The Yada Yada

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"The Yada Yada"
Seinfeld episode
Jerry's dentist, Dr. Tim Whatley
Episode no.	Season 8 Episode 153
Written by	Peter Mehlman & Jill Franklyn
Directed by	Andy Ackerman
Guest stars	Bryan Cranston, Suzanne Cryer, Jill St. John, Robert Wagner & Debra Messing
Original airdate	April 24, 1997
Season 8 episodes
Seinfeld – Season 8 September 1996 – May 1997
"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"
List of Seinfeld episodes

"The Yada Yada" is the 153rd episode of the American NBC sitcom Seinfeld. The 19th episode of the 8th season, it aired on April 24, 1997.

[edit] Plot

George's girlfriend is big on using the phrase "yada yada yada." Jerry says that at least she is succinct and that it is like "dating USA Today." Jerry's dentist, Dr. Tim Whatley, has converted to Judaism and is already making Jewish-themed jokes that make Jerry uncomfortable. Jerry goes so far as to say that he only became Jewish to do so. Kramer and Mickey Abbott double date but cannot decide which woman is right for which one of them. Elaine is a character reference for a couple who are trying to adopt, but the story she tells during an interview destroys all hope of adoption. George drops by Jerry's dental appointment; Mickey and Kramer continue to fight over who gets Karen or Julie; George determines that his girlfriend might be leaving out some significant details concerning her overuse of the phrase "yada yada." He gets her to fill in the details, and discovers more than he wants to know. Jerry confesses to a priest about what he thinks of Tim's conversion, saying that he is offended not as Jew but as a comedian, only to get sidetracked when a dentist joke he tells leaves the priest speechless with laughter; George drops by Jerry's confession; Kramer decides on the right woman, and Mickey also decides to make his commitment. Tim hears about a dentist joke that Jerry told the priest, and deliberately prolongs an uncomfortable procedure. After hearing Jerry's complaints about Tim, Kramer accuses Jerry of being an "anti-dentite." Elaine lobbies on behalf of Beth and Arnie, and propositions the adoption official as an inducement. Beth's marriage nonetheless fails and she accompanies Jerry to Mickey's wedding; Elaine, now dating the adoption agent, is dismayed. George shows up without Marcy, who is arrested and imprisoned for shoplifting. Mickey's father (Robert Wagner), a dentist, calls Jerry an "anti-dentite bastard." Jerry is initially comforted by Beth (Debra Messing), who is at first shown to harbor the same feelings towards dentists as Jerry, until in addition she promptly reveals herself to be both racist and anti-Semitic, at which point Jerry dumps her and tells Elaine she's left "to get her head shaved".

[edit] Air time

The episode was allowed by NBC to run longer than the usual thirty minutes, and its slightly above-average length was even boasted about in promos. An edited version airs in syndication, cutting out several small scenes and dialogues, but the full-length version is available on the "Seinfeld" Season 8 DVD collection.

[edit] "Yada yada"

The episode is one of the most famous of the series, specifically for its focus on the phrase "yada yada". "Yadda yadda" was already a relatively common phrase before the episode aired, used notably by comedian Lenny Bruce, ^[1] among others. The phrase may have originated with the 1950s "yackety-yack", 1940s vaudeville, and earlier. ^[2]

Before the episode aired, writer Peter Mehlman suspected that it would spawn a new Seinfeld catchphrase, but he thought it would be the phrase "anti-dentite" that would become popular.

The Paley Center named "Yada Yada Yada" the #1 funniest phrase on "TV's 50 Funniest Phrases".

[edit] Cultural references

Seinfeld's use of "yada yada" was referenced in the King of the Hill episode "Yankee Hanky," by Dale Gribble who ridicules Hank Hill's discovery that he was born in New York City by using the phrase. That Handsome Devil produced a song titled "Yada-Yada".

[edit] Notes

1. ^ "Word for Word: Neology; In the Dictionary Game, Yada Yada Yada Is Satisficing to Some, Not Others", The New York Times, August 22, 1999. Accessed April 8, 2008.
2. ^ Straight Dope Staff Report: What's the origin of "yadda yadda"?