The Understudy (Seinfeld)
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"The Understudy" is the 110th episode of the
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
sitcom ''
Seinfeld ''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, over nine seasons and List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It stars Seinfeld as Jerry Seinfeld ( ...
''. This is the 24th and final episode for the sixth season. It aired on May 18, 1995. This is the second episode in the series not to open with a stand-up routine (after the
clip show A clip show is an episode of a television series that consists primarily of excerpts from previous episodes. Most clip shows feature the format of a frame story in which cast members recall past events from past installments of the show, depicte ...
episode "
The Highlights of 100 "The Highlights of 100" is an hour-long, two-part episode of the NBC sitcom '' Seinfeld''. This is the 14th and 15th episodes for the sixth season, and the 100th and 101st overall episode. It aired on February 2, 1995. It is a clip show with no ne ...
").


Plot

Jerry Jerry may refer to: Animals * Jerry (Grand National winner), racehorse, winner of the 1840 Grand National * Jerry (St Leger winner), racehorse, winner of 1824 St Leger Stakes Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Jerry'' (film), a 2006 Indian fil ...
is dating Gennice Graham, the
understudy In theater, an understudy, referred to in opera as cover or covering, is a performer who learns the lines and blocking or choreography of a regular actor, actress, or other performer in a play. Should the regular actor or actress be unable to ap ...
of
Bette Midler Bette Midler (;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Be ...
, who is starring in the stage musical adaptation of ''Rochelle Rochelle'' (the film first mentioned in "
The Movie "The Movie" is the 54th episode of the sitcom '' Seinfeld''. It is the 14th episode of the fourth season, and first aired on January 6, 1993 on NBC. The episode revolves entirely around the characters' struggles to go to see a movie together. P ...
"). Gennice bursts into tears at the slightest thing, such as the film ''
Beaches A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shells ...
'' and dropping her hot dog, compelling Jerry to have to console her repeatedly. During a charity
softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...
game held in
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,
George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...
scores a run by charging into Midler at home plate after she insulted him during the game. She is sent to the hospital, enraging New Yorkers. Kramer, an ardent fan of Midler, helps nurse her back to health. Gennice takes over the lead role and believes they injured Midler for her. After being hounded by angry New Yorkers, Gennice cries once again; however, Jerry has had enough of consoling her and demands she stop acting childish over every little accident. Elaine suspects her
Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
n manicurists are making fun of her in Korean, which in fact they are. When she learns that
Frank Costanza This is a list of characters who appeared on ''Seinfeld''. This list features only characters who appeared in multiple episodes; those that appeared in only one are not included here. Primary characters Jerry Seinfeld George Costanza Elaine ...
is fluent in Korean, she brings him to the manicurists to eavesdrop. When he arrives, the manicurists start ridiculing both him and Elaine in Korean. Outraged, he begins haranguing them. They kick Elaine out for bringing "a spy", but allow Frank to remain. He reunites with one of the manicurists, Kim - an old flame who he met in Korea; they broke up because he would not take off his shoes upon entering her house. Despondent, Elaine wanders the streets in the rain, and meets J. Peterman. They hit it off and he hires her to work at his catalog. Frank takes Kim out and discusses their future in his car. When he uses his move on her, "stopping short", she gets angry and never wants to see him again, since stopping short is taboo in Korea. George, Jerry, and Gennice visit the hospital to apologize to Bette Midler, but Kramer refuses to let them enter her room. Concerned about what Kramer might be doing to Midler, they go to summon a security guard. Kramer flees the scene, carting Midler along on her hospital bed. Upon returning home, Jerry hears Bette Midler's voice in Kramer's apartment but decides not to investigate. At the premiere of the musical, Elaine brings along the Korean manicurists as an apology for "spying". However, when they learn that the lead role will be played by Gennice, not Bette Midler, they storm out and effectively sever Elaine from their boutique (leaving her despondent once again). When Gennice takes the stage, she has a problem with the laces on her boot and tearfully pleads that she be allowed to start over.


Production

A stand-up routine was filmed for the intro, but deleted before broadcast because the episode had run so far over the limit for its time slot. Though it originated with writer
Marjorie Gross Marjorie Gross (April 18, 1956 – June 7, 1996) was a Canadian comedian best known for her work as a television writer and producer. She wrote for ''Seinfeld'', '' Newhart'', ''The Larry Sanders Show'', '' Get a Life'' and '' Square Pegs''. Bi ...
contemplating what would happen if a celebrity were injured at one of the charity
softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...
games ''Seinfeld'' creators
Larry David Lawrence Gene David (born July 2, 1947) is an American comedian, writer, actor, and television producer. He and Jerry Seinfeld created the television sitcom ''Seinfeld'', on which David was head writer and executive producer for the first seve ...
and
Jerry Seinfeld Jerome Allen Seinfeld ( ; born April 29, 1954) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. He is best known for playing a Jerry Seinfeld (character), semi-fictionalized version of himself in the sitcom ''Seinfeld'', which he ...
participated in, the Bette Midler/Gennice Graham story arc was developed into a parody of the 1994 Tonya Harding-Nancy Kerrigan scandal. Gennice's breakdown when her laces come undone references Harding's bootlace incident at the 1994 Olympics.
Jerry Stiller Gerald Isaac Stiller (June 8, 1927 – May 11, 2020) was an American actor and comedian. He spent many years as part of the comedy duo Stiller and Meara with his wife, Anne Meara, to whom he was married for over 60 years until her death in 2015 ...
, who played the part of
Frank Costanza This is a list of characters who appeared on ''Seinfeld''. This list features only characters who appeared in multiple episodes; those that appeared in only one are not included here. Primary characters Jerry Seinfeld George Costanza Elaine ...
, did not actually know any Korean; he learned his Korean lines phonetically. Frank's line "This is not my kind of guy", just as with "...we're gonna take it outside and I'm gonna show you what it's like!" from "
The Opposite ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
", was taken from a
Buddy Rich Bernard "Buddy" Rich (September 30, 1917 – April 2, 1987) was an American jazz drummer, songwriter, conductor, and bandleader. He is considered one of the most influential drummers of all time. Rich was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York ...
bootleg tape. Larry David came up with the idea of Frank having a lost love working at the manicurists. The character J. Peterman debuted in this episode. The
J. Peterman Company The J. Peterman Company is an American retail company that sells clothing, fashion accessories, and furniture primarily through catalogs and the Internet. It was founded by John Peterman in 1987 and has its headquarters in Blue Ash, Ohio. Hist ...
catalogue was being delivered to the ''Seinfeld'' office, and David and Seinfeld, though they had no idea why the catalogue was being delivered to them, would leaf through it and were amused by the elaborate Hemingwayesque stories that were crafted into the catalogue's descriptions, inspiring them to create the character.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Understudy (Seinfeld), The Seinfeld (season 6) episodes 1995 American television episodes