One of Bob Einstein’s finest moments among many was arguably the filthiest jokes ever told on “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” which sparked a genuine laugh out of Jerry Seinfeld when he first heard it on camera.
Einstein died Wednesday at age 76, and while many other comedians will remember him for his work as Super Dave Osborne or for his classic scene in his brother Albert Brooks’ comedy “Modern Romance,” Seinfeld will always remember Einstein for the scene he shared with him, which happened to be the first time the two ever met.
Seinfeld explained when he invited Einstein onto his talk show “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” in 2012 that though he was a big fan of all of Einstein’s work dating back to an appearance on “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour,” they’d not met until they filmed “Curb” together during the HBO show’s seventh season in 2009.
In the scene, Einstein’s Marty Funkhouser, an amateur comedian and friend of Larry David, interjects just before they’re about to do the table read for the “Seinfeld” reunion. But what makes the moment doubly special is that Seinfeld says he had never heard the joke that Einstein was about to tell him.
Here’s the exchange from “Comedians in Cars” discussing the famous scene:
Seinfeld: “And the day I meet you, the bit we’re doing is you’re going to tell me a joke.”
Einstein: “The dirtiest joke in the world.”
Seinfeld: “The great thing was, on the show …”
Einstein: “They left in your laugh. I was so excited. That was the greatest.”
The joke in question is too filthy to print, but you can watch it below, along with Seinfeld’s genuine laugh as he first heard it.
Einstein is the first guest to have appeared on Seinfeld’s “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” twice. You can watch both of his appearances on Netflix.
Goodbye Bob Einstein (aka Marty Funkhouser) and thank you for this joke. "I like that guy." pic.twitter.com/dmOJDx4CT4
— Matt Wilstein (@mattwilstein) January 2, 2019
Tony Maglio contributed to this story.