I was a late arrival to Seinfeld fandom.
S4E4 - The Wallet
Though the first episode was aired in the US in 1989, there would be a four-year delay until it was broadcast in the UK. As a teenager, and with the show lurking in the shadows of BBC’s late-night schedules, it passed me by.
It wasn't until I was in my 30s when Seinfeld reappeared on UK TV in a prime-time slot. Fully aware of the show's standing in the canon of popular culture this was my best opportunity to tune in.
1989
Seinfeld first aired on NBC in the USA
1993
Seinfeld first aired on BBC2 in the UK
2012
Seinfeld returns to prime-time on Sky TV in the UK
It only took a handful of episodes for me to find myself completely hooked. Seinfeld was written in a different key, deviating from the traditional rules of sitcoms, focusing on - and amplifying of - the minutiae of daily life, earning its reputation as the show about nothing.
S4E3 - The Pitch
S8E3 - The Bizzaro Jerry
I loved the irreverent characters - with their absurd obsessions and neurotic tendencies - and the hilariously avoidable situations they found themselves in.
It rejected the classic three-act story, sidestepping sentimentality and the pursuit of resolution. With its mantra of no hugging*, no learning the lead characters were insecure and entertainingly flawed, lacking any desire and capability for personal growth.
* the earlier clip not withstanding!
S9E24 - The Good Samaritan Law
As with any shows from its time, as culture and society evolve a contemporary lens exposes negative stereotypes and flashes of chauvinism and sizeism, to name but two isms. The amoral instincts of these anti-heroes was most on-show in their romantic encounters and when faced with the slightest adversity or irrational annoyance.
S3E9 - The Nose Job
And then there’s the dancing.
S8E4 - The Little Kicks
As I progressed through the episodes my fascination with the creative process behind the show grew. It was the musicality of the writing and its delivery that I particularly loved, orchestrated by the comedic talents of co-creators Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David.
Like music, situation comedy has rhythm and it has texture: rhythm is shaped by a show’s timing, its scene-structures, and its pacing; textures are created by the ‘instruments’ of characters and their locations, which amalgamate to create the situations from which the comedy manifests.
S5E4 - The Sniffing Accountant
S8E12 - The Money
S1E4 - Male Unbonding
S3E2 - The Truth
S7E21 - The Wait Out
My curiosity transcended just reading more about the show, it was now time to go deep. I decided to immerse myself in an entirely unnecessary, self-motivated, long-running, data-driven exploration of every episode of Seinfeld. Why not!
The first product of this work was my 2020 publishing of The Seinfeld Chronicles, a limited-edition printed book presenting all my extensive analysis. With 176 copies released, matching the number of written episodes, this reached a small but exclusive audience. In 2024 I decided it was time to work on a new product, to reach a wider audience with a completely new format: The Seinfeld Chronicles digital edition.
The Seinfield Chronicles
An unnecessary data exploration by Andy Kirk 
,
Anne-Marie Dufour 
, and Loud Numbers 
s1
1989-90
s2
1990-91
s3
1991-92
s4
1992-93
s5
1993-94
s6
1994-95
s7
1995-96
s8
1996-97
s9
1997-98
- See that, to me, that button's in the worst possible spot s1e1 The Seinfeld Chronicles, Jerry
- • One day, you'll beg me to make your own pie s1e4 Male Unbonding, Kramer
- • I think Superman probably has a very good sense of humor s1e5 The Stock Tip, Jerry
- • I'm gonna slip him a mickey! s2e7 The Revenge, George
- • I'm an eggplant! I'm an eggplant! I'm a minstrel man! s2e8 The Heart Attack, George
- • Boy, I really liked the two of you much better when you weren't a couple s2e9 The Deal, Kramer
- • My friend Bob Sacamano had shock treatments. But his synapses were so large, it had no effect s3e2 The Truth, Krame
- • That's Hennigans, the no-smell, no-tell scotch s3e12 The Red Dot, Kramer
- • Anyone who would laugh at a recital is probably some sort of lunatic anyway s3e14 The Pez Dispenser, Jerry
- • Why should we give two guys with no idea or experience more money? s4e6 The Watch, Susan
- • I don't like the opera. What are they singing for? Who sings? You got something to say, say it s4e9 The Opera, Jerry
- • Looking at cleavage is like looking at the sun, you don't stare at it. It's too risky. You get a sense of it and then you look away s4e16 The Shoes, Jerry
- • The woman had an orgasm under false pretenses...that's sexual perjury! s5e1 The Mango, Jerry
- • Well, here's to feeling good all of the time s5e4 The Sniffing Accountant, Kramer
- • Hey, you know what would make a great coffee table book? A coffee table book about coffee tables! s5e10 The Cigar Store Indian, Kramer
- • That's a shame s6e1 The Chaperone, Jerry
- • I'm giving you a raise! s6e9 The Secretary, George
- • Oh, understudies are a very shifty bunch. The substitute teachers of the theater world s6e24 The Understudy, Kramer
- • A George divided against itself cannot stand! s7e8 The Pool Guy, George
- • The Jon Voight Car is no more s7e10 The Gum, George
- • I woke up in the Hudson river in a SACK!! s7e18 The Friars Club, Kramer
- • If this board is so impressed with suffering, maybe you should tell them the Astonishing Tales of Costanza s8e10 The Andrea Doria, Jerry
- • This is a Susie-and-Elaine problem that requires, a Susie-and-Elaine solution! s8e15 The Susie, Elaine
- • It's just empty calories and male curiosity, eh, Georgie? s8e18 The Nap, Steinbrenner
- • I'm the Wiz and noooobody beats me! s9e5 The Junk Mail, Jack
- • That's a lot of potatoes s9e7 The Slicer, Kramer
- • G'night, Jugdish! s9e8 The Betrayal, Elaine
Methodology
The data used in this study did not exist; it had to be manually captured by watching every episode and logging the times, categories, and characteristics of different events within each.
Typically, each episode's data was gathered via two full viewings. The first viewing noted the times of discrete scenes starting and finishing, the locations in which the scenes were set, and the characters who appeared (and when). The second viewing validated the data and recorded which characters caused the laughs (and when). This was a pragmatic solution to ensure the best quality data could be obtained in the most efficient way.
To help with the efficiency of the data collecting, all periods of screen time were recorded in units of 5-second durations. This felt like a sufficient granularity of detail to accurately quantify any character's appearance (and aligned with the typical length of time recorded for the duration of a laugh). To qualify as a period of screen time, a character did not necessarily need to be speaking or even interacting, just that they at least played some role in the storyline's progression.
Additional data was collected about broadcast dates, viewing figures, plot synopses and ratings via IMDb. Further qualitative enquiries about joke topics, specific patterns in language, and themes of representation were tempting to pursue but were considered beyond the scope of the enquiry.
Credits
Andy Kirk
Ideation, Data Analysis, Data Visualisation & Original Design
Anne-Marie Dufour
Data Visualisation, Digital Design & Development
Loud Numbers
Sonification
Mark Knott
Illustrations
Rob Barker
Data Collection & Research