Editing Michael Richards (section)

=== 1979–1989: Early career ===
[[File:MichaelRichards1983.jpg|thumb|180px|Richards in 1983]]
Richards got his big TV break in 1979, appearing in [[Billy Crystal]]'s first cable TV special. In 1980, he began as one of the cast members on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC's]] ''[[Fridays (TV series)|Fridays]]'' television show, where [[Larry David]] was a fellow cast member and writer. It included [[Fridays (TV series)#Andy Kaufman incident|a famous instance]] in which [[Andy Kaufman]] refused to deliver his scripted lines, leading Richards to bring the [[cue card]]s on screen to Kaufman, who responded by throwing his drink into Richards' face, causing a small riot (Richards later claimed he was in on the joke).<ref name="fac">[http://archive.firstamendmentcenter.org/about.aspx?id=12083 Michael Richards 'Speaking Freely' transcript] via [[First Amendment Center]], Recorded February 28, 2002, in Aspen, Colorado {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120331131924/http://archive.firstamendmentcenter.org/about.aspx?id=12083 |date=March 31, 2012 }}</ref> The film ''[[Man on the Moon (film)|Man on the Moon]]'' featured a re-enactment of the [[Fridays (TV series)#Andy Kaufman incident|Andy Kaufman incident]] where Richards was portrayed by actor [[Norm Macdonald]].<ref>{{cite video|url=http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/544255131b|title=Andy Kaufman on Fridays from FridaysFan|publisher=Funnyordie.com|date=February 11, 2008|access-date=February 10, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/michael-richards-2|title=Michael Richards – First Amendment Center – news, commentary, analysis on free speech, press, religion, assembly, petition|access-date=August 29, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140808113050/http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/michael-richards-2|archive-date=August 8, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 1981, he appeared in the ''[[It's a Living]]'' episode "Desperate Hours".<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWCgW7IhXDo&list=ELy7GJXS4poVrMUPbh4x0pUg | title=Desperate Hours | website=[[YouTube]] | date=April 20, 2023 }}</ref> In 1986, Richards had a minor role in the cult satirical TV miniseries ''[[Fresno (miniseries)|Fresno]]'', playing one of a pair of inept criminal henchmen. That same year he auditioned to play [[Al Bundy]] in the TV series ''[[Married... with Children]]'', but he was passed over for [[Ed O'Neill]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Michael Richards |url=https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/michael-richards/bio/3030192136/ |access-date=2023-01-13 |website=TVGuide.com |language=en}}</ref> In 1989, Richards had a supporting role in [["Weird Al" Yankovic]]'s comedy film ''[[UHF (film)|UHF]]'' as janitor Stanley Spadowski. On television, he appeared in ''[[Miami Vice]]'' as an unscrupulous [[bookie]]; in ''[[St. Elsewhere]]'' as a television producer making a documentary about Dr. Mark Craig; in ''[[Cheers]]'' as a character trying to collect on an old bet with [[Sam Malone]]; and made several guest appearances with [[Jay Leno]] as an accident-prone fitness expert.

According to an interview with executive producer David Hoberman, ABC first conceived the series ''[[Monk (TV series)|Monk]]'' as a procedural police comedy with an [[Inspector Clouseau]]-like character suffering from [[obsessive–compulsive disorder|obsessive-compulsive disorder]]. Hoberman said ABC wanted Richards to play [[Adrian Monk]], but he turned it down.<ref>from "Mr Monk and His Origins," a special feature packaged with the Season One DVDs.</ref>