The Soup Nazi

Description

“The Soup Nazi” is the 116th episode of the NBC sitcom Seinfeld, which was the sixth episode of the seventh season. It first aired in the United States on November 2, 1995

The Soup Nazi is also the nickname of the eponymous character, Yev Kassem, played by Larry Thomas. The term “Nazi” is used as an exaggeration of the strict regimentation he demands of his patrons. Elaine in particular comes into conflict with Kassem.

The Soup Nazi was portrayed by Larry Thomas. Thomas, who did not realize that the character was based on a real person, received the inspiration for his portrayal from watching Lawrence of Arabia and studying Omar Sharif‘s accent.

The Soup Nazi has a cameo in the Seinfeld series finale, in which his true name is revealed. He is a witness in the case against Seinfeld, Elaine, George and Kramer. He tells Hoyt about how he banned Elaine from his shop, only for her to return and ruin his business, forcing him to move to Argentina (paralleling the Ratlines used by the real Nazis). Elaine angers him by smugly claiming, “His soup wasn’t all that good anyway.”

The restaurant Soup Kitchen International was the inspiration for this episode of Seinfeld. The restaurant closed in 2004, but has since reopened. The character was inspired by Ali “Al” Yeganeh an Iranian American soup vendor who ran Soup Kitchen International in New York City, eventually turning it into the chain The Original Soup Man. Yeganeh was offended by the portrayal.

According to writer Spike Feresten, Jerry Seinfeld and several members of the production team went to Soup Kitchen International for lunch weeks after “The Soup Nazi” aired. Upon recognizing Seinfeld, Yeganeh “did a triple take” and went into a profanity-filled rant about how the show had “ruined” his business, demanding an apology. Seinfeld allegedly gave what Feresten describes as “the most sarcastic apology I’ve ever seen anyone give.” Feresten has also said that some of the episode’s encounters in the soup line, such as Elaine slapping her hands on the counter and telling the Soup Nazi he looks like Al Pacino, were based on scenes he witnessed at Yeganeh’s real-life soup outlet.

The first pop culture reference to Yeganeh (though not by name) seems to have come years before the Seinfeld episode, in the 1993 movie Sleepless in Seattle. In the film, a character playing a writerpitches a story for the lifestyle section of The Baltimore Sun to their editor: “This man sells the greatest soup you have ever eaten, and he is the meanest man in America. I feel very strongly about this, Becky; it’s not just about the soup.”

Thomas’s portrayal of the Soup Nazi earned him a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series in 1996.[14]

Like Jackie Chiles, the Soup Nazi character (played by Thomas) has appeared in commercials after the end of the series.

Thomas was hired by Yeganeh’s company in July 2015 to portray the Yev Kassem character as promotion for Soupman products.

In an advertisement by the corporate lobbying group Center for Consumer Freedom, he denies food to people he considers to be too fat.

In June 2015, Thomas collaborated with Pepsi Max to promote their Top Street Food Project in Israel. According to the website, “US actor Larry Thomas, the notorious Soup Nazi from the hit series “Seinfeld,” roams the streets of Tel Aviv in a new Pepsi Max commercial, striking fear into the hearts of Israeli salesmen and women as he searches for the perfect meal and demands a suitable beverage to quench his thirst.”[15]

Thomas appeared, in character, along with Jerry Seinfeld in a television commercial for Acura that aired during the 2012 Super Bowl. In the advertisement, Seinfeld is trying to bribe an ordinary guy to get an Acura, offering him soup from The Soup Nazi, who happily offers “Soup for you!”. After Jay Leno beat Jerry Seinfeld in bribing the ordinary guy, the Soup Nazi was seen with Jerry, an alien, and a “Munchkin” at a restaurant where they are angered at Jay Leno’s actions.

Larry Thomas appeared as himself in the Scrubs episode “My Self-Examination.” He denies he is the Soup Nazi when asked by J.D. (Zach Braff), who then tricks him into saying the catchphrase “No soup for you!” by asking him “What is [the catchphrase] again? It’s like, ‘You’re out of luck in the soup department…’”

In the sitcom Arrested Development, the crooked housing entrepreneur George Bluth Sr. is charged with signing a development deal with Saddam Hussein, despite the embargo against Iraq. Bluth claims that he acted in good faith, mistakenly believing that Hussein was Larry Thomas because of his resemblance to the Soup Nazi. This gets referenced in a later episode, where Thomas appears in the role as a political decoy for Saddam Hussein who has lost his job because of the American invasion of Iraq.

Larry Thomas has used the character to promote soup kitchens for the homeless.

In July 2012, the “Seinfeld Food Truck” embarked on an eight-stop United States tour. The truck, driven by Larry Thomas, handed out free soup along with other Seinfeld-related food items: Snapple, Twix, Junior Mints, black and white cookies and muffin tops.