This and That
Issue: 2.06  
June 1, 2001
Cosmo Kramer for New York Mayor?

With the four Democratic drones struggling to appear alive and Michael Bloomberg struggling to appear human, we figure the real Kramer is a shoe-in.

The guy who inspired Seinfeld's Kramer character wants to be a whole lot more than the master of his own domain. He's running for mayor of New York. Before you completely laugh off Kenny Kramer, I have two words for you: Jesse Ventura. "I've been inspired," Kramer told The Wolf Files Monday at Yankee Stadium, where he was spreading the word about his run for office as the Libertarian candidate. "If a wrestler can become governor of Minnesota, why can't I become mayor of New York?"

Indeed, New Yorkers will most certainly have the "Kramer option" when they step into the voting booth. At a statewide convention in April, Kramer won the Libertarian nod by a 20-to-5 margin, running against "None of the Above."

"I'm glad I pulled it out," says Kramer. "Imagine if I lost and had to call up 'None of the Above' to make a concession speech?" Living Off Electric Disco Jewelry Up to now, Kenny Kramer's celebrity was largely based on living next door to Seinfeld co-creator Larry David in New York's Hell's Kitchen. It was there that David and Jerry Seinfeld conceived of the blockbuster sitcom. Kramer bears more than a slight resemblance to his TV alter ego — the bumbling slacker who glides through life without a job, free to chase his various obsessions — whether it be building a Jacuzzi in his bedroom or writing a coffee table book about coffee tables. The real Kramer is a 58-year-old Bronx native who has supported himself at points as a purveyor of glow-in-the-dark disco jewelry, a voice-over artist for X-rated CD-ROMs, and a standup comic. "That electric jewelry lasted years after disco died. I built a little nest egg there," Kramer says. "Unlike the TV Kramer, my harebrained schemes work."

   
 Advertisement