the comedy world. Whether it’s his beloved 90’s sitcom, making a docu-series with fellow comics in his car, or just touring arenas worldwide. Seinfeld has achieved a level of fame and longevity that you wouldn’t expect from a guy famous making “What’s the deal with…” jokes.
In a recently published New York Times interview, Jerry touches on both how he’s stood out and the many issues affecting the wider cultural landscape. As well as talking frankly about Louie CK’s downfall, he also mentions that he’s a big fan of our own Hannah Gadsby.
On Louie CK’s return to the stand-up stage, Seinfeld opined that the problem may be less that he’s returning, which he’s fine with, and rather that Louie CK hasn’t properly repented for his sins publicly.
We know the routine: The person does something wrong. The person’s humiliated. They’re exiled. They suffer, we want them to suffer. We love the tumble, we love the crash and bang of the fall. And then we love the crawl-back. The grovel… And people, I think, figured they had that coming with Louie — he owes us that. We, the court of public opinion, decided if he’s going to come back, he’d better show a lot of pain. Because he denied them that.
On the topic of his contemporaries who have fallen to the wayside due to controversy, Seinfeld also touches on how quickly people like Bill Cosby and Roseanne Barr have fallen on their own sword, comparing it to if the Lincoln Memorial was taken down due to the former President’s past (“Oh, my God. All right, I guess I have to adjust to that. I really liked the Lincoln Memorial.”).
That said, he shows a tonne of respect for the “audience” – even ones that may be hostile to politically incorrect humour like the much-demonized crowds at US colleges.
To that degree, Seinfeld says he “loved” Hannah Gadsby’s Nanette. Specifically, he loved some of her more polarising material, which at times blurred the lines between comedy and one-person show.
…isn’t that great, that she stretched the form of stand-up to encompass that? This is why people are excited about stand-up now. And how valuable is that, for other people that are going through or have gone through what she has? To see, here’s a person that’s thrived despite it. An incredible contribution.
The whole interview is worth a read to get into the head of one of the most respected entertainers in any field, especially to see how he thrives in our current socio-political climate.
For the record, he puts down a part of his success on working on material that isn’t explicitly political. Or, as he puts it, he can’t do political jokes like Seth Meyers or Bill Maher, “But I can talk about raisins in ways other people can’t.”