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Joy Behar Page
Interview with Bethenny Frankel; Carnie`s Weight Crisis; Interview With Jason Alexander
Aired July 05, 2010 - 21:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOY BEHAR, HLN HOST: Real Housewife Bethenny Frankel is taking a lot of heat for losing a lot of weight very quickly. She gave birth less than a month ago and she says she`s already lost 29 pounds. So maybe she gave birth to a 27-pound baby?
Here to tell us how she did it is Bethenny Frankel star of "Bethenny Gets Married"-- "Getting Married" sorry -- "Bethenny Getting Married" on Bravo. And the new work out DVD, "Body by Bethenny". Bethenny, how much did the baby weigh?
BETHENNY FRANKEL, STAR, "BETHENNY GETTING MARRIED": I just had to stop snorting diet pills to answer your question. The baby was 4 pounds 11 ounces, or 4 pounds 12 ounces.
BEAHR: And how much was the placenta? Twenty pounds?
FRANKEL: The placenta -- it was the largest placenta -- it is actually in the Guinness Book of World Records, it`s a giant placenta. I`ve always been told I have a giant placenta.
BEHAR: Now let me just go through this, you had 29 pounds in three -
FRANKEL: A lot of this is now math.
BEHAR: -- in three weeks. That`s almost ten pounds a week.
FRANKEL: Right. Here`s the thing.
BEHAR: How did you do that?
FRANKEL: By the time I left the house I looked at myself and pulled up the gown and said I went under the hood, I didn`t know what was going to be there. I said this is not that bad. I didn`t know what it was going to be like. And I had probably lost most of it in the hospital. I had a C-section. I didn`t eat for three days while there, just ices. You know --
BEHAR: Three days you didn`t eat?
FRANKEL: Yes, you don`t eat the day you`re in labor and then two days after for C-section. And I left and I probably --
BEHAR: Why did have you to have a C-section?
FRANKEL: Because I was in labor for 29 hours, 26 hours, something like that.
BEHAR: Why?
FRANKEL: I don`t know, she was like jammed in there. I am very narrow. She was like really jammed in there and she wasn`t coming out. So I probably had ten pounds to lose when I left the hospital. I mean I gained 35 pounds, which is a lot considering I still had five weeks to go. I went early.
It`s not like -- I feel like everyone wants a prescription for what I did. I didn`t really do that much. I was healthy before, during and after. I`ve sold a hundreds and thousands of books on the topic. I mean it`s not like I`m, you know, a weight lifter.
BEHAR: Yes. It`s just that ten pounds a week, for me to do that I would have to cut off my arm.
FRANKEL: I understand well that - I try that`s one way to do it. It`s not that drastic.
BEHAR: Amputation is the way to lose weight.
FRANKEL: It is. It`s a good plan.
BEHAR: Not the easiest.
FRANKEL: That`s my next book, cut off limbs, one at a time.
BEHAR: And you`re breastfeeding aren`t you?
FRANKEL: I am breastfeeding.
BEHAR: So how did have you time to work out and breastfeed?
FRANKEL: I didn`t work out.
BEHAR: Oh you didn`t do any work - so no work out just -- FRANKEL: I worked out when I --
BEHAR: It is just natural loss of weight?
FRANKEL: OK I`ve now had the baby for five weeks and I`ve been on my elliptical machines three times. You know I have it and I was looking at it. And once the doctor said fine I got on it three times for 30 minutes in the last five weeks.
I haven`t really done that much. I`m running around. I`m breastfeeding. It`s not that much of a mystery. If people go off the rail -- a lot of Hollywood actresses particularly are always restricted or always not eating and when they are pregnant they go off the rails. Everyone says you`re eating for two. Eat what you want. It`s a big binge. And I honestly think that`s why people gain 70 pounds, 80 pounds and it takes a year to get off.
BEHAR: So why do you think you`re taking all this heat if you say it`s a natural way to lose weight? What is it? What`s going on?
FRANKEL: I have a brand called "Skinny Girl" --
BEHAR: Yes.
FRANKEL: It`s probably just annoying. It`s annoying. I understand it`s annoying.
BEHAR: It is annoying. It`s extremely annoying.
FRANKEL: I`m annoyed for everybody. I get it. It`s annoying. I really do. I don`t think like oh, I`m not going to go around and eat cheeseburgers to prove to everybody I eat. I eat but not a tremendous amount. I eat normally. And if I want an indulgence just like when I was pregnant, I have cheesecake but I won`t eat it at dinner and lunch. And I won`t eat the whole thing.
BEHAR: Who eats cheesecake for dinner and lunch, nobody does that.
FRANKEL: No but I`m saying if I`m -- when I was pregnant or even if -- when I was pregnant I would have cheesecake. But I wouldn`t have it at lunch and dinner. I would have a couple bites and it was over. I mean your diet is a bank account.
That`s what I`ve been saying, it`s not that crazy. But I do understand it is annoying.
BEHAR: It`s very annoying to people. Next to Helen Thomas you`re one of the most hated women in America.
FRANKEL: I know but it is a big deal, other people though, have lost weight. I mean even Alex on my show. She said the weight fell off. I didn`t know it was going to happen. I thought it would be an S Show. I thought it would be six months easily because I never been through it before. But it really isn`t that big of a deal.
BEHAR: What if you suddenly got really fat. Would you be like in depression? We`d have to get you Zoloft and everything?
FRANKEL: I don`t think I would be depressed. I would be concerned. I`d be like I`m a sham. Everything I`ve ever done is worthless and useless and I`ll burn all my books. But it didn`t happen because it is the truth. Your diet really is a bank account. And you just decide how you want to spend in your own life based on your own lifestyle.
BEHAR: So this skinny frame that I`m looking at is all genetics really is what you`re saying, basically?
FRANKEL: Well, no -- I used to be 25 pounds heavier. I was always white knuckling and obsessing.
BEHAR: How much do you way now?
FRANKEL: I weigh 123.
BEHAR: No, you don`t.
FRANKEL: Get me a scale.
BEHAR: No you don`t.
FRANKEL: Get me a scale, I do have a little - get me a scale --
BEHAR: That is not 123.
FRANKEL: Get me a scale --
BEHAR: That`s 115 at the most.
FRANKEL: I`ll bet -- on your show we`re making a bet --
BEHAR: I feel like at a carnival. I can guess your weight.
FRANKEL: How much do you want to bet? I`m going to get rich.
BEHAR: Ten dollars.
FRANKEL: All right, get me a scale. Send one of your people out and get me a scale.
BEHAR: All right can someone get a scale for this girl.
FRANKEL: Get me a scale.
BEHAR: Before you leave that chair, we`re putting you on a scale today.
FRANKEL: One hundred percent. I`m game. You say 113.
BEHAR: One hundred fifteen the most.
FRANKEL: I say 122, 123.
BEHAR: OK and that`s without the earrings.
FRANKEL: Without the earrings.
BEHAR: No earrings allowed.
FRANKEL: I`ll take all the jewelry off.
BEHAR: That ring weighs a pound.
FRANKEL: I`ll take my breastfeeding pads out. I`ll do everything.
BEHAR: Now you know it`s interesting, you girls have a lot of trouble on "Housewives". You are always fighting and everything else. But Alex McCord is sticking up for you. Did you know that?
FRANKEL: I heard that. I heard that.
BEHAR: She saying you just won the genetic lottery and that people are just jealous. What do you say to that?
FRANKEL: I think it`s nice Alex stuck up for me. I think she probably lost her baby weight also and she`s a thin girl. And I get why people are annoyed. Like I said, people want to look at people and they want to feel better about themselves. And a lot of people gain a lot of weight while they`re pregnant. It takes a long time to get it off. And they want to feel better. They want me to be in it with them.
BEHAR: I gained, I think, 26 pounds when I had a child and I lost it by the time she was in -- got her learner`s permit I had lost it.
Bethenny, thanks. "Bethenny Getting Married" premieres tonight at 10:00 p.m. on Bravo. But we are going to weigh her later. So stick around for that.
Weight loss is something singer and TV host Carnie Wilson has struggled with her whole life. After undergoing gastric bypass surgery in 1999, she lost a whopping 150 pounds but gained most of it back during two pregnancies.
Wanting to be a positive role model for her daughters, Carnie decided she has had enough and is determined to lead a healthy lifestyle once and for all.
So with me now is Carnie Wilson. Hi Carnie.
I just poured Bethenny. I just raked her over the coals. And we`re going to weigh her.
CARNIE WILSON, SINGER: That was funny.
BEHAR: You know now, Carnie, you look very good. I`m looking at you here. You look so pretty.
WILSON: Thank you.
BEHAR: You have had trouble losing your baby weight. What do you make of Bethenny Frankel?
WILSON: You know, I like her first of all. I have to say that I feel like the whole baby weight thing is so blown out of proportion because I think with each woman it`s a very individual thing.
I think that Bethenny did not have a weight problem before she got pregnant so that I feel like that the women that have had a weight problem, they get pregnant, usually they`ll have some trouble taking it off and especially if they go over the top with carbs during pregnancy and they gain too much weight.
BEHAR: Yes. But is it even possible for the average women, I mean according to Bethenny she had lost some of it because she didn`t eat a couple days before the C-section and then afterwards and everything and naturally came off of her.
But is it possible for normal woman to lose ten pounds a week unless she`s extremely, extremely obese?
WILSON: When you, obviously when you give birth, there`s fluid and lots of fluid and we gain, people gain more and lose more during pregnancy for whatever reason because of their individual body.
I know for me that in the first month after I gave birth to Lola, my first child, 40 pounds came off me. So I mean, but I had gained 70. So if Bethenny gained 30 -- all these numbers are driving me crazy, Joy. All I know is that all I want to do is live a healthy lifestyle. That`s the goal.
BEHAR: OK, right. OK, now you appeared on Dr. Oz back in February. And I have a clip of that. Let`s look at that for a minute.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. OZ, HOST: Your weight is 218 pounds. But you probably knew that already.
WILSON: That doesn`t surprise me.
DR. OZ: Your waist size is 41 inches. Your blood sugar is 100. So you`re border line diabetic again.
WILSON: I`m border line diabetic right now?
DR. OZ: Yes. And of all the things I could have told you today, that`s the one that scares me the most.
WILSON: I can`t believe it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEHAR: That was a wake-up call for you, wasn`t it? And he also called you morbidly obese. He`s full of compliments, Dr. Oz.
WILSON: Yes, that was a lovely experience.
BEHAR: That was kind of wake-up call for you, that conversation. He`s big on tough love.
WILSON: Yes, he is it was a wake-up call. There were some things that -- there was some misinformation given out. I`m not morbidly obese. And I actually wasn`t pre-diabetic. My sugars were high.
The great news is since then I`ve taken off 15 pounds. And I do have a goal. I do have a goal to lose 20 pounds by the time I walk down the red carpet for my Emmy nomination for "Newlywed Game".
BEHAR: Congratulations, that`s a motivation to look good on the red carpet.
WILSON: Yes. Well I mean, and the reason - and what I want to bring up is that, you know, there`s diets and this and that and constantly going back and forth and for the past year it has taken me one full year since I`ve given birth to lose this 15 pounds that I have struggled with but I actually lost it the last three months --
BEHAR: How?
WILSON: Eating fresh diet because didn`t you eat the fresh diet.
BEHAR: No, I did Jenny Craig. I lost 30 pounds on that.
Listen, when they deliver the food to you, it`s a lot easier to do than having to making a decision every three hours.
WILSON: It`s so great, it`s the best. But let me tell you why I love the fresh diet. The fresh diet I love because it`s not packaged chemicals.
BEHAR: Are you a spokesperson for them? Are you a spokesperson?
WILSON: You`re darn right I am. Oh yes.
BEHAR: Oh, so this is a commercial.
WILSON: Oh yes --
BEHAR: All right can I --
WILSON: No it`s not a commercial. This is the truth. I`m eating it. And it`s fresh. And that`s -- I want brown rice and teen wah (ph), all these great mashed cauliflower, broccoli, all those stuff that we should be eating and that`s what I`m eating.
BEHAR: I know you know those diets are great. And they work -- the fresh diet works. Jenny works. They all work until you stop getting it delivered to you and then you have to live in the real world.
But anyway, Carnie, stay right there.
I`m going to add celebrity trainer Jackie Warner and some "Biggest Losers" to our discussion in a minute. And get a scale for Bethenny, she`s dying to get weighed.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRANKEL: Ok, Joy, this is your bet and you better get your $10 ready. Heavy earrings coming off; five-inch Louis Vuittons coming off.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You`re about 121.
FRANKEL: Ok, I`m not 113. I lost another two pounds. Now people can be more mad at me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEHAR: You know in case you missed it before the break Bethenny and I had a bet about how much she weighs. She said about 122 pounds. I bet her $10 she weighed 113 pounds. Ok Bethenny here`s your ten bucks. Come and get it, baby.
Moving on a fitness video game, a swimsuit that makes you look ten pounds thinner, flip-flops that tone your legs while you walk from the fridge to the couch. You know it seems like Americans will do almost anything to get fit other than diet and exercise, include me in that group.
Back with me to talk about getting fit for the summer is Carnie Wilson and joining us are Jackie Warner, a fitness expert and author of "This Is Why You`re Fat (And How to Get Thin Forever)" and Amy and Phil Parham -- former contestants on the "Biggest Loser", and authors of "The 90-Day Fitness Challenge."
Welcome to the show. Amy and Phil, let me ask you -- you lost all this weight, 256 pounds total together.
PHIL PARHAM, FORMER CONTESTAN, "THE BIGGEST LOSER": Yes.
BEHAR: How much did you lose?
AMY PARHAM, FORMER CONTESTANT, "THE BIGGEST LOSER": I lost 105.
BEHAR: And you?
P. PARHAM: One hundred fifty one.
BEHAR: Ok so --
P. PARHAM: Percentagewise it`s about the same. Amy lost just a hair more.
BEHAR: Right, right, now what`s one thing that you came away from "Biggest Loser" that you can tell the audience to do this summer?
A. PARHAM: Well what I find is that a lot of women especially they shut down their metabolisms. They say, well I have a slow metabolism because they`ve done it to themselves. They`ll wake up and drink coffee and won`t eat breakfast and go all day and then they`ll just pig out later on in the day when they`re starving.
So what I learned is to train my metabolism by eating smaller meals and always trying to combine protein, carbs, and fats with every meal.
BEHAR: I see.
P. PARHAM: A healthy balance.
A. PARHAM: Yes.
BEHAR: I see, so has it been hard to keep the weight off? How long have you been --
A. PARHAM: We`re going on our two-year anniversary.
P. PARHAM: A year -- a year and a half since we lost the weight. I think the mental and emotional challenges for us because we learned all the basics stuff, nutrition, exercise and we incorporate exercise into our life every day now. At least for an hour a day, that`s for us.
BEHAR: Everybody says that`s what you`re supposed to do.
A. PARHAM: Well --
BEHAR: And for some reason people can`t do it.
A. PARHAM: It`s all mental. They say, they give themselves excuses and then --
P. PARHAM: It`s the mental again --
A. PARHAM: -- and then you know, they go through their lives and they make priorities for saying, like watching a lot of TV --
P. PARHAM: Yes.
A. PARHAM: -- or doing other things.
P. PARHAM: Ok they can put an hour of their time away to watch THE JOY BEHAR SHOW at night.
BEHAR: Yes, well you can --
P. PARHAM: You can watch it on the elliptical.
BEHAR: Yes, well, really? Who wants to watch TV on an elliptical?
A. PARHAM: I`ve done it.
BEHAR: Just shoot me.
Listen, Jackie, you know, Jackie your book is called "This Is Why You`re Fat". Now why do you have to say fat? Can`t you say heavy, overweight, (INAUDIBLE), or as Dr. Oz likes to says, morbidly obese. I mean why did you pick the word fat?
JACKIE WARNER, FITNESS EXPERT: Because --
P. PARHAM: It`s kind of rude.
WARNER: -- I got thousands of e-mails from people and the number one question was why am I fat and when I do lose weight, why can`t I keep that weight off?
So I don`t sugar coat anything. And I just really wanted to write the kind of book that said that gave you direct answers as to why you are heavy and why you can`t lose weight. And that`s what this book is.
BEHAR: Ok, Carnie, do you think shows like "Biggest Loser", these people were on the "Biggest Loser" sets up sort of an unrealistic expectation for the average person because you guys had trainers and you`ve got dietitians. What do you think, Carnie?
WILSON: I think whatever it takes to motivate this country to live a healthier lifestyle is all good. And I think that some people can afford a trainer but everybody can afford to take a walk. And I think that is -- is the least you can do is walk.
BEHAR: Well you know they say you should do 10,000 steps a day.
A. PARHAM: Yes.
BEHAR: That`s really almost five miles of walking. Do you realize that?
P. PARHAM: Yes, yes.
WARNER: That`s a lot.
BEHAR: That`s a lot of walking.
P. PARHAM: But can I say I was on a plane recently with lady and she showed me her pedometer. And she talked - she said I`ve gotten x amount of steps and she said, by having the accountability of a pedometer on her hip, it kept her accountable to that. And she, everyday if she got home and hadn`t do it, she`ll go out and walk a little bit --
BEHAR: I see.
P. PARHAM: -- because that was her goal every day to do that.
BEHAR: Well, it`s not a bad idea.
Jackie, Dr. Oz says it`s easier to lose weight in the summer. And yes, he does. What can we do -- I mean, why does he say that? Do you have any idea, Jackie?
WARNER: Well, I mean, that -- yes. I mean, obviously because you`re more active in the summertime. You`re willing to go outdoors. You are walking more. You don`t take the car to places.
And also thermogenesis (ph) place in the summertime so you literally do warm up and you -- it speeds up your metabolism. So there is merit to that.
BEHAR: I see.
WARNER: You know the five-pound gain usually happens in the wintertime for a lot of people.
BEHAR: Yes sitting around and watching TV. What do you -- what do you make -- while I have you, Jackie, what do you make of this -- I think Jim Paris (ph) send me an e-mail the other day and he`s a personal fitness trainer. He says that cardio training adds years and makes you look older. What do you make of that?
WARNER: Oh, I think that`s -- I don`t make anything of that.
BEHAR: Aerobic training. He believes in strength training is all you need to look sexy and increase your energy.
WARNER: There`s just been too many studies that talk about cardiovascular training and how important it is for the heart and the lungs and just function.
Look we can`t do anything just to be thin, America. I mean we need to focus on our health and being healthy makes you thin --
BEHAR: But maybe he`s talking about really incredibly intense cardio training. But that may not be good for you.
WARNER: That`s different.
BEHAR: Yes.
P. PARHAM: Yes.
BEHAR: Ok guys, we`ll be continuing this after a short break, don`t go away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BEHAR: I`m back with my fitness panel. And I`ve got some Twitter questions for you.
But Carnie let me tell you one more thing. Another study I was reading says being skinny over 40 makes you look older and that you need a little fat in your face, either your butt or your face after 40. Is that - - what do you -- that`s kind of nice, isn`t it?
WILSON: I mean all I know is when I drink enough water, I look rested and I feel better. I think water is something we haven`t really mentioned. Water is huge. I think we lose weight in the summer more because we`re drinking more water, too.
P. PARHAM: Yes.
BEHAR: You know I have this guy that I do some strength training with. Don`t I look like it?
P. PARHAM: You look great.
BEHAR: He told me, that you should drink -- this is over the weekend I heard this, you should drink in ounces half of your body weight.
A. PARHAM: Absolutely.
BEHAR: So if you`re 160 pounds, you need to do -- how much is half of that?
P. PARHAM: Well, 80.
BEHAR: 80 ounces of water a day.
(CROSSTALK)
P. PARHAM: We cover that in our book, like that is the big key we talk about.
BEHAR: He said that`s the fastest way to lose weight.
P. PARHAM: Absolutely. Most people lose weight drink extra water.
BEHAR: Yes, let`s do a couple Twitter questions for you guys here. What do you eat when you`re in a hurry and don`t want to mess up by eating fast food?
A. PARHAM: We make sure that once a week, we like cook a large amount of food in bulk, chickens, things you can put together in wraps and things like that really quickly. And so before we leave the house, we pack food with us.
P. PARHAM: And I have apples and almonds actually in my bag that I brought with me. I keep food with me. I can`t depend on the drive through.
BEHAR: You keep food with you.
Jackie, number two, what do you suggest to older women who have a more difficult time losing weight?
WILSON: Well, it is more difficult. You have to speed up your metabolism. Can we get back to water? You know 3 liter of water burns 75 to 100 calories per day and if you add lemon juice to it, you can speed up your metabolism by 33 percent so that is hugely significant.
BEHAR: That`s a great tip.
P. PARHAM: That is a good tip.
BEHAR: That`s a great tip, Carnie, you`ve been on so many diet, do you have any will power tips to stay on track?
WILSON: That`s a tough one, thanks for the tough questions.
BEHAR: I`m sorry. Or anybody -- does anybody have that?
WILSON: Will power. Ok. I`ll tell you, this is where you get your will power. What inspires you? Inspiration is what gives you will power in my opinion. My kids give me will power. People -- the public gives me will power.
It`s knowing who you are inside and what you really want, that`s how you get your will power.
BEHAR: And not wanting to die too early gives you will power.
P. PARHAM: Yes and exactly. Maybe they choose Amy and I as role models in the beginning, somebody 150 pounds overweight, then we choose Jackie as role model at this next level. It`s all about levels.
WARNER: Thank you, guys.
P. PARHAM: It`s all about levels.
BEHAR: You know, here`s another question for anybody. How do you get family to keep foods that might tempt you out of the house. That`s problematic sometimes.
P. PARHAM: Yes.
A. PARHAM: Well when we came back from the show, we went to our pantry, and our poor kids, it was like taking a band-aid off, we`re just like, we`re not having any more. They were detoxing off of soda and stuff. But you know what a lot of parents feel guilty for not having that stuff in the house. It`s our responsibility to take care of them.
P. PARHAM: We`re the role model for our kids. Because our kids didn`t go on a reality weight loss show, we did.
BEHAR: Are your kids chunky or not?
P. PARHAM: Our kids are half and half, three kids, two boys.
A. PARHAM: Three kids, boys.
BEHAR: So some are overweight and some of them are not.
A. PARHAM: Well our youngest has autism.
P. PARHAM: That`s a whole other story. Our middle child, guess what, he wants to start working out himself because he`s seen mom and dad do it.
BEHAR: Good for him.
P. PARHAM: The other one is running cross-country now, so.
BEHAR: So drink your water everybody and put some lemon in it. Thank you for all joining me guys.
All right. When we come back, actor and Jenny Craig spokesperson, Jason Alexander.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BEHAR: George Costanza will always be remembered as the funny, neurotic, chubby guy from "Seinfeld." Jason Alexander, who played George, may be funny and neurotic but he`s not chubby any more after losing 30 pounds on Jenny Craig. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You look great.
JASON ALEXANDER, ACTOR: Thirty pounds in 18 weeks. Jenny totally worked.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bikini?
ALEXANDER: Better.
(MUSIC)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEHAR: OK. Here with me is Mr. Six-Pack-Abs himself, Jason Alexander. Wow, that`s funny.
ALEXANDER: It`s fun.
BEHAR: It`s funny.
ALEXANDER: Yes.
BEHAR: It`s like the little shop of horrors sound.
ALEXANDER: Yes.
BEHAR: Right?
ALEXANDER: Yes. I wonder if I`ll be sued by Alan Menken there.
BEHAR: No, you won`t.
ALEXANDER: OK.
BEHAR: But you look great. You lost 30 pounds.
ALEXANDER: I did. It`s not lost. I know where it is. I could find it like that.
BEHAR: Where is it? Hey, hey, where is it?
ALEXANDER: But yes. No, I did, 30 pounds in about 18 weeks.
BEHAR: Eighteen weeks?
ALEXANDER: Yes.
BEHAR: I did the same thing years ago. But I put a little bit back.
ALEXANDER: Really?
BEHAR: Half.
ALEXANDER: That can happen.
BEHAR: I put half back.
ALEXANDER: I`m hoping to not do that because I`m married to a woman that has weapons and would not look good if I start gaining it back.
BEHAR: You`re the first man that they`ve had, a spokesman for the Jenny Craig, right?
ALEXANDER: Thank you for that noticing.
BEHAR: Yes. I mean, what`s the idea of jumping to a male representative?
ALEXANDER: You know, it`s nothing - you know, I guess Jenny Craig has the - gives the impression of being a feminine product -
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: Which is silly because what a gender food, you know? But - and I think they actively said, you know, this works for guys. Why don`t we get a guy? And we - I had made a connection with them because of a character that I was doing. We were looking for a branding partner.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: And they said, well, you know, we`re not really branding right now, but we`d be happy to talk to Jason. And I told them my sad tale of woe, of weight and struggling. And they explained the program and said, "What do you think?" I went yes.
BEHAR: It works.
ALEXANDER: It really does work. You know, it really does work.
BEHAR: So your whole life you`ve been battling weight.
ALEXANDER: Yes, I was heavy as a kid. I mean, I kind of got it together for a while there in my 20s and early 30s.
BEHAR: Sure. You needed to get a little action.
ALEXANDER: Yes. I was - well, you know, I was doing Broadway. So I was a dancer and a singer and that kind of kept it under control.
But then, you know, I got on to "Seinfeld" with its rather lavish craft service budget. And I gained 15 pounds with each kid. You know, my wife had the baby, but I kept going. I held up. So over about 20 years, I gained 40, 45 pounds.
BEHAR: Yes. You know, I was reading a study that said that people who lose a little at a time, you know, like over a long stretch of two pounds a month, let`s say. They don`t do well. It`s the ones that do fast drop that basically stay on it more.
ALEXANDER: Well, I`ve also heard that, like, a really - like a crash diet seems to not be useful.
BEHAR: No.
ALEXANDER: What everybody seems to say, not just Jenny Craig, but all the programs seem to say, a pound to two a week is a good steady, safe and it tends to reset your metabolism.
BEHAR: Right.
ALEXANDER: And you can kind of hold it there.
BEHAR: Yes. But even that, it`s like - because that`s two pounds, you know? You want more. You want it off.
ALEXANDER: Listen, two pounds a week is good.
BEHAR: Yes, I know.
ALEXANDER: I`m very happy.
BEHAR: Slow and steady wins the race.
ALEXANDER: Yes, very happy.
BEHAR: Do you have a goal weight of any kind? Or you just -
ALEXANDER: Thirty.
BEHAR: You had just 30?
ALEXANDER: Yes, I set to 30. And you know, I`m looking at it now and I`m going I see a little round thing here and a little thing here. Maybe another 10. I`m still about -
BEHAR: You`d like to lose more?
ALEXANDER: Well, I`m about five or six pounds above where I started "Seinfeld" at and that`s a pretty good weight for me. I`m about 165. 159 was a good-looking thing for me.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: I may push another six to 10.
BEHAR: Push it.
ALEXANDER: We`ll see.
BEHAR: What was the story about your son when you hit 50? Is that - that might have been your turning point.
ALEXANDER: It was a big moment, actually. I mean, it didn`t seem it at the time. But in retrospect, I had my 50th birthday. I had gone to the doctor. The doctor said you`re healthy as a horse. You`ve got two weight problems - two health problems because of your weight. Please do something.
BEHAR: What was - what?
ALEXANDER: I have - I have very high cholesterol.
BEHAR: High cholesterol.
ALEXANDER: And I had fatty deposits in my liver.
BEHAR: Hate that.
ALEXANDER: Yes. Not fun.
BEHAR: No.
ALEXANDER: So then we had my 50th birthday and my younger son was 14. And I was talking to him that night and he goes, "Dad, how old would you be at my 50th birthday?" And I said well I`ll be -
BEHAR: And he`s 14?
ALEXANDER: He`s 14. I said I`ll be 86. And he kind of looked at me and he went, "Are you going to be there?" And I went, "Well, I`ll tell you what. I`ll really try." And it just kind of cemented it for me that I had gotten away - because I had really good genetics. And I had gotten away with a lot of stuff all the way up to 50. But I went, you know, this is not going to get any easier.
BEHAR: Don`t push it. No.
ALEXANDER: This is really not going to get easier. So it felt like it was now or never. And these guys came in and they were really my heroes, because the program is solid. It really works. It was mindless. I always say if it were hard, I could not do it. I`m not -
BEHAR: No, they tell you exactly what to do.
ALEXANDER: They tell you what to do. I was never hungry.
BEHAR: It`s maintenance that`s hard.
ALEXANDER: I was having a great time. And I got with my little consultant and we figured out the little issues.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: And it was all good. I don`t think the - maybe it`s a mind-set. I don`t think the maintenance is going to be very hard for me because - here`s the misnomer that everybody has, that you have to eat their food all the time. I did not do that because I was traveling.
BEHAR: No.
ALEXANDER: And I literally couldn`t do it. So I learned how to eat off the program but eat with their principles. And that`s - I don`t find it difficult.
BEHAR: Do you exercise?
ALEXANDER: Yes, but I always did. I mean -
BEHAR: You always did and you still couldn`t lose weight. It is really about the food.
ALEXANDER: Right. You know, you burn 500 calories in a workout but you eat 15,000.
BEHAR: There you go.
ALEXANDER: It just doesn`t make sense.
BEHAR: Now, you know, we found this old commercial in our archives that you were in. Take a look.
ALEXANDER: Uh-oh.
(MUSIC)
BEHAR: I`m assuming that McDonald`s is not on your diet any more.
ALEXANDER: It`s not high on the list. And actually, I represented the one McDonald`s product that went in the toilet from the get-go.
BEHAR: I don`t remember that one.
ALEXANDER: They couldn`t give those things away.
BEHAR: The McDLT?
ALEXANDER: The McDLT was brilliant. It was brilliant. Oh, my god.
BEHAR: What`s the D, McD - Donald`s? Yes.
ALEXANDER: Here`s what it was. You know, when you get a hamburger that`s premade - the hamburger, the heat of the hamburger wilts the lettuce and the tomato.
BEHAR: Right. Of course.
ALEXANDER: Genius. They had a two container package for one bun with lettuce and tomato over here keeping it cool and the hamburger over here hot keeping it warm. Very good. If you build it this way, put it in the bag this way. They take it home this way.
But they don`t do that, you see, because the geniuses at McDonald`s, they go, "Here you go." And they put everything from the top would fall down to the bottom and you had a McDL-mess is the problem.
BEHAR: McDL-mess.
ALEXANDER: And it just - it was horrible. It was a horrible product.
BEHAR: Do you worry that, you know, you might not be as funny now that you`re so studly and everything?
ALEXANDER: Wow. Boy, now, I had seven different answers but then you threw me the studly. Jerry Seinfeld has an interesting theory. He goes, 20 pounds up or down and you lose your funny.
BEHAR: Is that so?
ALEXANDER: By that theory, I should have been not funny a long time ago.
BEHAR: Twenty pounds up or down, you lose your funny.
ALEXANDER: You lose your funny. That`s his theory.
BEHAR: Well, there are people who were very thin that were funny.
ALEXANDER: But they were always thin.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: He said if Jackie Gleason suddenly lost 100 pounds - not funny.
BEHAR: Well, 100, yes.
ALEXANDER: Yes.
BEHAR: But 20 off of Jackie Gleason would have been nothing.
ALEXANDER: Oh, that`s a drop in the ocean.
BEHAR: Tell me about - what is this Donny Clay experience?
ALEXANDER: My Donny Clay experience. I can save your whole life. I`ve been having so much fun with this. This was a character I developed who is a very bad motivational speaker.
I kept being asked by corporations to do corporate gigs. And I said I don`t have anything. I`m not a stand-up. You want me to come sing show tunes for you? I don`t think so.
So I developed this character that would go into a faux motivational seminar. And I would talk to them about their problems and their issues. And then, we just started doing it for audiences and we wound up in Vegas for an extended run this year. And I think we`re going to go back to the end of July and really talking about it. Really fun.
BEHAR: It`s a character basically.
ALEXANDER: It`s a character I do.
BEHAR: A funny character.
ALEXANDER: It`s stand-up with a twist or stand-up with a premise, I guess.
BEHAR: You never did stand-up.
ALEXANDER: I never did stand-up.
BEHAR: No.
ALEXANDER: I would not be foolish to venture into that arena.
BEHAR: Why? You`d be very good at that.
ALEXANDER: I`m a classically trained actor. I`m like a reverential hush to come over the audience, not the two-drink minimum. That`s a -
BEHAR: Do we have time to show a clip from "Seinfeld" here? Or should we wait until the next segment? I guess - we`ll wait, OK. So we`ll wait.
ALEXANDER: I`ve got to seize everybody, because I don`t think many people know that show.
BEHAR: Yes. My god. You know, today, who was on my show? The kid from the other show that I do. From "Big Bang Theory." That show just went into syndication.
ALEXANDER: Yes. That`s a good show.
BEHAR: And it`s even bigger in syndication than "Seinfeld."
ALEXANDER: Yes. Simon - excuse me?
BEHAR: Bigger meaning they have more revenue, I believe.
ALEXANDER: Let me ask you a question.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: If it just sold into syndication, just now -
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: Today, how could it be bigger than my show that`s been in syndication for 106 years? How do you make that math work?
BEHAR: OK. You`re right. Stay right there. Get comfortable. We have a lot to talk about. We`ll be back in a minute. Who knows what we`ll talk about?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEXANDER: If I ever get out of here, I`m going to change my life. I`m going to do a whole Zen thing. Take up yoga, meditate, I`ll eat right, calm down, lose my anger. Hey, is anybody listening?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEHAR: Well, that was a clip from "Seinfeld" with Jason Alexander as the neurotic George Costanza. And Jason is here with me now. That show really made a dent. You know, it`s like "I Love Lucy," "Seinfeld," "All in the Family." There`s just a few iconic shows like that. And I wonder if - I wonder if it could be put on the air now. You know, you never know.
ALEXANDER: We wouldn`t have survived. You know, we were not a hit until our third season. We wouldn`t have made it.
BEHAR: So somebody at the top put their stamp on it and said go ahead?
ALEXANDER: Yes. It was a different time. I mean, you know, we were able to sell the advertising time, but nobody was watching the show. People knew it was a good and different show.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: And we just couldn`t quite find the audience. Then in the third season, they put us on after "Cheers" and we kind of held the audience. And that`s how we started to grow.
BEHAR: See, it`s all about the placement.
ALEXANDER: Yes.
BEHAR: Like what happened to Jay Leno. Look what happened to Jay Leno. I mean, it`s more about positioning in TV. I know. Now, your character George is based on Larry David, our pal, Larry.
ALEXANDER: Yes, not initially.
BEHAR: Not really? No?
ALEXANDER: I didn`t know that. He may have been thinking that. That came about really in like - I can`t remember what episode, but it was early on. "Seinfeld" doesn`t seem this way now, but at the time, it was really constructed very differently.
And I remember doing an episode and there`s something George had to do. And I went to Larry and said, "Larry, you`ve got to help with this, because this would never happen to anybody. And if it did, nobody would react like this.
He went, "I don`t know what you`re talking about. This happened to me. This is exactly what I did." And I went, aha. So at that point, I think we kind of made a sort of tacit agreement that this was - we were feeding each other.
BEHAR: Oh, a lot of the things that he does on "Curb Your Enthusiasm" just seemed unlikely also, but they happened to him.
ALEXANDER: Oh, he`s got a - he`s got notebooks filled with things that happened to him.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: His real gift is that he realizes how funny his own life is and how he overreacts to his own life. He`s brilliant. He`s a brilliant guy.
BEHAR: Yes. He is brilliant and very, very - what`s the word? Fecund.
ALEXANDER: Yes. Nicely said.
BEHAR: You`re welcome. I mean, thank you. Now, you`ve been married 28 years.
ALEXANDER: May 31st. Twenty-eight years - yes.
BEHAR: That`s lovely for someone in Hollywood and showbiz.
ALEXANDER: Nothing to it.
BEHAR: What`s the secret?
ALEXANDER: Marry the right person.
BEHAR: You married young. A lot of people don`t last -
ALEXANDER: Yes. And actually, very lucky because I was in love with love and I kind of dragged Daena down the aisle. Truly, she was more reticent than I was to get married.
She`s an amazing girl and she`s my best pal. And really, it is a little bit of dumb luck because where I`m weak, she`s strong and vice versa and we make each other laugh. And a lot has happened, our lives have changed, but we`ve always grown in the same way. You have to get lucky. But we work, too.
BEHAR: You work at it?
ALEXANDER: Yes. You know, we went through some stuff. And we found a great therapist and we worked it out.
BEHAR: Right.
ALEXANDER: You have to fight a little bit to make it work.
BEHAR: You found a therapist? At what point did you have to go to therapy?
ALEXANDER: We were about 14 years in the marriage.
BEHAR: And things were rocky?
ALEXANDER: A little bit, for a while, you know. But you know, it was sort of like an early midlife crisis for me. I do things a little early and guys kind of freak out a little bit. And oh, my god, I`ve been living this life since I was 20 years old and maybe I was wrong. And you know - so you have to kind of work it out.
BEHAR: See, most people - I mean I did - I got married very young and then I had a crisis and I got divorced. Sometimes, it doesn`t work out.
ALEXANDER: I mean, you know, actually - I`ve got to tell you, the third person in the room makes all the difference when you`re going to therapy.
BEHAR: The shrink?
ALEXANDER: What an amazing therapist -
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: Who really guided us beautifully. But you have to want it. But you know, you have to want it. We - when I thought it wouldn`t work -
BEHAR: You want to stay married.
ALEXANDER: I knew that if I left, I would never find anything better. Different, but not better.
BEHAR: Well, you had kids at that point, too.
ALEXANDER: We did, yes. They were little teeny people.
BEHAR: Let me talk a little politics with you now. Obama just nominated Elena Kagan, who is a Jewish woman.
ALEXANDER: Really?
BEHAR: Yes. To the Supreme Court.
ALEXANDER: Oh, my god.
BEHAR: And if she gets on the court, that would make three Jewish justices.
ALEXANDER: Now - now, you got a minion. Now it`s nine people. That makes some sense.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: Before this, I never knew what the hell was going on there.
BEHAR: Now, Pat Buchanan apparently -
ALEXANDER: Not a Jew, by the way.
BEHAR: No, not at all. The opposite. He thinks there are too many Jews on the Supreme Court.
ALEXANDER: Really? Funny Pat Buchanan.
BEHAR: I know. He recently wrote a blog titled, "Are Liberals Anti- WASP?" He wrote, "If Kagan is confirmed," quote, unquote, "Jews who represent less than two percent of the United States population will have 33 percent of the Supreme Court seats. Is this the Democrats` idea of diversity?" unquote.
ALEXANDER: Wow, look how Pat did math and everything. He had to work out the numbers.
BEHAR: Yes. Yes. He`s worried about wasps.
ALEXANDER: Listen, can I also say - I don`t want to - because I know we run our business, our people. Admit it. America, we run Hollywood.
BEHAR: The two percent of Jews run everything, apparently.
ALEXANDER: They run everything. Bu let me just say, if you look around at the legal profession, it`s not a lot of Irish. It`s a lot of Jews.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: So if you`re going to put the top legal people into the Supreme Court by default, you`re going to get a lot of Jews.
BEHAR: You know, there`s two Italians on the court also which probably doesn`t represent the majority.
ALEXANDER: The Jews with the horn and the cross. Italians - I like Elena Kagan.
BEHAR: Let me go -
ALEXANDER: I think I may - I don`t think - all the rumors about her, I don`t think so. I think I had her.
BEHAR: That she`s a lesbian. Did you sleep with her?
ALEXANDER: I think I did. She grew up in Manhattan. I grew up in Jersey. And I think in a phone booth, on 58th, I might have just bumped into her.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: She seems very familiar. I`m actually being somewhat serious. She seems very familiar to me. I feel like I`ve met her before.
BEHAR: Yes. You think she`s just going to get - she`s going to sail through or what? Is she going to get in trouble?
ALEXANDER: Well, she seems awfully charming, awfully smart, and they`ve got nothing to pin on her. You know, they can`t say, "Oh, you said one time."
BEHAR: Well, they`re after her for that ROTC thing that she did when she was on - the solicitor.
ALEXANDER: Oh, yes, yes. Hey, listen, she`s no Robert Bork. I don`t know. I really don`t think - I don`t see how you can make a major objection to this woman. She`s very bright.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: She`s very qualified. I think she`s -
BEHAR: What do you think about Pat Buchanan`s remarks, though? You think that will be used against her when the time comes to confirm the woman?
ALEXANDER: What did - that the judicial committee`s going to go, "I`m sorry, we love you, sweetheart, but too many Jews on the - we can`t have you."
BEHAR: I don`t think they`ll say -
ALEXANDER: I don think they`re going to say it, no. They`ll all think it.
BEHAR: They`ll all think it. OK, we`ll be back with Jason Alexander after a quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BEHAR: I`m back with actor Jason Alexander. You know, Jason, last we were talking - well, a lot of people were talking about a "Newsweek" article written by - I think the guy is gay who wrote it.
But he wrote, basically, that he didn`t think that gay actors can play straight. Once they`re out of the closet, his point is - and everybody knows they`re gay - American audiences will not accept that they are love interest, I guess, a heterosexual part. What do you think about that?
ALEXANDER: I agree and disagree. I think people can accept it because the truth is, acting is an illusion. It`s a magic trick. Nothing is real. Nothing about it is real.
BEHAR: Right.
ALEXANDER: So if you have skill and you`re good at making the illusion, then you`re good at making the illusion and an audience will believe it. However, there is always a moment - I know it happens with me. If I now go to do a dramatic role, the minute I walk on stage or screen, the first reaction is, hey, it`s George.
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: Now, I`ve got to get beyond that.
BEHAR: Right.
ALEXANDER: There are producers that go, "I don`t want the audience to have that moment. I`d rather have a complete unknown than have that moment." By the same token, you know, there can be a moment where an audience goes, huh, he`s playing, but I wonder - you know, where reality is bumping them a little bit.
But if the actor has the skill, we go right around that moment. But I think it would be disingenuous to say that a person might not have a moment where they go, "Oh, that bumped me a little bit."
BEHAR: Yes.
ALEXANDER: But what`s interesting to me is that - and I`m an example of it. I played in a film "In Love and Compassion" I played it brilliantly.
BEHAR: Yes, I saw you in that.
ALEXANDER: A gay character.
BEHAR: Yes, yes, yes.
ALEXANDER: Nobody had any problem with that. I don`t why it might bump this way, but not bump the other way.
BEHAR: His point was that you can play - a straight guy can play gay but a gay guy can`t play straight.
ALEXANDER: And to me, I don`t understand that. But -
BEHAR: Well, it`s a fantasy level of the audience.
ALEXANDER: I guess.
BEHAR: I mean, like you say, it`s unreal. But women who watch soap operas, they believe it all.
ALEXANDER: I know that.
BEHAR: You know, I mean, you have to suspend disbelief. But the Brits seem to get away with it more.
ALEXANDER: Nobody knows what they are.
BEHAR: Exactly.
ALEXANDER: They have everything.
BEHAR: Exactly. Everett Rupert said it hurt his career to come out.
ALEXANDER: You bet it did. Yes. You have to have a degree of - you have to be very comfortable in your skin. I think it is a risk for some actors. Certainly, it is in this country still.
BEHAR: Here`s a couple of twitter questions. They want to know, what do you think happened to George since "Seinfeld" went off air?
ALEXANDER: We found out. That`s what the whole "Curb" thing was. He invented the iToilet phone app for the iPhone. Made millions and investing it all with Bernie Madoff and lost everything.
BEHAR: Did he stay friends with Kramer?
ALEXANDER: Did he stay friends with Kramer. Yes, I can`t remember what Kramer`s storyline was in the "Curb" thing. You know, they all stayed.
BEHAR: They want to know, what are some of the parts you turned down? I`m always interested -
ALEXANDER: Parts that I`ve turned down.
BEHAR: Yes. They`ll say that Russell Crowe got the part. Paul Newman turned it down so Russell Crowe got it. You`re one of those things?
ALEXANDER: "Batman." I turned down "Batman." Do you think that people are throwing me jobs? Oh, no, no. I have to raise my children. I don`t turn things down. They want me to work. Throw me the job, I`ll take it.
What the - turn them down? There have been things - there have been things I`ve turned down but they`re trivial because I go, "Well, that`s not ever going to see the light of day," and I was right in every case, you know. But no, I`m not turning down work.
BEHAR: Would you go on "Dancing with the Stars" before we go?
ALEXANDER: Would I go on "Dancing with the Stars?" I`d rather do - here`s what I will do, "Celebrity American Idol." I`ll get out there and sing.
BEHAR: OK. That`s a good one. You should produce that show. Thanks very much, Jason.
ALEXANDER: I`ll be right on it.
BEHAR: It`s lovely to see you.
ALEXANDER: Thank you, Joy.
BEHAR: Especially now that you`re such a hunk.
ALEXANDER: Thank you. We`ll go backstage in a moment.
BEHAR: OK. And thank you all for watching. Good night, everybody.
END
