Plot

Jerry's Pez dispenser makes Elaine laugh during George's girlfriend's piano recital and puts their relationship in jeopardy; Kramer joins the Polar Bear Club.

George invites Elaine and Jerry to go with him to his girlfriend's piano recital. In the middle of the performance, however, Jerry places a Pez dispenser on her lap and she bursts out laughing. George's girlfriend doesn't know who laughed and George doesn't tell her. But he is sure she will now break up with him, and Kramer advises him to stage a preemptive break-up before she gets the chance.—garykmcd

George's new girlfriend Noel is a classical pianist. George is troubled over the fact that he has no "hand" (upper hand) in the relationship with Noel and fears his girlfriend will break up with him. George has 2 extra tickets to Noel's next concert and invites Jerry and Elaine to accompany him. Kramer bought a Pez dispenser at the flea market and gives it to Jerry as he is fascinated by it.

The sudden appearance of Jerry's Tweety Bird Pez dispenser (when Jerry puts it on her lap) causes Elaine to laugh loudly at a piano recital given by George's girlfriend Noel (Elizabeth Morehead). Noel is super angry but doesn't know who laughed at her concert. George asks Elaine not to say anything to Noel. If she thinks that George's friends are a jerk, then by association he will appear as a jerk too. Noel reveals that she was humiliated by that person laughing during her performance. Noel thinks that the person was laughing at her. George wants to take Noel out for dinner, but she shuts him down by saying that she doesn't feel like it. Noel owns George.

Kramer creates a cologne that smells of the beach. He takes the concept to a few marketers who laugh him out of their offices. They say beach smells like dead fish and seaweed and this is why people take a bath when they come home from the beach. Nobody is going to pay $80 for this smell. Kramer finally manages to convince a company to manufacture it for him.

Elaine runs into an old friend John Mollica. He talks about a common friend named Richie Appel, who has developed a drug problem and won't check into rehab. Elaine suggests that he hold an intervention. Mollica says that Richie won't listen to anyone except Jerry. Jerry hosts an intervention for an old friend ("Richie Appel," an inside reference to comedy writer and Simpsons producer Richard Appel) with a drug problem. Jerry's friend developed a drug problem because back in the years, when they used to work together, Kramer told him to pour Gatorade on Marty Benson's head after winning a corporate softball game. Marty Benson was 67 years old, and it was very cold outside. The club owner developed pneumonia and eventually died. Kramer invites himself to Richie's intervention.

George tells Jerry and Kramer that Noel has demoted him from dinner dates to lunch. He can feel that she is going to break up with him. He has no hand in the relationship. Acting on "genius" advice from Kramer, George "pre-emptively breaks up" with her, causing her to want him more and thus giving him the "hand." Noel promises to thank about George all the time, when she plays the piano.

Later, at the intervention, George's girlfriend Noel hears Elaine laughing, realizes that it was Elaine who ruined her concert (although Elaine blames it on Jerry), and walks out on George.

Later Jerry relates that Richie agreed to enter rehab after seeing the Pez dispenser, which brought up a childhood memory and caused him to admit his drug problem. Jerry then mentions that Richie is doing great in rehab but is now addicted to Pez.