The discomfort began in 1974. At the time Larry David had just left the National Guard. He was like most left-leaning 27 year-olds grappling with the Vietnam War: wayward, enraged, vaguely unemployed. Then, one night, in a Greenwich Village comedy club, David stepped up to mic.
With his unkempt curls and horn-rimmed glasses, David began. From the jump he had something to say—and said it loudly. What the young comedian lacked in craft, he made up for in attitude. David’s goal then—as it is now—was to make the audience squirm. He flourishes in the unrest of others.
In time David’s talents proved to be best used elsewhere. While co-creating Seinfeld will always be atop his CV, Curb Your Enthusiasm has done something else for the Brooklyn-born comic. It’s opened audiences up to him, his distinct comedic sensibility: Jewish, nebbish, and, most of all, petty.
In eight seasons of glorious television, David has mastered the art of anxiety through his beloved HBO series. To celebrate the return of Curb Your Enthusiasm this weekend, we’ve decided to embrace David, and rank the most uncomfortable situations during the show’s run.