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| The cast of Seinfeld takes a final bow after the taping of the last episode. [Publicity photo] |
Tampa Bay viewers will join millions tuning in tonight to say goodbye to Jerry, Elaine, George and Kramer.
By ERIC DEGGANS
© St. Petersburg Times, published May 14, 1998
einfeld, the sitcom about four neurotic, self-absorbed New Yorkers.
John Lelekis has heard that before.
But, even as others tuned in the NBC show just to chuckle at the antics of Jerry, George, Elaine and Kramer, the Belleair pharmacist watched with his children, spinning the show's convoluted misadventures into family talks on the deeper issues of life.
| Yada, yada, yada Date of show's premier: July 5, 1989 Original name: The Seinfeld Chronicles Audience for first episode: 15.6-million Estimated audience for final episode: 75- to 80-million Cost of a 30-second commercial: $1.7-million |
"It's helped us build a bridge between our children and ourselves," said Lelekis, who has used the show's quirky humor to spark conversations on birth-control and other uncomfortable topics.
"We had a framework to discuss issues," he said. "It's made the process of them going from young people to teenagers easier on us."
While Lelekis' serious-mindedness may seem surprising, the intensity of his support for Seinfeld is echoed by fans across the Tampa Bay area -- who are expected to watch in record numbers the show's two-hour finale, beginning at 8 tonight.
| A Web tribute to Seinfeld from the St. Petersburg Times. |
For Neel Voss, anticipation over tonight's show reminds him of the last days of another classic TV sitcom, Cheers.
Back in 1993, when that show went off the air, his Bleachers Sports Bar and Restaurant hosted a goodbye party that drew 700 people to the St. Petersburg establishment.
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"I'm not sure I even want that many people in here," he said. "But this show has captured people's imagination. I think it will empty the streets . . . just like Super Bowl Sunday."
At WFLA-Ch. 8, the NBC affiliate that broadcasts the popular comedy, local ratings figures show more than 30 percent of people who watch TV at 9:30 p.m. Thursdays have watched Seinfeld over the past three weeks.
And WTOG-Ch. 44, which broadcasts Seinfeld reruns at 7:30 p.m. daily, says viewer interest has made the Tampa Bay area one of the top markets for the syndicated show nationally -- drawing a benchmark 154,000 households Tuesday night.
"Seinfeld's success is based on its writing," said Barbara Burley, program director at WTOG, explaining the show's success locally and nationally. "Once you become a fan of a well-written show, it's hard to watch anything else."
WFLA has told local businesses advertising on tonight's show to expect at least half the people watching TV tonight in the Tampa Bay area -- some 630,000 households -- to tune in, matching the numbers Cheers racked up in 1993.
"The advertising revenue we earned in three hours of prime time (tonight) is more money than we got for the entire Super Bowl," said Jack Lyons, general sales manager for WFLA, who declined to name specific dollar figures.
"The Seinfeld thing has been coming so long, it will probably have a bigger impact (than Cheers)," he added. "We have such a melting pot of people from all over the country, it's no surprise it's strong here."
Nationally, NBC has estimated the audience for tonight's finale at 75-million to 80-million people, within spitting distance of Cheers' goodbye audience of 80.5-million.
It may not come close to the all-time record holder, M*A*S*H (105-million viewers in 1983), but could catch up with Dallas' "Who Shot J.R.?" episode or Roots' eighth installment, which came in second and third, respectively.
Which raises a potent question: What is it about Seinfeld that makes it such classic TV, especially for fans in the Tampa Bay area?
Voss, a longtime fan of both Seinfeld and Cheers, has an answer. "Both shows feature extremely good actors with extremely good material . . . that's what gets my attention," he said.
"While I wouldn't want to live in New York, I don't mind watching it," added Voss, a Florida native. "And maybe that helps explain the appeal for folks down here."
At the Green Iguana in Ybor City, management will hold a Seinfeld finale party just so workers don't miss the show.
"It's just something you can relate to," said club manager Jeff King of the show, which he has watched faithfully since its second season. "If you look at it, most of the show takes place in a diner or an apartment . . . places everybody goes."
Tampa Palms community activist Bob Van Sickler doesn't share fans' enthusiasm for the show, but he respects its drawing power.
So, to help boost attendance of neighbors at a Tampa City Council meeting tonight, he convinced the owner of the nearby Six Pockets billiards hall to tape the show and replay it later.
"Seinfeld is the one thing we could address, and have fun while we did it," said Sickler, who plans to fight a rezoning proposal tonight that could bring a new Walgreens to his neighborhood. "We hope it will be a victory party."
Robert Thompson, director of the Center for the Study of Popular Television at Syracuse University, understands such stories completely.
In the same way Cheers and Dallas captured '80s-era materialism, and M*A*S*H reflected disdain over the Vietnam War, Seinfeld has distilled the angst and pitfalls of urban life in the '90s, Thompson said.
Still, even as it parodies life in the '90s through twisted, urbanite characters, Seinfeld plays on universal themes that will always seem contemporary, he said.
"It may eventually take the place of I Love Lucy as the quintessential
American comedy," he said. "It will be watchable and funnier a
lot longer than shows such as M*A*S*H and Cheers, which I can
barely watch now. Seinfeld has a shelf life that will last forever."
-- Times staff writer Rick Gershman contributed to this report.
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