John O'Hurley Admits 'Seinfeld' Was 'One of the Greatest Experiences of My Life' as He Dishes on His 'Successful' Career and Hosting the National Dog Show

John O'Hurley knows a good thing when it comes around.

After appearing as J. Peterman on the NBC sitcom Seinfeld, the actor is grateful for his time on the comedy series, which is now streaming on Netflix.

"There's no one who has a deeper sense of propriety than Jerry [Seinfeld]. Jerry knows when to do something and when not to do something," O'Hurley exclusively told OK! while promoting The National Dog Show, which airs after the Thanksgiving Day Parade on NBC on Thursday, November 27. "In that regard, I think he's probably a wonderful father as well. We were a show about selfish 30 year olds, and I don't think a show about selfish 60 year olds has the same appeal."

"I have a feeling that he's smart enough to know not to bring it back. We had a run, and it's fun to talk about," he continued. "With it now being on Netflix, there's a whole new generation now. Younger kids are coming up to me now, and they like it because they can binge-watch the show, which was never available before. You had to get the DVD because that was the only way to binge. It's a brand new audience that seems to love the show, and the humor is timeless. It's all about the little niche things that annoy us. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life."

O'Hurley, whose was Elaine's [Julia Louis-Dreyfus] eccentric employer in the show, adored working with the actress. "I thought Peterman and Elaine together was the modern version of Lou Grant and Mary Tyler Moore from The Mary Tyler Moore Show. It was like the fingernail on the chalkboard. Every time I would open my mouth, she would roll around. It was always wonderful. I loved the relationship and the way the writers handled, too. I loved the monologues they wrote for Peterman. I keep them all in the back of my head. I've never lost a single one," he shared.

One of his favorite scenes was when Elaine ate a vintage cake from King Edward VIII's wedding to Wallis Simpson.

Fortunately, O'Hurley is still close with the cast, including Patrick Warburton, who played David Puddy on the comedy series. "We both did the Rhode Island Comedy Festival together. He did one act, and I did the second act. We had the best time together, just doing great stand-up," he said.

"I was doing my one-man show in L.A. and Larry Thomas, who played the 'The Soup Nazi,' was sitting in the front row. I looked down in the middle of my show, and that's the only row I can really see. I looked down and go, 'No soup for you!' That was fun to have him there. I'll go anywhere, and the other day someone said, 'I was just with Julia! She says hi!' There's a lot of love that never dies. We're cheering each other on and supporting each other in this industry, which is really nice. We were lucky enough to go through that one moment."

O'Hurley has had a great career, and he's still booked and busy today. "I just turned 70, so the object for someone like myself is to continue to stay relevant," he said. "I've done five movies this year, I've got my one-man show that I tour around the country — and around the world. I was all over Europe this summer. It's called A Man with Standards, and it's a show where I tell the stories of my life, which are humorous and strange, including me singing for Frank Sinatra. It's been very successful."

One of O'Hurley's highlights is hosting the annual National Dog Show every Thanksgiving since 2002.

"When we first aired, we had 19 million people watching, opposed to the 750,000 they had watching reruns of It's a Wonderful Life. It was an enormous programming success for NBC. It kept growing and growing, and now we're pretty close to being next to the Super Bowl. It's really remarkable to think for all these years, when everyone is trying to find an audience on television, all we have to do is put the dogs on the screen! It's been pretty miraculous to see how successful it's become — it's a tradition in the country for families to sit back and watch. It's so appealing because there's something for everybody, whether you're 4 years old or 94 years old. You can sit there and watch. Everybody has their favorite," he noted.

This year, there will be "different dogs" and "new breeds" to change up the show. "We are presenting the Danish-Swedish farm dog, and it was bred for everything. It was bred to do everything on a farm to herd, to be a ratter, a companion, a hunting dog. It has this very charming personality," he explained. "I've fallen in love with it. It's such a compelling little breed, and it has the heart of a Sherman tank dog."

"It's fun to walk around and see all these different breeds," he continued. "Everybody always smiles around a dog. It changes the energy."

O'Hurley and his family have an ongoing tradition of eating an Italian meal and watching the dog show. "My son, who is turning 19 this year, has been to the parade every single year. He's grown up going to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. We start with the parade, walk back to our place here in New York and then watch the show before hopping in a cab to go eat," he dished.

The National Dog Show will be streaming from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. ET on NBC on November 27.