Elaine did not appear in the first episode of SEINFELD and may have been introduced after another character got the boot

The four stars of the comedy series par excellence of the 90s Seinfeld it really made the series. The Show About Nothing followed the character of Jerry Seinfeld and was based on the comedian’s real life. In the series, he was joined by main cast member Cosmo Kramer (Michael RichardsGeorge CostanzaJason Alexander), Elaine Benes (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), and while we can’t imagine the show without any of them, it almost happened with a different female character instead of Elaine.

In the pilot episode of the show, titled “Good News, Bad News,” broadcast on July 5, 1989, Jerry was introduced alongside George and Kramer, but the episode’s female lead was a waitress named Claire, played by the veteran actress character Lee Garlington. He has a great dry sense of humor and stands up to the presence of the comic men in the series.

But when the show picked up and returned 10 months later, Claire was gone and the world was introduced to Elaine. So what happened to Claire the waitress?

According to Alexander, during an appearance on Kevin Pollak’s Chat Show (via /Film), the actor said:

“There was no Elaine in the pilot. It was Kramer, George, Jerry and a waitress. A waitress at the bar. A very good actress who made the critical mistake of suggesting to Larry [David] that she, she had watched the scenes overnight and made some changes that she wanted to share with him… Some ideas, some ideas. In a spirit of community and collaboration”.

So he thinks she gave too many hints to the creator of the show, Larry David, and decided to let her go! But however she went, I’m glad Elaine was added to the story. While she played Jerry’s ex-girlfriend, she was a perfect fit as “one of the guys.” She was a successful, liberal, progressive, beautiful, hilarious woman and a whole new kind of female lead on network television. She was outrageous at times and such a beacon for up-and-coming comedians looking for roles outside the typical box.

Too bad it didn’t work out for Garlington, as there was certainly room for another strong female character in the cast. But the series is history and it worked out great for everyone involved.