Jerry Seinfeld says he misses mainstream masculinity

Jerry Seinfeld says he is nostalgic for the “conventional hierarchy” of American culture in the 1960s, adding that he misses “dominant masculinity”.

Seinfeld shared the comments on Tuesday’s episode of Honestly with Bari Weiss podcast, where he said he thought the cultural hierarchy had “absolutely vaporized right now.”

“That’s why people honk their horns and drive the crazy way they drive,” he continued. “Because we have no sense of hierarchy. And as humans, we don’t really feel comfortable like that.

Seinfeld was speaking about his recent Netflix movie (and his first feature film) Unfrostedwhich tells the fictional origin story of the Pop-Tart and is set in Michigan in the 1960s. During their conversation, Weiss told the comedian that she felt the film represented a nostalgia for “the feeling of ‘a conversation, of a common culture’.

Seinfeld agreed with Weiss’ assessment. “That’s part of what makes this moment appealing in hindsight,” he said, adding: “I always wanted to be a real man. I never got there, [but] at that time it was JFK. It was Muhammad Ali. It was Sean Connery, Howard Cosell…he’s a real man.

The actor expanded on his remarks by saying: “I miss dominant masculinity. Yeah, I understand the toxic thing, but I still love a real man.

Part of what defined this era of masculinity, Seinfeld continued, was “these style moves.” I like people who have a bit of style in everything they do.

He cited Hugh Grant as an example. “He knows how to dress. He knows how to speak. He is charming. He has stories, he is comfortable at dinner parties, he knows how to have a drink.

Grant plays Thurl Ravenscroft, a Shakespearean actor playing cereal mascots, in Unfrosted. The film is now available on Netflix.