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Seinfeld: Israelis are ‘all-or-nothing’ types

Comedian tells Daily Show that locals veer between ‘It’s no problem’ to ‘That’s impossible’ with nothing in between, but praises ‘amazing audiences’

By ToI Staff 28 January 2016, 9:12 pm Edit

Jerry Seinfeld performing in Tel Aviv, December 19, 2015. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

A month after his first stand-up appearance in Israel, Jerry Seinfeld on Wednesday jokingly characterized Israelis as having an “all-or-nothing” mentality.

“Everything you ask them is either ‘It’s no problem, it’s no problem,’ or ‘No, that’s impossible’,” said Seinfeld on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. “It’s all or nothing.”

The Jewish comedian said his Israel tour was “unbelievable” and the “audiences were amazing.”

Seinfeld held four shows in Tel Aviv in December 2015. He had planned to put on one show, but three more were added after tickets for the first quickly sold out.

Seinfeld has previously visited in the country on private trips. As he told his Tel Aviv audiences, he volunteered on a kibbutz as a teenager, but his shows marked his first performances in Israel.

The entertainer began working as a comic after finishing high school, and was catapulted to fame by his eponymous sitcom, which aired from 1989-1998 and garnered an immense and abiding following.

Seinfeld resumed his stand-up career when the show ended.