Episode 281

Larry David has spent his career turning social discomfort, petty grievances, and everyday aggravations into comedy gold. But what truly explains the man behind Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm? The answer takes about 576 pages. 

Author Blake J. Harris spent six years studying and writing and his book, Emperor of Nothing: The Making Of Larry David, is an expansive and revealing portrait of one of television's most original, and uncompromising, creative minds. Blake joins Weezy and Lisa (herself a veteran of Larry David Enterprises!) to share what he discovered about Larry,’ his life, his work, and his relentless determination to do things his own way.

After the unexpected political controversy surrounding his previous book about Oculus founder Palmer Luckey, Blake was ready for a project that would bring him some joy. Enter Larry David, who initially hated the idea of someone writing a book about him. 

Blake recounts how he won Larry over by talking baseball rather than asking predictable Seinfeld episode questions, and how an unexpected revelation about the Seinfeld finale helped establish their rapport. 

Blake traces Larry's journey from his childhood to his early stand-up days, when Larry was notorious for waking off stage if his rapport with the audience was not to his liking. Jerry Seinfeld was a young comic who completely understood and appreciated Larry’s riffs and Rhythms. One night at a birthday party for Carol Leifer, Carol had imbibed to the point where she felt ill-suited to read some birthday jokes that Larry had written for her. So, Jerry read them, marking the first time Larry’s words came out of Jerry’s mouth. It felt pretty good.

The two decided to team up when Jerry was offered a special which became Seinfeld. It was Larry's perfectionism and Jerry's levelheadedness that made Seinfeld both a triumph and a source of tremendous stress for Larry who needed every episode to be exactly right.

From Larry's insistence on absolute creative control, even as a struggling comic and screenwriter, to how he balked at the idea of friends and colleagues saying nice things about him in the book, a portrait emerges of a man who has an exacting vision of how he wants the world to see him, and will go to extremes to ensure that view is maintained.

The conversation also explores the origins of Curb Your Enthusiasm, which grew out of an HBO stand-up special featuring improvised scenes with Larry and his manager, played by Jeff Garlin, plus our own Lisa Arch has appeared in Seinfeld and Curb so in a fun reversal, Blake asks Lisa to compare the tone and culture on each set.

Blake is still somewhat in awe of the extraordinary access and unexpected friendship that developed over six years of researching and writing the first authorized Larry David biography. It's a fascinating look at the creative genius behind two landmark television comedies, and a man whose refusal to play by the rules helped redefine the rules of comedy.