Goombah -- thank you for the kind words, I appreciate it.

With respect to Curb Your Enthusiasm, this is an article from (exactly) a year ago, where Larry David was still undecided.

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Curb-Your-Enthusiasm-Return-1068284.aspx

Now for Caruso, here's this from 1995:

http://articles.latimes.com/1995-03-12/entertainment/ca-41938_1_david-caruso/3

Not only was he looking to triple his salary, but demanding Fridays off, and only working 15 of 22 episodes.