The Note (Seinfeld)

Infobox Television episode
Title = The Note
Series = Seinfeld


Caption = George receives a massage from a man.
Season = 3
Episode = 18
Airdate = September 18, 1991
Production =
Writer = Stephen Orlando
Director = Tom Cherones
Guests =
Episode list = List of "Seinfeld" episodes
Season list = Infobox Seinfeld season 3 episode list
Prev =
Next =

"The Note" is the eighteenth episode of "Seinfeld". The episode was the 1st episode of the show's third season. It aired on September 18, 1991.

Plot

Jerry, George, and Elaine get free massage therapy by getting a note from Jerry's dentist (Roy) to present to the insurance company. Jerry's therapist becomes paranoid and thinks Jerry is insane when he makes some casual remarks about a small boy who was kidnapped in Pennsylvania. George becomes very uncomfortable when he finds out that his therapist is a man. He tells Jerry that he thinks 'it moved' during the massage and starts to have doubts about his sexual orientation.

Meanwhile, Kramer claims he saw Joe DiMaggio in Dinky Donuts but the others do not believe him. According to Kramer, DiMaggio was a very 'focused' eater- the same way he used to play. Roy gets into trouble for passing around fake notes. In Roy's office, George becomes uncomfortable when Roy repeatedly asks for George's opinion of Evander Holyfield. George is quoted as saying "I mean he's a nice guy and a good fighter, but I don't LIKE him," thus building on George's insecurity about his own sexuality. Jerry tries to see the physical therapist once more, but she's afraid that he will try to kidnap her son.

The episode ends with the four eating in Monk's, and viewing Joe DiMaggio dunking his donuts (though DiMaggio is never seen). George then says "You see, now that is a handsome man!" and Jerry and Elaine raise their eyebrows. Kramer tries to break DiMaggio's concentration by banging the table and yelping.

Theme music

This episode was the only one (other than the original pilot) with a different version of the theme song, which included female back-up singers harmonizing over the iconic slap-bass tune. According to the DVD Inside Look, the singers were added by composer Jonathan Wolff at the request of Jerry Seinfeld, who wanted to add "a little sparkle" to the music, suggesting the addition of some scat lyrics. Seinfeld and executive producer Larry David both liked Wolff's additions, and three episodes were produced with the new style music. However, they had neglected to inform NBC and Castle Rock of the change, and when the season premiere aired, they were surprised and unimpressed, and requested that they return to the original style. The subsequent two episodes were redone, leaving this episode as the only one with the additional music elements. In the commentary of this episode Julia Louis-Dreyfus facetiously says it was removed because the lyric "Easy to Beat" related too closely to the low ratings at the time.