Why Michael Richards Refused To Meet The Real-Life Inspiration For Seinfeld's Kramer

"Seinfeld" might've needed a few seasons to catch on with television viewers, but one element of the show that was a knockout from day one was Michael Richards' wildly idiosyncratic portrayal of Cosmo Kramer. An unapologetically intrusive neighbor who bursts into Jerry's apartment without knocking, helps himself to whatever is in the refrigerator or pantry and makes wild assertions about any topic that happens to be on his or someone else's mind, Kramer was the show's most reliable generator of belly laughs early on and became the series' first breakout character.

Like the other three main characters on the sitcom (and many of its supporting characters, the Soup Nazi included), Kramer was based on a person from Jerry Seinfeld and series co-creator Larry David's life. It didn't take long for journalists to discover the existence of Kenny Kramer because he was determined to cash in on his quasi-celebrity, but this also complicated things for the show. While Kenny Kramer, with his long, frizzy hair and motormouth persona, was undeniably a true eccentric, he wasn't exactly like the Kramer television viewers had come to know and kinda-sorta love on the show.

Was this due to Richards' inability to nail down all of the real-life Kramer's mannerisms? Not at all. In fact, when Richards began shaping his interpretation of the Kramer that Seinfeld and David had written, he didn't want to get to know Kenny Kramer at all.

In the featurette "Kramer vs. Kramer: Kenny to Cosmo" from the "Seinfeld" DVD set, Kenny reveals that Richards did not consult with him prior to playing his version of Kramer on television. "People have asked me if Michael met with me to study," he explained. "The answer is no. He did not want anything to do with knowing about me. Larry wrote the words, and he interpreted it himself." Kenny added, "Larry knows me like a book, so a lot of the ingredients in me — the golf, the entrepreneurialism, hot tubs, raging heterosexuality ... all that is me. But, of course, Michael did his thing."

According to Richards, he was sure at first how he was going to play Kramer, and was aware that his take on the character wasn't quite how David envisioned it. "I played him very slow and behind everything going on around him, presuming that he really had no contact with people," Richards noted.

His Kramer might not have been what David initially wanted, but when the writer saw Richards had done with the part, he happily let him run with it. "I wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth," said David. "When an actor is doing better with something than you've conceived it, you just say, 'Go ahead.'" Richards did just that, and wound up winning three Primetime Emmys for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series along with two more for Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy Series (which he shared with his co-stars). Richards also injured himself in the process, but five Emmys are worth more than a few bumps and bruises.