The Wife (Seinfeld)

"**The Wife**"
"The Wife"
Seinfeld episode
Episode no.	Season 5; Episode 17
Directed by	Tom Cherones
Written by	Peter Mehlman
Production code	517
Original air date	March 17, 1994
Guest appearances
	Courteney Cox as Meryl; Barney Martin as Morty Seinfeld ; Liz Sheridan as Helen Seinfeld ; Scott LaRose as Greg; Len Lesser as Uncle Leo ; Joseph Ragno as Marty; Rebecca Glenn as Paula; Nick LaTour as Grandpa; Susan Segal as Waitress; Lili Bernard as Anna; Lawrence Mandley as Owner;
Episode chronology
← Previous; "The Stand In"	Next →; "The Raincoats"
	Seinfeld season 5
	List of episodes

Last updated December 20, 2025

"The Wife" is the 81st episode of the NBC sitcom Seinfeld . The 17th episode of the fifth season, it was originally broadcast on March 17, 1994.^[1] In this episode, Jerry and his girlfriend roleplay as husband and wife for a dry cleaning discount. A fellow health club member gives Elaine mixed romantic signals, while planning to get George thrown out for urinating in the shower. Jerry's quasi-wife was played by Courteney Cox, just prior to Cox's breakthrough as a star. For the syndicated repeats, this episode is just one of a few this season to keep Jerry's opening stand-up routine intact.

Plot

Jerry and his girlfriend Meryl flirt playfully after a night together. Jerry finds a locket in his dry-cleaned jacket and returns it to the dry cleaner. Grateful to get his cherished memento back, the owner gives a 25% discount for Jerry and his family. Meryl spontaneously claims to be Jerry's wife, and Jerry plays along amorously. They carry on their act over breakfast at Monk's, where, following the example of Kramer and his African-American girlfriend Anna, they bring along "outside syrup" for their pancakes.

Waiting for George at the health club, Elaine runs into fellow member Greg, who surprises her with an open-lipped kiss; Elaine becomes interested in Greg because he otherwise negs her. George fails to meet up because Greg saw him urinating in the shower. Kramer wheedles Jerry into taking his quilt for the discount; Jerry runs into Meryl and Uncle Leo back at the dry cleaner, and is forced to drop his "marriage" bombshell on his unsuspecting uncle.

Elaine searches for romantic signals in everything Greg does. She goes from disappointment when he wipes off a water bottle she shares with him, to encouragement when he fails to wipe off his sweat-drenched exercise machine for her. Because Greg plans to get George kicked out of the club, George demands that Elaine threaten to report Greg's sweaty machine as leverage, unsympathetic that this would torpedo Elaine's chances with Greg. However, Greg actually had eyes for the club manager all along, tipping Elaine over to George's side.

Jerry and Meryl bicker like an old married couple over a missing can opener, then make up at bedtime as they sleep platonically. Jerry meets an attractive woman who cannot afford dry cleaning, and adulterously gives her his discount despite her guilty conscience. When Meryl finds the other woman's laundry, Jerry demands a "divorce", and they realize that a pretend marriage was more than they were ready for. Meryl leaves, keeping Jerry's syrup to remember him by.

Kramer is so sleep-deprived without his quilt that he starts keeling over and looking pale. He goes for a tan to make himself presentable to meet Anna's parents, but falls asleep on the tanning bed. He gets so tanned as to look made up in blackface, appalling Anna's family.

Production

After filming, the producers belatedly decided that they wanted the character of Paula to be more exotic, so they hired a voice actress to dub over all of Rebecca Glenn's speech, reciting all the same dialogue in a French accent.^[2]

References

↑ "Seinfeld Season 5 Episodes". TV Guide . Retrieved December 2, 2021.
↑ Seinfeld Season 5: Notes about Nothing - "The Wife" (DVD). Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. 2005.

External links

"The Wife" at IMDb

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[tvguide-1] "Seinfeld Season 5 Episodes". TV Guide . Retrieved December 2, 2021.

[2] Seinfeld Season 5: Notes about Nothing - "The Wife" (DVD). Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. 2005.

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[2]

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

The Wife (Seinfeld)

Contents

Plot

Production

References

External links