The Sitcom Dad Who Made Grouchiness Into an Art Form

When George Costanza’s father, Frank, is introduced in Season 4 of , he is a typically world-weary sitcom dad played by the theater veteran John Randolph. Hen-pecked by his wife, he reacts to his son’s antics with little more than a sigh; the only indication of sublimated rage comes in a scene where he smacks his son on the forehead in frustration. The role of Frank was in Season 5 with Jerry Stiller, who quickly noticed that the character wasn’t clicking. “After a couple of days, Ico-creator] Larry David, ‘This ain’t workin’. Can I do it my way?’” Stiller recalled in . “The next time Jason [Alexander, who played George] said, ‘Dad, can I have the keys to the car?’ I gave him this whack. Everybody screamed.”