Original “Soup Nazi” Chef Coat and Ladle, signed by the actor Larry Thomas who portrayed him in the TV Series Seinfeld
USA, 1995
Cotton, plastic
Courtesy of Ori Segal, MUGO
Must Know
One of the best-known episodes in the series Seinfeld is episode 116 “The Soup Nazi,” about a chef who operates a new soup stand and is so strict about how costumers must order that he refuses to sell soup to those who break his rules. This earns him the nickname Soup Nazi by the series’ four protagonists. The cultural convention that allows Jews to mock the Nazi regime did not begin with Seinfeld. One of the first Hollywood entertainers to ridicule Hitler was another Jew, Mel Brooks, in his film The Producers (1968). The comedy series Hogan’s heroes (1965-1971), a sitcom set in a Nazi Germany war camp was also written and produced by Jewish creators.
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Seinfeld
Three of the lead actors in this television sitcom – Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Jason Alexander – are Jewish, as is Larry David, who created the series together with Jerry Seinfeld. The show, which is considered the most popular series of all time in the United States, was perceived as a reflection of its decade and modern urban culture, treating its protagonist’s Jewish origins with humor. And like any other popular TV series in the world, there are dozens of Seinfeld collectibles, ranging from shirts and hats to replicas of the set.
Jewish humor is now part of the American mainstream. In the 1990’s, the success of the series Seinfeld led to a wave of TV comedies about Jews. In 1994, The Hanukkah Song performed by Adam Sandler became the anthem of Jewish pride. Sarah Silverman draws from her Jewish roots to raise troubling questions about racism. Nowadays, you don’t have to be Jewish in order to understand a joke about someone who is “kvetching” or someone who has a lot of “chutzpah.”
