Despite being praised for its writing over the years, not every Seinfeld storyline that got pitched was given the green light, for one reason or another. An entire episode about Elaine wanting to buy a gun got nixed because it made the cast uncomfortable 20 minutes into the table read. And at least two other scripts were rejected due to concerns that they’d be perceived as racist.
Interestingly enough, there was another idea that Larry David shut down for being just plain weird.
According to Seinfeld writer and executive producer Jeff Schaffer, the plot for this one would’ve involved Kramer starting a new business. The plan was for Kramer to somehow get his hands on morgue-quality skeletons and refurbish them (where he’d acquire them isn’t exactly clear).
He’d gather the bones together and buff them up so that they’d look nice on display. Kramer would then sell these museum-quality skeletons to hospitals for educational purposes.
The Gruesome ‘Seinfeld’ Storyline That Never Made It on the Air
Meanwhile, Jerry would be doing ads for Leapin’ Larry’s, the appliance store featured in the Season 7 episode “The Secret Code.” Jerry was also supposed to be having some problems with his dishwasher because Kramer had been using it a lot. Leapin’ Larry tells Jerry to bring it in for him to fix, which Jerry does without taking the time to look inside.
When Leapin’ Larry opens up the dishwasher later on, he discovers a tibia and loses his mind, yelling, “This is the worst practical joke ever to a guy who’s missing a leg!” (in “The Secret Code,” Leapin’ Larry has a prosthetic leg).
As Schaffer tells it, Larry David dismissed the idea for the show immediately. “No. Kramer’s not refurbishing skeletons!” he reportedly told the writers after hearing the pitch. “Come on! This is funny!” they insisted, to no avail.
The skeleton concept remained on the idea board in the writer’s room for a long time, even following David’s departure at the conclusion of Season 7, but ultimately never ended up being used. “I guess Larry was right,” Schaffer said in retrospect.
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