You remember the "Seinfeld" characters, right? Jerry, George, Kramer and ... Carol?

If you thought "Elaine," think again. The real-life inspiration for the divine Miss Elaine Benes (played by the divine Ms. Julia Louis-Dreyfus) is former "Seinfeld" staff writer Carol Leifer, who also happens to be one of the premiere Jewish female comics today.

She's been friends with Jerry Seinfeld since both were budding comedians in the New York clubs. They're still friends and she's still on the standup circuit, having been opening lately for her old pal.

Leifer, 49, brings her irreverent and decidedly Jewish take on life to the eighth annual Funny Girlz night of comedy May 20 at the Herbst Theater in San Francisco. She shares the bill with four other women comics, including Lisa Geduldig, the founder of Funny Girlz and Kung Pao Kosher Comedy.

"I've done Kung Pao twice," says Leifer, who is making her Funny Girlz debut. "When it's an all-woman bill, there's more of a sorority feeling to the material and the audience."

For Seinfeld connoisseurs, Leifer is a real draw. She was on staff for 75 episodes, and among the classics the Emmy nominee wrote are "The Rye" (Jerry steals a Schnitzer's marble rye from an old lady) and the infamous "The Hamptons." That means Leifer should get the credit (or the blame) for adding "shrinkage" to the common lexicon.

"It is interesting how relevant it stayed," she says of the sitcom voted the No. 1 series of all time by TV Guide Magazine. "It was lightning in a bottle: the confluence of the brilliant cast, bright writers and everything coming together. I feel so blessed to have been part of it."

Being funny comes naturally to Leifer, who grew up in a Jewish home not far from the same Long Island neighborhood as Seinfeld. "My dad was a very funny guy," she says. "The best joke-teller ever. He had a great appreciation for humor."

That rubbed off on Leifer, who left her studies at SUNY Binghamton to try her luck in Manhattan's comedy clubs. While befriending other up-and-comers like Paul Reiser, Larry David and Rich Hall (husband of Julia Louis-Dreyfus), her star rose high. Leifer was one of the more popular female comics in the heyday of contemporary standup back in the mid- to late 1980s.

During her "Seinfeld" days, she stayed off the road, but she has since returned, and happily so.

"In the last three years, Jerry has been touring a lot," she says, "and he said to me, 'Why don't you go out, tool up your act, write some new jokes and I'll bring you on the road with me.' I thank him for that kick in the butt."

She also served as executive producer of Ellen DeGeneres' show "Ellen Again," co-executive producer of two sitcoms ("It's Like, You Know" and "Alright Already") and starred in several comedy specials for cable.

But as much as her humor has always been Jewish-flavored, it wasn't until recently that Leifer grew close to Judaism. She recently became an adult bat mitzvah and has become a regular at L.A.'s Stephen S. Weiss Temple.

"It was weirdly in the stars, in retrospect," she says. "I didn't have training, but I wanted to read Hebrew. Three weeks before the bat mitzvah, Dad passed away. It was bittersweet: He had given me the tallit he had at his bar mitzvah."

Leifer still has a hand in television, including writing new sitcom pilots and guest starring on an upcoming episode of "Will and Grace" ("I play a Lamaze coach," she says).

And while standup remains No. 1 in her heart, she will always have a very soft spot for those glory days on the show about nothing.

"When I had an idea for a script, I'd go into Jerry and Larry (David's) office, and pitch," she recalls. "It was always about if you could sum it up in one line. I remember my first time, so clearly saying, 'George has a lip-reader read his ex-girlfriend's lips.'"




Funny Girlz happens 8 p.m. Saturday, May 20, at the Herbst Theater, 401 Van Ness, S.F. Tickets: $22.50-$29.50. Information: (415) 392-4400 or online at www.koshercomedy.com.