“Seinfeld” had quite a long and impressive run, spanning nine seasons and 180 episodes, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus was absent from just three of them. Her character, Elaine Benes, was the brash and bossy female member of the main group, which also includes Jerry (Jerry Seinfeld), George (Jason Alexander), and Kramer (Michael Richards), and she didn’t appear in the pilot and the two-part season 4 premiere, “The Trip.” The latter follows Jerry, who’s set to appear on “The Tonight Show” in Los Angeles, with George tagging along. Kramer has recently moved there to start a career as an actor, but is then mistaken for a serial killer, the Smog Strangler. Elaine was not written in this episode because Julia Louis-Dreyfus was on maternity leave.
In the pilot, Elaine’s character did not exist yet. Instead, Lee Garlington plays a wry-humored diner waitress named Claire who interacts with Jerry, George, and Kramer (then known as Kessler). If she had remained in the show, more scenes would have had to take place in the coffee shop.
Alexander later explained on “Kevin Pollak’s Chat Show” why Garlington was let go from “Seinfeld,” aside from her not fitting in with the group’s neurotic dynamic. Alexander described her as a “very fine actress who made the critical error of suggesting to [co-creator Larry David] that she’d looked at the scenes overnight and made a few tweaks that she wanted to share with him.” This was a big no-no, since most comedians are quite protective of the material they craft, so Louis-Dreyfus was brought in as a new character — Jerry’s ex-girlfriend, Elaine. David had met Louis-Dreyfus when they were both working on “Saturday Night Live.”
Elaine is essential to Seinfeld’s shenanigans
Elaine would go on to become an indispensable part of “Seinfeld,” so even though her absences are few, they are deeply felt. Elaine’s character stands out because she’s just as sharp, snarky, and self-centered as the male leads on “Seinfeld,” and the series lets her be up to no good right alongside Jerry, George, and Kramer. She is not limited to being likable and benevolent because of her gender. We rarely see female characters, even in comedy, who are unapologetically imperfect.
At the same time, it was also refreshing for the series to weave in more of a woman’s perspective on the gang’s antics — while giving her plenty of her own — such as the date where the guy takes “it” out, to assessing her partners based on “sponge-worthiness,” to Elaine even participating in “The Contest.”
Playing Elaine showcases how Louis-Dreyfus is a comedic genius, skewering jokes with effortless timing and precision. She rightfully went on to earn an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series and a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress — Series, Miniseries, or Television Film for her performance as Elaine.
We’d love to see Elaine and the gang on our screens again following their appearance on “Curb Your Enthusiasm” in 2009, but despite rumblings of a “Seinfeld” reunion that Julia Louis-Dreyfus seemed unsure about, we’ll just have to keep streaming the old episodes.
