Standard Deviation

Standard Deviation
Frank and Marie in "Standard Deviation"
Season	1
Episode	4
Air Date	October 4, 1996 USA September 7, 2004 Canada
Cast	Ray Romano Patricia Heaton Brad Garrett Doris Roberts Peter Boyle Tom McGowan Maggie Wheeler
Director(s)	Jeff Meyer
Writer(s)	Steve Skrovan
Preceded by	I Wish I Were Gus
Followed by	Look Don't Touch

Standard Deviation is the 4^th episode of Season 1, and is episode 4 of the full 210 episodes for the entire series. In this episode, Robert gives both Ray and Debra an IQ test for a criminal justice class he's taking. But when Ray and Debra find out how different their scores are, the tension grows between them.

Episode Information

• Episode Title: Standard Deviation
• Episode Number: Season 1, Episode 4 (#4 of 210)
• Air Date: October 4, 1996
• Episode description (from DVD): "Robert gets Ray and Debra to take an IQ test. Debra scores fifteen points higher than Ray: She is in a whole other world of smarts. The next day, Robert says he made a mistake. It was actually Ray who scored higher."
• Cast:
  • Ray Romano as Ray
  • Patricia Heaton as Debra
  • Brad Garrett as Robert
  • Doris Roberts as Marie
  • Peter Boyle as Frank
  • Tom McGowan as Bernie
  • Maggie Wheeler as Linda
• Crew:
  • Jeff Meyer - Director
  • Steve Skrovan - Writer
• Preceded by: "I Wish I Were Gus"
• Followed by: "Look Don't Touch"

Synopsis

Robert tells Ray and Debra that he has to perform some IQ tests for a class he's taking for the police department. Robert asks them if they'll help him out by taking the test. Ray refuses, but Debra gives in and says they'll do it.

After taking the tests, Robert announces that Debra scored higher than Ray, that she is the smarter one. This causes Ray to get depressed, but after a day, he hams it up to get Debra to do things for him.

Robert later tells them that he may have "jumbled" the scores. He says Ray actually scored higher. Ray and Debra inevitably start fighting over it.

Toward the end of the episode, Robert confesses that the real test he performed for his class was the reactions between the two people when they found out which one was much smarter. Then Frank and Marie walk into the scene. Marie is upset because Frank ended up scoring higher than her on the tests. Robert exits and says that the test on Frank and Marie was considered extra credit for the class.

Running Gags

This episode shows Robert having a lot of nervous ticks and quirks, including touching wooden blocks to his chin.

Trivia

• Similar to a few of the early episodes, there was a slight mistake with the staging and positioning of the cameras in the studio. Mirrors and microphones can be seen in the top of the kitchen scenes.

Production Notes

• By production order, this is the fifth episode of the first season.
• Bruce Kirschbaum takes over for Stephen Nathan as co-executive producer.
• Jerry Davis takes over for George Escobar as editor.
• Kenneth R. Shapiro takes over for Dan Fendel as technical coordinator, but he is created as Kenneth A. Shapiro in this episode and the next.
• Today's syndicated reruns show an alternate version of the Where's Lunch dish from Who's Handsome? The dish is less centered, and on a completely different angle.

Quotes

• Ray: "Mmmm... Fudgy."