After 20 years of being on the air, Curb Your Enthusiasm has retained a lot of what made it so unique and original in the first place. One of these things is the short-tempered and self-centered characters, and no other character encompasses what makes Curb so great more than Jeff Greene, not even Larry David himself.
Given that Jeff has to maintain a web of lies in almost every episode and is a serial-cheater in his marriage with Suzie, there’s a lot that doesn’t quite make sense about the celebrity manager, and his friendship with the neurotic Larry only causes him more problems.
All Of His Affairs
It’s no secret that Jeff isn’t exactly a charming ladies’ man, and his unflattering and selfish characteristics aren’t attractive in the least, even when he wears that cowboy hat.
How he is able to constantly cheat on Suzie with a sea of attractive women in almost every season is completely unbelievable. Perhaps it’s his money that they’re attracted to, or he’s using his power to lure them in, which is what the show alluded to in season 10 when people hilariously mistook him for Harvey Weinstein.
His Alibis
With all of Jeff’s marital affairs, one would think he would take better precautions and be extra careful not to get caught. But Suzie has come ridiculously close to catching him out on so many occasions.
Not only this, but Jeff’s alibis throughout the years have gotten dumber and dumber. It started with Larry telling Suzie that he and Jeff were together, and it has got to a place where Larry has even had to wear women’s underwear to cover for him.
His Awkwardness Around Cheryl
As a manager of celebrities, one would think that Jeff Greene should be comfortable with anyone, from comedy writers to A-list stars, and that he could fit in any social situation. But his interactions with Cheryl make very little sense and it’s something that is never explained.
It could have something to do with how he thought about her while sleeping with Suzie, but he was awkward around her long before this happened. It could also have something to do with the fact that Suzie and Cheryl are friends, and he keeps so many secrets from Suzie that it's best if he is distant with Cheryl, but this is never explained or developed.
Having So Few Clients
If other shows like Entourage are anything to go by, which, granted, is a completely unrealistic take on the TV and movie industry, then being an entertainment manager is a cut-throat job that encourages lies and deception.
Though Jeff is well versed in lies and deception in his personal life, his work life is much different. Fans don’t know exactly how many clients Jeff manages, but he doesn’t seem to have many outside of Richard Lewis and Larry David.
His Connection To Every Other Character
It often seems like Jeff only knows every other character in the show through six degrees of separation, and many only see him as Larry’s manager.
Despite this, many of these same people who are only his acquaintances will still invite him to social events and family gatherings, which wouldn’t ordinarily be the case, and it's not particularly "normal" for one's manager to show up at those sorts of things.
Inconsistent Loyalty
For a man who has so much loyalty to Larry, which is one of the reasons he’s, arguably, a better friend than Leon, Jeff has very little loyalty to anyone else, not even his other clients.
Jeff helps Larry in the worst situations, even if this means screwing over his own family, such as when he steals his own daughter’s doll just to cover for him in “The Doll,” the very best episode of the series.
All Of His Spare Time
For someone who has what should be a high-pressure job, Jeff is fairly relaxed and rarely in any kind of rush. He is always seen in a suit, but he is never seen working, as he lives a mostly bourgeois lifestyle, taking long lunches at nice restaurants and golfing seemingly every day, not to mention all of the time he spends messing around with Larry.
And while the audience doesn't see him spend much time at home with Suzie and the kids, it’s a wonder where he fits his work in.
Why He’s Still Married To Suzie
With a long unraveled scroll of affairs over the past 20 years and always being subjected to a litany of abuse by Suzie, it’s amazing that the couple is still together. They have outlasted several other couples on the show and how they are still together is one of the most nonsensical things on the show.
However, they have come close to divorce a few times, such as when Jeff was living in a hotel, and their troubles even led him to move in with Larry in season 10, which was one of the best episodes of the season.
His Inconsistent Intelligence
H0w has a man so stupid come so far in life? He has a range of expensive cars, several huge houses, and a lifestyle many would be envious of, but he sometimes acts so unintelligently that none of his success should be possible.
This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, as the world is full of rich idiots, but Jeff does also often seem smart, professional, and clever. Nonetheless, his ridiculous, madcap ideas have led him to do some unbelievable things, leaving viewers to wonder if his IQ is 180 or 18.
How He Makes Money Off Larry
It often seems like Larry is one of the very few sources of income Jeff has, as he doesn’t seem to have many other clients besides Richard Lewis who doesn't seem to be terribly successful or busy with work.
Yet, Larry rarely ever works and when he does, it usually ends up in a disaster. The most recent examples of this are the Fatwa play in season 9 and the "spite store" in season 10. This begs the question, why does Jeff hang around with Larry so much and constantly clean up his mess if he isn’t making any money out of him? It seems they are just made for each other.