Elaine's (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) dancing in this episode was inspired by the Saturday Night Live (1975) boss Lorne Michaels. Seinfeld writer, Spike Feresten, started his career as a receptionist at SNL and has said that at a SNL after-party, he saw Michaels dance "as if he'd never seen another human being dance before" and that he "heaved and gyrated to a rhythm only he could feel."
One of the fictional movie titles used in this episode was "Death Blow." In 1995, an aspiring filmmaker took out a full-page ad in Variety, seeking a $100,000 investment in his screenplay. Episode writer Spike Feresten liked the title and decided to use it for this episode.
Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) makes the following toast during a Peterman company party: "Here's to those who wish us well, and those who don't can go to hell." This was inspired by episode writer Spike Feresten's grandmother, who used to make the exact same declaration at his family Thanksgiving dinner every year.
When George (Jason Alexander) is ironing his pants while talking to Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and Anna (Rebecca McFarland) on the speaker phone, George has hamsters. There is a little white hamster climbing through a colorful hamster tube behind him.
According to Julia Louis-Dreyfus, the key to the comedy in her dancing was to look as ridiculous as possible while keeping her face full of confidence and thorough enjoyment. It was important to her to look like a fool but also be funny. In this sense, in spite of the fact that she was deliberately dancing poorly, she was going for a feeling of humiliation, as she wanted people to laugh *at* her more than *with* her.