'Marriage Ref' is all in fun

PASADENA, Calif. - NBC's new series The Marriage Ref offers average couples the chance to air their differences on national television and have the argument settled by the show's resident referee, Tom Papa.

The show also marks the return of Jerry Seinfeld to network TV - he's the executive producer and an occasional guest panelist.

The Marriage Ref debuts at

10:30 p.m. Sunday before sliding into its regular time slot at 10 p.m. Thursdays on NBC, WNWO-TV, Channel 24, in Toledo.

Don't expect big fights about divorce, children, finances, or politics. The on-air arbitration will be about simple arguments - like whether it's right for a husband to park his motorcycle in the living room or whether the family pet should be stuffed after it dies.

There will be prizes, but nothing substantial. Seinfeld says just ending the argument will be reward enough.

Papa says "This is all light and funny. It's all just silly. And we find in our marriages if you laugh at all these crazy situations, you survive. And that's what this show's about, surviving. We want these marriages to flourish and be OK, so we just want to have a laugh with it all."

The show's rotating celebrity panel will include Alec Baldwin, Tina Fey, Eva Longoria, Charles Barkley, Larry David, and even Seinfeld. The only job for the panel is to be funny; they will have no influence on the final decision, made solely by Papa.

Seinfeld's already learned one way to avoid having to go to the marriage ref: Never set yourself up for an argument. He might have executive producer next to his name, but he publicly credits his wife of 10 years, Jessica, with coming up with the show's concept.

The Seinfelds were having a dispute in front of a friend. Instead of letting the friend leave, they asked for an outside opinion that would be binding. That moment spawned The Marriage Ref.