Are you excited? Of course you are. This Sunday, the four stars of Seinfeld — Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander, and Michael Richards — will appear together on HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm. Last night, we attended a screening of the episode at Time Warner Center, where we spoke with Jerry about the reunion, Larry David, and what’s annoying him these days.
Was it a tough decision to come back for this reunion?
As soon as I heard the idea, I said, “That’s going to be fun.†I knew it would be fun.
How long was it in the works before you announced it?
Oh, months and months.
How did you manage to keep it under wraps for so long?
It wasn’t up to me. I don’t know. It actually was surprising, because it’s a lot of people on these crews. You would think somebody would say something, but I guess nobody … Or there’s the possibility that no one cares. We have to consider that.
You were on Curb Your Enthusiasm before on the episode where Larry made his debut in The Producers, and he didn’t go over so well. If you had to pick one role in a famous Broadway show that he’d excel at, what would it be?
Um, Pearlie. I could see him in the Ben Vereen role in Pearlie. You know, he’s very light on his feet, that kind of soulful but old-school–show-business know-how. Everything that Ben Vereen has, Larry has in a different way.
Larry is known for irritating people. What bothers you about him?
Watching him order in a restaurant. A little too much thought goes into it. Speed it up, get it out. Just get the fish! You know you’re going to get the fish!
What current annoyance of yours would you turn into a Seinfeld episode?
Oh my goodness. It’s an open fire hydrant of annoyance. Right now I’ve really had it with the Corona ads. Lying on the beach, throwing the cell phones in the water, and the idiot girl lying next to him, bubbling up with skin cancer. I’m tired of it. You know, the fantasy that the beach is this great destination that we all want to get to with a beer. It’s like, fifteen minutes … “What am I doing here? Let’s get out of here.†It’s time for a new ad for the Corona people. It’s time for a new idea. But they won’t. They’re going to stick with that beach thing forever.
What about living in New York annoys you these days?
People not being happy with my phone because it’s not as cool as their phone, or they have some feature that I don’t have and they’re always showing me, “Oh, my phone can do this†and “my phone can do that.â€
Your friends are not happy with your phone?
I just have a Razr, an old Motorola Razr. I don’t have a BlackBerry or an iPhone. My friends are very cranky about it: “What are you still using that for?†I see you’ve got a pad and a pen, by the way. ÂHow lame is that? [Laughs] With a spiral at the top!