The classic Seinfeld episode you forgot that the Farrell brothers worked on

Peter and Bobby Farrelly were complete unknowns in 1994 when they stormed the multiplexes with the comedy hit Dumb and Dumber. It was Jim Carrey's third film of the year and by far the funniest. With its unabashed, crass gags (Jeff Daniels' explosive diarrhea sequence is a very low-form classic) and aggressively goofy desperation, the film ushered in a new era of tongue-in-cheek humor that made Jerry Lewis' work look like drawing-room farce. (/The film “Dumb and Dumber” ranks the Farrellys' best work to date.) The Farrellys then doubled down on their smash hit with 1996's box office disappointment The Kingpin, before making a splash two years later with the blistering blockbuster There's Something About Mary.

While people in the industry were partially familiar with the Farrellys as the deliverymen of comedy pitches, mainstream moviegoers were surprised, well, dumb with their rapid ascent. Those hungry for more Farrelly comedies in anticipation of the brothers' fourth film, Me, Myself & Irene, took to IMDb to search for past credits. They found writing credits for Peter on a 1987 Paul Reiser comedy special and, most interestingly, a story credit for Peter and Bobby on “Seinfeld.” But while no one was surprised to learn that these two comedy dynamos were written for the funniest sitcom of the 1990s, their quirky style was a bit over the top for the gritty series.

So, which episode of “Seinfeld” was itand why didn't they write more?

Peter and Bobby Farrelly share a story with longtime “Seinfeld” writer and producer Peter Meelman in the Season 4 episode “The Virgin.” The series has many classic episodes, but if you're a fan of the show, it should jump out at you for a number of reasons. After all, it's the one where a) George fires Susan from NBC for kissing him in front of a co-worker, b) Jerry starts dating virgin Marla, played by future “Frasier” star Jane Leaves, and c) Elaine creates tension . between Jerry and Marla blurting out the story of her diaphragm.

Nothing in this episode would be considered outside the bounds of a network sitcom today, but in 1992, Elaine's repeated, overtly emphatic utterances of the word “diaphragm” may have caused some redneck parents to suddenly flip the channel to PBS. This fast-growing part of the business, which earned hearty laughs, feels like an early, retro Farrellys. Was it? Maybe not.

The 2014 Reddit AMAthe brothers explained that their involvement in the episode ended with their pitch. In their own words:

PETE: We hate to burst your bubble. But we sold the idea … and we were assigned a story on it. But the actual screenplay was written by Peter Mehlman. We sold the idea in a room where we featured Larry David, Jerry Seinfeld and Larry Charles. By the way, those guys don't laugh when you offer them ideas; it was very scary. At least they didn't with us.

BOBBY: So it was very scary.

PETE: But we were very happy that they bought at least one of our ideas, and that was “The Virgin.”

I can't imagine making a sitcom for two geniuses like Seinfeld and David and getting a stone-faced response. It's like the nuclear version of bombing a stage at a comedy club (really, “Seinfeld” writers room was not typical). But they survived and sold the series, and two years later had Dumb and Dumber cashing in theaters. So concludes the Farrellys' showbiz origin story.