Biographer says Larry David would rather "spend a year in prison" than do another Seinfeld season
Blake J. Harris, author of the authorised biography "Emperor of Nothing", says Larry David told associates before Seinfeld's fifth season he would prefer a year in prison to another season. The Guardian separately tells how David reluctantly agreed to the book.
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The story, neutrally told
Left · 1Blake J. Harris, author of the biography Emperor of Nothing: The Making of Larry David, said in an interview that David once told associates he would "rather spend a year in prison than do another season of Seinfeld". The IndependentLC “he would “rather spend a year in prison than do another season of Seinfeld.”” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1Harris made the comments on The Daily Beast's Obsessed podcast, according to The Independent. He said David made the remark at a lunch ahead of the show's fifth season, which began airing in 1993. The IndependentLC “Speaking to The Daily Beast’s Obsessed podcast, Harris said that ahead of the show's fifth season, which started airing in 1993” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1Harris described the remark as partly "shtick" but also a sign of "how torturous it was for him to run Seinfeld". He attributed the strain to the pressure David put on himself to come up with good ideas, and to his wish that every second of every episode meet a high standard. The IndependentLC ““Part of it is shtick or him being kind of funny, but part of it hints at how torturous it was for him to run Seinfeld,””““To him, every second of every episode needed to hit a certain caliber of quality” Read at The Independent ↗
Left · 1Harris also quoted a future Seinfeld colleague, speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, who said David was "so consumed with perfection that doing episodes is as painful for him as passing kidney stones". The IndependentLC “‘[Larry’s] so consumed with perfection that doing episodes is as painful for him as passing kidney stones.’”” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1Harris said David read a draft of the book and felt it had "too much" about his anxiety over ideas. Harris replied that this was what everyone talked about. The IndependentLC ““I think we’ve done too much of this – of me being anxious and worried about coming up with ideas.”” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1David co-created Seinfeld with Jerry Seinfeld. He was head writer and executive producer for the first seven seasons and returned to co-write the season-nine finale. The IndependentLC “served as the head writer and executive producer on the first seven seasons, and returned to co-write the series finale in season nine” Read at The Independent ↗
Left · 1The Guardian reports that the book, the first authorised biography of the Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm creator, nearly did not happen. David resisted in emails in August 2020, writing "There's nothing interesting about me and there's no interest in me", and relented only after Harris enlisted his friends, replying "Oh Jesus. If we must." The GuardianLC “David sent Harris a five-word email: “Oh Jesus. If we must.””“There’s nothing interesting about me and there’s no interest in me.” Read at The Guardian ↗ Left · 1According to the Guardian, David has since told Harris, "I agreed to do the book, but I immediately regretted it." The 576-page book largely escaped his interference, apart from requests to tone down passages where he appeared "too nice". The GuardianLC ““I agreed to do the book, but I immediately regretted it.””“asking for sections to be toned down where he appeared “too nice”” Read at The Guardian ↗ Left · 1The Independent adds that the book recounts how David and the late director Rob Reiner nearly made a film together. David had asked Reiner to produce his unproduced 1983 screenplay Prognosis: Negative, but Reiner was busy with his directorial debut, This Is Spinal Tap. The IndependentLC “David and the late director Rob Reiner nearly made a movie together, but it never happened.” Read at The Independent ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left2 outlets
- Framing
- Both outlets are lean-left UK titles. The Independent leads on the prison remark as a celebrity-anecdote story, while the Guardian runs a longer, admiring feature on how the authorised biography came about.
- Emphasis
- David's perfectionism and self-doubt, his reluctance to be written about, and the book's anecdotes about his early career.
- Leaves out or plays down
- The Independent relays the prison remark on Harris's word alone, with no comment from David or Seinfeld's representatives. The Guardian does not mention the prison remark.
- Charged language
- “comedy titan”“most begrudgingly authorised biography ever written”“torturous”
- For example
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“Larry David found it “torturous” to run the Emmy-winning sitcom Seinfeld, his biographer has said.” — The Independent
“might be the most begrudgingly authorised biography ever written” — The Guardian
Centre0 outlets
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right0 outlets
No right outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
What every side reports
- Blake J. Harris wrote Emperor of Nothing: The Making of Larry David, a biography of Larry David.
- David co-created Seinfeld and also created Curb Your Enthusiasm.
- David was reluctant about the biography.
Larry David person
As reported through Harris, David is anxious about quality and reluctant to be the subject of a book. He initially refused, saying there was nothing interesting about him, and later told Harris he regretted agreeing. He is not quoted speaking directly to the press in these articles.
““I agreed to do the book, but I immediately regretted it.”” — The Guardian
““I think we’ve done too much of this – of me being anxious and worried about coming up with ideas.”” — The Independent
Left2 articles
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Sympathetic Admiring feature on how Harris won over a reluctant David, praising the biography as capturing the spirit of the comedy great.
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Neutral Reports Harris's podcast remarks about David's stress on Seinfeld, framing the prison quote as partly a joke and partly a sign of pressure.
Centre0 articles
No coverage yet.
Right0 articles
No coverage yet.
- 25 Oct 14:00 First The GuardianLC ‘There’s nothing interesting about me – and no interest in me’: how Larry David’s new biography nearly didn’t happen
- 25 Oct 14:45 +46m The IndependentLC Larry David said he would rather ‘do time in prison’ than make another season of Seinfeld, biographer claims
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.
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