posted Mon 19 Sep 2011 05:26 PM                     

Portraying Susie Green on HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 8 dvd on sale," she's become famous for her improvised obscenity-ridden rants against Larry David and her character's husband, Jeff Green (played by Jeff Garlin). That's why it's a bit surprising when you talk to her and discover that in real life, Essman is actually quite nice.
Essman will perform her stand-up show at the Ridgefield Playhouse on Saturday, Sept. 17. In a recent phone interview she spoke about the show, her role on "Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 8" and how strangers are always begging her to curse them out.
Q: What is your stand-up show like?
A: My live shows -- I'm not Susie Green. My live shows are very spontaneous; they're very raw. They're like whatever comes into my head at the moment. They're for adults only, don't bring the kids.
Q: Can you tell me a little bit about "Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 8 dvd boxset" and how your character was created?
A: I knew Larry from when Larry did stand-up back in the '80s. Then he moved to California to do "Seinfeld" and I didn't see him or hear from him for a while. Then he had a part in mind on "Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 8" for Jeff's wife. He had a scene in mind where -- it was from Season One, where the Fresh Air Fund kid robs us and he just wanted Jeff's wife to scream and yell and curse at him. He was thinking about who could do that and then he saw me on a roast with Jerry Stiller that was aired on Comedy Central, so I popped into his head and he called me and offered me the part. I had no idea I would be doing it eight seasons later. There was no contract; it was just I went out to L.A. and I did a couple of episodes and I never knew whether I was going to be in the next season or if there was going to be a next season. After about the third season I felt a little more secure.