Seinfeld Fans Are Honouring Jerry Stiller On The First Festivus Since He Died

We lost a lot of celebrities in 2020 and everyone will be remembering them as we close out the year.

Fans of the hit sitcom Seinfeld are honouring Jerry Stiller, who played Frank Costanza on the show, as we are on the eve eve of Christmas.

Frank refused to let his family celebrate Christmas on Seinfeld because it had become too commercial.

His answer was 'Festivus', which would be held on December 23 and it would include a Festivus dinner, an unadorned aluminium Festivus pole, and participants would indulge in practices like the 'Airing of Grievances' and 'Feats of Strength'.

It was first revealed in the Seinfeld episode 'The Strike' in 1997 and it's become a popular Christmas tradition for many ever since.

However, because of Jerry's passing in May this year, loads of people are remembering him.

One person wrote: "Get out the pole. It's Festivus 2020, our chance to tell this year how it's disappointed us. Seems fitting to start with losing Jerry Stiller in May."

Another added: "Rest In Peace Jerry Stiller. You made the Frank Costanza character come to life. This will be the first #Festivus with you watching from above."

A third said: "Whatever your faith tradition, the most important holiday of your year has arrived. Happy #Festivus! May your celebration include a solid aluminum pole from the crawl space, a full airing of grievances, and victory in the feats of strength."

Seinfeld cast members Jerry Seinfeld and Jason Alexander have also posted about the annual holiday event.

Interestingly, while the Festivus concept was popularised by Seinfeld back in 1997, the episode's writer, Dan O'Keefe, was actually using his real-world experience. His family had been celebrating Festivus as far back as 1966 and was originally organised by Dan's son Daniel to 'celebrate the anniversary of Dan O'Keefe's first date with his future wife, Deborah'.

It will no doubt be a sadder Festivus that Jerry is no longer with us.

Jerry's son, Ben, confirmed the tragic news on May 11.

Ben wrote: "I'm sad to say that my father, Jerry Stiller, passed away from natural causes. He was a great dad and grandfather, and the most dedicated husband to Anne for about 62 years. He will be greatly missed. Love you Dad."

Jerry Stiller was best known for starring as George Costanza's father Frank, on Seinfeld before portraying Arthur Spooner on CBS comedy series The King of Queens.

He appeared in a number of films such as The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, Nasty Habits and Hairspray before going on to feature in Ben Stiller's films Zoolander, Zoolander 2 and The Heartbreak Kid.

Topics: Entertainment, TV and Film, Celebrity

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie is a Trending Journalist at LADbible. His first job was as a newsreader and journalist at the award winning Sydney radio station, Macquarie Radio. He was solely responsible for the content broadcast on multiple stations across Australia when the MH17, Germanwings and AirAsia disasters unfolded. Stewart has covered the conflict in Syria for LADbible, interviewing a doctor on the front line, and has contributed to the hugely successful UOKM8 campaign.

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