Hooked on Seinfeld

I am watching a lot of Seinfeld episodes these days. I can’t quite say I am addicted cos I know a lot of people who can just watch the entire DVD collection at a stretch. This Saturday night, I was watching one episode in which Jerry meets the baseball player Keith Hernandez. One particular scene in it was the funniest moment that I ever saw on TV. There are a lot of times I have tears in my eyes and my stomach aches from laughing but this was beyond that. For Seinfeld fans, it’s the moment when George comes running out of the rest room with his pants down shouting “VANDALEY, SAY VANDALEY INDUSTRIES” and falls down, this after Kramer answers the phone in his own style and says “Yallo. What delay industries?”

I ended up watching the first DVD showing how it all started. I was surprised to find out that George’s character is based on the writer of the show Larry David. And Kramer’s on Larry’s neighbor. It’s hard to think that there could be a real life Kramer! And that Julia Louis (Elaine) is a billionaire heiress. A lot of episodes in it were real occurrences that happened to either Jerry or Larry. For instance, the one in which Jerry and George go to the NBC studios to present their idea without preparing for it; that’s exactly how it happened to Larry and Jerry. Of all the sitcoms, I think Seinfeld seems more real. I mean, these are things that actually happen to us. May be you could say that about “Everybody loves Raymond”; but only if you were married. All sitcoms are great but I think George and Kramer take Seinfeld to a different level. Just looking at them makes me laugh.

Watching sitcoms gets me to think about three things. One – why can’t we have these in India? You know, Hindi or Telugu sitcoms. All I see on Indian channels is people crying, ALL THE TIME. It’s not as if people love to cry back there. Two – How can these guys come up with things so funny, every minute, every day, and every sitcom? I mean you turn on the TV at 6 after work and you could basically just sit there till mid night laughing. Friends, Seinfeld, Ray, Becker, King of Queens, That 70s Show, Simpsons; you name it, they are all dead funny. And the last thought is the one that’s scary. If I could just watch these and laugh all the time, why should I even bother about any thing else? I mean, what else does any one need other than just to be able to laugh all the time?

I don’t know about that, but I think if and when I start my own business, I will name it VANDALEY Industries.