Cuts

In "The Blood" the syndicators cut the following exchange:

George and Vivian are in the kitchen, and George is lying about why Elaine can't babysit Jimmy. George trys out 3 lies, and they only kept 2, ("Elaine's going to live with her grandparents," and "Elaine has been chosen to represent the upper west side in the next Biosphere project.") The middle lie cut was:

G: Elaine has been deported back to Scotland V: She's an American citizen. I've seen her passport. G: (pause) All right no more lies.

So instead of being 3 lies, there were only 2. Not a bad cut. I think what they kept was even stronger.

Cuts are bad-- I want ALL of the episode- not what some syndication scissor jockey wants to leave for me. I hope when Turner takes over the syndication package in the very near future that he runs them on TBS with his unique time/length situation (starts & ends shows at different times) Not like the networks that start at either top or bottom of the hour . NO CUTS atleast through the first run of the series. If Turner wants his TBS to be treated like a MAJOR network he should use the full first run episodes that NBC showed us.

Why? What advantage for viewers do you find with a network starting all shows five minutes past the hour? They don't run any longer--they just start 5 minutes late and end 5 minutes late.

In "the Junk Mail" syndicated version, Castle Rock cut the following exchanges:

In the first scene, Jerry, George & Kramer are in the apmt, and Kramer says he's tired of all the jackbooted thugs, (Pottery Barn). On the sofa with Jerry, George is leafing through CG and then glances at the cover. At a pause in the Jerry-Kramer conversation, George holds up the magazine to Jerry, which has a fetching picture of a blonde woman. George says "Mira Sorvino. Think she'd go out with me?" Jerry stares at him, pauses dismissively, and then intentionally ignores the George question and launches into another Kramer question. A minor laugh at the dismissal. The Mira Sorvino quote and the pause were cut, maybe 5 total seconds.

And later at the Costanza household, George "demands to know what's going on" from his parents. The syndicators cut a non-verbal glance between the Costanzas before Mr. C says "George, we've had it with you." That cut lasted maybe 2 seconds max, no laugh.

So they're not cutting much meat out. Although I love the Sorvino laugh, Jerry & Elaine did that so many times during the final season it got a little tiresome. They must also be cutting more dead air out of other areas, because that sure isn't a lot of cuts.

In the Merv Griffen Set, they cut the first bumper with Kramer and Jerry walking down the street. (I don't have the entire exchange, but they cut it all!)

K: ...But when he took this special formula he became Mr. Abel.

J: You broke my blender, didn't you?

K: Yeah, well I was trying to make gravel, and it just -- just didn't work out.

J: I knew it!

And in "The Slicer," they cut the whole beginning bumper off too! This cut is really bad, it contains one of the best "Shut up. You shut up" exchanges!

[Elaine is in bed with Jerry; she rolls over and says:]

Elaine: Hey.

Jerry: Morning

Elaine: This is crazy, you know, I, ah, I can't go on like this.

Jerry: But why?

Elaine: I need some space. [Rolls over, sees George on the other side of the bed]

George: Does that mean I have to go too?

Jerry: Hey, well you don't think she's just talking to me

George: Hey. Shut up!

Jerry: You shut up!

Elaine: I hate this.

[Kramer sneaks up from under the covers]

Kramer: You'll get used to it. It's like a rugby scrum.

Elaine: No no, I don't want this anymore.

Jerry: We're going to work with you.

George: And on your dates.

Jerry: And shopping

Kramer: And to the bathroom.

[Jerry, George & Kramer]: Elaine. Elaine.

Elaine: I can't breathe.

[Jerry, George & Kramer]: Elaine. Elaine.

Elaine: I'm suffocating.

[Jerry, George & Kramer]: Elaine. Elaine.

Elaine: I can't breathe.

[Waking up, sitting upright in bed] Elaine: You're all killing me!

[Elaine hears alarm buzzing, checks her clock and it's not ringing, pounds on the wall behind her head board.]

Elaine: "Turn your alarm off!

[Wraps pillow around her head] Elaine: Ahhhhhhhhhh!

They cut the whole thing! The scene of all four of them in bed is grotesquely funny.