The Heart Attack

"The Heart Attack" is the eighth episode of the second season of NBC's Seinfeld, and the show's 13th episode overall. It aired on April 25, 1991.

Plot

After watching a science-fiction B movie (featuring a cameo by series co-creator Larry David), Jerry goes to bed, but wakes up in the middle of the night laughing. He scrawls a joke for his stand-up comedy act. The following day he is unable to read what he wrote down.

While Jerry has lunch with George and Elaine at Monk's Café, hoping they can interpret his scrawl, George becomes alarmed and thinks he is having a heart attack; they have him transported to a hospital. Once he's there, it is discovered that he actually needs a tonsillectomy— his second one, as it turns out, as he had had his tonsils removed when he was younger, but now they have grown back (this is possible;^[1] it allegedly happened to show writer Larry Charles).^[2] Kramer recommends a holistic healer as a better and less expensive alternative. Jerry warns George that the healer Kramer is recommending had spent time in prison, but because of the large difference in price, George decides to take Kramer's advice.

Meanwhile, Elaine becomes attracted to George's doctor and goes on a date with him, only to discover that he has a fetish for tongues, which causes her to dump him right away as soon as the date ends.

George, Kramer and Jerry (who is there only in the hope of collecting comedy material), meet Tor Eckman, the holistic healer (Stephen Tobolowsky). Eckman performs a number of unorthodox methods to determine George's real ailment, which he concludes has nothing to do with his tonsils, but with his "imbalance with nature". He then concocts a tea containing "cramp bark," "cleavers," and "couch grass" that would remove his ailment, also prescribing that George is to stop using hot water entirely. Upon drinking the tea, George becomes purple and has to be transported to the hospital again. On their way, the EMT (John Fleck) and the driver get into an altercation over a missing Chuckle, causing the two men to fight outside. Later, Jerry, Kramer, and the driver are debating whether or not they should bring the EMT back, when the driver, who's trying to pick fight on Kramer while not looking at the road, causes a crash. Later, George and Jerry are found in the hospital in neck braces. George indicates that he had the tonsillectomy, and Elaine is in the hospital only briefly, so as to avoid "Doctor Tongue", to give George some ice cream. The hospital television shows the science fiction movie again, and Jerry remembers that what he wrote down, was a line from the movie (Flaming Globes of Zigmund). As he realizes this, he notes "that's not funny."

Reception

Critical responses to the episode were mixed; Mike Flaherty and Mary Kaye Schilling of Entertainment Weekly graded the episode with a D, writing "What Seinfeld excels at is finding the eccentric in the apparently normal. A kooky New Age doctor? That's hitting the broad side of a barn."^[3] The Sydney Morning Herald critic Robin Oliver felt that, though he did not think the episode was bad, it was among Seinfeld's lesser episodes.^[4] However, Andy Patrizio of IGN considered "The Heart Attack" one of season two's best episodes.^[5] St. Louis Post-Dispatch critic Eric Mink also reacted very positively on the episode, praising the Shakespeare reference and Michael Richards' performance in particular.^[6]

References

^ "Mayo Clinic Identifies Risk Factors for Repeat Adenoid Removal in Children". Mayo Clinic. September 12, 2011. Retrieved September 18, 2012. It isn't unusual for children to have their tonsils and adenoids removed, and the younger those patients are, the greater the risk their adenoids will grow back and they will need to have them taken out again, Mayo Clinic researchers have found.
^ "The Heart Attack". Watching the 90s: Television and Film Notes and Musings. Retrieved September 18, 2012. Larry Charles wrote this story about George's infected tonsils (which the character mistakes for a heart attack) out of his own fear of aging, according to the DVD's "Notes about Nothing." Fear of aging, fear of death, and, especially, fear of the aged are frequent themes in Seinfeld. This episode offers several different ways that different characters cope with their mortality. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
^ Schilling, Mary Kaye; Flaherty, Mike (April 7, 2008). "The Seinfeld Chronicles: Season Two". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 26, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ Oliver, Robin (December 7, 2004). "Seinfeld". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved August 26, 2009.
^ Patrizio, Andy (November 18, 2004). "Seinfeld - Seasons 1 & 2 Review". IGN. Retrieved August 27, 2009.
^ Mink, Erik (May 1, 1991). "'Cheers' Or Not, 'Seinfeld' Is A Hit". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 7E.

External links

The Heart Attack at IMDb

[1] "Mayo Clinic Identifies Risk Factors for Repeat Adenoid Removal in Children". Mayo Clinic. September 12, 2011. Retrieved September 18, 2012. It isn't unusual for children to have their tonsils and adenoids removed, and the younger those patients are, the greater the risk their adenoids will grow back and they will need to have them taken out again, Mayo Clinic researchers have found.

[2] "The Heart Attack". Watching the 90s: Television and Film Notes and Musings. Retrieved September 18, 2012. Larry Charles wrote this story about George's infected tonsils (which the character mistakes for a heart attack) out of his own fear of aging, according to the DVD's "Notes about Nothing." Fear of aging, fear of death, and, especially, fear of the aged are frequent themes in Seinfeld. This episode offers several different ways that different characters cope with their mortality. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)

[3] Schilling, Mary Kaye; Flaherty, Mike (April 7, 2008). "The Seinfeld Chronicles: Season Two". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 26, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[4] Oliver, Robin (December 7, 2004). "Seinfeld". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved August 26, 2009.

[5] Patrizio, Andy (November 18, 2004). "Seinfeld - Seasons 1 & 2 Review". IGN. Retrieved August 27, 2009.

[Post-Dispatch-6] Mink, Erik (May 1, 1991). "'Cheers' Or Not, 'Seinfeld' Is A Hit". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 7E.

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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