The Junior Mint

"**The Junior Mint**"
"The Junior Mint"
Seinfeld episode
Episode no.	Season 4; Episode 20
Directed by	Tom Cherones
Written by	Andy Robin
Production code	421
Original air date	March 18, 1993
Guest appearances
	Susan Walters as Mystery woman; Sherman Howard as Roy; Victor Raider-Wexler as Doctor;
Episode chronology
← Previous; "The Implant"	Next →; "The Smelly Car"
	Seinfeld season 4
	List of episodes

"The Junior Mint" is the 60th episode of the NBC sitcom Seinfeld. It is the 20th episode of the fourth season.^[1] It aired on March 18, 1993.^[1] In the episode, Jerry cannot remember the name of the woman he is dating, but knows it rhymes with a part of the female anatomy. Meanwhile, Elaine's artistic ex-boyfriend develops a lethal infection after Jerry and Kramer drop a Junior Mint into his body during a surgical operation. This episode won Michael Richards his first Emmy of the series.

Plot[edit]

Jerry is unable to remember the name of the woman he is dating. As it would be too awkward to simply ask her given the time they have spent together, he tells her that people made fun of his name in school and asks if kids ever made fun of her name. She affirms that she was relentlessly teased because her name rhymes with a part of the female anatomy. Jerry and George come up with possible candidates, with George suggesting Mulva (for vulva). She presses him to say her name. Jerry guesses Mulva, causing her to storm out of his apartment. Moments after she leaves, in a flash of insight, Jerry runs to the window and yells "Dolores!" (rhyming with a common pronunciation of clitoris).^[2]

Elaine goes to the hospital to visit her ex-boyfriend Roy, an artist who she dumped because he was fat. Noticing that he has slimmed down due to depression from their break up, Elaine becomes interested in dating him again. Kramer and Jerry observe the artist's splenectomy in the hospital's operating theater and accidentally drop a Junior Mint from the viewing gallery into his body. When George hears that Roy has developed an infection, he spends $1,900 (which he collected in interest from a bank account from the sixth grade) to buy some of Roy's art, thinking it will appreciate in value when Roy dies. Roy's condition suddenly turns around and he recovers. Although Roy attributes the change to George buying his art, the doctor attributes the limited effect of the infection to "something from above." As Kramer offers the doctor a Junior Mint, Elaine decides to cancel her date with Roy, whom she observes eating enthusiastically again in his hospital room.

Production[edit]

According to the "Inside Look" from the DVD, the writers had trouble coming up with a name for Jerry's girlfriend, initially settling upon "Cloris." When filming the episode, a comedian would warm up the studio audience in between filming scenes and, as an exercise, asked audience members to guess Jerry's girlfriend's name; one audience member guessed Dolores, which was deemed a better fit than their first choice. Jerry Seinfeld approved of it in time to add it to the script and the scene was shot with that being the character's name. Afterwards, a producer for the show was amused to overhear the audience member's husband saying, "You guessed right!"^[2]

Jerry's line concerning Roy, "Then we can go watch 'em slice this fat bastard up," was improvised by Seinfeld.

A York Peppermint Pattie was used for filming the scene in the operating theater, as a Junior Mint was too small for the camera.^[3]

In popular culture[edit]

The episode was mentioned on the Family Guy episode "E. Peterbus Unum." The scene with the Junior Mint falling into the patient is shown on episode five of The Orville.

The episode was referenced in the case Mackenzie v. Miller Brewing Co., where the plaintiff, Jerold J. Mackenzie, was fired for "poor management judgment" after discussing the episode's references to female sexual anatomy.^[4]

References[edit]

^ ^a ^b "Seinfeld Season 4 Episodes". TV Guide. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
^ ^a ^b Harding, Amanda (October 25, 2020). "'Seinfeld' Writers Renamed Jerry's Girlfriend Dolores When Audience Member Suggested it During 'The Junior Mint'". Showbiz Cheat Sheet. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
^ Tom Cherones (2005). Seinfeld Season 4 Disc 4 - The Junior Mint: Inside Look (DVD). Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
^ Mackenzie v. Miller Brewing Co., 2000 WI App 48, ¶ 18, 234 Wis. 2d 1, 17, 608 N.W.2d 331, 336; "Appeals court overturns 'Seinfeld' case". The Daily Reporter. Milwaukee, WI. 14 July 2000.

External links[edit]

"The Junior Mint" at IMDb

[tvguide-1] "Seinfeld Season 4 Episodes". TV Guide. Retrieved 2 December 2021.

[:0-2] Harding, Amanda (October 25, 2020). "'Seinfeld' Writers Renamed Jerry's Girlfriend Dolores When Audience Member Suggested it During 'The Junior Mint'". Showbiz Cheat Sheet. Retrieved 2021-01-05.

[3] Tom Cherones (2005). Seinfeld Season 4 Disc 4 - The Junior Mint: Inside Look (DVD). Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

[Mackenzie-4] Mackenzie v. Miller Brewing Co., 2000 WI App 48, ¶ 18, 234 Wis. 2d 1, 17, 608 N.W.2d 331, 336; "Appeals court overturns 'Seinfeld' case". The Daily Reporter. Milwaukee, WI. 14 July 2000.

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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