5 Reasons Why Frank Costanza Was Jerry Stillers Best Role (& 5 Why Its Arthur Spooner)

5 Reasons Why Frank Costanza Was Jerry Stiller’s Best Role (& 5 Why It’s Arthur Spooner)

Jerry Stiller was maybe best known as the characters of Frank Costanza in Seinfeld and Arthur Spooner in The King of Queens but which role was better?

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The late Jerry Stiller was one of those men who was truly a genius at comedy. No matter where he appeared, the audience was sure to be in stitches at his antics. Of course, most viewers, particularly those who grew up in the 1990s and early 2000s, recognize him from his two most high-profile later roles, as the curmudgeonly characters of Frank Costanza in Seinfeld and Arthur Spooner in The King of Queens.

While these two roles are very similar in many respects, there are enough differences between them to make it a worthwhile exercise to see which, in fact, is his best role.

10 Frank Costanza: Festivus

It’s not every character who can claim to have invented an entire holiday, but that is precisely what Frank Costanza was able to do. Even today, nearly twenty years after the last episode of Seinfeld went on the air, one can still hear references to Festivus, the holiday that he invented, including the obligatory sharing of grievances.

It is, of course, one of the most hilarious episodes in the entire show, and a fitting exemplar of just why Frank is such a great character.

9 Arthur Spooner: The Sparring with Kevin James’s Doug

Sometimes, a series manages to capture two leading characters who have undeniable chemistry, and that is definitely the case with Kevin James’s Doug and Stiller’s Arthur Spooner (the character’s father-in-law).

The constant sparring between the two of them creates a significant amount of humor in the show. Underneath it all, however, it’s clear to even the casual viewer that there is a lot of affection between the two men, both in front of the camera and behind it.

8 Frank Costanza: His Dynamic With Estelle Harris

When one is lucky enough to land two comedic geniuses such as Jerry Stiller and Estelle Harris, the results are almost fated to be extraordinary.

They certainly are one of the most hilarious couples to have ever appeared on television, and many viewers no doubt found themselves eager to see these two begin one of their epic arguments. Despite the vitriol they frequently poured on one another, however, it wasn’t hard to see that there was something genuine between the two of them.

7 Arthur Spooner: Understated Yet Dynamic

One of the brilliant things about Jerry Stiller as a comedic actor was that he was able to uncover shades of his characters. Thus, while Frank Costanza was known for his exuberant outbursts, Arthur is a slightly subtler characterization.

True, he does have his own anger issues, but for the most part, he’s a bit more understated, more prone to making cutting remarks than having the sort of explosive fits as Frank.

6 Frank Costanza: His Dynamic With Jason Alexander

As hilarious as it was to see Jerry Stiller and Kevin James go at it, it’s even more pleasurable to see him match wits (and shouts) with Jaxon Alexander’s George Costanza.

Seeing the two of them in one of their epic fights, it’s easy enough to see why it is that George became the person that he was (which is to say, absolutely terrible and utterly incapable of keeping his anger, or any other emotion, under control).

5 Arthur Spooner: His Love For Carrie

While Arthur seems to take an inordinate amount of joy in making Doug’s life miserable as much as possible, it’s very clear that he has a genuine love and fondness for his daughter.

While Stiller’s specialty as an actor was playing men who were very curmudgeonly and reluctant to show their emotions openly (except, of course, for anger), there were times in The King of Queens when he did allow that little bit of tenderness to come out into the open, making his characterization even more nuanced.

4 Frank Costanza: His Explosive Anger

One of the best things about Seinfeld was its ability to find guest actors and give them plenty of opportunities to shine. That was certainly the case with Jerry Stiller’s Frank. In fact, it’s probably not going too far to say that Frank is one of the best characters in the entire show.

It’s particularly hilarious to see Frank in one of his titanic outbursts. Seeing Stiller give us all to those moments is to see someone knowing exactly what pitch to hit to make the joke inescapably, laugh-out-loud funny.

3 Arthur Spooner: His Wit

In almost every episode, Arthur Spooner manages to dazzle with his wit. Of course, it helps that the object of his derision is usually Doug (who, it must be said, is able to give as good as he gets when it comes to his father-in-law).

It’s not just that Arthur has some pretty substantial zingers; it’s that in Jerry Stiller’s hands they manage to become something almost transcendent in how hilarious they are.

2 Frank Costanza: The Bro

It’s probably unsurprising that Frank would ultimately team up with Kramer. After all, they are both two of the strangest characters to have ever appeared in an American sitcom.

In addition to inventing the holiday Festivus, Frank was also responsible for coming up with the idea of the Bro (a bra for men), though of course, it has to be pointed out that it was Kramer who saw its potential and decided to do something more with it.

1 Arthur Spooner: His Mix Of Annoying And Charming

It takes a truly great comedic talent to make a character like Arthur somehow both infuriating and absolutely endearing. In fact, it probably isn’t going too far to say that only an actor of Stiller’s stature could manage it and make it feel sincere.

As a result of his skill, the audience (just like Carrie and Doug), often find themselves utterly charmed by Arthur’s antics, even as they find him more than a little insufferable.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/reasons-frank-costanza-jerry-stiller-best-role-arthur-spooner-better/

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