I just have one simple question: Is George Jewish or Italian. I have a bet with some friends and we need to know for sure. He and his parents act Jewish yet their last name is Castanza and on the Apr. 28 episode his mother made paeia which is an Italian food. This question has probably been asked before but I just saw this newsgroup now. Thanks.
---Marty
actually paella is a spanish dish and not a italian one. as for george's descent i have no idea -cliff
I think George is a strange TV-land hybrid, I'd call him a "jewtalian"
although catholic italian families have many of the same emotional traits as
jewish families <I know wherein I speak>, especially Guilt and Neuroses. :)
By the way, I thought paella was a Spanish meal, of rice, saffron,
seafood, etc.. or am I off base? If so, maybe George's annoying mom is more hip
than I would've imagined.
And what the hell ethnicity is Kramer, for that matter??
:)In article [email] writes:
Kind of like Juan Epstein, on Welcome Back, Kotter. He was a Puerto-Rican Jew.
That's right. But I can't stand for infestation.
Orkan.
In article Martin_Belafsky.brown.edu (Marty Belafsky) writes:
I don't know if this has been answered previously, but I think that Jerry, Elaine and Kramer are Jewish, but George is Italian. I base my opinion solely on George's last name sounding Italian. Paella is not an Italian dish, but rather it is Spanish (it is practically the national dish of Spain). I'm sure those that know for sure regarding George's ethnic background will correct me if I'm wrong.
Dalma
This has been beaten to death previously. Here is what we came up with: Jerry -> Jewish (no christmas tree, doesn't give out xmas cards) Elaine -> not Jewish, gives out christmas cards Kramer -> not jewish, he is not circumsized (sp?), well I don't know this for sure, but he has said that circumstision makes sex less pleasurable, so I safly assume that he is not? George -> we still get the big deny on this one... I thinkg we determined it from clues in the show, but I'd have to check the email I saved on it...
Andy To be Continued...
Here's the continuation: (it's hard to belive I saved the mail on this subject...)
Conclusion: confirmed Jew (can Jews be confirmed? sorry, bad pun)
Elaine -> gives out xmas cards, is against people attending a bris, doesn't
know what a moil (sp?) is (not to say that all Jewish people do),
she doesn't want the kosher meal on a plane flight.
Could still be Jewish with a name like Bennis.
Conclusion: definately non-jew. if he has gone under the knife,
it's never been mentioned on the show.
Conclusion: possible non-jew.George -> his mother asks him why he can't find a nice catholic girl,
has heard that the kosher meal is pretty good (does this mean that
he'd be willing to try it? Would the curiousness make him
non-jewish?, seeing as how he has never tried one.)
Conclusion: a possible Italian Jew.I think Jerry is the only confirmed Jew, but I don't think that the others are, there have been to many inconstitancies in the characters to support anyone else being jewish, but I think it leans more toward Jerry being the only one.
Saving Mail for future use, Andy
You are nuts....I don't care what ANYONE says...I'm Jewish..and I know Jewish people..
George and his parents are Jewish...man..his dads not a Jew..he's THE Jew.
In article , [email] (David Zarnitzky) writes:
I'm Italian, and believe me, Jews do not have any monopoly on neurotic, screaming parents. George's parents are typical of many Italians of that generation, and coupled with the last name ending in a vowel, I rest my case, they're Italian as ....manicotti with meatballs.
Steverino
In Martin_Belafsky.brown.edu (Marty Belafsky) writes:
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Yep.The quick answer is *nobody knows*. The possible theories are:
1) George is so obviously a collection of Jewish neurotic stereotypes that the producers made him Italian to avoid criticism. 2) George's mother is Jewish, his father Italian, which would make him Jewish with an Italian last name. 3) George's father is an Italian Jew, and his mother is also Jewish. 4) It's just a joke. Dave
I can't believe what I'm reading when it comes to this episode. How can all of you Seinfeld devotees not know the answer to such a stupid question? Go back and watch the episode with the briss, and the pig-man. This episode (and there are numerous other examples throughout the show's history) will show you that while Jerry and George are both Jewish, Elaine is not. All, however, are void of religion in their daily lives...it just doesn't play a part. By the way, who the hell posted something saying that they thought Kramer was a dentist? What are you...an idiot! Where on Earth did you get that idea? You either are or should be terribly embarrassed for such a dumb comment.
[Techncially, George is still Latvian Orthodox]
In article mx%"[email]" writes:
Are you trying to get flamed or are you stupid or is this supposed to be a joke? Your comments are rude and unwarranted. The question the original poster asked (is George Jewish or Italian) is a question that I had been wondering about also and I appreciate the fact that he asked it. It may seem "stupid" to you, but it certainly isn't to me and I'm sure to many others as well. Where is it written that you have to be a Seinfeld expert if you want to read this group? And your comments about the dentist theory are even worse, O Nameless One. You're the one who should be embarrassed, but with your kind of attitude, you probably aren't. I think you should either be more tolerant or take your high and mighty opinions elsewhere!
Gabe
Your right, Gabe. You tell him Gabe. That guy has got no business
talking like that. Who the hell does he think he is. I for one was very
interested in the ethnicity of the charcters. I couldn't sleep unitl I
found out the religious affiliation of these ficticious television
characters. It's really important to know....because if they're all
jewish, then I'm not going to watch it anymore. What the hell kind of show
would that be? A bunch of Jewish people in New York...who'd believe that!
Thank you again, Gabe, for setting that guy straight, I'm glad we finally
got an answer on that really important question. Let's all route for
Elaine now...she's not Jewish. In fact, let's all hope they gand up on Sid,
the guy who parks the cars, because he's black (I think). maybe he just has
a really good tan. Maybe he spilled that italian food, Paella on himself and
it stained his skin. What the hell are they eating foreign food for anyway?
They are always eating Chinese and Italian...what's with that? I think
Seinfeld is a conspiracy by the jew to turn everyone away from steak and
potatoes and everything else American. What religion is Newman....Does he
spell it Neumann? If so, he's probably German, Gabe. That would explain
his hostility towards Jerry. Von Neumann is a nazi I guess. The whole show
smacks of communism if you ask me...and it's got too many foreigners! George
dates an Asian attorney, Jerry helps Babu from Pakistan. George and Kramer are
both dating black women at times...and lesbians! What kind of show is this?
It is corrupting the youth of America, Gabe... Do something! Maybe we can
save Jerry in time....maybe he'll convert, Gabe...he's a good Jew...he'll
listen to reason.
Gabe, thanks for being made an ass of here. I'm sure many people
wanted to see it. I for one did. My point is that it doesn't matter what
the hell these people are. Why would it? The answer, " I was just curious"
isn't good enough...because it shouldn't be important. You either like them
or you don't---they're ficticious.
In real life, jerry is jewish (duh) and Jason Alexander is too. He's
so Jewish in fact that he used to be Jay Greenspan from New Jersey. Do you
still want to watch, Gabe?
---and by the way, I know paella is spanish. (another frickin' foreign dish!)
DO SOMETHING, GABE! Keep America pure!--Marty
I hate to confuse you even more, but "paella" is a SPANISH food.
--Daniel
In article ,
Well, maybe the Castanzas are Sephardic Jews. For those who don't know the difference, Sephardic Jews settled in countries like Spain, Portugal, and Africa instead of Ashkenazi Jews who settled in eastern European countries.
In article , [email] (Jan Penovich) writes:
Yay! I thought I was the only one who knew. I've figure George to be Sephardic from day one. (They also tend to be short.) (Great, now the one tall Sephardic on Earth is gonna flame me.)
And of course Elaine isn't Jewish, she gave out Christmas cards for Christ's sake! I loved how they handled that, too. Elaine gives cards, nobody else does, and that's that. No explanation.
[email] (HEFFAY) writes:
Hmm, isn't Elaine's character based on Carol Leifer (I believe that's whom Seinfeld used to date)?
For that matter, is Julia MOT?
George is definitely Jewish, though. His mother is a dead give-away.
simon
I have Jewish friends who are non-religious who still send Christmas cards. I'm not sure about Elaine's ethnicity.
In [email] (Trish Rucker) writes:
I think the reference to "Father ______" more than clears that up.
Is Elaine related to Andy Benes of the Padres? Dave