"The Tape" is the 25th episode of '' Seinfeld''. It is the eighth episode of the show's third season. It first aired on November 13, 1991. The episode was written by

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 Don McEnery and Bob Shaw and was directed by

David Steinberg David Steinberg (born August 9, 1942) is a Canadian comedian, actor, writer, director, and author. At the height of his popularity, during the late 1960s and mid 1970s, he was one of the best-known comics in the United States. He appeared on ...

. In this episode, Elaine leaves an erotic message on a tape recorder as a prank, inadvertently causing

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 Presid ...

to harbor a secret crush on her.

Plot

As a spontaneous prank, Elaine anonymously leaves an erotic message on Jerry's tape recorder that he used to record his comedy act from the previous night. Upon hearing the message, he becomes obsessed with it. Elaine tells

that she was the sexy voice in the tape. George is shocked to hear this and becomes attracted to her, but does not tell Elaine about it. Elaine makes George promise not to spoil the prank. Jerry, determined to get in touch with the woman who left the message, finds out who sat near the tape and gets her number. After his date with her, he tries to kiss her, but gets the "pull-back", and concludes that she is crazy. At Jerry's apartment, George calls a company in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

to order a cream for treating baldness. The people on the other side of the line don't speak English. Elaine stops by and Kramer starts making home videos in Jerry's apartment. He livens things up by introducing Elaine and George as the leads in a new pornographic film, and mock interviewing them. Playing along, Elaine says the sex scenes with George are authentic, arousing him. A Chinese delivery boy, Ping, delivers the take-out Kramer ordered. George convinces Ping to act as a translator between him and the Beijing company. George finds it hard to control his obsession with Elaine and confides in Jerry. When Jerry presses him to explain this sudden attraction, he eventually cracks and tells Jerry that Elaine left the message. She comes in later and tells her secret to Jerry, but Jerry says George already told him. George confesses his attraction to Elaine. She finds this news disturbing and then realizes that Jerry and Kramer have become attracted to her too. Freaked out, Elaine leaves Jerry's apartment. Once she is gone, the three fight to hear the tape again.

Production

This episode is the first appearance of Ping, the delivery boy who would return in the later episodes "

The Visa "The Visa" is the 55th episode of the sitcom '' Seinfeld''. It is the 15th episode of the fourth season. It aired on January 27, 1993. In this episode, Jerry pretends to be deeply morose in front of George's girlfriend Cheryl so as not to make Ge ...

", " The Virgin" and "

The Pilot A pilot is a person who flies or navigates an aircraft. Pilot or The Pilot may also refer to: * Maritime pilot, a person who guides ships through hazardous waters * Television pilot, a television episode used to sell a series to a television netw ...

Use in scientific research

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge ...

'' " Bart the General" and '' Seinfeld'''s "The Tape" were used in a

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

experiment to study brain activity in relation to humorous moments in television shows. The results were published in a 2004 issue of the

academic journal An academic journal or scholarly journal is a periodical publication in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as permanent and transparent forums for the presentation, scrutiny, and ...

''Neurolmage''. The researchers noted, "During moments of humor detection, significant

rain Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water ...

activation was noted in the left posterior middle temporal

gyrus In neuroanatomy, a gyrus (pl. gyri) is a ridge on the cerebral cortex. It is generally surrounded by one or more sulci (depressions or furrows; sg. ''sulcus''). Gyri and sulci create the folded appearance of the brain in humans and other ...

... and left inferior frontal gyrus."Quoted in Keay Davidson. "So these scientists go into a lab to see what's funny ... - They find gender differences in how humor affects brain." ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young. The ...

''. November 21, 2005. A1.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tape 1991 American television episodes Seinfeld (season 3) episodes Television episodes written by Larry David