The Shoes

The Shoes is the fifty-sixth episode of the sitcom Seinfeld. It is the 16th episode for the fourth season, and first aired on February 4, 1993.

Plot

Jerry and George struggle to keep NBC still interested in their show. Elaine is coming down with the flu and also is wearing a pair of shoes from Botticelli. Gail Cunningham (Anita Barone; whom Jerry was never allowed to kiss, was earlier snubbed and is later to be kissed by Kramer) comes into Monk's and admires Elaine's shoes. Later, Elaine becomes paranoid and goes to confront Gail at her restaurant kitchen, where Elaine sneezes on a plate of Pasta Primavera which is then unwittingly served to Russell Dalrymple. After Jerry and George finish writing their script they give it to Russell. Just as they try to present the script to Russell he becomes violently ill with the stomach flu and is unable to evaluate the script. Then Russell's daughter enters the picture and George stares at his 15-year-old daughter's (played by Denise Richards who was 22 at the time) cleavage. Russell catches George and angrily sends them off without any input.

Having finished their script for the pilot, Jerry and George reflect upon the fact that they did not give Elaine any lines, commenting that they can't "write for a woman." This references the fact that Elaine does not appear in the pilot episode of Seinfeld.

Later, at Jerry's apartment, George and Jerry discuss how they got into trouble and what to do to get the script approved. Elaine is also present. Jerry mentions how Russell probably would have stared at cleavage if he were in that situation and if "Elaine came by with a low-cut dress, he'd do the same thing."

Jerry and George devise an elaborate plan to meet Russell at Gail's restaurant, on the condition of giving to Gail Elaine's 'Botticelli' shoes. Once there, they approach Russell to talk, and Elaine shows up in a low-cut dress. The show ends with Jerry, George, and Elaine eating, and Elaine convincing Jerry and George to write her into the 'Jerry' scripts.

Production

This was the first episode of Season 4 in which Seinfeld was moved from its Wednesday time slot to Thursday at 9:30 right after Cheers, which was in its last season. Seinfeld would take over Cheers' spot the following fall and remain there for the rest of the series. The four main characters apprised their viewers of this change in a short segment that ran during the Super Bowl. It's revealed in the DVD Inside Look that many on the show were worried that people would be viewing Seinfeld for the first time in this new spot and therefore would know nothing about the story arc of Jerry and George's NBC pilot. The show's popularity sky-rocketed through the rest of the season, however, starting its successful run.

Cultural references

Elaine has her Botticelli shoes, and both George and Russell eat Pasta Primavera at the restaurant. This is reference to Sandro Botticelli's painting Primavera.