Behind the Yada, Yada Yada of Seinfeld

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Submitted by Patti Peek Neumann on Tue, 07/29/2014 - 3:44pm

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Calling all Seinfeld fans. Baltimore County’s Gordon Center for Performing Arts welcomes comedy writer Peter Mehlman on Thursday, September 18 at 7 pm. Mehlman will talk about his eight years as a Seinfeld writer and co-executive producer, and his new novel, It Won’t Always Be This Great. Mehlman’s appearance at the Gordon is a homecoming of sorts, as he is a graduate of University of Maryland, as is his novel’s protagonist. This event is free but tickets are required and can be ordered online at gordoncenter.com. The public can contact 410.356.7469 or info@gordoncenter.com for additional show details.

The hugely successful Seinfeld, which claimed to be ‘a show about nothing,’ owes its popularity in large part to Peter Mehlman’s ability to “…make the mundane seem hilarious”, as put by The Hollywood Reporter. Among the show’s iconic phrases coined by Mehlman are “shrinkage,” “yada yada” (he was up for an Emmy for this episode) and “spongeworthy.” Mehlman’s observational style of humor is seemingly timeless, as evidenced by “Modern Seinfeld,” @SeinfeldToday, a Twitter feed of 21st century Seinfeld storylines.

Mehlman brings the same everyman sensibility to It Won’t Always Be This Great. “…Mehlman’s writing style is completely unique, and creates an intimate bond between the narrator and the reader. You finish the book feeling as though you’ve made a new friend,” says Academy award-winning writer Aaron Sorkin. Unlike Seinfeld, Mehlman’s nameless everyman is openly Jewish from the get-go. Mehlman manages to bring humor to a uniquely Jewish tension—the co-existence of the non-observant with the Orthodox. Seinfeld co-star, Julia Louis-Dreyfus says “It turns out that not only can Peter Mehlman write funny television, he can write a funny book…”

“We are proud to offer a rich variety of entertainment here at the Gordon,” says Randi Benesch, Managing Director of the Gordon Center. “We are always striving to bring top regional, national and international talent to our beautiful, 550-seat theatre, conveniently located in Owings Mills, MD.”

Yada Yada, Yada!

Patti Neumann is Publisher/Founder of CITYPEEK.com and an award-winning columnist and blogger on food, wine and fun.