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For Jason Alexander, fame wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.
The “Seinfeld” star was a guest on Daniel Lubetzky’s “Build or Break” podcast and discussed the iconic sitcom that helped shape his career. Alexander told Lubetzky that therapy was the only way he was able to cope with how much the show changed his life.
“You literally went to therapy?” the host asked.
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Jason Alexander said he needed therapy to deal with the way “Seinfeld” fame affected him. (Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for Netflix)
“You bet,” Alexander replied. “I was in therapy while it was happening.”
When Alexander was asked why, he explained that the transition from the fame that “Seinfeld” brought him would be hard for anyone.
Michael Richards, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jerry Seinfeld and Jason Alexander all starred in NBC’s “Seinfeld.” (Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images)
“The transition from successful at your job to international celebrity, let me just tell you, I don’t care how well you’ve been raised or who you are, you’re going to need some therapy,” Alexander said.
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Alexander went on to explain that he had one vision for himself when he was young, one dream to accomplish, and that was to make it to Broadway.
Jason Alexander leaned on therapy after “Seinfeld” ended in 1998. (Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images)
“My fantasy of a successful life for myself as an actor growing up in New Jersey was getting across the river and working on those Broadway stages. That was the pinnacle for me,” he began.
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He continued, “I didn’t think about television. I didn’t think about film. I dreamt about a life in the theater. God gave me that starting at age 21. By the time I was 30, I’d won a Tony Award. And now they throw in my path ‘Pretty Woman,’ some of the other films, ‘Seinfeld.’ And I now live a life as an actor that I never dreamt of, never. I never thought I would have this kind of money, that I could keep my family the way I keep them, that I would have these opportunities, that I would work with the people I’ve met.”
Comedian Jerry Seinfeld is credited as a star and co-creator of “Seinfeld.” (Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty Images)
Alexander said that when “Seinfeld” ended, his first thought wasn’t to try and replace that level of success, rather he was in awe that he was able to get there in the first place.
“So, if you hit that and then that goes away, I would never go, ‘Why couldn’t I keep that?’ I go, ‘I can’t believe I ever got that.’ That’s not what I was thinking. So for me, life gave me more than I ever dreamed of,” he said. “I didn’t expect that to last. I objectively could sit back. And one of the reasons that we were so adamant at the end about making money on ‘Seinfeld’ is because I grew up at a time when if you had a hit series on television, you never worked again. I mean, that was it.”
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“Seinfeld” is an American sitcom created by comedian Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David. The series premiered in 1989 and followed a fictionalized version of Seinfeld as he navigated everyday life, relationships and friendships in New York City.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jerry Seinfeld and Jason Alexander are seen on the set of the last episode of “Seinfeld” on April 3, 1998. (Getty Images)
The main cast included Alexander as George Costanza, Seinfeld as Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Elaine Benes and Michael Richards as Cosmo Kramer.
Often described as a “show about nothing,” the series focused on ordinary situations that spiraled into comedic chaos. It ran for nine seasons and 180 episodes before ending in 1998. “Seinfeld” is widely regarded as one of television’s most influential and successful sitcoms.
