The Maid (season 9, episode 19)

story by Alec Berg & David Mandel & Jeff Schaffer and Kit Boss & Peter Mehlman, teleplay by Alec Berg & David Mandel & Jeff Schaffer, directed by Andy Ackerman
original airdate: April 30, 1998

Jerry dates his maid, blurring the lines between courtship and prostitution. George gets an unwanted nickname at the office. Kramer’s girlfriend moves downtown. Elaine resents her new phone number’s area code.

FEATURED LOCATIONS

The Improv is not featured in this episode.

Jerry’s Apartment
Jerry hires a maid from a cleaning service who he begins sleeping with, resulting in her essentially becoming a prostitute rather than a maid, as he pays her to come over, have sex, and leave without cleaning.

Monk’s Café
For the first time in the series, the whole gang is forced to sit at the counter. General confusion over the conversation ensues, with a giant game of broken telephone resulting in Elaine’s new phone number translating to news of Newman’s death.

rodeo
Jerry explains that he lost his voice while screaming at hecklers performing at a rodeo. He later tells Elaine he was hired for a rodeo because they heard he opened for Kenny Rogers once, despite being thrown off a bus by him.

ALABAMA (map)
Elaine recalls that Jerry was once thrown off a bus by Kenny Rogers in Alabama after opening for him, to which Jerry replies with “I had that coming to me.”

Gap (now Banana Republic)
2373 Broadway, New York, NEW YORK (map)
nearest subway: 86th Street (1)
Kramer contemplates about how life in downtown New York is so different, including a different Gap. The closest Gap to Kramer’s Apartment was at this location.

Tower Records (NOW CLOSED)
1961 Broadway, New York, NEW YORK (map)
nearest subway: 66th Street – Lincoln Center (1)
Kramer contemplates about how life in downtown New York is so different, including a different Tower Records. The closest Tower Records to Kramer’s Apartment is at this location.

Elaine’s Apartment
Kramer begins having restaurant menus faxed to Elaine’s apartment, thinking she in fact has a fax machine. Elaine later gets a 212 area code number registered from her dead neighbor, and is forced to tell her grandson that his grandmother has died.

Kruger Industrial Smoothing (NOT REAL)
101 Park Ave., New York, NEW YORK (map)
nearest subway: Grand Central – 42nd Street (4,5,6,7)
In trying to give himself a cool nickname, George starts to refer to himself as “T-Bone”…but ends up being stuck with the nickname “Koko” instead.

NEW JERSEY (map)
When Elaine gives a guy her new 646 number, he guesses that the area code serves New Jersey.

1st St. and First Ave., New York, NEW YORK (map)
nearest subway: Second Avenue (F)
Kramer gets lost downtown after going to Madeleine’s apartment, desperately calling Jerry to get picked up (“How can the same street intersect with itself? I must be at the nexus of the universe!”). Inspired by this episode, a nearby nightclub renamed itself to the Nexus Lounge (76 E. 1st St.).

Original Ray’s Pizza (NOW CLOSED)
195 E. Houston St., New York, NEW YORK (map)
nearest subway: Second Avenue (F)
Kramer spots a Ray’s Pizza to locate himself…not Famous Ray’s, not Famous Original Ray’s, “it’s just Original Ray’s Jerry!”

W.R. Grace Building
41 W. 42nd St., New York, NEW YORK (map)
nearest subway: 5th Avenue (7)
Mr. Kruger begins discussing a stain on the building, when Coco puts forth a suggestion for cleaning that she learned from her Gammy.

JAMAICA (map)
Coco the cleaning woman (who George hires to discredit his “Koko” nickname) reveals she is from Jamaica, and was taught to clean by her Gammy.