The Doorman (Seinfeld)
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Template:Television episode short description Template:Draft otherScript error: No such module "Infobox television episode". Script error: No such module "Infobox".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".Script error: No such module "Infobox television episode".Script error: No such module "Check for conflicting parameters". "The Doorman" is the 104th episode of the NBC sitcom Seinfeld. This is the 18th episode for the sixth season.[1] It aired on February 23, 1995.[1] In this episode, Jerry makes an enemy of a doorman while meeting up with Elaine, Kramer invents a support garment for Frank Costanza's male breasts, and George entreats his mother to take his father off his hands.
Plot
Elaine is on house sitting duty while Mr. Pitt is away. Jerry has movie plans with Elaine, but, going up to Mr. Pitt's apartment, runs afoul of a passive-aggressive doorman. Jerry will not leave until the doorman changes shifts; Elaine is forced to wait with him until Mr. Pitt suddenly calls, demanding that Elaine itemize his mail and scuttling their plans. Jerry runs into the doorman again off-duty, and antagonizes him further.
Kramer, out with George, sees a tour bus full of Germans. He stages "a real New York mugging" for them to remember their trip by, with George as his victim; the tourists are horrified by Kramer's vicious act.
The Costanzas' separation has left Frank Costanza living with George. Frank changes in front of George, revealing that he has large breasts. Kramer warns that this could be hereditary, leaving George paranoid about his chest jiggling. George asks Estelle about his grandmother's bosom, to her disgust.
To avoid the doorman, Jerry reschedules the movie to a late showing, but this backfires when the doorman switches to a late shift. Jerry makes peace, so the doorman goes on break and makes Jerry stand in for him. Jerry becomes just as passive-aggressive as the doorman, then gives up and leaves with Elaine; in his absence, a couch in the lobby is stolen.
Kramer presents Frank with his invention: a male undergarment to support Frank's breasts. George convinces his mother to take his father back, but Estelle walks in on Frank, undressed, playing a cha-cha record while Kramer fits the "bro" on him. Unfazed, Frank appreciates the newfound comfort, and agrees to pitch the "bro" to bra salesman Sid Farkus.
Having signed for a package while acting as doorman, Jerry gets accused of losing the couch. Despite protesting that the doorman set them up, he and Elaine are held liable to replace the couch. George gives them back Jerry's pee-stained couch—deliberately leaving himself with no spare bed, as an excuse to evict his father.
Farkus is impressed by Kramer's invention, even as Frank tries to rebrand it the "mansiere". They all make a deal, but Frank pulls out in a huff when Farkus asks his blessing to date Estelle. With the couch gone and Estelle taking Frank back again, George relievedly packs Frank off, but Frank falls out with Estelle because she is, indeed, seeing Farkus. George is forced to sleep with Frank in one bed.
The tourists spot Kramer again, and all pile out of their bus to apprehend him. Luckily, they are all delighted by Kramer's "bro", which happens to be perfect for one of their group.
Jerry and Elaine deliver the couch, with stain hidden, to the lobby. Poppie, passing through, sees Elaine and relives their clash over abortion. Aggravating his medical condition again, he urgently sits down and stains the couch anew.
Production
The "Bro" versus "Mansiere" argument was based on a real argument during the episode's production. Writers Tom Gammill and Max Pross used "the Bro" in the script for the episode, but Seinfeld co-creator Larry David contended that "the Mansiere" would be funnier.[2] Kramer's performance for the German tourists was also based on real life; Gammill and Pross would act out New York stereotypes for the benefit of sightseeing buses, including pretending to mug each other.[3]
The doorman was played by Larry Miller, who was Jerry Seinfeld's best friend and one of two finalists for the part of George Costanza.[4] Pross had worked as a doorman one summer, and once saw a doorman he worked with standing outside his own apartment building, which he thought "was insane", inspiring Jerry's street encounter with the doorman.[3] The dim lighting and dialogue style in the scene where Jerry and Elaine discuss how to escape blame for the stolen couch were designed to evoke the film noir genre.[4]
The scene where Kramer is pursued by the German tourists was added by Larry David, and is a parody of a scene from Marathon Man where Laurence Olivier's Nazi character is pursued by Holocaust survivors.[2] The scene with George in bed with his father required numerous takes because actor Jason Alexander kept on cracking up with laughter every time Jerry Stiller offered him the kasha.[2]
References
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External links
- Script error: No such module "Infobox television episode". at IMDbTemplate:Edit at WikidataScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".Template:Wikidata check
