Misplaced Pages

#356643

161-530: Most of The Simpsons media satire focuses on television. This is mainly done through three characters: Krusty the Clown , Sideshow Bob , and until 1998 Troy McClure . The Itchy & Scratchy Show is a show within a show , used as a satire of animation and in some cases The Simpsons itself. Topics include censorship, plagiarism, unoriginal writing, live-action clip shows and documentaries. Kent Brockman , Springfield's principal news presenter illustrates

322-399: A clown and make people laugh, believing that it would distract Herschel from his religion, wanting the boy to go to yeshiva instead. However, Krusty performed slapstick comedy , obscuring this from his father. However, Herschel was performing at a rabbis' convention when one joking rabbi squirted seltzer on him, washing off his clown makeup. When Rabbi Krustofsky discovered Herschel was

483-475: A pilot script in which Krusty moved to Los Angeles and hosted his own talk show. A recurring joke throughout the script was that Krusty lived in a house on wooden stilts which were continuously being gnawed by beavers . Eventually, the contract negotiations fell apart, and Groening decided to stop work on the project. Prior to Groening's live-action pitch, Simpsons showrunners Al Jean and Mike Reiss planned an animated Krusty spin-off in which he would be

644-401: A speculative bubble covering roughly 1995–2000. In their article "15 Simpsons Moments That Perfectly Captured Their Eras", The A.V. Club wrote: "By April 2002, the dot-com bubble of the late '90s had been popped for a couple of years, taking with it myriad Internet start-ups. A sobering soul-searching settled in their place, which The Simpsons captured in this episode about Bart creating

805-610: A third nipple , a veal-shaped birthmark , and a scar on his chest as a result of having a pacemaker inserted into his heart after suffering from a heart attack on-air in 1986. In the " Once Upon a Time in Springfield ", Krusty's age is revealed to be 52. Krusty first appeared in "The Krusty the Clown Show", one of the Simpsons shorts from The Tracey Ullman Show that first aired on January 15, 1989. The character

966-565: A "classic" work must have a musical composer that is deceased, and be devoid of light-shows or glitter balls. Koenigsberger uses this example to discuss Homer's application of "a strategy characteristic of literary modernism". Krusty the Clown Herschel Shmoikel Pinchas Yerucham Krustofsky ( Yiddish : ‏הערשעל שמױקל פּינחס ירוחם קרוסטאָפֿסקי ; Hebrew : הירשל שמויקל פנחס ירוחם קרוסטופסקי ), better known by his stage name Krusty

1127-412: A "mass-culture upbringing" and thus is Bob's enemy. Turner writes that Bob is built into a highbrow snob and conservative Republican so that the writers can continually hit him with a rake and bring him down. Troy McClure is a stereotypical Hollywood has-been. He was a star in the early 1970s, but his career went downhill due to rumors of a paraphilia involving fish . In most of his appearances in

1288-573: A 2007 article on Simpsons guest stars, Adam Finley of TV Squad wrote that McClure was "responsible for some of the funniest moments in Simpsons history." Hartman ranked first on AOL 's list of their favorite 25 Simpsons guest stars. Chris Turner argues in Planet Simpson that McClure and Lionel Hutz "together ... represent the most significant contribution to the show outside of its permanent cast," adding that "the show's Golden Age

1449-476: A business point-of-view. They try to incorporate what they see as a rebellious character into a failing television show with the comment "This is popular with the kids", but the viewers later reject the character. The Fox network itself is often the target of jokes. In " Missionary: Impossible " the episode cuts away from the main story near the end to a telethon, populated by Bender (from Futurama ), Thurgood Stubbs (from The PJs ), Hank Hill (from King of

1610-594: A captured Homer appears to be the culprit until Maggie pulls off a mask, revealing Krusty. In the episode " Homie the Clown ", Homer goes to Clown College and dresses up as—and is confused with—Krusty. The Krusty character was originally conceived as just a normal man wearing clown makeup, but David Silverman noted that "at some point, we decided he looked [like a clown] all the time". The producers had long discussions about whether or not Krusty would always remain in his clown makeup but eventually decided that it did not matter. The writers had tried showing Krusty's real face

1771-621: A cartoon theme park called Krustyland. Sideshow Bob makes an appearance and tries to murder the Simpson family. In July 2007, convenience store chain 7-Eleven converted eleven of its stores in the United States and one in Canada into Kwik-E-Marts to celebrate the release of The Simpsons Movie . Amongst the products sold were " Krusty-O's ", which were made by Malt-O-Meal . In 2015, Krusty had its first merchandise experience during

SECTION 10

#1732790674357

1932-528: A celebrity and is unconvinced when Bart reminds him of his fans and his entourage. Finally, Bart tells Krusty that leaving show business would mean losing his celebrity status, which convinces Krusty to return. Krusty has been described as "the consummate showman who can't bear the possibility of not being on the air and not entertaining people." In " Mr. Spritz Goes to Washington ", Bart convinces Krusty to run for Congress so that Krusty can introduce an airline rerouting bill and stop planes from flying over

2093-575: A comeback after his show is cancelled, then a simple ceremony intended to reconnect with his father. After leaving the Lower East Side of Springfield, Krusty started his show biz career as a street mime in Tupelo, Mississippi ( Elvis Presley 's birthplace). Krusty later discovers that he has a daughter named Sophie. He had met Sophie's mother Erin when Erin was a soldier in the Gulf War and he

2254-456: A computer and creates his own website to spread fake news. He defends his action towards Bart by stating "Real news is great , son, but I'm getting a thousand hits an hour with Grade A bull plop". In his review of The Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season , DVD Movie Guide's Colin Jacobson wrote that he enjoyed the episode's take on "Internet idiocy". He wrote, "Some parts of it feel dated, but

2415-533: A failing show adds a new character or twist to boost ratings. Before production of season eight began, Fox executives suggested the staff to add a new character to the show, who would live with the Simpsons on a permanent basis. The staff, amused with the idea, decided to write this episode as a commentary on what it was like to work on a television show that had been on the air for several years. Parallel to Poochie being introduced on Itchy & Scratchy, they inserted

2576-407: A family and their life in a typical American town. However, its animated nature gives The Simpsons an unusually large scope. The town of Springfield acts as a complete universe in which characters can explore the issues faced by modern society. The town has a vast array of media channels—from children's television series to local news , which enables the producers to make jokes about themselves and

2737-411: A few times in early episodes, but decided that it did not look right, although his real face was seen in " Krusty Gets Busted " and " Like Father, Like Clown ". Later episodes made jokes about Krusty's face. In " Homer's Triple Bypass ", Krusty reveals that his "grotesque appearance" is the result of multiple heart attacks. Homer remarks that he seems fine, and Krusty replies, "This ain't makeup." In " Bart

2898-473: A fortune gambling on everything from horse races to operas and betting against the Harlem Globetrotters . Krusty is a hard-living entertainment veteran, sometimes depicted as a jaded, burned-out has-been, who has been down and out several times and remains addicted to gambling , cigarettes, alcohol , Percodan , Pepto-Bismol , and Xanax . He instantly becomes depressed as soon as

3059-477: A green space alien named Ozmodiar that only he can see. Television advertisements are also parodied. As an example there is a song and visual sequence in the episode " The Last Temptation of Krust " that was modeled after Ford commercials. The sequence is a parody of a commercial for a sport utility vehicle, and Hank Williams Jr. sings a song about the fictional "Canyonero" accompanied by country guitar music and whip cracks. The song "Canyonero" closely resembles

3220-557: A large issue, the writers tried not to have a point of view and looked at both sides, despite what the writers personally felt. The episode " Itchy & Scratchy Land " was written as a response to new, more stringent censorship laws that had been put in place. As a result, the Fox network tried to stop the writers from including Itchy & Scratchy cartoons in episodes. In response, the writers created this episode, which they decided would be as violent as possible. The network threatened that if

3381-515: A one-dimensional character with a silly catchphrase". The episode ends with a self-referential scene in which several characters say their catchphrases, including the Simpsons, Ned Flanders , Nelson Muntz , Mr. Burns and Barney Gumble . The episode " Behind the Laughter " was a parody of the music documentary series Behind the Music , which was popular during the episode's production. It tells

SECTION 20

#1732790674357

3542-535: A playable character in the toys-to-life video game Lego Dimensions , released via a "Fun Pack" packaged with a Clown Bike accessory in November 2015. In game, his only ability is being able to spray water and all his voice lines are archive audio from Dan Castellaneta. In The Simpsons Ride , a simulator ride opened at Universal Studios Florida and Universal Studios Hollywood in May 2008, Krusty builds and opens

3703-417: A popular Internet cartoon called Angry Dad . Touring the laid-back start-up that hosts the cartoons, Lisa asks head honcho Todd Linux about their business model. 'How many shares of stock will it take to end this conversation?' he retorts. Lisa asks for two million, which Linux grabs from a paper-towel dispenser. When Bart and Lisa return later, the company has gone bust, and Linux is stealing copper wire out of

3864-410: A public place. He often presents educational videos and infomercials . They are often low-quality, highly erroneous and too short and incomplete to be useful. McClure introduces himself by saying, "Hi, I'm Troy McClure. You may remember me from such [films, educational videos, voiceovers, etc.] as...," mentioning two titles that are similar to his current performance. For example, in the episode " Bart

4025-399: A rabbi. Krusty's real last name, Krustofsky, was pitched by Al Jean . Krusty's father Rabbi Hyman Krustofsky was played by Jackie Mason , who won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance for the episode. It was established in " Krusty Gets Busted " that Krusty is illiterate. This was shown in subsequent episodes like " Itchy & Scratchy & Marge " but the trait

4186-524: A role in this satire. Krusty the Clown is a hard-living entertainment veteran, who has his own show: The Krusty the Klown Show , which is aimed towards a children's audience and has many followers, including Bart Simpson . He is sometimes depicted as a jaded, burned out has-been, who has been down and out several times and remains addicted to gambling, cigarettes, alcohol, Percodan , Pepto-Bismol , and Xanax . He instantly becomes depressed as soon as

4347-474: A scene from " Homer Defined " that shows Homer reading a USA Today with the cover story: "America's Favorite Pencil – #2 is #1". Lisa sees this title and criticizes the newspaper as a "flimsy hodge-podge of high-brass factoids and Larry King ", to which Homer responds that it is "the only paper in America that's not afraid to tell the truth: that everything is just fine." In the book, Gray says this scene

4508-417: A shorthand way to describe any grossly artificial media figure." In addition to his in-story appearances, McClure appears as host of " The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular " and " The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase ". Back when The Simpsons was developed as a half hour show, co-creator James L. Brooks negotiated an unusual provision in the contract with the Fox network that prevented Fox from interfering with

4669-466: A show needs expanding or when there is an issue that the writers wish to satirize. In some cases, notably in "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show", the writers use Itchy & Scratchy as a way to comment on The Simpsons . Several episodes that centered on Itchy and Scratchy dealt with censorship issues. In the episode " Itchy & Scratchy & Marge ", Marge successfully forms a protest group that forces network to take Itchy and Scratchy off

4830-558: A single father in New York City. Supporting characters would include a prickly make-up lady and a boss resembling Ted Turner . This unsuccessful pitch was later reworked into the animated series The Critic . Krusty has been included in many Simpsons publications, toys and other merchandise. Krusty-themed merchandise includes dolls, posters , figurines, Jack-in-the-boxes , Pint glasses , bobblehead dolls , costumes , and clothing such as T-shirts . Playmates Toys has made

4991-470: A talking evil Krusty doll, based on the one that appeared in " Treehouse of Horror III ". In 1992, Acclaim Entertainment released the video game Krusty's Fun House for PC and home consoles. Krusty was made into an action figure, and several different versions were included as part of the World of Springfield toy line. The first, which shows Krusty in his normal clown attire with several Krusty products,

Media in The Simpsons - Misplaced Pages Continue

5152-420: A theme which became less important as the show developed. One concept initially saw Krusty being revealed as Homer's secret identity but the idea was dropped for being too complex and because the writers were too busy developing the series. There are two instances of the one assuming the identity of the other. In a Butterfinger commercial depicting a contest for $ 50,000 to find out who stole Bart's Butterfinger,

5313-428: A tribute to Bob, however, Bob has a change of heart and stops Bart from fulfilling his mission. Bob and Krusty later reconcile, with Krusty exclaiming that Bob's attempts at Krusty's life make his ratings shoot through the roof. This reconciliation remains for the rest of the series, as Bob abandons his attempts for revenge on Krusty in favor of targeting Bart exclusively. Bart Simpson is one of Krusty's biggest fans. In

5474-457: A variety of substandard products and services, from Krusty alarm clocks to Krusty crowd control barriers . Many of these products are potentially dangerous, such as Krusty's brand of cereal , Krusty-O's, which in one episode boasts a jagged metal Krusty-O in each box. One of many lawsuits regarding these products is launched by Bart, who eats a jagged metal Krusty-O by mistake and has to have his appendix removed. The "Krusty Korporation,"

5635-828: A very raspy voice and portrayed WGN-TV 's Bozo the Clown from 1960 to 1984. Krusty has been compared to an earlier incarnation named "Flunky the Late Night viewer mail clown" who had appeared on Late Night with David Letterman . Jeff Martin , a writer on Letterman’s show, created and played the character. Martin also went on to become a writer on The Simpsons writing episodes that included Krusty. Many events in Krusty's life parallel those of comedian Jerry Lewis , including his Jewish background, addiction to Percodan, hosting of telethons, and appearance in an adaptation of The Jazz Singer . When asked, Groening has simply noted that "[ Simpsons ] characters are collaborations between

5796-431: Is a behind-the-scenes look at The Simpsons , answering questions and featuring extra "never-before-seen" material. The second is an episode presenting three possible spin-offs from The Simpsons . McClure was made into an action figure as part of the World of Springfield toy line, and was released in the "Celebrity Series 1" wave in 2002. He also features briefly in the video game Virtual Springfield , introducing

5957-461: Is a favorite of many staff members, and has been cited as one of the series' best episodes by several publications. Entertainment Weekly placed the episode eighth on their top 25 The Simpsons episode list, and IGN named the episode the best of the seventh season , calling it the "obvious pick". They also deemed McClure's Planet of the Apes musical the best moment of the episode and "maybe even

6118-665: Is accused of fraud, when the original authorship of the characters comes into question. When the owner pleads his case in court, he mentions that several animated television series and characters were plagiarized from other series and characters: "Animation is built on plagiarism! If it weren't for someone plagiarizing The Honeymooners , we wouldn't have The Flintstones . If someone hadn't ripped off Sergeant Bilko , there'd be no Top Cat !. Huckleberry Hound , Chief Wiggum , Yogi Bear ? Andy Griffith , Edward G. Robinson , Art Carney !" The character Kent Brockman functions as The Simpsons ' s main character for news parodies. He

6279-520: Is actually a cynical, burnt-out, addiction-riddled smoker who is made miserable by show business but continues on anyway. He has become one of the most frequently occurring characters outside the main Simpson family and has been the focus of many episodes, some of which also feature Sideshow Bob . Krusty was created by cartoonist Matt Groening and partially inspired by Rusty Nails , a television clown from Groening's hometown of Portland , Oregon . He

6440-445: Is eventually foiled by Bart. Bob is replaced by Sideshow Mel, who has remained loyal to Krusty despite being constantly abused by Krusty as well. Krusty seems to retire from—and then get back into—show business repeatedly throughout his career. One of his retirements is almost made permanent due to just- paroled Sideshow Bob's latest scheme: wiring plastic explosives to a hypnotized Bart and sending Bart onstage. When Krusty makes

6601-438: Is hard to imagine without them." He continues, "The smarmy Hollywood type ... has been done to death, but Hartman's version breathed new life into it with each appearance. McClure has become the apotheosis of the stereotype, a gut-achingly funny reinterpretation whose trademark introduction ... has become a shorthand way to describe any grossly artificial media figure." McClure's most prominent episode, " A Fish Called Selma ",

Media in The Simpsons - Misplaced Pages Continue

6762-528: Is joined by Scott Christian and Arnie Pye on the Channel 6 news team. Originally, Scott Christian was the anchor and Brockman was the field reporter, but the show shifted focus to Brockman. Arnie Pye is a helicopter-based traffic reporter that sometimes helps with field reports other than traffic. In most of his appearances, Brockman seems more interested in entertaining the viewers than informing them of real news. In " Homer Loves Flanders " Brockman calls

6923-449: Is of low quality, to the point of being potentially dangerous. While Krusty represents low culture , Sideshow Bob represents high culture . He began his career as the non-speaking sidekick on Krusty the Clown 's television show. Frustrated by his early role as the target of "Krusty's cheap gags", Bob frames Krusty and takes over the show. He changes the content of that show to present readings of classic literature and segments examining

7084-547: Is often isolated from mainstream media, so the characters do not seem to know of other ones. Dave Shutton is a reporter for The Springfield Shopper . He became less used since the episode " Two Cars in Every Garage and Three Eyes on Every Fish " and has been reduced to cameo appearances and appearances in crowd scenes. Other newspapers are seldom mentioned on the show. In his book Watching with The Simpsons: Television, Parody, and Intertextuality , Jonathan Gray discusses

7245-521: Is set fifteen years in the future, Krusty's design was significantly altered to make him look considerably older and was based on Groucho Marx . Krusty is a favorite character of several of the original writers, many of whom related themselves to him and wanted to write the Krusty-focused episodes. Krusty was used as a chance for show business jokes. Thus, many of Krusty's experiences and anecdotes are based on real experiences and stories heard by

7406-417: Is shown being pestered by network executives who comment on every choice he makes. He announces his departure of The Krusty the Klown Show after the executives give him notes during filming of a sketch. At the end of the episode, Mr. Teeny is uncertain of where he should throw the plastic explosives that Bart wore. When he sees the two executives discussing in a room, he throws it onto them. Instead of dying of

7567-465: Is that we pretty much were able to get away with everything, so there weren't any episodes we really wanted to do that we couldn't do. Even the crazy high-concept ones like ' Two Bad Neighbors ' and ' Homer's Enemy ' we managed to put on the air because honestly there were no network execs there to stop us." Network notes were parodied at the beginning of the episode " Day of the Jackanapes ". Krusty

7728-443: Is the first to establish that Krusty is Jewish. Krusty's religion had not been part of the original concept, and the idea came from Jay Kogen . The episode is a parody of The Jazz Singer , which is about a son with a strict religious upbringing who defies his father to become an entertainer. In order to make "Like Father, Like Clown" a full parody of The Jazz Singer , the decision was made to make Krusty Jewish and have his father be

7889-451: Is unwilling to bring a child into a loveless relationship and decides to leave McClure. McClure ultimately gets the role, but turns it down in order to direct and star in his own pet project, a 20th Century Fox film called The Contrabulous Fabtraption of Professor Horatio Hufnagel . In addition to his in-story appearances, McClure appears as host of " The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular " and " The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase ". The first

8050-400: Is used by the show's producers to criticize "how often the news is wholly toothless, sacrificing journalism for sales, and leaving us not with important public information, but with America's Favorite Pencil". Four months after the airing of a first episode " Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire ", the newsgroup alt.tv.simpsons was created by Gary D. Duzan during the third week of March 1990. It

8211-538: The 1982 Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands . During the series, the Krusty the Clown Show is shown to be aimed almost entirely at children. It features many characters, including Sideshow Mel , Mr. Teeny , Tina Ballerina, and Corporal Punishment . Sideshow Bob begins the series as Krusty's main sidekick . However, years of constant abuse lead to Bob framing Krusty for armed robbery , although Bob

SECTION 50

#1732790674357

8372-624: The United States Army a "kill-bot factory" in a news broadcast. Mirkin said this was a joke the staff "particularly loved to do" because it pointed out how negative and mean-spirited news broadcasts can be, and how they are seemingly "always trying to scare everybody" by creating panic and depression. Turner said that "in Brockman's journalism, we see some of the modern news media's ugliest biases", of which he says are glibness, amplification, and sensationalism. MSN called Brockman one of

8533-424: The entertainment industry . On the radio, the citizens of Springfield have fictional radio stations such as KBBL-AM, KBBL-FM, KUDD, WKOMA, KJAZZ, KFSL, and WOMB. Using The Simpsons as an example of Media literacy education, Jonathan Gray discusses the role that television, and specifically television parody, might play in teaching the techniques and rhetoric of television to audiences. Several characters have

8694-458: The show runner at the time, felt very strongly about the " tabloidization of the media" and has said that the episode is as current today as it was at the time and things have since gotten worse. Several gags in the episode are based on what real life shows like Hard Copy would do, such as making people look to be guilty without a trial as well as a complete invasion of privacy by setting up camp outside people's homes. The talk show "Ben" reflects

8855-468: The "unsavory" sexual preference would be, but eventually decided on a fish fetish, using a suggestion from executive producer James L. Brooks . Josh Weinstein described the fish fetish concept as "so perverted and strange, it was over the top." Phil Hartman was murdered in 1998. Rather than re-casting the role with a new voice actor, the production staff retired McClure, along with Hartman's other recurring character, Lionel Hutz . McClure last appeared in

9016-474: The AW15 influence. In 2004, Dan Castellaneta won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance in " Today I Am a Clown ", an episode that heavily features Krusty. Several episodes featuring Krusty have been very well received. In 2007, Vanity Fair named " Krusty Gets Kancelled " as the ninth best episode of The Simpsons . John Ortved felt, "This is Krusty's best episode – better than

9177-536: The Canyonero reflected an "anti-SUV" stance by The Simpsons . In an article in the San Francisco Chronicle about SUV owners, Vicki Haddock wrote "SUV owners have become something of a punch line, succinctly captured in a "Simpsons" parody touting the apocryphal Canyonero [...]" In his book Watching with The Simpsons: Television, Parody, and Intertextuality , Jonathan Gray analyses a scene from

9338-492: The Clown (sometimes spelled as Krusty the Klown ), is a recurring character on the animated television series The Simpsons . He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta . He is the long-time clown host of Bart and Lisa Simpson 's favorite TV show, a variety show consisting of various kid-friendly sketches and often highly violent cartoons, most notably The Itchy & Scratchy Show . Despite his cheery onscreen persona, Krusty

9499-593: The Clown . Krusty made his television debut on January 15, 1989, in the Tracey Ullman Show short "The Krusty the Clown Show". Herschel Shmoikel Pinchas Yerucham Krustofsky was born in the Lower East Side of Springfield and is the son of Rabbi Hyman Krustofsky . Very little is known about Herschel's mother, aside from her name being Rachel and that she died when Krusty was around thirteen years old. Hyman strongly opposed Krusty's wish to become

9660-477: The Clown Show , which is aimed towards a children's audience and has many followers, including Bart Simpson. Krusty has licensed the show to dozens of countries that produce localized versions, including Ireland , China , Jamaica , and Romania with the original version being the least popular. Krusty's show has gone through various phases: a clip from 1961 presents the show as a serious talk show featuring Krusty interviewing AFL–CIO president George Meany on

9821-460: The Fink ", he abandons an idea to sail away with a new identity and swims towards shore, leaving a trail of yellow makeup in his wake and his natural white face underneath. On shore, he shakes off his black hair, revealing his natural green clown hair, and removes his normal-looking fake nose to reveal his natural red bulbous clown nose underneath. The third season episode " Like Father, Like Clown "

SECTION 60

#1732790674357

9982-664: The Fox network had approached the producers of The Simpsons to create "thirty-five new shows to fill a few holes in their programming line-up". He then shows the viewers a weekly programming schedule consisting of only The Simpsons , The X-files , and Melrose Place surrounded by question marks. Matt Groening notes in an interview that The Simpsons is in a unique place, and when former producers/writers move to different networks, they are told that "We would never have The Simpsons on our network". On this issue Robert Sloane concludes in Leaving Springfield that "In sum,

10143-526: The Hill ), Luke Perry (Dylan in Beverly Hills, 90210 ), David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson ( Mulder and Scully from The X-files ), and the owner of the Fox network Rupert Murdoch . The host, Betty White , tells the viewers "So if you don't want to see crude, lowbrow programming disappear from the airwaves ... please call now". In " The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase ," Troy McClure explains that

10304-511: The Mother ", McClure introduces a film about birds by saying, "Hi, I'm Troy McClure. You may remember me from such nature films as Earwigs: Eww! and Man vs. Nature: The Road to Victory ." When he auditions to voice the character Poochie in "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show" (a role he would lose to Homer Simpson), he falls into his introductory style, mentioning his previous role as Christmas Ape. McClure's most prominent role occurs in

10465-542: The Possibility of Oppositional Culture edited by John Alberti. Koenigsberger comments: "The joke in this opening scene involves a confusion of high and popular artistic production: Marge treats the Springfield Pops as 'culture' and expects that the usually boorish Homer will need to be drawn into the spectacle." However, Koenigsberger notes that Homer actually regards Star Wars as a "classic", implying that

10626-404: The Simpsons that the episode showcases the fact that "the viewing of attractive newscasters and the use of persuasive tones of voice often do have an impact on the minds of many intelligent members of American society." With that said, the episode parodies the relationship between hard and intelligent journalism championed by Lisa and the "Up Close and Personal" style preferred by Bart. Similar to

10787-407: The Simpsons are foreclosed from their house, could have indicated that "the worst of the housing crisis" at the time the article was written, was over. Hoenig based this theory on the fact that shortly after "I Am Furious (Yellow)", which satirizes the dot-com bubble, aired, the dotcom stocks "began a massive rebound from bear-market lows". In the episode " The Computer Wore Menace Shoes ", Homer buys

10948-517: The Simpsons' house. Krusty agrees and runs on the Republican ticket. Although his campaign starts off badly, Lisa suggests that he try connecting with regular families. He does so, resulting in a landslide victory. Krusty's term starts off badly, as he is completely ignored by his new, more politically savvy colleagues. With the help of the Simpsons and an influential doorman , however, Krusty succeeds in passing his bill. His body features include

11109-529: The Ungraspable Double-Codedness of "The Simpsons" as not simply a clip show, "but a ‘clip show’ that looks at the series with a sense of hyper-self-consciousness about its own textuality". Since " Gump Roast ", there have not been any more clip shows. The show now instead produces episodes with three adaptations of existing stories for each act, called "trilogy episodes", rendering a clip show unnecessary. We wanted to do an episode where

11270-432: The air for a long time but was nearing its end. It was intended to show that The Simpsons could still be good after eight seasons, even though it no longer had the "shock value" it did in the early years. The Simpsons would, in a later episode " The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase ," mock the addition of The Great Gazoo into some of the final episodes of The Flintstones by stating that, in future episodes, Homer would meet

11431-414: The air, citing the cartoon violence unsuitable for children. The episode was partially inspired by Terry Rakolta , who protested the Fox network over the show Married... with Children . When Itchy and Scratchy are cancelled, the kids of Springfield resort to playing in a wholesome manner. The montage was a satirical point by saying the opposite of what the writers believed. For the episode, which handles

11592-427: The cameras stop rolling; Marge states in " The Sweetest Apu " that, "off camera, he's a desperately unhappy man." Krusty appears to have used cocaine , one time emerging from a restaurant bathroom with white powder under his nose; however, he explains that he was simply researching a part for a film in which he played himself. In his book Planet Simpson , author Chris Turner describes Krusty as "the wizened veteran,

11753-491: The cameras stop rolling; In his book Planet Simpson: How a Cartoon Masterpiece Documented an Era and Defined a Generation , author Chris Turner describes Krusty as "the wizened veteran, the total pro" who lives the celebrity life but is miserable and needs his celebrity status. Krusty has been described as "the consummate showman who can't bear the possibility of not being on the air and not entertaining people". His television shows are of mixed quality and all of his merchandise

11914-475: The camp director, Mr. Black, brings in Barney Gumble with clown makeup masquerading as Krusty. This pushes Bart over the edge. He decides that he is sick of Krusty's shoddy merchandise and takes over the camp. Krusty immediately visits the camp in hopes of ending the conflict and manages to appease Bart. Krusty is a multimillionaire who has amassed his fortune mostly by licensing his name and image to

12075-521: The character has still appeared in background roles in subsequent episodes, and is also featured on the Digital Purchase cover for season 30 . Even after his retirement, McClure remains a popular supporting character. IGN ranked McClure first in their 2006 list of the "Top 25 Simpsons Peripheral Characters", calling him "a wonderfully bizarre and entertaining character that showcases the best of what small roles on The Simpsons can be." In

12236-425: The character of Grimes, a man who had to work hard all his life with nothing to show for it, and is dismayed and embittered by Homer's success and comfort in spite of his inherent laziness and ignorance. "Homer's Enemy" explores the comic possibilities of a realistic character with a strong work ethic placed alongside Homer in a work environment. In an essay for the book Leaving Springfield , Robert Sloane describes

12397-510: The close of the episode, Grimes, a hard working and persevering "real American hero," is relegated to the role of antagonist; it is intended that the viewer be pleased that Homer has emerged victorious. The episode " Behind the Laughter " is also largely self-referential. A series of T-shirts are shown sporting a number of Bart Simpson catchphrases: "You bet your sweet bippy, man." "Life begins at conception, man." These are parodies of both officially licensed and bootleg Simpsons -themed T-shirts in

12558-409: The clown onstage, he disowned his son and did not speak to him for 25 years. Krusty later reconciled with his father with the assistance of Bart and Lisa Simpson. It was later revealed that Krusty did not have a Bar Mitzvah service, because Hyman feared he would violate the sanctity of the rites by "acting up." Krusty had two adult Bar Mitzvah ceremonies: a Hollywood gala which Krusty uses to stage

12719-614: The company responsible for Krusty's licensing, has also launched a series of disastrous promotions and business ventures, such as sponsoring the 1984 Summer Olympics with a rigged promotion that backfires when the Soviet Union boycotts the games, causing Krusty to lose $ 44 million. In the TV series and comic books , Krusty is also the mascot and owner of the fast foods restaurant chain Krusty Burger . It has been shut down by

12880-466: The early days of the series, usually revolving around Bart . The famous scene of Homer plummeting off the jagged cliffs after trying to jump Springfield Gorge on Bart's skateboard from the season two episode " Bart the Daredevil " is shown, however, "Behind the Laughter" shows us the "unfunny aftermath" of Homer going through physical rehabilitation and becoming addicted to pain pills. The episode states

13041-410: The emotional lives of pre-teens. He believes that by exposing the kids to high culture he will improve their lives. Arnold writes that "Bob's own conscience and morality are clearly unaffected by the high culture he represents." He also tries to "manipulate the tastes of the masses" by becoming a criminal mastermind. In the book Leaving Springfield , David L. G. Arnold comments that Bart is a product of

13202-608: The episode " Girly Edition " in which it is announced that Kidz News has been replaced by the children's cartoon The Mattel and Mars Bar Quick Energy Chocobot Hour (a reference to the Mattel toys and the Mars chocolate bar). He says this mocks "how many children's programs have become little more than the ad to the merchandise". Gray also writes that The Simpsons "illustrates how the ad as genre has itself already invaded many, if not all, genres. Ads and marketing do not limit themselves to

13363-570: The episode " Krusty Gets Busted " he declares, "I've based my entire life on Krusty's teachings," and sleeps in a room filled with Krusty merchandise. He exposes Sideshow Bob's attempted framing, helps Krusty return to the air with a comeback special, reigniting his career, and reunites Krusty with his estranged father. For his part, Krusty is usually grateful for Bart's assistance, but almost immediately forgets about it — presumably due to his excessive drinking and drug habits as well as his general conceitedness — and usually does not even remember his name

13524-433: The episode " The Boy Who Knew Too Much ", Bart Simpson tells Wolfcastle that his "last movie really sucked" with Chief Wiggum adding "Magic Ticket, my ass, McBain!", alluding to Schwarzenegger's film Last Action Hero , which was panned by critics. Wolfcastle owns a restaurant named Planet Springfield, a parody of Planet Hollywood , which Schwarzenegger co-owned with other celebrities. The episode " Radioactive Man " sees

13685-438: The episode " The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular ". Creator Matt Groening was uneasy about the idea, feeling that it could be mistranslated as actually poor sitcom writing. He also did not like the idea of breaking the fourth wall and the concept of saying that the Simpsons were just actors in a television show. The three segments were: Catchphrase-based humor was mocked in the episode " Bart Gets Famous ". The writers chose

13846-646: The episode a "wonderful pastiche" on the Tim Burton Batman films , and several scenes in the episode reference the Batman television series from the 1960s. In the later episode " Homer the Whopper ", writers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg wanted to show how Hollywood generally ruins superhero films . He said that "the whole joke is that Homer is cast to play a guy who's an everyman and they try to make him into this physically fit guy." Rogen also noted that

14007-473: The episode as "an incisive consideration of The Simpsons' s world. Although The Simpsons is known for its self-reflectivity, the show had never looked at (or critiqued) itself as directly as it does in ["Homer's Enemy"]." In the episode, Homer is portrayed as an everyman and the embodiment of the American spirit; however, in some scenes his negative characteristics and silliness are prominently highlighted. By

14168-580: The episode in which the studio executives "are trying to think up an idea that hasn't been done really is what they are doing these days [in real life]". In the season eleven episode " E-I-E-I-(Annoyed Grunt) ", The Simpsons go to a screening of The Poke of Zorro , which is largely a parody of the Zorro film The Mask of Zorro (1998). Jonathan Gray wrote in Watching with The Simpsons: Television, Parody, and Intertextuality that The Poke of Zorro "ridicules

14329-565: The episode was produced, they would cut the Itchy & Scratchy parts out themselves, but relented when showrunner David Mirkin threatened to tell the media. Mirkin further tried to put "as much blood and guts" into the episode " Treehouse of Horror V " as he could. He had received several complaints by the United States Congress about the amount of violence on the show and he did not like their attempt to censor it. The episode

14490-444: The explosion however, the pieces of the executives reconstitute into what Jean describes as a "super-executive". These sequences were inspired by Jean's dissatisfaction with some network executives, who he felt took control over a television series he was working on before he returned to The Simpsons in 1999. "I had just worked on a show on another network [...] we had a show where there were a lot of notes from executives", Jean said of

14651-478: The fictional history of the Simpson family and how they got into show business; from their weak beginnings to their exceptional prosperity. A television show, a recording contract, a lot of awards, and countless wealth follow Homer 's inadequate video " pilot ". It took the writers a long time to conceptualize the show, as they were unsure whether to make Homer a filmmaker or make the characters unaware they were being filmed. The writers had particular fun writing over

14812-463: The film Planet of the Apes . To further boost McClure's career, McClure's agent suggests that he get married. Unaware of McClure's motivation, Selma accepts his proposal, and moves into McClure's house, a Modernist building which resembles the Chemosphere . At his bachelor party , a drunken McClure tells Homer Simpson that the marriage is just a sham to help his career. Homer says nothing at

14973-530: The film version of the comic book series Radioactive Man set up production in Springfield with Wolfcastle starring as the title role. Radioactive Man is a fictional superhero within The Simpsons , who works as a parody of comic books and superheroes in general. The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide , Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, called

15134-425: The glibness, amplification, and sensationalism of broadcast journalism . His tabloidization methods include making people look guilty without trial , and invasion of privacy by setting up camp outside people's homes. The Simpsons is known for its satire of American popular culture and especially television culture. It uses the standard setup of a situation comedy , or sitcom, as its premise and centers on

15295-413: The hand that feeds part of it, Fox broadcasting once again allows its cartoon characters to run wild." After the clip aired, he said "Pinheads? I believe so." In response, the producers added a brief scene at the beginning of the opening sequence of the following episode with a helicopter that bears the slogan "Fox News: Unsuitable for Viewers Under 75." According to showrunner Al Jean , the producers of

15456-414: The health board many times for everything from overworking employees to stapling together half-eaten burgers to make new ones, as well as using beef infected with mad cow disease to save money. Krusty wastes money almost as fast as he earns it: lighting his cigarettes with hundred-dollar bills , eating condor -egg omelettes , spending huge sums on pornographic magazines and call girls , and losing

15617-458: The highlights of his career. The BBC said that "[Hartman's] voice was known to millions" because of McClure and Lionel Hutz . The title of a song on American indie-rock band Yo La Tengo 's ninth full-length album, And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out , "Let's Save Tony Orlando's House", is based upon a telethon that McClure hosts in the episode " Marge on the Lam ". In an interview with

15778-478: The idea of McClure's marriage to Selma Bouvier , as she was "always marrying people". Animator Mark Kirkland was particularly pleased that McClure was the star of the episode. He enjoyed interpreting Hartman's voice-over performances, and the episode allowed him and the other animators to "open [McClure] up visually as a character". Throughout "A Fish Called Selma", it is hinted that McClure engages in strange sexual behavior. The writers did not initially know what

15939-407: The inspiration for the scenes. In " The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show " The Simpsons writers mocks the notion of network executives forcing ideas onto a show. The interaction between the writers and the network executives in the episode underscore the differences between them. The writers understand the show's inner workings, but the network executives' approach improvements to the show from

16100-410: The lesson of "sometimes, you just can't win"—the whole Frank Grimes episode is a study in frustration and hence Homer has the last laugh and (3) we wanted to show that in real life, being Homer Simpson could be really dangerous and life threatening, as Frank Grimes sadly learned. — Josh Weinstein on " Homer's Enemy " in an interview. One of the goals of showrunners Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein

16261-424: The mouse against Scratchy the cat; Itchy is almost always the victor. The show is usually a parody of traditional cartoons or takeoffs on famous films, but the plot and content are always violent. The most direct and obvious example is Tom and Jerry , an animated series which was also about a constant battle between a cat and a mouse, with the mouse usually victorious. Itchy and Scratchy cartoons are often added when

16422-405: The next time they encounter each other. One summer, Bart enthusiastically attends Kamp Krusty, largely because of the promise that he would get to spend his summer with Krusty. The camp turns out to be a disaster, with Krusty nowhere to be seen, as the camp is simply a franchise location to which Krusty has licensed his image. Bart keeps his hopes up by believing that Krusty will show up, but one day

16583-473: The one-time character Roy, with no explanation as to who he was, or why he was there, as a reference to the executive's proposal. Usually, this is a technique used in shows that involves children who have grown up. This was the case in "Oliver" in The Brady Bunch or "Luke" on Growing Pains . The episode was intended to be a commentary on what it was like to work on a television show that had been on

16744-410: The other showrunners have been reading the newsgroup and in frustration said, "Sometimes I feel like knocking their electronic noggins together". Showrunner Bill Oakley used to respond to select Simpsons fans through e-mail in a friendly manner, but by 1996 claimed "[t]here are people who take it seriously to the point of absurdity". The writers sometimes make jokes at the newsgroup's expense. Within

16905-707: The outlandishness of Hollywood blockbuster fare," especially its "blatant historical inaccuracies" which sees the film feature Zorro, King Arthur , the Three Musketeers , the Scarlet Pimpernel , "the Man in the Iron Mask and ninjas in nineteenth century Mexico ". The Buzz Cola advertisement shown before The Poke of Zorro is a parody of the opening Normandy invasion sequence from the film Saving Private Ryan (1998). Gray writes that it "scorns

17066-423: The passion and the fickleness of the fans. In the chapter "Who Wants Candy" in the book Leaving Springfield , Robert Sloane finds alt.tv.simpsons an example of an "active audience ... who struggle to make their own meaning out of the show". He mentions that in this context, the fans nitpick the show to an extreme and allow no room for error, where the writers believe that nitpicking leads to an under appreciation of

17227-426: The phrase "I didn't do it" because they wanted a "lousy" phrase "to point out how really crummy things can become really popular". It was also an intentional call back to the first season episode " Krusty Gets Busted " where it was a catchphrase of Krusty the Clown . When people in the episode eventually got tired of the catchphrase "I didn't do it", Lisa tells Bart that now "you can go back to just being you, instead of

17388-418: The plot mirrors the situation he was in while working on the film The Green Hornet , when he had to lose weight and do physical training for his role. Showrunner Al Jean commented that the writers tried not to repeat the comic book film theme from the "Radioactive Man" episode. Instead they decided to parody the fact that almost every comic book has been turned into a film. Jean commented that that scene in

17549-543: The prehistoric past, and the final segment revolves around Springfield Elementary eating children. To top it off, the Simpsons do a song and dance number, with their insides turned inside out, over the closing credits. The Itchy & Scratchy Show -related episode " The Day the Violence Died " functioned as a vehicle for jokes about animation and plagiarism. In the episode, the owner of the Itchy and Scratchy characters

17710-445: The proclivity of ads to use any gimmick to grab attention, regardless of the ethics: as an indignant Lisa asks incredulously, 'Do they really think cheapening the memory of our veterans will sell soda?'" Michael Dunne analyzed the episode " All Singing, All Dancing " in his book American Film Musical Themes and Forms , and gave examples from it while explaining that singing and dancing performances are generally not seen as acceptable in

17871-470: The producers let the users of the Internet vote over what direction The Simpsons should take. In the twenty-second season finale " The Ned-Liest Catch ", the characters Ned Flanders and Edna Krabappel started dating. The episode ends with Homer and Marge Simpson giving the viewers a link to the official The Simpsons website, TheSimpsons.com, and encouraging them to go on the website and vote over

18032-543: The reunion with his father, or the Bar Mitzvah episode, which won an Emmy much later on. The incorporation of guest stars as themselves is topnotch, and we get to see the really dark side of Krusty's flailing showbiz career. Hollywood, television, celebrities, and fans are all beautifully skewered here." Matt Groening cites "Krusty Gets Busted" as his ninth favorite episode and has said that he particularly loves Castellaneta's voice work. Groening claims that he has to leave

18193-459: The role due to his ability to pull "the maximum amount of humor" out of any line he was given. McClure's visual appearance is similar to that of Hartman himself. When he was designed, McClure was given an extra line under his eyes to suggest that the character had gotten a facelift . In a very brief appearance in the season 2 episode " Bart's Dog Gets an "F" " , Troy was voiced by Dan Castellaneta . According to executive producer Al Jean ,

18354-431: The room every time Castellaneta records as Krusty for fear of ruining the take. Star News Online named "Krusty the Clown's hatred of children", Kamp Krusty, and Krusty's line "All these rules, I feel like I'm in a strip club" as some of the four hundred reasons why they loved The Simpsons . The Observer listed two Krusty products, "Krusty's Non-Toxic Kologne" and "Krusty's home pregnancy kit", as part of their list of

18515-515: The season ten episode " Bart the Mother ", which was dedicated to Hartman. Before his death, Hartman had often expressed an interest in starring in a live-action film about McClure, which would be penned by some of the show's writers. He noted that he was "looking forward to his live-action movie, publicizing [McClure's] Betty Ford appearances." Matt Groening later told Empire that the idea never "got further than enthusiasm", but "would have been really fun". Although retired from speaking roles,

18676-454: The series turned to "gimmicky premises and nonsensical plots" as ratings dipped, and uses a clip from the season nine episode " The Principal and the Pauper " to get that point across: a highly controversial episode that many fans and critics panned. " The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show " mainly deals with themes commonly known as " jumping the shark ," instances that usually occur when

18837-418: The series' most popular characters. In 2006, IGN ranked McClure No. 1 on their list of the "Top 25 Simpsons Peripheral Characters". Troy McClure is a stereotypical Hollywood has-been. He was a star in the early 1970s, but his career went downhill due to rumors of zoophilia involving fish. In most of his appearances in the show, he hosts short video clips that other characters watch on television or in

18998-474: The series, the character Comic Book Guy is often used to represent a stereotypical inhabitant of alt.tv.simpsons. The first such instance occurred in the seventh season episode " Radioactive Man ", in which Comic Book Guy is logging on to his favorite newsgroup alt.nerd.obsessive. Comic Book Guy's oft-repeated catchphrase, "Worst episode ever", first appeared on alt.tv.simpsons in an episode review and writer David S. Cohen decided to use this fan response to lampoon

19159-565: The seventh-season episode " A Fish Called Selma ". In the episode, McClure begins a relationship with Selma Bouvier , whom he meets when she gives him an eye test at the Department of Motor Vehicles and agrees to go out on a date as a condition for passing him. The relationship revives his career, leading him to star in Stop the Planet of the Apes, I Want to Get Off! , a stage musical version of

19320-434: The show seems to defy certain industry practices." The episode " The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase " was a satire over unoriginal, poor television writing and references and parodies many TV shows. The episode features three spin-off ideas for The Simpsons show, which also functions as a critique of spin-offs in general. Troy McClure introduces the three spin-offs as a host of the episode, something he had previously done in

19481-447: The show were pleased that they had annoyed O'Reilly, and that they had never received a warning from Fox about making jokes about the network. He added, "Both ends of it benefit the ultimate News Corp. agenda,” Jean said. “We’re happy to have a little feud with Bill O’Reilly. That’s a very entertaining thing for us." Other journalistic media are satirized as well. " Homer Badman " is a satire of shows like Hard Copy . David Mirkin ,

19642-431: The show's content. He was able to do that, because Fox back then was a minor fledgling network. Former showrunner Bill Oakley considered working on the show to be similar to working in a bubble due to the lack of interference from the Fox network's executives, as is commonplace on other shows. This allowed them to produce any episodes they wanted, as showrunner Josh Weinstein commented: "The great thing about The Simpsons

19803-456: The show's parody of the Fox network, The Simpsons also makes jokes about Fox News . Near the beginning of the episode " The Fool Monty ", a Fox News helicopter can be seen, with the slogan "Fox News: Not Racist , But #1 With Racists". Bill O'Reilly , host of the Fox News show The O'Reilly Factor , aired the clip during the show's "Pinheads and Patriots" segment, saying "Continuing to bite

19964-414: The show's qualities. Turner writes in the book Planet Simpson that The Simpsons appeared tailor-made for a newsgroup in the early 1990s because it includes minor details that reward attentive viewing and can be easily scrutinized. The episode " The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show " deals with the viewer backlash and obsession with internal consistency. When the character Comic Book Guy saw that

20125-434: The show, he hosts short video clips that other characters watch on television or in a public place. He often presents educational videos and infomercials . Turner argues that "the smarmy Hollywood type...has been done to death, but Hartman's version breathed new life into it with each appearance. McClure has become the apotheosis of the stereotype, a gut-achingly funny reinterpretation whose trademark introduction...has become

20286-432: The space between programs; rather, they are themselves textual invaders, and part of The Simpsons ' parodic attack on ads involves revealing their hiding places in other texts." The Itchy & Scratchy Show is a show within a show that appears occasionally in episodes of The Simpsons . They typically appear in the form of 15-60 second cartoons that are filled with over-the-top violence, usually initiated by Itchy

20447-405: The summer of 2011 on whether Ned and Edna should stay together. Showrunner Al Jean said in an interview that the writers decided it would not be interesting for them to do another episode where a relationship ended, and they thought it would be interesting "to see what people think, [...] the Internet certainly has a lot of opinion on the show, might as well have them have their say." When asked why

20608-438: The television medium. He notes that Homer calls singing "fruity" and "the lowest form of communication" during the episode. However, Dunne also notes the fact that Homer himself sings "his objection that musicals are fake and phony". Dunne describes the frame narrative as establishing Marge as "..more favorably disposed toward musicals than the males in her house". Dunne concluded that "musicals come out on top in this episode, but

20769-619: The television show The Itchy & Scratchy Show added a new character, called Poochie, he immediately goes on the internet and writes "Worst episode ever" on a message board; a commentary on how the active audience nit picks the episode. The writers respond by using the voice of Bart: Bart: Hey, I know it wasn't great, but what right do you have to complain? Comic Book Guy: As a loyal viewer, I feel they owe me. Bart: What? They're giving you thousands of hours of entertainment for free. What could they possibly owe you? I mean, if anything, you owe them! Comic Book Guy: Worst episode ever. In 2011,

20930-566: The theme to the Star Wars films, and Homer mistakenly believes that the theme's composer John Williams is dead, complaining: "Laser effects, mirrored balls—John Williams must be rolling around in his grave!". Kurt M. Koenigsberger analyzes Homer's comments in his piece: "Commodity Culture and Its Discontents: Mr. Bennett, Bart Simpson, and the Rhetoric of Modernism" published in the compilation work Leaving Springfield: The Simpsons and

21091-476: The theme to the 1960s television series Rawhide . The first verse of the song is: "Can you name the car with a four-wheel drive / Smells like a steak and seats thirty-five? / Canyonero! / Canyonero!" Turner wrote positively of the Canyonero spoof piece in Planet Simpson , calling it "a brilliant parody of an SUV ad". In an article in the journal Environmental Politics Steve Vanderheiden commented that

21252-400: The thinking was "What if a real life, normal person had to enter Homer's universe and deal with him?" I know this episode is controversial and divisive, but I just love it. It really feels like what would happen if a real, somewhat humorless human had to deal with Homer. There was some talk [on NoHomers.net] about the ending—we just did that because (a) it’s really funny and shocking, (2) we like

21413-441: The three hundred reasons why they loved the show. In 2015, The A.V. Club stated that Krusty has "arguably the most pathos of any Simpsons character not named Moe Szyslak ". In 2021, Meghan Markle reflected on her old memorable haircut being compared to Krusty the Clown at The Ellen DeGeneres Show . Troy McClure Troy McClure is a fictional character in the American animated series The Simpsons . He

21574-453: The top, melodramatic lines "tortured metaphors," many of which were penned by producer David Mirkin . Part of the imitating of Behind the Music was using the "corny, stock interstitial footage to amp up the drama of the situation". In the clip show " The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular ", the entire setup of Troy McClure presenting the episode is a parody of the practice by live-action series to produce clip shows in general. The parody

21735-526: The topic of collective bargaining agreements, while a clip from 1963 shows Krusty interviewing Robert Frost , then dumping a load of snow on the poet. The show later takes a different turn, featuring Ravi Shankar as a guest and having Krusty howl a drugged-out version of The Doors ' Break on Through (To the Other Side) in 1973. By the 1980s, the show had devolved into a children's entertainment show, although in one episode Krusty provided updates on

21896-477: The total pro" who lives the celebrity life. He is miserable but he needs his celebrity status. In " Bart the Fink ," Bart inadvertently reports Krusty for tax fraud to the Internal Revenue Service and, as a result, Krusty loses most of his money. Bart soon discovers that Krusty has faked his death and is living as Rory B. Bellows on a boat. Krusty declares that he is finished with the life of

22057-402: The town of Springfield to the player. McClure was based on the typical "washed up" Hollywood actor. B movie actors Troy Donahue and Doug McClure served as inspiration for his name and certain character aspects. Doug McClure found the homage funny and his children called him "Troy McClure" when his back was turned. According to show creator Matt Groening , Phil Hartman was cast in

22218-435: The victory is marginal at best." Of the episode itself, Dunne wrote that "..the parodies contained in the show demonstrate that its creators are familiar enough with various forms of musical performance to echo them and confident enough that their viewers will catch the references." In the episode " The Springfield Connection ", Homer and Marge went to an outdoor performance by the Springfield Pops orchestra. The orchestra plays

22379-434: The walls." The episode was also partly based on some of The Simpsons staff members' experience with making internet cartoons, such as Queer Duck and Hard Drinkin' Lincoln , both of which were created by former showrunner Mike Reiss . In his article "Best Indicator Ever: The Simpsons Foreclosure", Jonathan Hoenig of SmartMoney wrote that the twentieth season episode " No Loan Again, Naturally ", an episode in which

22540-486: The web features even more ill-informed opinions today than it did nine years ago, so much of it remains timeless and on target." Rainier Wolfcastle is an action hero star and a close parody of actor/bodybuilder/politician Arnold Schwarzenegger . The writers invented Wolfcastle as the action hero McBain for the episode " Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? " and the McBain films were meant to satirize clichés of action movies . In

22701-481: The wedding, but later offhandedly mentions McClure's admission to Marge , who then informs her sister. Selma decides to remain with McClure anyway, but she becomes disturbed when McClure's agent advises the pair to have a child (since "all the big parts these days are going to family men"). Having a child will secure McClure's casting as McBain's sidekick in McBain IV: Fatal Discharge , but Selma

22862-414: The whole show". McClure was one of Hartman's best-known roles. He often used his McClure voice to entertain the audience between takes while taping episodes of NewsRadio . He remarked, "My favorite fans are Troy McClure fans." He added "It's the one thing that I do in my life that's almost an avocation. I do it for the pure love of it." Many obituaries of Hartman mentioned his work as McClure as one of

23023-565: The worst TV news anchors. A real-life journalist named Reid, who Gray interviewed for his book, states that the episode " Girly Edition " mirrors well how some journalists actually work. She said the episode shows "the ludicrous nature of, you know, what we do in a lot of things. The kids news with Bart and Lisa: I mean, you see them do really stupid stories about the news, and 'news you can use,' and 'how to get rid of your sheets when you wet them.' I mean, people really do stories like that." Steven Keslowitz writes in his book The World According to

23184-451: The writers often used McClure as a "panic button" and added the character when they felt an episode needed more humor. McClure's character is most developed in "A Fish Called Selma", which provides a more in-depth look into his private life and backstory. Showrunners Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein were fans of Hartman, and wished to make an episode entirely about McClure in order to give Hartman as much to do as possible. From this came

23345-401: The writers thought Ned and Edna were the right characters for a cliffhanger like this, Jean said that "In life, unusual things happen. People couple together in ways you would not expect, and he's single and she's single. We thought it would be funny, the fact that they both have these connections to the Simpsons but they never really met or if they have met it was minimal." The result of the poll

23506-436: The writers' feeling that anyone could host a talk show because all they need is a microphone and an audience. This leads to Homer using public access TV to try to clear his name. The character Birch Barlow, who hosts a conservative radio talk show in Springfield, is a take-off of American talk show host and political commentator Rush Limbaugh . Springfield has its own local newspaper, The Springfield Shopper . The newspaper

23667-400: The writers, animators, and actors" without specifically confirming or denying the association. Krusty's appearance and design is essentially that of Homer Simpson with clown makeup. Groening said that "The satirical conceit that I was going for at the time was that The Simpsons was about a kid who had no respect for his father, but worshipped a clown who looked exactly like his father",

23828-417: The writers. He was a particular favorite of Brad Bird , who directed the first two Krusty episodes and always tried to animate a scene in every Krusty episode. In 1992, Matt Groening and James L. Brooks began planning a live-action spin-off from The Simpsons that revolved around Krusty and would star Dan Castellaneta as Krusty. They pitched the series in 1994. Groening and Michael Weithorn wrote

23989-427: Was based on Los Angeles anchormen Hal Fishman and Jerry Dunphy , and modeled after anchorman Ted Koppel . Another influence on the character was The Mary Tyler Moore Show 's Ted Baxter , played by Ted Knight . His role on The Simpsons is to host the news as the fictional television channel, Channel 6's anchorman. In addition to the news, he also hosts the programs Eye on Springfield and Smartline . Brockman

24150-491: Was created before there was a World Wide Web , which emerged in 1993, so those earliest discussions were held on text-only platforms. According to Turner, the newsgroup was among the most trafficked newsgroups of the early 1990s. The comments of alt.tv.simpsons have been quoted or cited in the writings of mass media commentators. This has led to situations in which relations between writers and viewers have become strained. In 1994, Simpsons creator Matt Groening acknowledged he and

24311-479: Was designed to look like Homer Simpson (also voiced by Castellaneta) with clown makeup, based on the scrapped original concept of Krusty where Bart worships a television clown who is ironically his own father that he looks down upon; the idea of Homer playing the role of Krusty would eventually be explored in the Season 6 episode, " Homie the Clown ". Krusty's voice is based on Bob Bell , who portrayed WGN-TV 's Bozo

24472-466: Was done by celebrating a completely random milestone and by making exaggerated use of the conventions of traditional highlight shows, such as a grand introduction and relentlessly showbizzy host. Considered a spoof of television clip shows, the episode is seen drawing attention to prevailing televisual conventions and reminds viewers that The Simpsons itself participates actively in that same cultural legacy. Simone Knox referred to it in her article Reading

24633-435: Was dropped after the first few seasons because it was hard for the writers to write for an illiterate character. Krusty's design has undergone several subtle changes since the early years. For the episode " Homie the Clown ", Krusty's design was permanently enhanced and he was given a different shaped mouth muzzle and permanent bags under his eyes in order to distinguish him from Homer. In the episode " Lisa's Wedding ", which

24794-555: Was entertaining the troops. After spending the night together, he prevented Erin from assassinating Saddam Hussein to protect his Saddam-themed comedy act. After that, Erin started hating clowns, and she kept their daughter a secret from Krusty. Krusty and Sophie bonded over time, and while not a full-time father, he is known to acknowledge her birthdays and occasionally references his daughter publicly. Krusty has his own show on Channel 6 in Springfield: The Krusty

24955-459: Was later described as "the most [...] disturbing Halloween show ever" by Mirkin. The episode begins with Marge warning that the episode that is about to air has so much guts and violence that Congress will not let them show it. The three main segments are linked with Groundskeeper Willie being killed in all three of them. The first segment has Homer attempting to kill the rest of the family, the second segment has Homer killing anything and everything in

25116-568: Was originally voiced by Phil Hartman and first appeared in the second season episode " Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment ". McClure is a washed-up actor who is usually shown doing low-level work, most notably hosting manipulative infomercials and questionable educational films. He appears as the main character in " A Fish Called Selma ", in which he marries Selma Bouvier to aid his failing career and quash rumors about his personal life. McClure also hosts " The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular " and " The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase ". McClure

25277-458: Was partially based on B movie actors Troy Donahue and Doug McClure , as well as Hartman himself. Following Hartman's murder on May 28, 1998, two of his Simpsons characters were retired, with Hartman's final speaking appearance as McClure occurring in the tenth season episode " Bart the Mother " four months after his murder. Since then, he has only occasionally cameoed in the background. Since his retirement, McClure has often been cited as one of

25438-468: Was partially inspired by TV clown " Rusty Nails " whom The Simpsons creator Matt Groening and director Brad Bird watched as children while growing up in Portland , Oregon . Groening describes Rusty Nails as being a sweet clown whose show sometimes had a Christian message, but whose name scared Groening. Dan Castellaneta based his voice characterization on Chicago television's Bob Bell who had

25599-463: Was released in 2000 as part of "wave one". The second, released in 2002 as part of "wave nine", is called "busted Krusty" and shows him in a prison and without his clown makeup, as he was seen in "Krusty Gets Busted". The third was released in 2003 as part of "wave thirteen" and was called "Tuxedo Krusty". Several Krusty themed play sets were also released, including a Krusty-Lu Studios and Krusty Burger playset, both released in 2001. Krusty appears as

25760-419: Was revealed in the season 23 premiere " The Falcon and the D'ohman ". According to Jean, the poll was "very strong in one direction". He assured in an interview before the result was presented that the poll was authentic and the writers would not undo the viewers' decision, and added that "What our fans have joined together, let no writer tear asunder." " I Am Furious (Yellow) " references the dot-com bubble ,

25921-402: Was to create several episodes in each season which would "push the envelope conceptually". The idea for the episode " Homer's Enemy " was first conceived by Oakley who thought that Homer should have an enemy. The thought evolved into the concept of a "real world" co-worker who would either love or hate Homer. The writers chose the latter as they thought it would have funnier results. The result was

#356643