Seinfeld's Michael Richards makes social media debut to share Jerry Stiller tribute

The passing of Jerry Stiller earlier this week had a profound effect on many people in the comedy community, including, of course, his former Seinfeld castmates, many of whom paid tribute to the comedy legend on social media. Joining the fray yesterday was actor Michael Richards, who created an Instagram account for the express purpose of paying tribute to Stiller.

“Until today, I have avoided social media completely, but I have created this account in order to say something, belatedly, about a person I loved,” Richards writes. “Jerry Still was an absolute treasure. I adored him…He was hilarious and a great friend. He’s a legendary showman and he was an inspiration to me.”

The image that went along with this heartfelt message is a screenshot from a scene in the season seven episode “The Doll,” which Richards links to in his Instagram profile and encourages people to watch. The scene, in which Kramer and Frank Costanza play a game of pool in a comically small room, is a masterclass in physical comedy and highlights the sweet, oddball relationship that organically formed between the two characters throughout the series.

It’s unclear at this point whether Richards plans to make his appearance on social media a permanent thing. He’s stayed pretty firmly outside the public eye since 2006, when a now-infamous clip of his racist meltdown on the Hollywood Laugh Factory stage went viral.

[via Vulture]

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