For a stand-up comedian that had a show about nothing, he’s like Jewish ninja with words.
There is nothing more awkward and uncomfortable than watching a stand-up comedian bomb on stage. The comedian knows it’s happening. The audience is definitely aware of it. Unlike any other type of live entertainment, it’s strangely intimate. Perhaps that’s why when it’s done well, it feels so damn good! For a guy that’s had a terminal diagnosis for eight years, I can tell you that no one has provided better medicine than Jerry Seinfeld.
Like most humans, I was a huge fan of arguably the greatest sitcom of all time. Like so many children of the 80’s it wasn’t until the show was in syndication in 1999, that the show’s brilliance was so obvious to me.
Cut to 15-year old me – What the hell does “sponge worthy” even mean?
I moved to NYC in the summer of 2004 weeks after college graduation. So many of my preconceived notions of the city were directly tied to the sitcom. I grew up in Florida and went to college in Arizona. I wasn’t as lucky as Seinfeld to grow up on Long Island. I was obsessed with the energy that NYC seemed to exude.
Maybe that’s what’s bellowing out of every manhole?
It probably took at least the first two years of living in my apartment, that I didn’t secretly think of Seinfeld every time I buzzed someone in from the intercom right next to the door. There was a great dinner around the corner. There was a dry cleaners on the first floor of my building. I dated a ton of women that didn’t last more than a season.
Thankfully for mankind, but more importantly for me, Seinfeld didn’t drift off into the comforts of Del Boca Vista after the show ended. He is actually now 66-years old and has turned into a thought leader about creativity, the craft of comedy, and living a happy and healthy life. Not bad for a guy that had a show about nothing.
I have gathered his greatest life nuggets from interviews, articles, and his series Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. (CCGC)
- “The mind vs the brain – The mind is infinite in wisdom. The brain is a stupid, little dog that is easily trained. Do not confuse the mind with the brain. The brain is so easy to master.” Seinfeld on The Tim Ferriss Show
This is so simple it makes me feel stupid for never making the distinction between the two. The idea of routine and discipline being imperative to train our brains like we do with the family dog makes sense.
- “No. You know, my attitude is that each generation kinda gets this thing dumped in your lap to deal with.” Seinfeld to Ellen DeGeneres on CCGC
This hits home right now as the Coronavirus seems to be picking up speed as more lockdowns
continue across the globe. Seinfeld seems to have a laissez-faire approach to negative thoughts that we can all adopt. Ellen was referring to global warming, North Korea and asked if he worries about that type of stuff. It’s not that he doesn’t care about the world’s problems, he just always keeps things in perspective.
- “My aesthetic role model is Mike Tyson. Do you remember his robe? He would cut the hole in the hotel towel, no socks, no robe. No stool.” Seinfeld to Kevin Hart on CCGC
This is one of my favorites. Seinfeld was very honest, as usual, with Kevin Hart about his feelings on the grandeur of Hart’s entrance on stage. There’s music, video boards, and pyrotechnics. Less is more. It doesn’t matter what the subject, it rings so true.
This next one, like most jokes, needs a setup. It’s from a conversation between Neal Brennan, the co-creator of The Chapelle Show, and Seinfeld.
- Neal: “Everyone thinks they’re the president. And they don’t realize, like, you could miss a whole day.”
- Jerry: “A whole day. I like that you think that’s a lot.” Seinfeld to Brennan on CCGC
This speaks to two very large societal issues. First, we all tend to think that we are the center of the universe. Like the reason your favorite team lost because you didn’t wear the right jersey or of course there’s traffic today, you have a meeting.Secondly, we are constantly connected with the outside world. Remember when there was such a thing as, night and weekend minutes on your cell phone plan? Now we need unlimited data!
- “It’s very important to know what you don’t like. A big part of innovation is saying, ‘You know what I’m really sick of?’For me, that was talk shows where music plays, somebody walks out to a desk, shakes hands with the host, and sits down. ‘What am I really sick of’ is where innovation begins.”Seinfeld in the Harvard Business Review
This is an example of how transferable Seinfeld’s knowledge can be. He’s a stand-up comedian that treats his craft like a business. It reminds me of a quote from another Jewish, NYC icon, Danny Meyer. The restaurateur’s version is, “Who wrote the book that said you can’t serve great burgers and shakes out of a shack.”
- “People really underestimate the power of taking a compliment with some humility. That penetrates more than the compliment.” Seinfeld to Dave Chapelle on CCGC
Humility is one of the most underrated personality traits. This is not something that your average celebrity doesn’t usually process. It’s obviously not a prerequisite to receive your Hollywood membership. However, Seinfeld has nearly as much humility as he does material on raisins
- “We’d only been married for three years then, so I wasn’t very experienced. Being a good husband is like being a good stand-up comic—you need ten years before you can even call yourself a beginner.” Seinfeld to Oprah Winfrey
My third wedding anniversary is three weeks away, so this was equal parts timely and comforting. I consider myself a great communicator and thought being a good husband would be easy breezy. Boy was I wrong! Being in a happy marriage is easy for one partner, but trying to get two humans to truly be a united front and be happy takes work.
On paper, Jerry and I don’t have much in common. I don’t get to drink coffee anymore, but thanks to my feeding tube, I still need it every morning. I don’t drive anymore. Hell, I don’t talk or even stand up anymore. I wrote this story with my eyes! But being a Jewish dad that has an inner monolog that would definitely get me an invitation to sit next to Carson , I have no doubt that we would get along well.
For a stand-up comedian that had a show about nothing, Seinfeld has been a source of grounded guidance for my entire adult life. He might have skipped rabbinical school, but if he ever starts a temple, it will be the first one in the door.
“The greatest Jewish tradition is to laugh. The cornerstone of Jewish survival has always been to find humor in life and in ourselves.” Jerry Seinfeld