- Is a Vietnam-era Army Veteran. He was drafted and served for two years in West Germany.
- Auditioned for the role of Al Bundy on Married... with Children (1987).
- He admitted he had a hard time enjoying himself working on Seinfeld (1989). This he said was because he was so focused on his lines.
- Cosmo Kramer, his character in Seinfeld (1989), always wore clothes one size too big to make him appear to be laid back and loose.
- His big dream when he started acting was to play a detective. This led him to later create The Michael Richards Show (2000), a sitcom about a private detective agency. The show flopped. Later, he was considered for the lead role in another comical detective show, Monk (2002), which ultimately went to Tony Shalhoub.
- Was the actor Andy Kaufman threw water on during a skit on Fridays (1980). In the Kaufman biopic Man on the Moon (1999), Richards' character was played by Norm MacDonald.
- Is the only primary cast member on Seinfeld (1989) who has never hosted Saturday Night Live (1975).
- Michael was two when his father William Richards, an electrical engineer, was killed in a car crash. Michael's mother never remarried.
- His character in Seinfeld (1989) was named Kessler in the original pilot. The original name wasn't revealed until late in the series in the episode "The Betrayal" where Jerry mistakes Kramer's name.
- Attended Thousand Oaks High School in Thousand Oaks, California (class of 1969) with Kurt Russell who he voted "best looking".
- He once acted in a driver's education video about insurance rates, playing the role of an irate and reckless driver confused about his insurance.
- Banned from ever performing at the Laugh Factory comedy club in Los Angeles.
- Is the oldest of the four main cast members on Seinfeld (1989).
- Is a 33-degree Scottish Rite Freemason.
- Michael Richards wore the same shoes for The Seinfeld Arc of Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000) as he did on Seinfeld (1989).
- His father had U.K. ancestry and his mother was of Italian descent.
- Has a daughter, Sophie, from his first marriage. Has a son, Antonio, from his second marriage.
- Attended the California Institute of the Arts.
- Attended Evergreen State College, Olympia, Washington, USA.
- Had been cast as Dizzy Dean in Durant's Never Closes (2016), but for unknown reasons was replaced with Jon Gries.
- Was part of a comedy duo with Ed Begley Jr..
- Most renowned for his role as Cosmo Kramer on Seinfeld (1989).
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