Hooray for Heidi Swedberg: Seinfeld’s Susan is Now Sukey with a Ukey

I just…had to do this. It’s only right. A couple of years ago I binged Seinfeld (1989-1998), because I had only caught it sporadically during the original run, though I did manage a pretty faithful stretch of real time viewing in the early ’90s. But I wanted to get a better grasp on the seminal show, and so I did.

And in so doing, I couldn’t help but become intrigued by Heidi Swedberg who played George’s fiance Susan from 1992 to 1996. Believe it or not, of the actors with recurring parts, only Wayne Knight (Newman) is in more episodes of the show. Swedberg is in 29, beating even the Costanzas (Jerry Stiller and Estelle Harris). She clearly came extraordinarily close to becoming a regular on one of the most successful series in the history of television. Although I doubt that ever would have happened, seeing as it how it would have eaten into the salaries of Larry David, Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Michael Richards, and Jason Alexander. Note that I am now doing a post on Swedberg…before having done ones on either Richards or Alexander. As the Oklahoman said of the crude oil, it’s in the pipeline.

But there’s a certain justice in bumping Swedberg to the head of the line. Google her and you’ll see why. The story that comes up most often in the entertainment press is that David and the other four principals “didn’t like her”, so they iced her out and finally killed off her character in a memorably mean spirited episode. Sound kind of “high school”? It does to me. This professional actor they hired to be on their show didn’t fit into their clique so they all decided not to like her and then got rid of her? Well, that’s how they all seem to put it, and they all act pretty proud of themselves. They all also point out that her style was different, she worked differently, she came off as an “outsider”. All of that reads, as a viewer.

But still I say…I liked her. She was pleasant, attractive, funny, believable. The dynamic of the show benefitted from having a straight character around. Most of the other recurring parts were done in a broad comic style. From “J. Peterman” to the “Soup Nazi”. The whole point of the Susan character was that she a normal, wholesome, girl-next-door. And it makes perfect sense for the characters to hate her. Good God, what is she, a Swede? Like, those people who throw senior citizens off of cliffs? But I still say she worked on the show, within the parameters of the dynamic they set up. And the last season of the show, the year or two after she left, is pretty stink-o.

So, that’s one reason I wanted to post about her. She deserves a little celebration. The other reason is….yes, she plays the ukulele (as advertised in that image). She was born in Honolulu and started playing as a small child. She picked it up again as an adult. Since 2009 or so, that has been her principal creative pursuit: playing and singing in bands. So, yes, we rate uke players very high here.

Affiliation with the Actors Theatre of Louisville was what got Swedberg noticed by the industry. Her screen credits are all between 1989 and 2010. Her films include Norman Jewison’s In Country (1989), Ivan Reitman’s Kindergarten Cop (1990), ZAZ’s Welcome Home Roxy Carmichael (1990) and Hot Shots (1991), Dennis the Menace Srikes Again (1998) and Galaxy Quest (1999). Apart from Seinfeld her TV work includes episodes of Matlock, thirtysomething, Northern Exposure, Roc, Murder She Wrote, Deep Space Nine, Touched by an Angel and Gilmore Girls. Towards the end, she was mostly on medical or medical-adjacent dramas, things like ER, Gideon’s Crossing, Strong Medicine, Bones, and Hawthorne.

That last episode of Seinfeld where the characters all go to hell because they’re awful people? Makes much more sense now.

Here’s Swedberg’s website, where you will find very little of Susan — and much more about Sukey Jump!