By Witney Seibold
Copyright slashfilm
In the “Seinfeld” episode “The Contest” (November 18, 1992), Jerry (Jerry Seinfeld), Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), George (Jason Alexander), and Kramer (Michael Richards) make a bet. It seems that George was recently caught doing the five-knuckle shuffle by his elderly mother, leaving her in the hospital and him utterly mortified. So traumatized by the incident, George says he’s going to forego self-love altogether. Jerry says that George will resume the practice in no time, and even bets him $100 that he’ll start up again posthaste. Indeed, all four of them put in money, betting that they could each make it the longest without touching their junk.
The episode jokes that the word “masturbating” isn’t used. Instead, they use terms like “master of my domain,” as well as other colorful euphemisms for the practice. It’s often considered one of the best episodes of “Seinfeld.” Naturally, all four of them will be variously tempted by sexual imagery they encounter in their everyday lives, from sexy women undressing in public view to hunky men doing aerobics. Just as naturally, they will all lose mastery of their own domain by the end of the episode.
Modulating one’s self-pleasure habits has become unusually popular in recent years, and there have been reports on a growing subculture of people, mostly men, who are forcing themselves to go through prolonged periods of abstinence. Some people feel that giving up onanism will allow for healthier sexual relationships with other people.
It seems that “The Contest,” dovetailing with the emergence of “gooning,” served as the primary inspiration for a Netflix dating game show called “Too Hot to Handle” in 2020. It was a show wherein attractive, oversexed, high-libido young contestants were gathered in a romantic, exotic setting, and told they could win $100,000 if they refrained from sex, kissing, or getting off for four straight weeks. Laura Gibson, the co-creator of “Too Hot to Handle,” talked about the “Seinfeld” influence in a 2024 interview with Deadline.
