# Kill one of Seinfeld's pals **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 5, 2015, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071 "2015-08-05T15:32:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/1 "2015-08-05T15:32:49Z")
You are now Larry David, and the year is 199-something. Life is pret-ty, pret-ty, pret-ty, pret-ty, pret-ty, pret-ty good. Except now the suits at NBC just told you that to cut costs, you have to kill off one of the four primaries on ‘Seinfeld.’ Obviously, you can’t kill the titular character, plus the dude playing the titular character is your co-creator and an executive producer. Jerry lives. So that leaves you with Kramer, Elaine and George. Pick one, and remember: No hugs, no learning. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/2 "2015-08-05T15:34:47Z")
Elaine. Didn’t Jerry once say he had a backup ready if Elaine ever left the group? ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/3 "2015-08-05T15:35:12Z")
Kramer. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/4 "2015-08-05T15:39:43Z")
Definitely Elaine. She even tried to leave the group one time. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/5 "2015-08-05T15:44:32Z")
I can’t get behind offing anyone from the poll, but I would be happy to get rid of The Jimmy. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/6 "2015-08-05T15:52:18Z")
Elaine–she was shrill and irritating. She had one (1) good joke (the dance that looked like a dry-heave set to music). And she was shrill and irritating. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/7 "2015-08-05T15:54:09Z")
Kramer. George and Elaine are self-absorbed and selfish, but are kind of aware of it. Kramer is also always trying to cheat on things, but he actually considers this the right way to be. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Draper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/8 "2015-08-05T15:55:20Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > Elaine. Didn’t Jerry once say he had a backup ready if Elaine ever left the group? He also silently implied that he had a backup for George as well. Although, I guess I would have to vote to kill off Elaine. She was actually my favorite character on the show (for a while, before she stuck with Puddy), but Julia Louis-Dreyfuss is apparently the only one of the four who could sustain a career beyond “Seinfeld”, so I’d give her the heave-ho. On the other hand, maybe Kramer - because he’s a racist! ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/9 "2015-08-05T15:56:07Z")
Kramer. George is too good and Elaine is needed for the female dynamic. I can live without Kramer’s over the top wackiness. Plus, in another decade or so, Kramer’s going to blow his reputation anyway with that whole comedy club incident. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/10 "2015-08-05T16:11:39Z")
Kramer was too unbelievable a character to let live. IRL, an sane person would only let that scruffy looking lowlife slide into their apartment one time before learning to reflexively bolt the door behind themselves. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/11 "2015-08-05T16:12:42Z")
Elaine wasn’t actually in the original pilot, IIRC. But adding her actually rounds out the cast very well. I picked Kramer, though I loved the character. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/12 "2015-08-05T16:42:48Z")
“I don’t _wanna_ be a killer!” But if I have to… Kramer. Although he was good for quite a few laughs, he was the least funny of the quartet, and far and away the most annoying IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/13 "2015-08-05T16:46:51Z")
There is absolutely no doubt that George is the one to go. He dragged down the show, was completely unfunny, and was played by the execrable Jason Alexander.\* Kramer did try to hard to be wacky, but at least he could occasionally be funny. George never was, and was really too stupid to live, anyway. \*Who has the amazing ability to ruin anything he appears in. ---
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/14 "2015-08-05T16:50:50Z")
Kramer. Elaine was my favorite, and George is crucial to the show’s magic. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/15 "2015-08-05T17:05:33Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > There is absolutely no doubt that George is the one to go. He dragged down the show, was completely unfunny, and was played by the execrable Jason Alexander.\* > > \*Who has the amazing ability to ruin anything he appears in. Except George is Larry David on the show. He’s not cutting himself out, he can’t cut Jerry out, Julia Louis Dreyfus is his friend in real life, so unfortunately it will have to be Kramer, who was just fine as new variant of the whacky neighbor. I’d still want it to be Elaine, she’s not really needed because one of the guys has a new girlfriend every week. Dreyfus has a shitload of money, maybe she won’t want to do it again. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/16 "2015-08-05T17:55:40Z")
All you who are voting to kill Kramer, be aware you’re depriving the world of [this](https://youtu.be/cY5OSDxwOEo). And this [outtake](https://youtu.be/PWZF1O3DGFY)is almost funnier than the version they used. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/17 "2015-08-05T19:41:19Z")
Elaine is the only one I could imagine replacing. She’s the most normal of the characters, and I can think of other actresses who could pull off a similar role. I suppose you could find a new goofy neighbor most easily from a plot perspective, but Michael Richards brings something to that role that I don’t think could be replaced. (Kramer is the perfected Stanley from [UHF](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0098546/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_22)). RealityChuck and I clearly live in different realities. George is my favorite character on the show, and I think Jason Alexander pulled it off perfectly. I’m not giving up George. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/18 "2015-08-05T19:47:31Z")
Nor would I. “I love that George!” ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/19 "2015-08-05T19:57:11Z")
I never felt Kramer was all that essential to the show. Out he goes. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2015, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071/20 "2015-08-05T19:58:18Z")
> [@dracoi](#): > > RealityChuck and I clearly live in different realities. George is my favorite character on the show, and I think Jason Alexander pulled it off perfectly. I’m not giving up George. Ditto. As a person, George is obviously terrible. But as a comic creation, he’s magnificent, almost mythic, and Alexander is fantastic. That Richards won 3 Emmys but Jason zero is yet another grave awards injustice. Richards gets the boot, not because he wasn’t funny (he could be) but because his character was so broad and off-putting compared to the other 3. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kill-one-of-seinfelds-pals/727071.md?page=2)