The Bet

Not to be confused with The Contest.

“The Bet” (also known as The Gun) is an unproduced episode for Season 2. It was not made due to its controversial subject. It would have been the fourth episode of season 2, and would have aired on February 13, 1991. It was replaced by "The Phone Message".

Plot

While sitting in Monk's Cafe, Jerry Seinfeld attempts to convince George Costanza and Elaine Benes that he is "pro-lesbian" and talks about the irony that men are fascinated with women being together, but women do not like seeing men together. George criticizes Jerry for his social observation and tells him to stick to his usual material. George attempts to tell him a joke he heard, "Why did the Siamese twins go to England?" but forgets the punchline. Elaine reveals that she has decided to buy a handgun for herself after a neighbor in her building got mugged. This causes her to become somewhat more vocal and aroused at the idea, much to Jerry's disgust. As the conversation starts to get macabre, Jerry leaves, but not before answering George's joke, "So that the other one can drive."

At the apartment, Jerry scolds George for his method of picking food from his mouth, when a sunburnt Cosmo Kramer (whom the script identifies as Konrad Kramer) reveals that he just came back from Puerto Rico. He reveals that the sunburn was actually from a tanning bed and that he had sex with an airline stewardess on the way back. George scoffs at the notion that an airline stewardess would have sex with him, but Jerry is convinced as he is aware of Kramer's unusual sexual prowess. When Elaine enters, Kramer says he heard that she wanted a gun and offers to take her to see their friend Mo Korn, whom Jerry is not too fond of. As Kramer and Elaine leave, Jerry and George decide to bet $1000 to see if Kramer's airline stewardess story holds up.

Jerry, Elaine, and Kramer see Mo who still lives with his mother. Mo offers his guns for free, rather than sell any of them as he sees them as friends. The group freak out when they think that the police have come, but they turn out to be Mo's friends, Chicky and Mintz. Jerry impatiently decides to leave, while Kramer joins Mo and his friends. Elaine looks over the guns, but ends up not getting one as her zest for wanting one has died down. Not wanting to let Jerry know that he was right, Elaine buys a realistic toy gun so that she can fool Jerry with it, a prospect that George gleefully agrees with. Jerry, George, and Elaine head to the airport to see the bet through.

At the airport, the three find the flight attendant, named Connie, who seemingly feigns any knowledge of knowing who Kramer is. Not wanting to let it go, Elaine digs into her purse, accidentally pulling out the fake gun, and has the entire airport security come down on them. George takes particular offense at being called "a toy" by one of the guards. Afterwards, the group is back at the apartment waiting for the food they ordered to arrive. Instead, Kramer arrives with a letter from Connie who claims that she has quit her job and decided to go into sales, her "passion". Despite the supposed proof, George still refuses to accept it and they get into another argument.

Production

The episode was written by Larry Charles to make a funny "dark-themed" episode, using elements that were unusual in sitcoms. Sets for the episode were built, and Bobbi Jo Lathan was cast as flight attendant Lucy Merrit and Ernie Sabella was cast as gun salesman Mo Korn, who was described in the script as "overweight, greasy, slow and low-key". The table reading of the episode was held on Wednesday, December 12, 1990. Julia Louis-Dreyfus stated, "I read the script and I remember thinking, 'We're not going to do this.'" According to Alexander, when she read a scene in which she holds the gun to her head stating, "Where do you want it, Jerry? The Kennedy? [holds the gun to her stomach] The McKinley?" (referencing the assassination of the two American presidents), Louis-Dreyfus turned to Alexander, stating, "I'm not doing this." Both Alexander and Cherones, who would direct the episode, felt that the gun content in the story was too provocative. Richards was concerned that his character would be open about arming Elaine, though in a later interview he stated, "Although, why not? I think Kramer could justify the use of a weapon."

The cast began rehearsing, but after 20 minutes stopped and turned to Cherones, who agreed to talk to Charles. While on his way to Charles' office, Cherones met NBC executive Glenn Padnick and informed him about the cast's reaction to the episode. Cherones said that Padnick was relieved to hear this, and they both discussed the problem with Charles, and decided not to use the script. Commenting on the episode, Charles stated, "You know, it would have been an interesting show, but [...] we couldn't solve the funny problem of it. It never seemed to quite be as funny as it should be and, because of that, the balance was off and the darkness kind of enveloped it, and it could never really emerge from that darkness and become what it should have been. So, it was disappointing but also understandable." The replacement episode, "The Phone Message", was written by David and Seinfeld in two days.

Notes About Nothing

• Given the nature of the show, "The Bet" is most likely not the only unproduced episode, although it is the most infamous.
• It is also probably the only one that was partially filmed.