The Tape

"**The Tape**"
"The Tape"
Seinfeld episode
Episode no.	Season 3; Episode 8
Directed by	David Steinberg
Written by	Larry David and Bob Shaw & Don McEnery
Production code	308
Original air date	November 13, 1991
Guest appearances
	John Apicella as Repairman; Ping Wu as Ping; Norman Brenner as Beder;
Episode chronology
← Previous; "The Cafe"	Next →; "The Nose Job"
	Seinfeld season 3
	List of episodes

"The Tape" is the 25th episode of Seinfeld. It is the eighth episode of the show's third season.^[1] It first aired on NBC on November 13, 1991.^[1]

The episode was written by Larry David and Don McEnery and Bob Shaw and was directed by David Steinberg. In this episode, Elaine leaves an erotic message on a tape recorder as a prank, inadvertently causing George 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 George 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 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 Virgin" and "The Pilot".

Use in scientific research

The Simpsons "Bart the General" and Seinfeld's "The Tape" were used in a Dartmouth College 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 Neurolmage. The researchers noted, "During moments of humor detection, significant [brain] activation was noted in the left posterior middle temporal gyrus ... and left inferior frontal gyrus."^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b "Seinfeld Season 3 Episodes". TV Guide. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
^ 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. November 21, 2005. A1.

External links

"The Tape" at IMDb

[tvguide-1] "Seinfeld Season 3 Episodes". TV Guide. Retrieved 2 December 2021.

[2] 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. November 21, 2005. A1.

[1]

[2]

v t e Seinfeld episodes
Season 1	"The Seinfeld Chronicles" "The Stake Out" "The Robbery" "Male Unbonding" "The Stock Tip"
Season 2	"The Ex-Girlfriend" "The Pony Remark" "The Jacket" "The Phone Message" "The Apartment" "The Statue" "The Revenge" "The Heart Attack" "The Deal" "The Baby Shower" "The Chinese Restaurant" "The Busboy"
Season 3	"The Note" "The Truth" "The Pen" "The Dog" "The Library" "The Parking Garage" "The Cafe" "The Tape" "The Nose Job" "The Stranded" "The Alternate Side" "The Red Dot" "The Subway" "The Pez Dispenser" "The Suicide" "The Fix-Up" "The Boyfriend"† "The Limo" "The Good Samaritan" "The Letter" "The Parking Space" "The Keys"
Season 4	"The Trip"† "The Pitch" "The Ticket" "The Wallet" "The Watch" "The Bubble Boy" "The Cheever Letters" "The Opera" "The Virgin" "The Contest" "The Airport" "The Pick" "The Movie" "The Visa" "The Shoes" "The Outing" "The Old Man" "The Implant" "The Junior Mint" "The Smelly Car" "The Handicap Spot" "The Pilot"†
Season 5	"The Mango" "The Puffy Shirt" "The Glasses" "The Sniffing Accountant" "The Bris" "The Lip Reader" "The Non-Fat Yogurt" "The Barber" "The Masseuse" "The Cigar Store Indian" "The Conversion" "The Stall" "The Dinner Party" "The Marine Biologist" "The Pie" "The Stand In" "The Wife" "The Raincoats"† "The Fire" "The Hamptons" "The Opposite"
Season 6	"The Chaperone" "The Big Salad" "The Pledge Drive" "The Chinese Woman" "The Couch" "The Gymnast" "The Soup" "The Mom & Pop Store" "The Secretary" "The Race" "The Switch" "The Label Maker" "The Scofflaw" "The Highlights of 100"† "The Beard" "The Kiss Hello" "The Doorman" "The Jimmy" "The Doodle" "The Fusilli Jerry" "The Diplomat's Club" "The Face Painter" "The Understudy"
Season 7	"The Engagement" "The Postponement" "The Maestro" "The Wink" "The Hot Tub" "The Soup Nazi" "The Secret Code" "The Pool Guy" "The Sponge" "The Gum" "The Rye" "The Caddy" "The Seven" "The Cadillac"† "The Shower Head" "The Doll" "The Friar's Club" "The Wig Master" "The Calzone" "The Bottle Deposit"† "The Wait Out" "The Invitations"
Season 8	"The Foundation" "The Soul Mate" "The Bizarro Jerry" "The Little Kicks" "The Package" "The Fatigues" "The Checks" "The Chicken Roaster" "The Abstinence" "The Andrea Doria" "The Little Jerry" "The Money" "The Comeback" "The Van Buren Boys" "The Susie" "The Pothole" "The English Patient" "The Nap" "The Yada Yada" "The Millennium" "The Muffin Tops" "The Summer of George"
Season 9	"The Butter Shave" "The Voice" "The Serenity Now" "The Blood" "The Junk Mail" "The Merv Griffin Show" "The Slicer" "The Betrayal" "The Apology" "The Strike" "The Dealership" "The Reverse Peephole" "The Cartoon" "The Strongbox" "The Wizard" "The Burning" "The Bookstore" "The Frogger" "The Maid" "The Puerto Rican Day" "The Chronicle"† "The Finale"†
† Indicates two-part episode