‘Seinfeld’ Episode Inspires New Jersey’s Latest Law
Seinfeld is playing an important role in New Jersey’s latest passed bill. Gov. Phil Murphy passed the state legislature known as the “Seinfeld Bill.” The new law will give more transparency to New Jersey residents when telemarketers call their phones.
“The famous Seinfeld scene where Jerry is irritated that telemarketers can call at any time, under any pretense, and without any kind of guidelines or consequences, makes light of a situation many New Jerseyans face every day, sometimes multiple times a day,” Murphy said per CBS News. “I am proud to sign the ‘Seinfeld Bill’ and to establish much-needed transparency in telemarketing.”
In the show, there is a famous scene where Jerry Seinfeld where a telemarketer calls him. The telemarketer proceeds to talk without introducing themselves, and Jerry responds, asking if he can call them on their home phone, which the telemarketer declines.
“Oh, I guess you don’t want people calling you at home,” Seinfeld says.
“No,” the telemarketer replies.
“Well, now you know how I feel,” Seinfeld says.
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The new bill requires that telemarketers give you the name and phone number of the person or company they work for within the first 30 seconds of the call. It also requires them to state why they’re calling within the first 30 seconds.
Seinfeld ran for nine seasons on NBC from 1989 to 1998. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. The sitcom is often described as “the show about nothing.” It highlighted the daily life of four best friends living in Manhattan’s Upper West Side in New York City. The show stars Seinfeld as himself, his best friend George Costanza (Jason Alexander), former girlfriend Elaine Benes (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), and his neighbor from across the hall, Cosmo Kramer (Michael Richards).
Take a look at the iconic telemarketer scene below:
