Un-Curbable Enthusiasm

In the introduction to the Real Women talk with Eve Ensler a few weeks ago, a trustee from the board of directors at the 92nd Street Y announced that Larry David and Jeff Garlin, creators and stars of HBO's wildly funny show Curb Your Enthusiasm, would be participating in a panel discussion at the Y in a few weeks to introduce the eighth season of their show. She told us that we were the first to know about it, and that we should run, not walk, to buy our tickets. I took her advice and, gulping a little at the slightly steep asking price (I'm employed now! I can do this!), bought two tickets. I purchased them online about three hours after the announcement was made - I had to wait until I got home from the show - and even then, the best seats I could get were in the 21st row of the theater. I don't know how fast they sold out, but I do know that last night there were crowds of hopefuls gathering outside the theater asking if anyone had an extra and offering exorbitant prices for them.

David plays a sour, middle-aged man who lives in L.A. and gets himself into brilliantly ridiculous situations every five minutes.

Garlin and David

Ed and I arrived at the Y moments before the lights went down. I knew there would be a panel discussion, but I didn't know we'd be getting a sneak preview of the first episode of the eighth season, which airs on HBO on July 10th. We are not supposed to divulge details about the content of the episode before it airs, but let me assure you that it was outrageously, riotously funny. People around us were laughing so loudly and continuously that I nearly missed about half the dialogue, and the woman next to me practically landed in my lap a few times. I will say that the episode, in keeping with the background of nearly all of its cast, centers around Jewish themes, and there is no place to see something like this quite like the 92nd Street Y. The Y is not affiliated with the YMCA but was originally the 92nd Street Young Men's and Women's Hebrew Association. You don't have to be Jewish to attend the events, but I think I was the only one in the theater who wasn't. My time in Israel helped me understand a few of the jokes that would otherwise have been inaccessible, so that my sides hurt just as much as any of the tribe members around me by the end. As the lights came up and we wiped our eyes weakly, Larry David, Jeff Garlin, and fellow cast members Susie Essman and Sheryl Hines took the stage, accompanied by NBC news anchor Brian Williams, who served as moderator.

Brian Williams

The panel discussion was hilarious, to the point that I almost got tired of laughing. David is effortlessly funny, and nearly every time he opened his mouth he left the audience in hysterics. Essman is famous for her portrayal of a Garlin's wife on the show, who has a foul temper and even fouler language, and while she seemed to have checked her prickly personality at the door, her colorful language was turned on full force. Hines was witty in a mild mannered way. Garlin, though, was my favorite, simply because he has one of the best laughs I've ever heard. He'd be struck by an idea and start hooting with laughter so hard that he'd be unable to share it until he'd collected himself, but his laughter was so contagious that we all had to laugh with him. Williams was a perfect moderator, adding to the comedy by asking zany questions in his smooth, serious baritone.

Sheryl Hines

One of the most interesting things about Curb is that all of the dialogue is improvised on the spot. The actors read the premise of the scene before shooting starts, then they invent lines that will take the plot where it needs to go. David says they generally require far fewer takes than most other shows in which the actors have to memorize their lines first. Celebrity guests, who appear fairly frequently on the show, don't even get to read the synopsis - the camera just starts rolling and they have to figure things out from the regulars' lines as they go. It was clear that all four actors who talked to us last night couldn't enjoy their job more. They all said that they're constantly laughing, and that Larry is the funniest person they know.

Essman's character is an enthusiastically bad dresser.

I have not seen many episodes of Curb, actually - I've never had HBO. But after last night, my Netflix queue is going to undergo some serious rearranging. I can't recommend it highly enough.