Year In Business Was Full Of Promise

Abduction Attempt Reported

By DAVID J. RALIS; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Saturday, December 27, 1997 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1A 





WILKES-BARRE- Scott Biery knows how he would like to see the cast of
"Seinfeld" sign off next year. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The bartender at the Martini Ristoranti &amp; Bar on East Union Street has been
a fan of the decade's top-rated sitcom since its second season. "I think they
should have them all find their perfect mates," he said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; After all, the show's fickle thirty-something characters have seen their
dates end in disaster for years now, said Biery, 24, of Shavertown. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 If he could write the last script: Jerry and Elaine would marry because
"they're so picky they're a perfect couple". Lecherous and lazy George
Costanza would own "a gentlemen's club"; and high-haired Cosmo Kramer- Biery's
favorite- would walk off arm in arm with a supermodel. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Presumably, so he could borrow her hair spray. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 For now, Biery can only guess what the end might bring. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Seinfeld isn't saying. But both he and NBC executives told the Associated
Press only that the show's final bow will be "graceful." Yada, yada, yada. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Several local fans said the comedy's schtick seems to be getting better
with age and will be missed when it joins such bygone favorites as "Cheers." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Most said they just started tuning in to the dry humor of "Seinfeld" a few
years ago when reruns began appearing daily in syndication. Not that there's
anything wrong with that. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I love it. I love the show," said Dave Barnak, a fellow bartender at the
Martini Ristoranti &amp; Bar. "I've been watching it off and on for four years." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Asked why he didn't see "Seinfeld" when the show first started, Barnak said
he's too busy working on Thursday nights. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Waiter Jason Gabriel, 24, Kingston, had the same problem until he made it a
point to videotape the new shows. After he watches it on a Friday or Saturday
afternoon, Gabriel gives the tape to Biery or other co-workers who missed the
episode. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It's about everyday life, but with the quirky originality of these
people," Gabriel said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 This from a guy who only started getting into the show about two years ago
because "everybody was talking about it." Gabriel now hopes "Seinfeld's"
finale will be like the final episode of "Cheers." It included actors out of
character reviewing what they consider their funniest bits. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "The way (`Seinfeld') is made, you couldn't see some cataclysmic ending,"
he added. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 That would at least stop one of Richard L. Kramer's clients from jokingly
addressing him as just, "Kramer." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 This Kramer, however, is a serious-minded 52-year-old Pittston CPA. "I
found out later he was referring to Michael Richards' character," Richard
Kramer said. "I've always been a great fan of character actors." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 He added he now watches the show occasionally with his daughters. "They're
both pretty loyal watchers, and I know that among their circle of friends they
get called Kramer." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They should consider it an honor, considering everyone interviewed Friday
said Kramer was their favorite character. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Meanwhile, there is no obnoxious person at the Wilkes-Barre post office
nicknamed Newman, said office clerk Bob Petyo. However, he quickly added, "A
little bit of everything they do has a nugget of truth to it." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 TIMES LEADER/BOB ESPOSITO &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A portrait of Kramer overlooks the entrance to the Martini Ristoranti &amp;
Bar, the Wilkes-Barre restaurant where bartender Scott Biery works. Owner Thom
Greco said the portrait doesn't have any particular significance. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Show About Nothing Has Everything For Fans Local Viewers Share Reasons For `seinfeld' Love Affair