Seinfeldia
How a Show About Nothing Changed Everything
Published on 10. August 2017
Book
Paperback/Softback
336 pages
978-1-4767-5611-0 (ISBN)
Description
The New York Times bestseller about two guys who went out for coffee and dreamed up Seinfeld-"A wildly entertaining must-read not only for Seinfeld fans but for anyone who wants a better understanding of how television series are made" (Booklist, starred review).
Comedians Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld never thought anyone would watch their sitcom about a New York comedian sitting around talking to his friends. But against all odds, viewers did watch-first a few and then many, until nine years later nearly forty million Americans were tuning in weekly. Fussy Jerry, neurotic George, eccentric Kramer, and imperious Elaine-people embraced them with love.
Seinfeldia, Jennifer Keishin Armstrong's intimate history is full of gossipy details, show trivia, and insights into how famous episodes came to be. Armstrong celebrates the creators and fans of this American television phenomenon, bringing readers into the writers' room and into a world of devotees for whom it never stopped being relevant. Seinfeld created a strange new reality, one where years after the show had ended the Soup Nazi still spends his days saying "No soup for you!", Joe Davola gets questioned every day about his sanity, and Kenny Kramer makes his living giving tours of New York sites from the show.
Seinfeldia is an outrageous cultural history. Dwight Garner of The New York Times Book Review wrote: "Armstrong has an eye for detail....Perhaps the highest praise I can give Seinfeldia is that it made me want to buy a loaf of marbled rye and start watching again, from the beginning."
Comedians Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld never thought anyone would watch their sitcom about a New York comedian sitting around talking to his friends. But against all odds, viewers did watch-first a few and then many, until nine years later nearly forty million Americans were tuning in weekly. Fussy Jerry, neurotic George, eccentric Kramer, and imperious Elaine-people embraced them with love.
Seinfeldia, Jennifer Keishin Armstrong's intimate history is full of gossipy details, show trivia, and insights into how famous episodes came to be. Armstrong celebrates the creators and fans of this American television phenomenon, bringing readers into the writers' room and into a world of devotees for whom it never stopped being relevant. Seinfeld created a strange new reality, one where years after the show had ended the Soup Nazi still spends his days saying "No soup for you!", Joe Davola gets questioned every day about his sanity, and Kenny Kramer makes his living giving tours of New York sites from the show.
Seinfeldia is an outrageous cultural history. Dwight Garner of The New York Times Book Review wrote: "Armstrong has an eye for detail....Perhaps the highest praise I can give Seinfeldia is that it made me want to buy a loaf of marbled rye and start watching again, from the beginning."
Reviews / Votes
***A NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER***"Her book, as if she were a marine biologist, is a deep dive...Perhaps the highest praise I can give Seinfeldia is that it made me want to buy a loaf of marbled rye and start watching again, from the beginning."
-Dwight Garner, The New York Times
"Even for those of us who imagine ourselves experts, Armstrong scatters delicious details throughout her book, like so many Jujyfruits we can't resist... [I]n describing the making and writing of this singular show, Armstrong is queen of the castle. Her stories about "Seinfeld" are real - and they're spectacular."
-Washington Post
"Lively and illuminating. A wildly entertaining must-read not only for Seinfeld fans but for anyone who wants a better of understanding of how television series are made."
-Booklist, starred review
"[S]avvy and engaging...the best way to enjoy "Seinfeldia" is to read the book with TV remote in hand, calling up episodes on Hulu as Ms. Armstrong adroitly recounts the back story of these still-captivating shows that were never, ever about nothing."
-Wall Street Journal
"The heart of Armstrong's book and its most engaging quality is how it all came to be: the Seinfeld rules of the road that seemed to be without rules; the actors who left their indelible mark (Bryan Cranston as dentist Tim Whatley, Teri Hatcher as one of Jerry's "spectacular" girlfriends) and the parade of moments about nothing that really turned out to be something."
-USA Today
"Even as someone lucky enough to be on the show, I couldn't put Seinfeldia down."
-Larry Thomas, "The Soup Nazi"
"Armstrong's intimate, breezy history is full of gossipy details, show trivia, and insights into how famous episodes came to be. How nothing could become something or how a national TV audience learned to live in a Beckett-ian world. Perfect for Seinfeldians and newcomers alike."
-Kirkus Reviews
"Armstrong offers a masterly look at one of the greatest shows. The research involved makes this a boon to television scholars, but Seinfeld enthusiasts will also enjoy this funny, highly readable book."
-Library Journal
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
2x8pg 4-c inserts
Dimensions
Height: 228 mm
Width: 151 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
376 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-4767-5611-0 (9781476756110)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
07/2016
1st Edition
Simon + Schuster LLC
€14.83
Available for download
Person
Jennifer Keishin Armstrong is the author of Sex and the City and Us, Seinfeldia, and Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted. She writes about pop culture for several publications, including The New York Times Book Review, Fast Company, Vulture, BBC Culture, Entertainment Weekly, and several others. She grew up in Homer Glen, Illinois, and now lives in New York City. Visit her online at JenniferKArmstrong.com.