For anyone who enjoyed Seinfeld at the height of the show's popularity, the sitcom's creator and star Jerry Seinfeld will always be defined by that series. After all, even though Michael Richards can't watch the show back all these years later, millions of Seinfeld fans regularly rewatch the beloved sitcom.
After Seinfeld became one of the most successful shows on television, every episode became watercooler talk fodder. Despite that, there are some facts about Seinfeld that most of the show's biggest fans don't realize.
Arguably the most surprising fact about Seinfeld that people don't know about is that Jerry Seinfeld once had a passionate fling with one of the show's guest stars.
Which Seinfeld Guest Star Did Jerry Seinfeld Date?
By the time Seinfeld's finale episode aired, the show had become so popular that most actors would have loved to appear in an episode. Fortunately for many actors who'd later become famous, Seinfeld cycled a lot of characters in and out which gave them a chance to appear in episodes.
Some of the future stars who appeared on Seinfeld include Teri Hatcher, Bryan Cranston, Bob Odenkirk, Sarah Silverman, and Patton Oswalt. On top of future celebrities, Seinfeld was also able to cast some people that already were famous.
At one time or another, James Spader, Lloyd Bridges, Keith Hernandez, Maris Tomei, Jon Lovitz, Judge Reinhold, Bette Midler, and Raquel Welch all showed up in Seinfeld episodes. Those stars weren't alone either as Lori Loughlin, Jon Voight, Rob Schneider, and Tawny Kitaen also made their mark on the show's history.
Before Kitaen appeared in an episode of Seinfeld, she became one of the most lusted-after people of her generation. After appearing in the music video for Whitesnake's "Here I Go Again", many viewers seemed to be mesmerized by Kitaen's charms.
Given the way that millions of people looked at Kitaen, she was perfectly cast for her role in an episode of Seinfeld. During the show's third season, Kitaen appeared in the episode titled "The Nose" as a woman that Jerry Seinfeld's character was entranced by.
After meeting Kitaen's character Isabel in an elevator, Jerry Seinfeld's character has an animalistic attraction to her. However, after getting to know Isabel better, his character can't stand who she is as a person and the terrible plays she makes him read lines from.
Ultimately, Jerry Seinfeld's brain wins out over his baser instincts, and he breaks up with Isabel. Like many of the women that Jerry Seinfeld's character dated, Isabel was never seen again after he ended their romantic relationship.
Since Kitaen's character only appeared in a single Seinfeld episode that wasn't one of the show's most popular, people don't talk about her character much. However, as it turns out, Kitaen working on that episode of Seinfeld was a big deal at the time for Jerry Seinfeld's personal life.
Tragically for Kitaen and her loved ones, she passed away in 2021 at only 59 years old. Before that, Kitaen had revealed the truth about the brief relationship she had with Jerry Seinfeld after they worked together on the hit sitcom.
According to the famed biographer Jerry Oppenheimer, after Kitaen met and started to date Jerry Seinfeld, she got a job that was filming close to Seinfeld. As a result, the pair snuck around at work during their relationship.
"Our sets, Jerry's office, our little dressing room trailers, were all within 60 feet of each other. How fortunate is that – to have your office right next door to your boyfriend's? At first, we'd be very low-key about it. Knowing people were always watching, we'd be on the lot and say, ‘Hello, how are you doing today?’ That sort of thing.’"
Kitaen also revealed that after being secretive at first, she and Jerry Seinfeld realized they had no reason to hide their relationship. As a result, Kitaen says the pair started to "hug and hold hands" around other people.
Once the couple decided to be open that they were dating around their friends and co-workers, Kitaen says Jerry Seinfeld was very excited when the tabloids reported on them. "There was an article in the Enquirer about him for the first time - about us. He was so giddy about that. He called his mother and said, ‘Look at me and Tawny, we're in the Enquirer.’ He felt he had made it."
Kitaen also spoke about a fascinating aspect of dating Jerry Seinfeld, how cheap he was. According to Kitaen, the only things the famous comedian was excited to spend the fortune he was making on were cars and footwear.
"Jerry had nothing else to really spend his money on. He was just amazed that he could buy so many tennis shoes and Porsches. He was like, ‘Wow I can do this. Cool!’"
Unfortunately, Jerry Seinfeld and Kitaen's relationship had a scandalous ending. Kitaen admitted she and Jerry Seinfeld broke up after she began seeing her ex behind the comedian's back and got pregnant.
What Was Jerry Seinfeld's Most Scandalous Relationship?
Several years after Jerry Seinfeld and Tawny Kitaen split up, he walked down the aisle with the woman now known as Jessica Seinfeld. Seemingly very happy together to this day, Jerry and Jessica Seinfeld have become the parents of three children.
Before Jerry Seinfeld wound up with Jessica Seinfeld, he first got involved in another relationship that lasted for years. However, many people seem to have forgotten that Jerry Seinfeld dated someone named Shoshanna Lonstein and how controversial their relationship was.
After Seinfeld met Lonstein in Central Park, he got her number and the pair would go on to date for roughly four years. The problem with that is Seinfeld was 38 years old when they met and Lonstein was only 17 years old and still in high school, according to The Daily Mail.
After news of Seinfeld and Lonstein's relationship broke, the sitcom star and comedian went on Howard Stern's show to address the controversy. While talking to the radio legend, Seinfeld insisted that he and Lonstein only began dating after she turned 18 years old.
"I didn’t realize she was so young. This is the only girl I ever went out with who was that young. I wasn’t dating her. We just went to a restaurant, and that was it."
According to reports, Seinfeld and Lonstein's relationship ended in 1997.
