Patrick Warburton Says His ‘Seinfeld’ Character Originated This Viral Travel Trend

Lauren Novak April 10, 4:40 pm

Patrick Warburton in 2024 and in Seinfeld composite — Kevin Winter/Getty Images; Carin Baer/Castle Rock Entertainment / Courtesy Everett Collection

New trends arise every day — but sometimes, as in the case of classic ’90s sitcom Seinfeld and the current viral online trend of “rawdogging” airplane flights, those trends have roots in the past. When passengers “rawdog” a flight, they skip any forms of entertainment including watching movies, reading or even napping — which actor Patrick Warburton, who played David Puddy in the series, pointed out was first seen in a 1997 Seinfeld episode called “The Butter Shave.”

In an Instagram post, Warburton joked that he has seen the trend of “rawdogging” blow up recently on social media, and added that he felt “a bit responsible.” Warburton shared a clip from the episode where Puddy and on-and-off girlfriend Elaine Benes (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) are on an airplane. Elaine begins to read, and notices that Puddy is just staring at the seat in front of him. She asks if he’d like a book, or if he’s going to nap, both of which he says no to. Ultimately, the two break out into a fight because she can’t stand the fact that Puddy will just stare at the seat for the entire flight.

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A post shared by Patrick Warburton (@paddywarbucks)

In his post, he also joked, “My concern is that somebody’s going to get hurt, and if you go into this thing blindly … you know what I’m saying? Just not reading, watching something, you better be OK with what’s going on up here inside your ole noggin. I’m not. But it’s weird and entertaining at times. Just be careful. That’s all I’m saying. It’s not for novices.”

Although Warburton’s character “rawdogged” a flight, he said he would never do it himself. He explained to Fox News, “I’m ADHD, I can’t. Matter of fact, sometimes, yeah, I’ll get a little panicky. I’ll be like, ‘Oh my God, I have nothing to read. I didn’t bring a book. I forgot my headphones. Well, I guess I’ll watch whatever I can in the back of the seat in front of me.'”

Warburton says he has been more active on social media in order to promote his stand-up comedy tour, which will run through August 2025 to several states around the country.