20 Mind-Blowing Facts You Didn't Know About Seinfeld
7. Some Of The Episodes Are Sped Up
In 2013, a video was uploaded onto the AVS Forum that displayed a recent recording of the Seinfeld episode, The Pick, alongside the original recording of the same episode. If you watch either episode on its own, you probably wouldn't notice anything was off. But if you watch both versions simultaneously, it's unmistakable that the more recent recording has been sped up.
Depending on which channel the show airs, episodes were sped up by at least 7.5%. Sometimes, they were sped up by 9%. Using this technique shortened a 25-minute-long episode into 22 minutes. This practise is done on syndicated shows like Seinfeld, The Big Bang Theory, and Friends to squeeze in more commercials in-between episodes.
This sounds like a clever idea since the average viewer won't even notice the episode has been sped-up. However, some channels like TBS use less subtle strategies. Sometimes, they will cut out canned laughter, reaction shots, or dialogue in order to shave off a few seconds here and there. Occasionally, they will cut out entire scenes so the studio can stuff in as many commercials as possible.