Season 1 is the very first season of Seinfeld and featured only five episodes, which is very rare for a television series. Due to the size of the season, Season 1 and Season 2 were released on DVD as a box set.
Production/Reception[]
Originally entitled The Seinfeld Chronicles, the pilot episode was met with poor reviews, and NBC decided not to pick up the show. Believing the series had potential, NBC executive Rick Ludwin ordered four episodes about a year after NBC's rejection. The first of these aired on May 31, 1990. When the pilot was first repeated on July 5, 1990, it received a rating of 13.9/26, which means 13.9 percent of households were tuned in at any given moment; additionally, 26 percent of all televisions in use at the time were tuned into this program. These ratings were high enough to secure a second season. NBC research showed that the show was popular with young male adults, a demographic sought after by advertisers. This gave NBC an incentive to keep broadcasting the show. "The Stake Out" was nominated for a Writer's Guild Award. TV Guide ranked it the twenty-second greatest television season of all time, being one of four of the series' entries on the list.
Cast[]
Cast Members in Every Episode[]
- Jerry Seinfeld as Jerry Seinfeld
- Michael Richards as Cosmo Kramer
- Jason Alexander as George Costanza
Other Cast Members[]
- Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Elaine Benes (4 Episodes)
- Lynn Clark as Vanessa (2 Episodes)
- Liz Sheridan as Helen Seinfeld (1 Episode)
- Phil Bruns as Morty Seinfeld (1 Episode)
- Lee Garlington as Claire (1 Episode)
Episodes[]
| # | Title | Directed By Written By |
Air Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 |  |
"The Seinfeld Chronicles" | Art Wolff Larry David & Jerry Seinfeld |
July 5, 1989 |
| When Jerry gets a phone call from a woman he met out of town, "Kessler" (known as Kramer in all later episodes) and George weigh on the situation. Elaine was not in the first episode. | ||||
| 02 |  |
"The Stake Out" | Tom Cherones Larry David & Jerry Seinfeld |
May 31, 1990 |
| Jerry meets a woman at a party but only finds out where she works leading Jerry and George to "stake" her out at her building. | ||||
| 03 |  |
"The Robbery" | Tom Cherones Matt Goldman |
June 7, 1990 |
| Jerry is robbed after Kramer leaves the door open causing Jerry to find a new apartment which George becomes jealous of. | ||||
| 04 |  |
"Male Unbonding" | Tom Cherones Larry David & Jerry Seinfeld |
June 14, 1990 |
| Jerry tries to end a friendship with a childhood friend with a little help from his ex-girlfriend, Elaine Benes. Kramer wants to open a make-your-own pizza shop. | ||||
| 05 |  |
"The Stock Tip" | Tom Cherones Larry David & Jerry Seinfeld |
June 21, 1990 |
| George gets a stellar stock tip which he advises Jerry to invest in. Jerry goes on a official first date with Vanessa. | ||||
DVD Releases[]
- Region 1: November 23, 2004
- Region 2: November 1, 2004
- Region 4: October 18, 2004