Newman (Seinfeld)

Newman
First appearance	1991, The Revenge (off-screen)
Last appearance	1998, The Finale, Part II
Created by	Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David
Portrayed by	Wayne Knight
In-universe information
Occupation	Mailman

Newman is a recurring character on the television show Seinfeld, played by Wayne Knight from 1991 until the show's finale in 1998.

Background

In the show, Newman is an overweight mail carrier who lives at 129 West 81st Street, New York City, the same apartment building as Jerome "Jerry" Seinfeld and Cosmo Kramer. Newman lives in Apartment 5E. Originally conceived to be "the son of the landlord [who] 'tells' on everyone", Newman evolved as the series progressed into a scheming mailman who related with Kramer, but nursed a grudge against Jerry. He is first mentioned (but does not appear on camera) during the original version of the episode "The Revenge". Newman was here voiced by the show's co-creator Larry David (although Knight later dubbed a new version for syndication with his own voice). It is unclear if Newman is his first or last name, but it's generally believed it is his last name. He is referred to as 'Mr Newman' by the Judge in The Ticket. Aside from this, only the name Newman is ever used in reference to him. In the episode "The Bottle Deposit, Part 2" a character (the farmer's daughter) shouts "Goodbye, Norman," but this was a mistake on the part of the actress (Karen Lynn Scott). It was left in because it was considered funny (and it could be taken as a joke about her having slept with him without even knowing his name). Newman was caught in a compromising position with Kramer's mother after Cosmo, Elaine and George walked into his apartment.

File:Seinfeld s7e21.jpg

Newman in the episode "The Bottle Deposit, Part 1."

The character

Newman plays a villain in the series. Often described as Jerry's "sworn enemy" ("The Andrea Doria"), his character is cunning and occasionally acts like a weasel. The two generally greet each other this way:

Jerry (sarcastic): "Hello, Newman".

Newman (exaggeratedly cheerful): "Hello, Jerry".

Jerry's mother also greets Newman the same way. The origin of the Seinfeld/Newman feud is never revealed.

Newman's character is a frequent source of annoyance to Jerry, such as in attracting fleas to the apartment ("The Doodle"), and generally making Jerry's life more difficult. The depth of their enmity seems to vary between episodes, however -- or even within the same episode ("The Soul Mate") -- and Jerry sometimes seems to consider him merely an annoying neighbor, much like Kramer, rather than an outright enemy. At times they even work together on some scheme, though with some reluctance on Jerry's part (and usually with mutual friend Kramer as a buffer). In the final scene of "The Soup Nazi" their interaction is such that they could almost be taken for friends, although this may be based more on their shared love of the Soup Nazi's soup than on anything else. In any event, Newman often seems quite amused at how effectively he irritates Jerry (which of course only irritates Jerry all the more), although any battle of wits between them rarely leaves Newman the victor.

Newman is good friends with Kramer, and the pair are forever participating in various get-rich-quick schemes. In "The Soul Mate," Newman and Kramer parody Cyrano de Bergerac, with Newman voicing his own poetry (for Kramer so he may woo Jerry's girlfriend):

Her bouquet cleaved his hardened shell

And fondled his muscled heart.

He imbibed her glistening spell

Just before the other shoe fell.

His poetry along with his angry rants directed against Jerry and the United States Postal Service in various episodes demonstrate Newman's impressive and dramatic command of the English language. Newman also takes his job as a mailman very seriously (as long as it is not raining); he ends up impulsively protesting the idea of any mail being considered "junk." However, he is known to use his job for corrupt purposes, such as purposely withholding mail for blackmail revenge, or using the Union to get himself out of jail. Despite his girth, Newman is an expert climber (which he learned in the Pacific Northwest) and tennis player. Jerry also once agreed with George that, "...he is merry."

United States Postal Service

Newman is an employee of the United States Postal Service, which is portrayed in the series as a powerful, nefarious organization. Upon being arrested in "The Engagement," Newman assures Kramer and Elaine that they will not be prosecuted: "Don't worry about a thing. In twenty minutes, that place'll be swarming with mailmen. We'll be out by lunch."

In "The Junk Mail," Kramer is abducted by Post Office security men for running an anti-mail campaign after he realizes the Postal Service has become obsolete; Newman attempted earlier to dissaude Kramer by pleading, "You don't know the half of what goes on here!" At the end of the episode, for his efforts to save Kramer, Newman is seen escorted by Postal Service employees with a bucket on his head, pleading of Kramer to "tell the world my story."

In "The Package," Newman's business card is shown. It says only "NEWMAN".

Newman claimed that he once worked the same postal route as murderer David Berkowitz ("Son of Sam"). When asked what it was like, Newman commented the route had "a lot of dogs" but joked that they only told him "to lay off the snacks." Newman retains Berkowitz's mailbag as a valuable collector's item. When the police come to arrest him in "The Engagement," his first words to them are "What took you so long?", the same words Berkowitz used upon being arrested.

Newman makes several other outlandish claims about the U.S. Postal Service including:

• ZIP codes are meaningless
• No mail carrier has successfully delivered more than 50% of their mail (comparing such a feat to the three-minute mile)
• "When you control the mail, you control information!" ("The Lip Reader").
• Post office workers go on killing sprees because the mail never stops ("The more you get out the more you get in") while talking about David Berkowitz.

Appearances

Aside from the four main characters, Newman is the character who appears in the most episodes of Seinfeld. He can be seen in 43 episodes (if two-parters are counted as two episodes), or 44 if The Revenge is included. These are: The Revenge (Voice-over only), The Suicide, The Boyfriend (Parts 1 & 2), The Parking Space, The Pitch, The Ticket, The Pick, The Old Man, The Pilot (Part 2 Only), The Sniffing Accountant, The Lip Reader, The Non-Fat Yogurt, The Barber, The Marine Biologist, The Raincoats (Part 2 Only), The Switch, The Label Maker, The Scofflaw, The Doodle, The Diplomat's Club, The Engagement, The Soup Nazi, The Seven, The Calzone, The Bottle Deposit (Parts 1 & 2), The Soul Mate, The Package, The Chicken Roaster, The Andrea Doria, The Pothole, The Millennium, The Muffin Tops, The Butter Shave, The Blood, The Junk Mail, The Merv Griffin Show, The Betrayal, The Reverse Peephole, The Cartoon, The Bookstore and The Finale (Parts 1 & 2)

Trivia

• Jerry Seinfeld has been quoted as saying that he almost feels sorry for Wayne Knight, as his portrayal of Newman has typecast him to the point that "everywhere he goes, he must be greeted with, 'Hello, Newman.'" In fact, during the Seinfeld DVD's special features, Knight recounts an occasion when he was having a particularly bad day, where after a series of unfortunate events a fan happened to yell "Hello, Newman". This resulted in Knight releasing his long day's built-up anger on the unsuspecting fan.
• Newman never goes to work when it is raining, claiming "I don't work in the rain". This is significant for the character George in the episode "The Calzone."
• Despite his size, Newman is also revealed to be a fantastic tennis player ("The Switch") and tree climber, the latter skill learned during his time "in the Pacific Northwest" (according to Kramer, "That boy climbs like a ring-tailed lemur!"). ("The Reverse Peephole")
• In the Xbox 360 video game Saints Row, the name of the mail truck is the "NEWMAN".
• In various episodes that feature Newman's apartment, you can see a poster with a Tyrannosaurus rex and a DNA strand on it, recalling Wayne Knight's role on Jurassic Park as Dennis Nedry.
• In the episode "The Muffin Tops," Elaine hires Newman as a "cleaner" to get rid of a large amount of muffin stumps. This scene is a parody of both Pulp Fiction and Nikita, as well as Point of No Return.
• In a scene in the episode "The Package", Newman grills Jerry about mail fraud. This scene is a parody of the famous interrogation scene from the movie Basic Instinct. Wayne Knight played John Correli in Basic Instinct, who was part of the interrogation scene.
• In a scene in the episode "The Boyfriend, Part 2" with Keith Hernandez, Jerry reconstructs the infamous spitting incident, a parody of the scene in the movie JFK. Wayne Knight played an assistant district attorney on Jim Garrison's prosecution team.
• Newman's first line in the series is "I can’t eat fruit. It makes me incontinent." This occurs in the episode "The Suicide".
• Newman's voice is in the syndicated version of "The Revenge".