# Kramer - why? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 11, 2009, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418 "2009-02-11T20:29:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Elret](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Elret](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elret)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/1 "2009-02-11T20:29:37Z")
I didn’t want to hijack the Greatest Sitcom Character thread, but I was surprised to see Cosmo Kramer appear so often in the list and would love to be enlightened. I know it’s impossible to explain funny to someone who doesn’t get it, but if anyone would take a crack at telling me why they love Kramer, I would be fascinated to hear. I never got the appeal of the dirty, semi-literate, random-jerky-movement-and-unexplained-facial-tics schtick, but I know I’m in the minority, so please share your love for Kramer with me. ---
**Author:** ![johnspartan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a183cd/32.png) [@johnspartan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnspartan)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/2 "2009-02-11T20:41:20Z")
Count me among those that always thought it a less funny version of Reverend Jim Ignatowski from Taxi. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/3 "2009-02-11T20:42:44Z")
He was just entertaining, I guess. He was laid back (well, personality wise, not in terms of twitchiness). He came up with weird schemes. He was just bizarre compared to Jerry, Elaine and George. Now that I’ve seen so many episodes, he seems less entertaining. I’m a little more partial to Newman these days, to be honest. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/4 "2009-02-11T20:52:36Z")
Besides the physical comedy, which I guess is a matter of taste, it’s his complete cluelessness about bugging Jerry, and his confidence in himself. And the inexplicable way women are interested in him. He’s the foil to Jerry’s uptight compulsiveness – when he bursts into Jerry’s bathroom when Jerry is showering and thinks nothing of it…Jerry: “I don’t want to live like this!” ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/5 "2009-02-11T21:17:18Z")
I think this line captures the hilarity of Kramer for me: Jerry: Let me explain something to you.You see, you’re not normal. You’re a great guy. I love you but…you’re a pod! I on the other hand am a human being. I sometimes feel awkward, uncomfortable. Even inhibited in certain situations with the other human beings. You wouldn’t understand. He doesn’t get it. Kramer is at his funniest when he is trying to be nice, but completely clueless about how inappropriate he is being. Like the time he offered Elaine a loan from Jerry. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/6 "2009-02-11T22:42:14Z")
> [@middleman](#): > > Like the time he offered Elaine a loan from Jerry. Oh, gosh, that’s right! Jerry was almost free of the apt deal and Kramer sucked him back in. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/7 "2009-02-11T22:43:59Z")
> [@middleman](#): > > He doesn’t get it. Kramer is at his funniest when he is trying to be nice, but completely clueless about how inappropriate he is being. The best example of this is when Lloyd Braun was released from the mental hospital, and Kramer is intent on making him feel useful and sane. This results in Jerry buying $100 of Chinese bubble gum and Kramer eating a decades-old rotten hot dog. “Interesting texture…” ---
**Author:** ![HolyFreakingMoly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/7ba0ec/32.png) [@HolyFreakingMoly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HolyFreakingMoly)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/8 "2009-02-11T23:03:33Z")
I imagine people who like slapstick enjoyed him for his slapstick talent. I’m not a fan of slapstick but he worked in that show. Not on my list of funniest, however. ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/9 "2009-02-11T23:10:26Z")
He can’t be on the top list because his own solo show, after massive Seinfeld success, was terrible. Try and not trying to be Kramer at the same time. He (and Elaine) were completely replaceable. ---
**Author:** ![MichaelJohnBertrand](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dfb087/32.png) [@MichaelJohnBertrand](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelJohnBertrand)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/10 "2009-02-11T23:17:47Z")
> [@Elret](#): > > I didn’t want to hijack the Greatest Sitcom Character thread, but I was surprised to see Cosmo Kramer appear so often in the list and would love to be enlightened. I know it’s impossible to explain funny to someone who doesn’t get it, but if anyone would take a crack at telling me why they love Kramer, I would be fascinated to hear. > > I never got the appeal of the dirty, semi-literate, random-jerky-movement-and-unexplained-facial-tics schtick, but I know I’m in the minority, so please share your love for Kramer with me. I’ll throw my own opinion as a self-declared Comedy Geek in here. First, Michael Richards is a comedy genius. The man breathes funny. Kramer is the perfection of that. Facial expressions, body movements, weird pauses… think Jerry Lewis or (god help me) Jim Carrey. They take the awkwardness of a clumsy, dorky, goofy person, distill the funniest parts of that, and turn it into comedy. That’s the physical aspect. The chracter is also genius. He’s everybody’s Weird Friend, someone who you love to have around because they say weird, random things and do weird, random things and therefore they are always surprising and delighting you. Kramer’s a wacky guy. From the point of view of the writers of the show, you need a guy like Kramer in a series because almost no idea is too weird if Kramer is doing it. I loved the episode where he decorated his entire apartment like the set of a 60’s talk show. Also, as others have said, there’s his utter lack of self-conciousness or inhibition. Most of us, as Jerry said, are humans, and so having this wacky guy around who does stuff we’re too neurotic to do is very refreshing. All in all, we love Kramer because he’s unpredictable, engaging, and just plain fun to watch. He’s the ultimate Wacky Neighbour! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/11 "2009-02-11T23:45:16Z")
He is Bizarro Jerry ---
**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:** [February 12, 2009, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/12 "2009-02-12T00:17:49Z")
I’m not a fan, but I understand why he’s popular. His weirdness is not particularly funny or endearing, but he’s off-beat enough to catch people’s attention. Basically, though, he’s just a grown up Steve Urkel without the funny voice and glasses. You can’t look down on Urkel and praise Kramer. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/13 "2009-02-12T00:19:33Z")
> [@MichaelJohnBertrand](#): > > First, Michael Richards is a comedy genius. Genius? :dubious: What else has he ever done that was funny? ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/14 "2009-02-12T00:49:07Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Genius? :dubious: What else has he ever done that was funny? [This](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hr1hoc7fc00). (I can’t believe I actually found that on YouTube. I love the interwebs.) ---
**Author:** ![Baal\_Houtham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baal_houtham/32/13604_2.png) [@Baal\_Houtham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baal_Houtham)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/15 "2009-02-12T00:59:41Z")
Kramer was the best weird guy ever. Michael Richards was able to take his grab bag of moves and be constantly surprising. The variations were small from week to week, but it was not just the same thing over and over. Paying close attention to his moves was worth the effort, and they were almost always very well chosen for the scene. Richards also had better scripts than a lot of other “strange” characters: _Taxi_’s Jim Ig, _Friends_’ Phoebe, _Newhart_’s Larry. His character was almost never actually unbelievable, which is what separated him from most other weird guys. I think he’s a legitimate nominee for Best Sitcom Character. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/16 "2009-02-12T01:00:46Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > [This](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hr1hoc7fc00). > > (I can’t believe I actually found that on YouTube. I love the interwebs.) Eek. I only made it halfway, but that was really awkward. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/17 "2009-02-12T01:14:23Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > [This](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hr1hoc7fc00). > > (I can’t believe I actually found that on YouTube. I love the interwebs.) Huh. Doesn’t really do it for me. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/18 "2009-02-12T01:15:22Z")
I dunno. They could have killed off Kramer, Costanza, or even Elaine at anytime and I don’t think I’d have cared a bit. Kramer especially though, seems to rely on a three stooges style gimmick humor, and I really don’t understand how anyone could think that was genius. ---
**Author:** ![Sebastienne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a698b9/32.png) [@Sebastienne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sebastienne)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/19 "2009-02-12T01:21:12Z")
Aside from the occasional one liner (“My boys need a house!”) I think most love for Kramer actually comes from him providing opportunity for Jerry and others to react to him in humorous ways. But the gut associates the funny with its catalyst. ---
**Author:** ![Hunter\_Hawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/50afbb/32.png) [@Hunter\_Hawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hunter_Hawk)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418/20 "2009-02-12T02:08:16Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > [This](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hr1hoc7fc00). > > (I can’t believe I actually found that on YouTube. I love the interwebs.) :dubious: Yeesh. What was that supposed to be, _Mr. Bean_ remixed for the SNL mouthbreathers? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kramer-why/485418.md?page=2)