Seinfeld ''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, over nine seasons and 180 episodes. It stars Seinfeld as a fictionalized version of himself and ...

'' is an American television sitcom created by

Jerry Seinfeld Jerome Allen Seinfeld ( ; born April 29, 1954) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. He is best known for playing a semi-fictionalized version of himself in the sitcom '' Seinfeld'', which he created and wrote with La ...

and Larry David. ''Seinfeld'' has been described by some as a "show about nothing", similar to the self-parodying "show within a show" of fourth-season episode "

The Pilot A pilot is a person who flies or navigates an aircraft. Pilot or The Pilot may also refer to: * Maritime pilot, a person who guides ships through hazardous waters * Television pilot, a television episode used to sell a series to a television netw ...

". Jerry Seinfeld is the lead character and played as a fictionalized version of himself. Set predominantly in an apartment block on New York City's

Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper West ...

, the show features a host of Jerry's friends and acquaintances, which include

George Costanza George Louis Costanza is a fictional character in the American television sitcom ''Seinfeld'' (1989–1998), played by Jason Alexander. He is a short, stocky, balding man who struggles with numerous insecurities, often dooming his romantic rela ...

Elaine Benes Elaine Marie Benes () is a fictional character on the American television sitcom ''Seinfeld'', played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Elaine's best friend in the sitcom is her ex-boyfriend Jerry Seinfeld, and she is also good friends with George Costanz ...

, and

Cosmo Kramer Cosmo Kramer, usually referred to as simply "Kramer", is a fictional character in the American television sitcom ''Seinfeld'' (1989–1998) played by Michael Richards. The character is loosely based on comedian Kenny Kramer, Larry David's e ...

, who are portrayed by

Jason Alexander Jay Scott Greenspan (born September 23, 1959), known professionally as Jason Alexander, is an American actor, comedian, host and director. An Emmy and Tony winner, he is best known for his role as George Costanza in the television series '' ...

Julia Louis-Dreyfus Julia Scarlett Elizabeth Louis-Dreyfus ( ; born January 13, 1961) is an American actress, comedian, and producer who worked on the comedy television series ''Saturday Night Live'' (1982–1985), ''Seinfeld'' (1989–1998), ''The New Adventures ...

, and

Michael Richards Michael Anthony Richards (born July 24, 1949) is an American actor, writer, television producer, and comedian best known for playing Cosmo Kramer on the television sitcom ''Seinfeld''. He began his career as a stand-up comedian, first enterin ...

, respectively. The series debuted on July 5, 1989, on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

, as ''

The Seinfeld Chronicles "The Seinfeld Chronicles" (also known as "Good News, Bad News", "Pilot", "The Premiere", or simply "Seinfeld") is the pilot episode of the American sitcom ''Seinfeld'', which first aired on NBC on July 5, 1989. The first of the 180 ''Seinfeld' ...

''. The

pilot episode A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in television in the United States, United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a te ...

was met with poor reviews, and as a result, NBC passed on the show. However, NBC executive

Rick Ludwin Richard Adam Ludwin (May 27, 1948 – November 10, 2019) was an American television executive and former vice president at NBC Television. He is notable as the executive who backed Jerry Seinfeld's series ''Seinfeld'', which went on to become one ...

believed the series had potential and therefore gave ''Seinfeld'' a budget to create four more episodes, which formed the rest of season 1 and began airing on May 31, 1990. The first season is considered the smallest sitcom order in

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

history. During its nine-year run, 180 episodes of ''Seinfeld'' were produced. The count includes both halves of three one-hour episodes, including the finale, and two retrospective episodes, each split into two parts: "

The Highlights of 100 "The Highlights of 100" is an hour-long, two-part episode of the NBC sitcom ''Seinfeld''. This is the 14th and 15th episodes for the sixth season, and the 100th and 101st overall episode. It aired on February 2, 1995. It is a clip show with no new ...

", covering the first 100 episodes; and "

The Clip Show "The Chronicle" (also known as "The Clip Show") is an hour-long, two-part episode that constitutes the 177th and 178th episodes of the NBC sitcom ''Seinfeld''. These were the 21st and 22nd episodes of ''Seinfeld'' from the ninth and final season. I ...

", also known as "The Chronicle", which aired before the series finale. On November 25, 2004, a special titled ''The Seinfeld Story'' was broadcast. This marked the first appearance of ''Seinfeld'' on NBC since its series finale in 1998. All nine seasons are available on DVD and, as of , the show is still re-run regularly in

syndication Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...

. The final episode aired on May 14, 1998. The streaming rights for all 180 episodes of the series transferred from

Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television series ...

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...

Series overview

Episodes

Season 1 (1989–90)

Season 2 (1991)

Season 3 (1991–92)

Season 4 (1992–93)

Season 5 (1993–94)

Season 6 (1994–95)

Season 7 (1995–96)

Season 8 (1996–97)

Season 9 (1997–98)

Ratings

References

Notes

External links