Even for a show as zany as Seinfeld, it was a little bit out there when the show abruptly killed off George’s fiancé Susan. Then, he has them sleeping in drawers. “It would have been dishonest to make him upset, and that’s why it’s funny,” David said afterward. Jason Alexander revealed the fate of George's fiancée to Howard Stern. Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany hopscotch through sitcom history in a new Disney+ series. Kramer takes over a friend's horse-drawn carriage for a week and feeds the horse Beef-a-Reeno. And she would do something, and I would go, ‘Okay, I see what she’s going to do, I’m going to adjust to her’, and then I’d adjust and it would change. If you recall, the character of Susan, played by Heidi Swedberg, died after licking wedding envelopes that turned out to be partially poisonous on account of George buying envelopes with low-quality glue. Jun … Cardi B Lands Her First Lead Movie Role in Comedy, Ariel Pink Accused of Physical and Sexual Abuse in Court Filings. So finally they do an episode where Elaine and Jerry have a lot of material with her. When not writing about and analyzing the latest happenings with Apple, Yoni enjoys catching Improv shows in Chicago, playing soccer, and cultivating new TV show addictions, the most recent examples being The Walking Dead and Broad City. “Don’t you understand how perfect she is for you?” David continued. In her book, Seinfeldia, Jennifer Keishin Armstrong gives the full story behind the character’s death by envelopes. Kelly Clarkson Reaches New Texan Heights With the Chicks’ ‘Sin Wagon’ Cover, “It’s not fake; it’s not a story line — find something else.”. I’m sure that this stuff isn’t working. I couldn’t figure out how to play off of her. Last year, Jason Alexander spoke about why George Costanza’s fiancée, Susan, was killed off on Seinfeld. Of course you do: she was George Costanza's fiancée who died from licking envelopes on "Seinfeld." “Don’t even talk to me,” Alexander snapped. All rights reserved. Even for a show as zany as Seinfeld, it was a little bit out there when the show abruptly killed off George’s fiancé Susan. Jerry meets a woman who appears to be exactly like him, falls in love and promptly … She played the ill-fated Susan Ross, girlfriend of George Costanza, in Season Four and Season Seven of Seinfeld. Warren Littlefield saw it as “the boldest comedy move I had ever seen,” even though his kids’ pediatrician wouldn’t talk to him afterward. Gary Null/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty Images At the hospital, he learns that Susan has died from toxic glue on the wedding invitation envelopes. Here’s just how racist improv theaters can be, according to Amber Ruffin. Her girl-next-door looks had gotten her onetime guest spots on shows such as Matlock, Grace Under Fire, and Murder, She Wrote. “Who’s playing George?” Alexander cracked. One hopes this was as distant as George Costanza could get from his real-life inspiration, Larry David. Kramer stole her girlfriend. What Will TV’s Next Four Years Look Like? The actor reveals that it was an offhand comment from Julia Louis-Dreyfus about sharing scenes with Heidi Swedberg that led to the character's demise. Jerry’s Storyline – Jerry is starting to worry about growing old with just Kramer now that George is getting married. Eventually, those all-American looks also got her what was originally a bit part on Seinfeld as one of a group of fictional NBC executives who take George and Jerry’s pitch for a sitcom. By Megan Friedman. She lost her job at NBC when George kissed her mid-meeting. And so there you have it; a mystery nearly two decades in the making finally solved. The Foundation. Meanwhile, Jerry gets engaged to a girl who saved his life, but immediately regrets it, and Kramer comes across a … It originally aired on May 16, 1996, and was the last episode written by co-creator Larry David before he left the series at the end of this season. “We’ve got a great arc for George,” he said. “I always felt like I was punching into Jell-O,” he later said. Transcribed by: Derek Smith. His writing has appeared in Edible Apple, Network World, MacLife, Macworld UK, and most recently, TUAW. Directed by Andy Ackerman. True enough, her character had been through even more than that thanks to George and his friends. Log in or link your magazine subscription, Ray Fisher Confirms That He’s Been Removed From the Cast of, It Makes Total Sense We’re All Into Sea Shanties Now. Alexander’s frustration with Swedberg was so great that when Larry David called him up at the beginning of season 7 to tell him that his character would be marrying Susan, his first response was to fire back, “Great! Here's the Real Reason Susan Got Killed Off on Seinfeld. Jason Alexander spoke about why George Costanza’s fiancée, Susan. I can’t understand how to play off of this girl. Instead, she became an actress, took up the ukulele, and bought an Airstream trailer for her and her husband to hang out in—and keep in the yard at their Los Angeles home. “He’s going to get engaged.”. Already a subscriber? Her new dark comedy co-stars Dianne Wiest, Chris Messina, and more. Also, Heidi briefly reprised her role in Season Nine's episode “The Betrayal”. George’s throwaway line that she had seemed to like him inspired producers to bring her back several times as George’s on-again, off-again love interest. But now shes back and shes a lesbian, did I miss something? Stephen Colbert Supports Your Right to ‘F- -k in the Middle of the Street’, Siegfried Fischbacher, Magician of Siegfried & Roy, Dies at 81. In it, Susan, George's fiance, dies from cheap envelope glue after George buys cheap wedding invitations. The controversy of this plot turn was magnified when the real-life deaths from anthrax-contaminated mail occurred the same time this episode aired. "The Foundation" is the 135th episode of the American television sitcom Seinfeld. With Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Michael Richards, Jason Alexander. Updates on all of the celebrities, politicians, and more who have been vaccinated for the coronavirus. Over the course of the fourth season, as the development of the sitcom continued, Susan began dating George - an endeavor that was not helped by Cosmo Kramer, who first vomited on Susan, and then burned down her father's cabin. Copyright © 2016 by Jennifer Armstrong. If … Poor Susan died from licking too many envelopes at the end of Seinfeld’s seventh season. He did return, however, to write the series finale in 1998. About halfway through the next season, an episode required Jerry and Elaine to hang out with Susan, the first time either Seinfeld or Louis-Dreyfus had to work extensively with Swedberg. You burned her father’s shack down. Every time I tell this story I cringe because Heidi is the sweetest. Swedberg’s first role happened in 1989 with her 8-episode stint on Seinfeld in the middle of a two-decade-long acting career. “I don’t want to hear your bullshit.”, Louis-Dreyfus added, “I just want to kill her.”. Including T-Shirts, DVDs, and more! Susan was the stiffest of the stiff, unlike Swedberg herself, who rebelled against her uptight upbringing by threatening to join the circus when she was a kid in Albuquerque. After Susan dies, George decides to live the high life by going the bachelor pad route. Ending off a massive arc following George Costanza's dating, engagement, and wedding preparations through season 7, the episode entitled "The Invitations" saw Susan licking poorly-made envelopes (purchased by George) and passing out due to their toxic glue. Swedberg saw her role on the show as being the straight woman to the insanity. But his fun quickly ends when Jerry quotes Star Trek II and the Ross's decide to … © 2021 Vox Media, LLC. You don't even have to be a diehard Seinfeld fan to know how George's fiancee Susan died in season seven: Licking the toxic glue on the cheap wedding envelopes George had … Why would I do something like that? It’s an “epic odyssey of romance, war, drug addiction, and crime” directed by the Russo brothers and starring Spidey. Update: Alexander has since apologized for his remarks, noting that he feels “officially awful” while of course emphasizing that the entire cast adored her as a person. Susan dies from the illness, and George feels that he's finally free. “Who’s playing Susan?” Alexander asked, though surely he knew. Kramer threw up on her. It can’t be.’, And they’re going, ‘it works great, you don’t know what you’re talking about.’, I was the only actor doing scenes with her. Then in the next take, Swedberg would do something totally different. They’re all on your side. And then finally, and they didn’t know how the season was going to end. It just, the way I came at stuff and the way she came at stuff [didn’t match]. Was she going to leave him? We’ve excerpted it below — for more behind-the-scenes stories from Seinfeld, listen to the latest edition of the Vulture TV Podcast with Armstrong. The character of Susan Ross, who was played by Heidi Swedberg, died after licking too many poor quality envelopes seals which George Costanza bought for their upcoming wedding. Reprinted by permission of Simon & Schuster, Inc.  All rights reserved. Now, Susan and George were the closest Seinfeld had ever gotten to a stable couple. Cable news and late-night TV have their work cut out for them. Who’s playing George?”, After every episode, we would all go out, the four of us and Larry, get a bite to eat and we would just bitch about everyone. David had no idea where the plotline would end, but he was committed to seeing it through. Sorry to the Aunties Who Weren’t Invited to Riz Ahmed’s Secret Wedding, All the Celebrities Who Have Received the COVID-19 Vaccine. Susan, an executive at NBC, first appeared in the season 4 episode \"The Pitch\", in which Jerry Seinfeld and George Costanza pitched the idea for their sitcom to Susan and her fellow executives. “The Checks” is a prime example of a Seinfeld episode where the central quartet do a bunch of terrible things and face zero consequences, while the innocent bystanders instead face the brunt of their actions. Rounding up our favorite comedy podcast episodes of the week. Why a fuck you, when all they did was let me do whatever I wanted for seven years?”. "The Foundation" Someone fill me in please But when Susan puts George in charge of the wedding invitations, George gets the cheapest ones in the lot, knowing that the glue for the envelopes is cheap. DON’T MISS: Microsoft reveals the first killer Windows 10 hardware. In the summer of 1995, Larry David called Jason Alexander. The episode's ending received a very mixed public reaction, and generated many letters to publications such as TV Guide regarding the tastelessness of Susan's demise, and the characters' indifference. You can listen to an audio clip of Alexander’s interview with Stern below. Check out our complete Seinfeld Gift Guide right now! She’s the greatest foil for you.”. Susan, of course, died from licking the cheap envelopes George picked for their wedding invitations. His partner, Roy Horn, died just eight months ago due to COVID-19. It was the final bit of cruelty (funny as it may have been) inflicted on the character. When George is tasked with purchasing his wedding invitations, he opts for the cheapest set, resulting in Susan passing away from consuming the contaminated glue on the envelopes. “You’ve driven her to lesbianism. *Sorry, there was a problem signing you up. He found her comic instincts to be “the complete opposite” of his own. Im watching a Seinfeld episode and I could've sworn Susan, George's fiance died on the show? “You know, it’s hard to figure out where to go with what she gives you,” Seinfeld said. After Geo… You\'ll receive the next newsletter in your inbox. His attempt for a restraining order against his ex-girlfriend and former bandmate was denied the same day Pink attended the January 6 Trump rally. Why Are the Backstreet Boys Tweeting About QAnon? And I kept saying, ‘I’m going out of mind, you guys. Grade: Akiva – A+, Rob – A+. George doesn't think he can go through with the wedding. Full Seinfeld scripts and episodes. This episode was directed by Andy Ackerman. The last project the star appeared in was a 2010 episode of the TV series Hawthorne. This was the first episode of the eighth season, and as such was the first episode in which Jerry Seinfeld assumed command of the show following the departure of its co-creator, Larry David.It was originally broadcast on the NBC network on September 19, 1996. Alexander couldn’t win. You’ve practically shit on her, and nobody feels bad for her. Tune in to the Vulture TV Podcast, produced by the Slate Group’s Panoply, every Tuesday, on iTunes or SoundCloud. Her instincts for doing a scene, where the comedy was, and mine, were always misfiring. A life long Mac user and Apple enthusiast, Yoni Heisler has been writing about Apple and the tech industry at large for over 6 years. Was George going to marry her? She’d do her scenes, then retreat to a corner to read a book until she was needed again. While Alexander found it easy to play off of his regular costars, he always felt like he was fighting Swedberg in their shared scenes, even though he liked her as a person offscreen. And they do the week, and then we get to the restaurant afterwards and they go ” You know what, it’s f****** impossible.” And Julia actually said, ‘I know, don’t you want to just kill her?’, And Larry went, ‘Kabang! "The Invitations" is the 24th and final episode of the seventh season of Seinfeld and the 134th overall episode. Susan's parents meet and have dinner with the Costanzas for the first time. It's finally time for George and Susan's wedding. Last year, Jason Alexander spoke about why George Costanza’s fiancée, Susan, was killed off on Seinfeld. The episode ends with George trying to set up a date with Marisa Tomei the day after the funeral, but is hung up on immediately. After the taping, the four lead actors gathered with David at Jerry’s Famous Deli in Studio City, as usual. she dies: Susan has died, it turns out, from licking the toxic glue on the cheap envelopes George ordered. In the season’s final episode, “The Invitations,” Susan dies after licking poisonous, inexpensive envelopes for their upcoming wedding, a nod to Costanza’s stinginess, and symbolizing the relationship’s toxic impact on Susan’s life. While not many people wanted George and Susan to get married, this is not the way most people wanted him to get out of the wedding. “Somebody showed me something in some magazine where they wrote that this was a ‘fuck you’ to the network. Season 7, Episode 24 is one of the most classic episodes of the series, as it features the death of George's fiancé Susan. Now we gotta kill her!’. Few episodes in television history have been as divisive as the series finale of Seinfeld. So in the next take, he’d do something else, and then David would tell him to go back to the original choice. For instance, while rumors have floated around for years about why Heidi Swedberg’s Seinfeld character Susan Ross got killed off the show at the … He’d do something in a scene with her, and it would fall flat. Joshua Bassett’s new single “Lie Lie Lie” has arrived. As a coworker on the set, Swedberg was an unassuming professional who caused neither trouble nor spectacle. Susan licks all of them before sending it out, then gets sick from the adhesive. The big reveal comes to us straight from Jason Alexander himself who recently explained the impetus behind Susan’s untimely death to Howard Stern. Susan, played by Heidi Swedberg, died at the end of Season 7 of the iconic Nighties show after the glue used on the cheap wedding envelopes her fiance George had bought turned out to be toxic. SEINFELD -- 'The Engagement' Episode 1 -- Pictured: (l-r) Heidi Swedberg as Susan Biddle Ross, Jason Alexander as George Costanza (Photo by Gary Null/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images) Remember Susan Ross? Heidi Swedberg (born March 3, 1966, in Honolulu, HI) is an American actress. "The Finale," which originally aired on May 14, 1998, was an hour-long episode that brought back just about every character Jerry, George (Jason Alexander), Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) or Kramer (Michael Richards) wronged throughout the show's nine-year run. Looking for a great gift idea for the holidays? 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The conversation led to what Alexander called “the single coldest moment in the history of television”: when Susan’s death is met with what could generously be called an apathetic shrug … from her own fiancé. Here’s what Swedberg’s been up to since Susan’s death. Both families obsess over a loaf of rye bread that wasn't served with the meal, which Frank takes back home. Flash forward 19 years and we finally have a legit explanation as to why the show killed off Susan, and in such a strange manner no less. May 16th's season finale to Seinfeld was undeniably a "weird" episode. Seinfeld mocked the backlash in the first scenes of "The Foundation", the following season's opener, in which Jerry and George visit Susan's grave. This Week in Comedy Podcasts: Conan Asks Ronna. I love her. She is a terrific girl. From Seinfeldia by Jennifer Armstrong. Read the full scritpt of The Foundation. Kramer doesn’t understand how exchange rates work, so he gets his Japanese tourist friends to blow all their money. Home; Scripts; Episodes; Characters; Gifts; Share; Click Here to join our new Seinfeld's fans community! The preamble to this is that the actress is wonderful girl, Ms. Swedberg, and I love her. It’s Theater-Festival Season, in a Year When Everything’s Avant-Garde Anyway, Joshua Bassett Releases Video for ‘Lie Lie Lie,’ Further Stirs the, Sarah Lancashire Will Master the Art of Julia Child. Alexander and Heidi Swedberg, who played George’s ex, never worked on the same wavelength. ” has arrived as usual was committed to seeing it through the Four lead actors gathered with David Jerry... George picked for their wedding invitations finally solved stuff and the 134th overall episode her first lead role! The week parents meet and have dinner with the meal, which Frank takes back home taping, the lead! 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