‘Seinfeld’ Ruined One of Its Main Characters After Larry David Left the Show

When Seinfeld went from a pilot of dubious viability to a series, NBC had just one firm note for Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld: they needed a woman as a full-time member of the cast. It was the note that proved the old proverb about the broken clock. The woman David and Seinfeld created to meet the demand was Elaine Benes, played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Elaine was indispensable to Seinfeld for seven of its nine years. “She gives the show luster,” Seinfeld said of the actress and the character on the 2000s DVD release of the series, quoting comments David had made during production. In the early to middle years of the show, Elaine acted as a superficially prim and elegant counterpoint to the three male boors that were her friends. But that counterpoint — that luster — wouldn’t survive David’s departure.