Judaism may be a closed religion, but certain cultural phenomena have allowed everyone to feel like they’re a part of the tribe—none more so than Curb Your Enthusiasm, the chronicles of a fictionalized Larry David. “There’s very specific things within cultural Judaism that everyone can get on board with,” Noah Rinsky, one half of the brand Old Jewish Men, says. Among Rinsky’s list: black and white cookies, complaining, and, of course, Curb Your Enthusiasm. Susan Korn, designer of the downtown jewelry and accessories brand Susan Alexandra, agrees. “There’s an every-man quality about it that is so understood en masse, but seeing yourself and your culture onscreen is a special feeling,” she says.
For Jewish designers, having their work featured on Curb—which premiered in 2000 and is now airing its 12th and final season—is like being anointed God’s chosen people all over again. If God was a curmudgeonly, 76-year-old man with wire-rimmed glasses, that is.
A recent episode, “Vertical Hop, Horizontal Tug,” featured pieces by several Jewish designers: Susan Alexandra’s fruit compote necklace, earrings, and fruit salad headband; Rachel Antonoff’s Birdie pants; Old Jewish Men’s Sandler shorts; and Rebecca Hessel Cohen of LoveShackFancy’s Keoni cardigan. It’s an honor that’s not lost on any them. “It was one of the thrills of a lifetime to be featured on the show,” Korn says. “It’s beyond humbling and the ultimate validation,” Rinsky adds. “For what this lifestyle brand is, it’s the ultimate stamp of approval.”
With an impressive 24-year run, the show has been a mainstay in the designers’ lives for decades. Korn feels that it’s practically woven into her DNA. “I have an encyclopedic knowledge of it,” she says. “I know it in a deep cellular way. It’s made me the person I am. It’s like a parental figure.” The designer isn’t the only one who feels that way. “I started watching it when it first came out," Rinsky says. "I remember watching in my friend’s basement.” Antonoff can relate. “It’s definitely an iconic part of my memories and family life,” she says.
The show has seamlessly integrated itself into the canon of American Jewry thanks to its warts-and-all portrayal of the culture. “I’ve been a viewer since the day I was born, I feel,” Korn says. Some feel so represented by the show that it can become at times unbearable to watch. “My dad says it’s painful for him to watch because it reminds him too much of himself, and I’m like, ‘Well, he’s putting a mirror up to you. You should have some self-awareness!’”
Korn, Antonoff, and Hessel Cohen’s pieces all appeared together on Susie Essman, whose character is known for her wacky fashion sense. While some could theoretically cringe at the idea of associating their work with Susie’s outlandish kitschiness, it captures a certain Jewish ethos that fundamentally informs the designers. “One of the things that I love the most about Judaism is the humor. Jewish humor is so deeply funny and tongue in cheek,” Korn says. “Funny is a word that I use a lot [in my work]. Does this make me laugh? Does this make me feel something?” Antonoff agrees. “It’s inextricable for me—Jewish culture and my brain, and thought process,” she says. “That’s a big part of the lens through which I see anything.”
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Antonoff befriended Essman—whom she describes as “straight up heaven”—when she cast her to play her mother in her spring 2022 lookbook. She learned not through production, but from Essman herself that her designs were going to be on the show. “She texted me like, ‘We’re using some of the clothes on the show,’” Antonoff says. “And then she’s like, ‘My daughter stole my pajamas. Can I have another pair?’ Just very in passing.” As far as Antonoff is aware, the show’s costumers simply pulled from Essman’s own closet. “I don’t think we had gone through any professional channels, I think it was her personal stuff that she’s ordered from us,” she says.
Korn and Rinsky had both been asked by the show’s wardrobe department to send over pieces. Korn didn’t get her hopes up about them actually appearing onscreen, until she saw them in a trailer last year. When the episode finally aired, she found out through a text. “I’ve never been so excited about anything ever,” she says. (Hessel Cohen only learned that LoveShackFancy was on Curb via social media. “I just saw it on Instagram when I saw Susan Alexandra’s post,” she says.)
Rinsky had also sent over a variety of OJM merch, per the show’s request. But he never anticipated the basketball shorts they sent playing such an integral role in the plot. (In the episode, both Leon, played by J.B. Smoove, and Larry cause offense when the gaping holes of their pant legs reveal their testicles.) “We knew that Leon and Larry were going to be wearing them, but we didn’t know why,” he says. “It’s rare to see Larry s legs! It didn’t disappoint. They were as hairless and more muscular than I thought they would be. Maybe he’s hitting the leg press or something.”
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It’s one thing to fulfill an exciting milestone for oneself. But thanks to Curb’s wide-reaching fanbase, the designers all received an outpouring of excitement from their respective communities. “I feel like sometimes something happens that you’re like, ‘Oh my God, this is very exciting for me personally, but no one else gives a shit,’” Antonoff says. “And this is not one of those things.” More than the emotional support, some of the businesses are seeing the financial benefits as well. The Old Jewish Men shorts sold out almost instantly, with a growing demand for a restock. “We had hundreds of back stock orders. [My partner] Brian and I had maybe 10 or 20 pairs that we quickly shipped out once the demand started,” Rinsky says.
Where does a Jewish designer go after Curb Your Enthusiasm? Korn has thoughts: “I guess I’ll retire now, because who else is there, besides Larry David himself?”
