Fans poll for the funniest supporting character between Elaine, George, and Kramer, with early votes strongly favoring Kramer for his absurd antics and memorable moments.
I think it would be neat to have a little poll. The question:
Who is the funniest supporting character on Seinfeld?
The nominees:
Elaine George Kramer
Since my email capabilities are limited, just make a post to this base with the same title ("Who's the Best Character on Seinfeld") and then I'll tabulate the results and present them in a few weeks.
In [email] (Chad Skelton) writes:
I already know who won for the FUNNIEST, it's Kramer!
--Jeff
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Kramer without a doubt, but Elaine is definately the best looking! :-)
Although, he's not one of the main characters on the show, he has got to be the funniest line for line! No doubt about it, Morty Seinfeld is the best character. The Wallet could have some of the funniest lines from the whole series, i.e. the comfortable pants, and "My wallet's gone! My wallet's gone!", or how about The Outing, "It was those damn kulats(sp?) you made him wear, etc. " ; makes me laugh every time I think of a good Morty line! Otherwise, George is the funniest regular.
No contest: Kramer
Who else would go to the Cuban embassy for cigars? Who else would "borrow" a sink trap from Jerry? Who else would think of bringing a date to an operation? No contest.
In article kkuro@SCFTE (Karen Kurotsuchi) writes:
Funniest - Kramer. But, he isn't the most important in terms of making the show work.
A variation, NBC, in a rash of budget cuttings, mandates that sitcom stars can have only 1 sidekick. Who should be kept: George, Elaine, or Kramer?
Hmm... seems to me that about half of the people voting for Elaine are so because she's the "best", but the question asks who is the "funniest"...
Anyway, here's my answer to the THIRD related question...
Excerpt From: lshell@[128.247.10.25] (Lezlie A. Shell)
:A variation, NBC, in a rash of budget cuttings, mandates that sitcom :stars can have only 1 sidekick. Who should be kept: George, Elaine, :or Kramer?
In other words, who could the show NOT survive without. And I say George. A lot of the show is based on his dialouge with Jerry. Without George it would be a totally different concept. Without Kramer, you lose a little of the unpredictable humor. Without Elaine, you lose the "female view" on all the relationship topics that come up (which, admittedly, leaves the topic a bit skewed, ::grin::). But without George, the basis for a large portion of the episodes is gone.
IMHO.
-Rob
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=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=I just assume that the personality of the best character on Seinfeld is formed by the combination of all of the autonomous complexes represented by the characters Elain, Jerry, Kramer, etc., as the main character on Star Trek is the Enterprise comprising the autonomous complexes Kirk, McCoy, Spock, Scotty etc. Tom -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thomas E. Janzen 58A School Street #2-L Hudson, MA 01749-2518 USA (508)562-1295 [email] Looking for work, C (some C++) VMS (some **IX) AmigaDOS, s/w engineering. See me in "Readings in Computer-Generated Music" from IEEE Computer Society Press 1992, ed. Denis Baggi, and probably in June 93 C User's Journal for deconvolution. __________________________________________________________________________
Subject: Who's the Best Character on Seinfeld.
I'm voting for KRAMAH! too. George comes pretty close, but for raw unadulterated always-makes-you-laugh humour, I have to go with Kramer. He is indispensable to The Show!!!
Elaine.
[email] (Roy Eassa) writes:
Nope. It's definitely Kramer, with George running a *close* second. Of course, as far as having something nice to look at, that Elaine is *gorgeous*!
In article [email] writes:
Sorry Steve, but Roy was right. Kramer is great, but Elaine is funnier. All you Kramerites are just plain *wrong*! (NTTAWWT)
Well, I just told my wife about this poll (figuring I'd get both of our votes tallied at once). I told her that there was a poll asking whthe funniest sidekick was. Her reply: "Kramer. That's stupid, you don't even have to think about that." I have to agree with her. Even when the show is aun, we tape it. If we don't feel like watching it, we at least fast forward through it and watch all the scenes with Kramer.
Carl Mueller
[email] (John C Persons) writes:
Thanks. I think Kramer is funny, but the humor is quite broad (no pun intended) as opposed to the many interesting quirks in Elaine's personality that make her so interesting and thus funny. Like the way she gets that mischevious grin when she's got something up her sleeve, or the way she shoves you when you surprise her with a statement. She is unique in my TV-watching experience. (George would've been my second choice. Kramer is great too -- I guess this is just one excellent show, eh?)
In article [email] (Roy Eassa) writes:
Or the way she says "Sven-jolly" instead of Svengali? :-)
I think George is the funniest because he always manages to make a complete fool of himself....
I don't have a favorite, I like them all, but the funniest thing I can remember about George is when he was trying to break up with a girlfriend in his car, and she got all suicidal and stuff, and he says "You're getting all upset about ME. Look at ME!" or something to that effect. I thought it was hilarious.
I also like "The snub" episode, when Jerry asked "So what did you do?" and Kramer goes "WHat you think I'd do. I snubbed her." And the Cuban cigar episode, when the log cabin was burning down, Kramer goes "My cigars!".
OKay, I'll shut up now, just reminiscing a bit...
Kramer.
"i *do* well."
I think Jerry is the best on the show. Without him there wouldn't be a show and if there was it wouldn't be called SEINFELD, now would it?
Laurie Marshall Wayne State University Detroit, Michigan
Elaine, definitely. This is not to deny the tremendous contribution of Kramer who inevitably makes me laugh out loud each show. But Elaine is great, and even *kind of* believable as a true life character. Besides that, I want her life. What could be better than hanging out with Jerry eating cereal, doing this, that, and maybe even the other thing.
Elaine beats Kramer hands down.
Ruth
[email] (Ruth Maas McIlhenny) writes:
Now *that* I'd pay to see. ;-)
Yes, it is definetely Kramer. His expression, his slides through the door. Definetely Kramer. -Paul Take a trip to WallyWorld!! [8)
KRAMER
Molly
I vote Kramer.
(There's little chance for the others, IMO, but it will be interesting to see how many votes they do get, and if those voting that way give us their reasoning...)
-Rob
i like george
ditto. (not as a peron, but makes me laugh the most).
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Canada H3E 1H6[email] (Chad Skelton) writes: :
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Definitely Elaine!!
"I got a rubber pencil thing going here"
#1 -- Kramer -- "I do great." "They're very refreshing!" "Aw, come on, he's the _phone__man_!" "Wood, Jerry ... wood."
#2 -- Mr. Seinfeld (Jerry's dad) -- "These are very comfortable pants."
[there are many other supporting characters ... in fact, the three listed by the original posting are really main characters at this point. What about Newman? Crazy Joe? Elaine's shrink?... What about *Mulva*??]
evil e
Funniest- Kramer "It's chocolate, it's mint...who wouldn't want one? They're refreshing!"
Only 1 sidekick variation- George "Sorry, it's moops!" "MOOPS!!"
writes:
Ok, my vote:
Funniest: Kramer! (Every time he falls on his head, *I'm* in stitches!)
Best Actor: Elaine (I think I'm in Love - sigh)
Most Neurotic: George (But not as neurotic as ANYONE in Northern Exp.)
Most Sarcastic: Jerry (Not that there's anything wrong with that...)
-Doug
Elaine, definitely!
Let's see now, I think that Kramer wins most comical. HOW CAN YOU NOT LAUGH WHENEVER HE'S AROUND. George wins as best SUPPORTING actor. Without George, who J talk to ? Plus he is just funny when he's around other people. Elaine is good to look at, and funny, but no where near as comical as Kramer and George.
That's my opinion. NTTAWWT
In article [email] (Dana Robert Haagensen) writes:
I vote for Elaine, hands down!!!!
[email]
*** Enjoy life -- This is not a dress rehearsal.***
*** Hang loose ***In article , [email] (Dana Robert
My vote goes to Lainey.
Kramer: When he had the seizures from listening to Mary Hart on E.T.! The best!!!!
Definitely Elaine.
Kramer, I fear as one other poster did, is becoming the cult favorite akin to Christopher Lloyd on Taxi or Henry Winkler on Happy Days. Perhaps, I'd like him better if the studio audience hadn't started cheering everytime he makes an entrance in the more recent eps.
George has become a parody of himself. How many different ways can we exploit the George is a complete loser angle? I don't mind that he's a loser, but it's starting to get old. I hope he gets a stable job soon before it becomes any more of a rut.
Agitator #->
It seems that more women favor Elaine than men and they tend to favor Kramer. While stating that the show wouldn't be as good without all the cast which is the same situation each year with the Oscar's (How can you pick between 5 excellent performances? In truth they all deserve an Oscar and the choosing has more to do with other factors than how good they were as compared to each other), I tend to favor Elaine. Not because I dream about her as a delightful girlfriend. Not because I think she is better than the rest of the cast. But merely because her humourous character seems so melded to all the she does as an actress. Both Kramer and George come close to this but I feel that Elaine has the slight edge on them.
Try this. If Kramer were given his own show, he would still need what he gets on this show which is something like a setup. Bursting through the door all the time would be funny on its own but I fear would become stale quickly. It's the rest of the cast and the humor in the script that sets us up to see Kramer as consistantly funny played against an already humorous situation. As some have pointed out, as funny and talented the portrayal of George is, he might start to be seen as a whiner after a while, and no longer funny. Since Seinfeld mainly plays his stage self against all these wacky characters, I doubt if you would find his humor consistently funny after a time all by itself. Most of the time he uses his particular slant on seeing the world as in his stage setups. I find these very funny but they sometimes fall a little flat. I guess it depends on the mood.
But Elaine has enough going for her to play this same character in the midst of a totally different set of cast members and still be intrinsically funny. Her portrayal is not only more melded to her actions but she appears to have a wider range of what she can play on to be funny, less circumscribed. I can imagine Elaine continuing to be funny through many changes of cast and setting around her character. Kramer has to base himself on the wackiness. George has to base himself on a loser tousling with his fate. Jerry has to base himself on dealing with an absurd world and seeing it only in an absurd way. Where is the the tight circle of Elaine? She has consistently surprised us with her turns of character (Her pivoting between a naive outlook and a city slicker hipness to what is really going on; her obsessions (shoes, nipples); her aggressiveness (all that pushing)). I think that she could have a whole bag of surprises waiting to express themselves at each turn. Those facial devices (mischevious looks; wide eyed wonder; scornful rejection) project a wider range than let us say George who must always play with a small set of whines, sucker looks and know-it-all looks. Don't take me wrong. I am not running down anyone in this cast. I find the cast to be perfect in what they aim for, both as individuals and as a team.
It is only my opinion.
In article writes:
how about if kramer got his own sitcom and all it would have him do is burst through the doors of different (famous) people (fictional and non-fictional). in the pilot, he would interrupt the u.s./russian summit, bursting through the oval office's door, exclaiming, "boris and bubba: you got any cubans? (that's cigars...)"
ys
ps. i need a partner to help write this. pps. actually no i don't because ... it's only a sitcom. ppps. i want what ted dansen's getting...
(other parts deleted by some fool)
I agree that Elaine is the best of the supporting characters. If you took each one and gave them their own show, then I feel that the only one that would survive would be JLD's.
Marie
In article [email] writes:
I'm not partial to any supportuing character in particular, but remember the Florida trip that Jerry and Elaine took to visit Jerry's parents?
"Stella!!!"
"Mrs. Seinfeld, turn the air conditioner ON."
Both compliments of Elaine. And a classic episode.
Andy Brezinski Intergraph Corporation Huntsville, AL 35894-0001
This isn't even a contest. Jerry makes the show! How can one argue otherwise. It is HIS talent which makes the others look good! I don't understand how one could think someone else is the best character, unless you're saying Jerry is a given.
I really in all honesty, have to cast my vote for The Bubble Boy. I mean, it may have only been one measly appearance, though now that I think ab out it, we never did see him. Well anyway, it made a lasting impression as one of the finest comedic performances in television history. Yeah. Come on, everyone is important on the show. It could not survive very well with out any one of the integral characters. They are all funny and add so much in t heir own individual way, that it really seems kind of petty to spend all of thi s time arguing about who is the best. Thats how I feel. But you guys, Im sure,will yell, NTTAWWT.......
A glimmer of sanity in the night! YEAH! "Seinfeld" is so good because the writers understand how important EVERYONE is to the whole. And not one word is wasted in any script! Even Jerry, though great as a stand-up act, couldn't fill 30 minutes every week with such hilarity all by himself.
BTW, how many out there remember seeing JLD in *person* an' close-up when she was back in Chicago as a member of the Practical Theater comedy group? Missed that one, eh? Too bad! She was even BETTER than on tv!
wi
in
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apples and oranges.....I can`t pick a favorite, 'cuz I like them all for different reasons.
jer
Just a thought, Kramer was the *first to lose* The Contest
I believe that this started as the most indispensible supporting character, thus making Jerry a given.
Brian
I'd have to say it would be Kramer, hands down. I was just watching a rerun of Rock and Jock Softball on MTV this weekend, and "Kramer" was out there in a chef's hat and an apron BBQ-ing and it really cracked me up. It was a typical Kramer thing to do. But, that's only my $.02.
Tatiana
KramerKramerKramerKramerKramerKramerKramerKramerKramerKramerKramerKramer...
So is anyone keeping a tally of these?
I'm posting this for a friend, so don't mail replies to me. Personally, I think Kramer is the best character, but a friend, Robert Ramirez of Foster City, California seems to think that:
The best character on Seinfeld has got to be the Spanish speaking guy who hangs out with the landlord. When Kramer asked how his hair looked after he gelled it, the guy said "esta muy feo."
No life...no .sig
In article ,
[address] [address]
K R A M E R
I vote for Elaine. I love Kramer. Kramer is hysterically, unbelievably funny. But in my mind he is not at the heart of the show. Elaine is the best because she's equal to Jerry. By this I mean, they interact as equals. She puts him down, scores off him, makes him laugh. Example: "My mother got me some panties; she's got them laid out for me." They confide in each other and discuss the other characters between themselves. She can manipulate Jerry and figure out when he is hiding the truth from her. George just isn't as sharp. He isn't Jerry's match in verbal sparring; he tends to be the straight man and does not have the respect of the other characters. Example: Jerry says, "I'm like you, only successful."
Chad Skelton ([email]) wrote:
Elaine has to be the best character since she is the best looking character, but Kramer is the all time funniest! The Kramer slide gets me everytime.
Shawn
Re: Jerry is the Best Character
It's the best "supporting" character. Otherwise, everyone would just say Jerry. As well, a main character and a main character play different roles, and can't be compared. Jerry couldn't really have the same sort of comedy as, say, Kramer, as the show wouldn't have any substance (even if the rumour going around is that the show is about "nothing").
I just said "main character and a main character" play different roles. I meant to say, "main character and a supporting character". Boy I feel dumb.