If only one episode of NBC’s “Seinfeld” could reign as the master of its domain and as the king of its castle, it’s no surprise that viewers would pick “The Contest.” The episode, from the popular comedy’s fourth season, topped an AOL member poll of favorite “Seinfeld” moments.
Launched in anticipation of the DVD release of the show’s first three seasons, the AOL poll provided user with 25 possible classic moments from the classic comedy, which went off the air in 1998. That list of 25 was narrowed down to five possible moments and after more than 550,00 votes, “The Contest” came out the rather predictable winner.
“Seinfeld had so many wonderfully imaginative episodes and segments, so it’s fascinating to see which were the favorites among AOL members,” Lexine Wong, executive vice president of marketing for Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment, which is releasing the DVD.
Perhaps no “Seinfeld” episode produced as much water cooler discussion at “The Contest,” which premiered on Nov. 18, 1992. In the half-hour, Jerry (Jerry Seinfeld) and George (Jason Alexander) begin a contest of self-denial and the rest of the gang jumps in on the action. Larry David won an Emmy for writing the euphemism-heavy episode, in which the word “masturbation” is never mentioned. Tom Cherones, who directed the episode, was also nominated for an Emmy and the series picked up the trophy for outstanding comedy that year.
The other top moments were less episodes so much as moments or catch phrases. George’s explanation of “shrinkage” received the second most votes, followed by George’s famous encounter with the Soup Nazi. Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) dancing finished fourth beating out the immortal and wildly overused catch phrase “Yada, yada, yada.”
The “Seinfeld” DVD hits shelves on Tuesday, Nov. 23, while NBC will air a retrospective with the major cast members two nights later.
Although Cartoon Network and TBS viewers have already had the chance to see the controversial “Family Guy” episode “When You Wish Upon a Weinstein,” FOX has finally decided to give the long-shelved half-hour its primetime broadcast premiere.
“Weinstein” will air on Friday, Dec. 10 as part of a holiday-themed special hour of “The Family Guy” on FOX.
It’s unclear if FOX intends “When You Wish Upon a Weinstein” to serve as a tribute to the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, which begins at sundown on Tuesday, Dec. 7.
In the episode, originally slated to run as part of the cult animated series’ third season, Peter Griffin’s (voiced by creator Seth MacFarlane) unfortunate purchase of volcano insurance leads the family to the brink of poverty. Financial advisor Max Weinstein (Ben Stein) appears to be the answer to all of Peter’s prayers and he’s soon convinced that his son Chris (Seth Green) would be guaranteed a life of success if he could only convert to Judaism. Peter whisks Chris off to Las Vegas for a quickie bar mitzvah and hilarity ensues.
Due to the sensitive nature of some of the jokes in the episode, FOX put “Weinstein” on the shelf and never aired the episode. With much hoopla, Cartoon Network screened the episode on Nov. 9, 2003 and the show has aired several times since as part of the cable channel’s popular Adult Swim block.
Cartoon Network only made one minor change from the version produced for FOX. In the song, “I Need a Jew,” Peter originally sang the satirical lyric “Even though they killed our Lord,” which has been changed to “I don’t think they killed our Lord.”
The Dec. 10 hour will also feature “A Very Special Family Guy Freakin’ Christmas,” a third season episode featuring vocal cameos by the members of KISS.
FOX cancelled “Family Guy” in 2002 after three seasons of schedule-hopping hilarity. However, the show’s success on Cartoon Network and the brisk sales of “Family Guy” DVDs prompted the network to order a new season of episodes to premiere in the summer of 2005. “American Dad,” a new comedy from MacFarlane, will premiere sometime early next year on FOX.
The doors are closing on the Heather Locklear, Blair Underwood airport drama “LAX” after 10 airings. According to industry sources, production will come to halt as the show’s original 13-episode order is fulfilled in the next few weeks.
However, for the next three weeks “LAX’s” current timeslot will be taken up with previously scheduled specials. There are no plans as to when, or if, the three remaining episodes will make it to air.
“LAX” premiered in September on Monday nights at 10 p.m. ET with NBC’s sophomore drama “Las Vegas” as its lead-in. After a lackluster start it was moved to Wednesday nights at 8 p.m., where it faced competition from such show’s as ABC’s “Lost,” UPN’s “America’s Next Top Model” and The WB’s “Smallville.”
The news is better for Mary Poppins and her pals, as FOX has ordered eight more episodes of the new reality series “Nanny 911,” wherein proper British nannies intervene and sort out dysfunctional American families after only three airings.
Credit: Zap2It
