MEET The REAL Costanza - Scheduled Appearances
WordwiseB
Visit http://members.aol.com/wordwiseb/realcostanza/ for photos and excerpts
from "The Real Seinfeld as told by The Real Costanza." Or call 1-800-345-6665!
Special Limited Offer - $10.00! (No shipping or handling.) Limit 10 per
customer.
MEET THE REAL COSTANZA!
Meet Mike Costanza, author of "The Real Seinfeld, as told by the Real
Costanza."
Talk to Mike about this intimate memoir of his long friendship with Jerry
Seinfeld,
who based much of SEINFELD's George Costanza on Mike and his life stories.
MIKE COSTANZA'S UPCOMING BOOK-SIGNINGS: (Dates/times subject to change.)
* Tuesday, July 7 - 7:30 PM - Borders Books, Westbury, Long Island
Westbury Mall, 1260 Old Westbury Road, Long Island, NY
* Friday, July 24 - 8 PM - Barnes & Noble Superstore, Braintree, MA
150 Granite Street, (off Route 37 from 28 south on the way to Cape Cod)
* Monday, August 3 - 7:30 PM - Barnes & Noble Bookstore, Forest Hills
Austin Street, Forest Hills, Queens, NY
* Thursday, August 6 - 12:30 - 1:30 PM - Barnes & Noble Superstore, New York
City,
600 Fifth Avenue (48th St.), New York, NY
* October 2-4 (Friday to Sunday), New Atlantic Independent Booksellers
Association
Trade Show, Philadelphia, PA (Check web-page for local appearances)
To Be Announced:
* JULY - Oak Tree Book Store, the Hamptons, NY
* JULY 24-26 - Washington, DC
* AUGUST - Borders Books, Sayville, Long Island, NY
http://members.aol.com/wordwiseb/realcostanza/
UFChamps
According to Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, this guy is not the "real"
Costanza. He knew Jerry from college and Jerry ended up using his name. They
are not long-time friends as he claims. Seinfeld and David said that the
George character is actually based mainly on Larry. This guy is just an
opportunist like Kenny Kramer seeking to milk "Seinfeld" for all he can.
Keymystery
FYI --
At this point, my opinion is that the Larry David/Mike Costanza contoversy is
an amusing and fairly innocent tempest in a teapot. I have interviewed Mike
Costanza, Kenny Kramer, and a number of Jerry Seinfeld's friends mentioned in
the Costanza book, including Jesse Michnick, Anthony D'Alto, Joe Bacino (these
three comprising Jerry's "old gang" along with Costanza), and also Susan
McNabb, a Los Angeles actress/hand-model who was Jerry's on-again-off-again
girlfriend from the mid-1980's through the early 90's (her identity and
possible resemblance to the Elaine character was never revealed to the public,
except in the Costanza book, as far as I know).
My conclusion is that Larry David and Mike Costanza share credit for the
character of George, although their respective contributions were very
different. Mike Costanza's influence on the character was mediated by Jerry,
who apparently did not inform Larry David where some of the material in
George's bio was coming from (beyond the name). I suspect this may be the case
because Larry David's statement on the subject, issued through his publicist at
Castle Rock, suggested that Costanza was just a name that Jerry "happened to
remember from college." Costanza's role was evidently much more than that. I
have confirmed that Seinfeld and Costanza were close friends for more than 20
years -- and according to their mutual friends, many of Costanza's stories are
true. As you may know, Jerry himself has yet to comment publicly on the book,
perhaps finding himself caught between his two pals and their conflicting
claims.
There may also be financial and legal considerations. It's very clear that the
Seinfeld series was based on Jerry's personal life on the club circuit through
the 80's, when his confidante and best friend was Mike Costanza. As such, Mike
Costanza had exactly the same relationship to George Costanza that Kenny Kramer
had to Cosmo Kramer. The difference is that Kenny Kramer signed a release and
was paid for the use of his name and likeness; while Mike Costanza was not.
Jerry and Larry David acknowledged Kenny Kramer early in the run of the series,
but never said a word about Mike Costanza -- possibly believing that he was
such a good friend of Jerry's that he would never reveal his identity or make
any of the claims that he has made in his book. As far as I can tell, the only
way that Costanza ever benefited was by Jerry giving him a small role on the
show for an episode that aired in 1992 ("The Parking Space").
It appears that Jerry used biographical materials from real life in much the
same way that Woody Allen and Neil Simon drew characters from their personal
lives. I believe this happened in the collaboration between Seinfeld and Larry
David, even giving David primary responsbility and credit for the writing
(after all, the show was first and foremost based on the life and personality
of Jerry Seinfeld). Larry David's awards are surely well-deserved, yet both he
and Jerry have been less than forthcoming or candid about Mike Costanza. Even
Kenny Kramer calls Costanza an "opportunist," which does seem a little like the
proverbial pot calling the kettle black.
I don't think any of this should diminish our opinions of Seinfeld and Larry
David, or our appreciation of the show. After all, what's a little
back-stabbing between friends?
A story has been circulating (from either Kenny Kramer or Larry David or both)
that George and Jerry were first conceived for the show as two stand-up
comedians. There is little reason to believe this was the case because so much
of George Costanza's bio matches that of Mike Costanza (a Realtor, hand-model,
bathroom eccentricities, etc.) rather than Larry David. For example, Jerry
went to Queens College; Larry David did not. Mike Costanza's gym teacher
nicknamed him "Can't-Stand-Ya" (confirmed by friends of Jerry's and Mike
Costanza's). Moreover, George and Jerry are portrayed on the show as longtime
friends, which was certainly not the case with Jerry and Larry David. My
conclusion is that this little controversy gives us unique insights into the
collaboration between Seinfeld and David -- as well as the slippery slope
between life and art. By the way, from what I've learned, the only things that
Larry David and Mike Costanza had in common were the bald heads and the fact
that both drove taxis in Manhattan.
If there were no merit to Costanza's claim, of course, Seinfeld would have
taken legal action and simply taken the book off the market. I do think it's
funny that Larry David and Mike Costanza are both trying to lay claim to a
character that most people would consider in many ways despicable (however
lovable George may be). It appears that some of these questions may be
resolved in August when Seinfeld and Costanza are reunited in New York during
Jerry's HBO/Broadway-run.
Regards,
J. Rink
Dave
UFChamps wrote:
>
> According to Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, this guy is not the "real"
> Costanza. He knew Jerry from college and Jerry ended up using his name. They
> are not long-time friends as he claims.
Apparently, you didn't read the book. You are quite incorrect.
> Seinfeld and David said that the
> George character is actually based mainly on Larry.
Where did they say this? Can you document your sources?
> This guy is just an
> opportunist like Kenny Kramer seeking to milk "Seinfeld" for all he can.
That may well be, but he's milking the fact that he was a good friend of
Jerry's and many, many parts of the George Costanza character were
derived directly from Jerry's experiences growing up with Mike. You
make it sound like his only connection is the fact that his last name is
"Costanza" and that's just not the case.
I was the skeptic at first, too.
Read the book. It'll change your mind.
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