130-452: Troy McClure is a fictional character in the American animated series The Simpsons . He 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
260-462: A dysfunctional family and named the characters after his own family members, substituting Bart for his own name; he thought Simpson was a funny name in that it sounded similar to " simpleton ". The shorts became a part of The Tracey Ullman Show on April 19, 1987. After three seasons, the sketch was developed into a half-hour prime time show and became Fox's first series to land in the Top 30 ratings in
390-538: A greyhound , Santa's Little Helper , (who first appeared in the episode " Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire ") and a cat, Snowball II , who is replaced by a cat also called Snowball II in the fifteenth-season episode " I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot ". Extended members of the Simpson and Bouvier family in the main cast include Homer's father Abe and Marge's sisters Patty and Selma . Marge's mother Jacqueline and Homer's mother Mona appear less frequently. The show includes
520-560: A perceived decline in quality . Time named it the 20th century's best television series, and Erik Adams of The A.V. Club named it "television's crowning achievement regardless of format". On January 14, 2000, the Simpson family was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame . It has won dozens of awards since it debuted as a series, including 37 Primetime Emmy Awards , 34 Annie Awards , and 2 Peabody Awards . Homer's exclamatory catchphrase of " D'oh! " has been adopted into
650-415: 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
780-571: 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
910-486: A bald Southern patriot who wields a gun wearing an eye patch, a reference to the promotional poster of the 1970 film Patton , and his own comic strip Life in Hell ; Brooks is seen as Rich Uncle Pennybags , the tycoon from Monopoly ; and Simon's appearance resembles Howard Hughes . One of Smithers' fantasies is a parody of Marilyn Monroe 's famous happy birthday song to President John F. Kennedy , while another one
1040-456: A brand new sequence when the show switched to high-definition in 2009). Each has the same basic sequence of events: the camera zooms through cumulus clouds , through the show's title towards the town of Springfield . The camera then follows the members of the family on their way home. Upon entering their house, the Simpsons settle down on their couch to watch television. The original opening
1170-442: A cheap way to crank out a new episode, but it's one of the better clip shows you'll see." Jennifer Malkowski of DVD Verdict gave the episode a B+ grade and commented, "apart from the creative material, what really makes this [episode] shine is the hilarious hosting by Troy McClure." Dave Foster of DVD Times criticized the episode: "Despite some interesting concepts such as a bored Troy McClure presenting to much amusement and
1300-481: A combined total of 51 episodes. Seven of these episodes are season 34 holdovers, while the other 44 will be produced in the production cycle of the upcoming seasons, bringing the show's overall episode total up to 801. Season 35 premiered on October 1, 2023. Season 36 premiered on September 29, 2024. The Simpsons received widespread acclaim throughout its early seasons in the 1990s, which are generally considered its "golden age". Since then, it has been criticized for
1430-615: A cow, man!" and "Eat my shorts!" appeared on T-shirts in the show's early days. However, Bart rarely used the latter two phrases until after they became popular through the merchandising . The use of many of these catchphrases has declined in recent seasons. The episode " Bart Gets Famous " mocks catchphrase-based humor, as Bart achieves fame on the Krusty the Clown Show solely for saying "I didn't do it". The Simpsons has gained notoriety for jokes that appeared to become reality. Perhaps
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#17327941917811560-465: A division of The Walt Disney Company . Nineteen years later, Disney purchased Fox . Other examples purported as The Simpsons predicting the future include the introduction of the smartwatch , video chat services, Richard Branson 's spaceflight and Lady Gaga 's acrobatic performance at the Super Bowl LI halftime show . Al Jean has commented on the show's purported ability to predict
1690-512: A kind of self-imposed benchmark of the show itself, with writer Bill Keveney commenting, "the show picks its own benchmarks, as it did in 1995". DVD Movie Guide ' s Colin Jacobson said even though the episode is a clip show, it "gussies up the concept with some interesting elements, and keeps repetitive material to a minimum. Instead, it offers much then-unseen footage as well as old snippets from The Tracey Ullman Show . It still feels like
1820-403: A large number of clip shows would alienate fans of the series. Former show runner Bill Oakley thought the episode was one of the better clip shows of The Simpsons , because it had more original and interesting material than the others. Oakley enjoyed showing deleted scenes from previous episodes and the Simpsons shorts, and particularly enjoyed the montage of couch gags at the beginning of
1950-432: A lesser extent, about other societies". Some questions asked in the courses include: "What aspects of American society are being addressed in the episode? What aspects of them are used to make the points? How is the satire conveyed: through language? Drawing? Music? Is the behavior of each character consistent with his/her character as developed over the years? Can we identify elements of the historical/political context that
2080-443: A new opening sequence. Matt Groening called it a complicated change because it affected the timing and composition of animation. The Simpsons uses the standard setup of a situational comedy, or sitcom, as its premise. The series centers on a family and their life in a typical American town, serving as a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle . However, because of its animated nature, The Simpsons ' scope
2210-423: A particular position on Smithers' anatomy". There were also issues with "the lump in his bed", which the animators said they had drawn as his knee , but the censors had mistakenly believed was an erection . A deleted scene from the season five episode " Burns' Heir " is also shown, in which a robotic Richard Simmons dances outside Burns's mansion to the 1976 song " (Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty ". It
2340-524: A provision in the contract with the Fox network that prevented Fox from interfering with the show's content. Groening said his goal in creating the show was to offer the audience an alternative to what he called "the mainstream trash" that they were watching. The half-hour series premiered on December 17, 1989, with " Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire ". " Some Enchanted Evening " was the first full-length episode produced, but it did not broadcast until May 1990, as
2470-399: A recurring theme. In times of crisis, the family often turns to God, and the show has dealt with most of the major religions. Sexuality is often a source of jokes in the series or serves as the theme of certain episodes. Even though homosexuals are sometimes sources of gags, the series often comments on how American society treats them, with " Homer's Phobia " devoting an entire episode to
2600-453: A season (1989–1990). Since its debut on December 17, 1989, 775 episodes of the show have been broadcast. It is the longest-running American animated series , longest-running American sitcom , and the longest-running American scripted primetime television series , both in seasons and individual episodes. A feature-length film, The Simpsons Movie , was released in theaters worldwide on July 27, 2007, to critical and commercial success, with
2730-429: A sequel in development as of 2018. The series has also spawned numerous comic book series , video games , books , and other related media, as well as a billion-dollar merchandising industry . The Simpsons is a joint production by Gracie Films and 20th Television . On January 26, 2023, the series was renewed for its 35th and 36th seasons, taking the show through the 2024–25 television season. Both seasons contain
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#17327941917812860-594: A share of the profits every year, and an executive producer credit despite not having worked on the show since 1993, at least until his passing in 2015. A more involved position on the show is the showrunner , who acts as head writer and manages the show's production for an entire season. The first team of writers, assembled by Sam Simon, consisted of John Swartzwelder , Jon Vitti , George Meyer , Jeff Martin , Al Jean , Mike Reiss , Jay Kogen and Wallace Wolodarsky . Newer Simpsons ' writing teams typically consist of sixteen writers who propose episode ideas at
2990-477: A single viewing. Some are so fleeting that they become apparent only by pausing a video recording of the show or viewing it in slow motion. Kristin Thompson argues that The Simpsons uses a "flurry of cultural references, intentionally inconsistent characterization, and considerable self-reflexivity about television conventions and the status of the programme as a television show." One of Bart's early hallmarks
3120-467: A stereotypical American housewife and mother. They have three children: Bart , a ten-year-old troublemaker and prankster; Lisa , a precocious eight-year-old activist; and Maggie (named by Bart), the baby of the family who rarely speaks, but communicates by sucking on a pacifier. Although the family is dysfunctional, many episodes examine their relationships and bonds with each other and they are often shown to care about one another. The family also owns
3250-533: A vast array of quirky supporting characters, which include Homer's friends Barney Gumble , Lenny Leonard and Carl Carlson ; the school principal Seymour Skinner and staff members such as Edna Krabappel and Groundskeeper Willie ; students such as Milhouse Van Houten , Nelson Muntz and Ralph Wiggum ; shopkeepers such as Apu Nahasapeemapetilon , Comic Book Guy and Moe Szyslak ; government figures Mayor "Diamond" Joe Quimby and Clancy Wiggum ; next-door neighbor Ned Flanders ; local celebrities such as Krusty
3380-406: A vast array of television channels, which enables the producers to make jokes about the entertainment industry and the press. Some commentators say the show is political in nature and susceptible to a left-wing bias. Al Jean acknowledged in an interview that "We [the show] are of liberal bent." The writers often evince an appreciation for progressive leanings , but the show makes jokes across
3510-411: A wide spectrum of society so that viewers from all generations can enjoy the show. Such references, for example, come from movies, television, music, literature, science, and history. The animators also regularly add jokes or sight gags into the show's background via humorous or incongruous bits of text in signs, newspapers, billboards , and elsewhere. The audience may often not notice the visual jokes in
3640-478: 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
3770-459: 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
3900-480: Is advertised as having "twenty-three percent new footage", while the rest are clips taken from previous episodes. The five shorts used in this episode are " Good Night " and "Bathtime", which were featured in their entirety, and portions of "The Perfect Crime", "Space Patrol", and "World War III". Some parts of the episode contain montages of only a few seconds-long clips, such as those referring to Homer's increased stupidity (" Blood Feud ", " Flaming Moe's ", " Marge vs.
4030-508: Is also one of the few programs dubbed in both standard French and Quebec French . The show has been broadcast in Arabic, but due to Islamic customs, numerous aspects of the show have been changed. For example, Homer drinks soda instead of beer and eats Egyptian beef sausages instead of hot dogs. Because of such changes, the Arabized version of the series met with a negative reaction from
Troy McClure - Misplaced Pages Continue
4160-510: Is an allusion to Peter Pan flying through the window. The book that Krusty tries to sell is a reference to Madonna 's book entitled Sex . "NRA4EVER", the message that appears on a cash register during the opening sequence reference in a trivia question, is a reference to the National Rifle Association . The episode ranked among the ten most heavily viewed episodes of the seventh season. After its initial airing,
4290-509: Is consistently portrayed that he is Jewish , that his father was a rabbi , and that his career began in the 1960s. The latter point introduces another snag in the floating timeline: historical periods that are a core part of a character's backstory remain so even when their age makes it unlikely or impossible, such as Grampa Simpson and Principal Skinner 's respective service in World War II and Vietnam . The only episodes not part of
4420-436: 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 ",
4550-439: Is inconsistent: from one episode to another, it may have coastlines, deserts, vast farmland, mountains, or whatever the story or joke requires. Groening has said that Springfield has much in common with Portland, Oregon , the city where he grew up. Groening has said that he named it after Springfield, Oregon , and the fictitious Springfield which was the setting of the series Father Knows Best . He "figured out that Springfield
4680-437: Is larger than that of a regular sitcom. The town of Springfield acts as a complete universe in which characters can explore the issues faced by modern society. By having Homer work in a nuclear power plant , the show can comment on the state of the environment. Through Bart and Lisa's days at Springfield Elementary School , the show's writers illustrate pressing or controversial issues in the field of education. The town features
4810-406: Is shown as a " radical right-wing " conservative and active gun user who supports the National Rifle Association , which is a deliberate subversion of the political stance most of the staff actually have. Despite having already left the show by the time this episode was made, a portrait of former producer Sam Simon was drawn by Simon himself after he did not like the original joke for him, which
4940-474: Is shown put off after watching " Good Night ", the very first short produced for The Simpsons , and falls asleep while deleted scenes from various episodes are being played. At one point, supposed early designs of Grampa Simpson and Krusty the Clown are shown, which were a "satirical jab at the primitiveness of the [actual] early drawings". Animator David Silverman got defensive over the joke, explaining that
5070-512: Is the tenth episode of the seventh season of the American animated television series The Simpsons . It originally aired on Fox in the United States on December 3, 1995. As the title suggests, it is the 138th episode and the third clip show episode of The Simpsons , after " So It's Come to This: A Simpsons Clip Show " and " Another Simpsons Clip Show ". While the "138th Episode Spectacular" compiles sequences from episodes throughout
5200-414: Is the third The Simpsons clip show, after " So It's Come to This: A Simpsons Clip Show " and " Another Simpsons Clip Show ". It was written by Jon Vitti , who used the pseudonym "Penny Wise" in the closing credits because he did not want to be credited for writing a clip show. The episode was directed by David Silverman , who also did not want to be credited, and used the pseudonym "Pound Foolish" in
5330-450: 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
Troy McClure - Misplaced Pages Continue
5460-541: The A.V. Club , Ira Kaplan , the singer and guitarist of Yo La Tengo, states that James McNew , the band's bassist, titled a series of instrumentals from the Troy McClure filmography. Bibliography The Simpsons The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company . Developed by Groening, James L. Brooks , and Sam Simon ,
5590-638: The Linguistic Data Consortium , remarked, " The Simpsons has apparently taken over from Shakespeare and the Bible as our culture's greatest source of idioms, catchphrases and sundry other textual allusions." The most famous catchphrase is Homer's annoyed grunt: " D'oh! " So ubiquitous is the expression that it is now listed in the Oxford English Dictionary , but without the apostrophe. Dan Castellaneta says he borrowed
5720-486: The closing credits . During the early years of the show, Fox network officials forced the staff of The Simpsons to produce clip shows in order to save money. Originally, the producers were ordered to produce four clip shows per season in order to meet episode limits imposed by the network. Fox network officials reasoned that clip shows could be produced at half the cost of a normal episode, but syndication rights could be sold at full price. The staff, however, felt such
5850-452: 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 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
5980-476: The twentieth season was put on hold due to new contract negotiations with the voice actors, who wanted a "healthy bump" in salary to an amount close to $ 500,000 per episode. The negotiations were soon completed, and the actors' salary was raised to $ 400,000 per episode. Three years later, with Fox threatening to cancel the series unless production costs were cut, the cast members accepted a 30 percent pay cut, down to just over $ 300,000 per episode. In addition to
6110-465: 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
6240-467: The 1967 film Casino Royale . The deleted scene from "Burns' Heir" in which the robotic Richard Simmons is shot through the head and repairs itself parodies the liquid metal T-1000 in the 1991 film Terminator 2: Judgment Day . The episode satirizes the Fox network in particular, as the two specials mentioned in the beginning, Alien Nose Job and Five Fabulous Weeks Of 'The Chevy Chase Show' , are references to two actual programs that have aired on
6370-557: The 1970s. During most of the 1980s, US pundits considered animated shows as appropriate only for children, and animating a show was too expensive to achieve a quality suitable for prime-time television. The Simpsons changed this perception, initially leading to a short period where networks attempted to recreate prime-time cartoon success with shows like Capitol Critters , Fish Police , and Family Dog , which were expensive and unsuccessful. The Simpsons ' use of Korean animation studios for tweening , coloring, and filming made
6500-406: The Clown and news reporter Kent Brockman ; nuclear tycoon Montgomery Burns and his devoted assistant Waylon Smithers ; and dozens more . The creators originally intended many of these characters as one-time jokes or for fulfilling needed functions in the town. A number of them have gained expanded roles and subsequently starred in their own episodes. According to Matt Groening, the show adopted
6630-433: The Clown , Groundskeeper Willie , Mayor Quimby , Barney Gumble , and other adult male characters. Julie Kavner voices Marge Simpson and Patty and Selma , as well as several minor characters. Castellaneta and Kavner had been a part of The Tracey Ullman Show cast and were given the parts so that new actors would not be needed. Cartwright voices Bart Simpson , Nelson Muntz , Ralph Wiggum and other children. Smith,
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#17327941917816760-631: The English language, while The Simpsons has influenced many other later adult-oriented animated sitcom television series. The main characters are the Simpson family , who live in the fictional " Middle America " town of Springfield. Homer , the father, works as a safety inspector at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant , a position at odds with his careless, buffoonish personality. He is married to Marge ( née Bouvier),
6890-482: The Monorail ", " Deep Space Homer ", and " Treehouse of Horror V "), or those suggesting Smithers' homosexuality (" Rosebud ", " Dog of Death ", " Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy ", and " Marge Gets a Job "). 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, by celebrating a completely arbitrary milestone and by making exaggerated use of
7020-437: The animators and assumed that the figures would be cleaned up in production. However, the animators merely re-traced his drawings, which led to the crude appearance of the characters in the initial shorts. The animation was produced domestically at Klasky Csupo , with Wes Archer , David Silverman , and Bill Kopp being animators for the first season. The colorist, "Georgie" Gyorgyi Kovacs Peluce (Kovács Györgyike) made
7150-424: The beginning of each December. The main writer of each episode writes the first draft. Group rewriting sessions develop final scripts by adding or removing jokes, inserting scenes, and calling for re-readings of lines by the show's vocal performers. Until 2004, George Meyer, who had developed the show since the first season, was active in these sessions. According to long-time writer Jon Vitti, Meyer usually invented
7280-436: The best lines in a given episode, even though other writers may receive script credits. Each episode takes six months to produce so the show rarely comments on current events. Credited with sixty episodes, John Swartzwelder is the most prolific writer on The Simpsons . One of the best-known former writers is Conan O'Brien , who contributed to several episodes in the early 1990s before replacing David Letterman as host of
7410-487: The cast appeared in an episode of Inside the Actors Studio , doing live performances of their characters' voices. The six main actors were paid $ 30,000 per episode, until 1998, when they were involved in a pay dispute with Fox. The company threatened to replace them with new actors, even going as far as preparing for casting of new voices, but series creator Groening supported the actors in their action. The issue
7540-518: 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
7670-501: The characters he voiced ( Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz ) were retired; Wallace's character of Edna Krabappel was retired as well after her death in 2013. Following Taylor's death in 2019, her characters (including Sherri, Terri , and Martin Prince ) are now voiced by Grey Griffin . Episodes will quite often feature guest voices from a wide range of professions, including actors, athletes, authors, bands, musicians and scientists. In
7800-491: The characters yellow; as Bart, Lisa and Maggie have no hairlines, she felt they would look strange if they were flesh-colored. Groening supported the decision, saying: "Marge is yellow with blue hair? That's hilarious — let's do it!" In 1989, a team of production companies adapted The Simpsons into a half-hour series for the Fox Broadcasting Company . The team included the Klasky Csupo animation house. Brooks negotiated
7930-616: The claimed prophecies, explaining that the show's extensive run means "a lot of jokes, and a lot of opportunities for coincidences to appear" and "most of these 'predictions' have rather simple and mundane explanations". For example, the device shown on The Simpsons with autocorrection is an Apple Newton , a real 1993 device notorious for its poor handwriting recognition . Technologically advanced watches have appeared in numerous works of fiction, decades before The Simpsons . A number of neologisms that originated on The Simpsons have entered popular vernacular. Mark Liberman , director of
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#17327941917818060-453: The commercial breaks. Having seen one of cartoonist Matt Groening 's Life in Hell comic strips, Brooks asked Groening to pitch an idea for a series of animated shorts. Groening initially intended to present an animated version of his Life in Hell series. However, Groening later realized that animating Life in Hell would require the rescinding of publication rights for his life's work. He therefore chose another approach while waiting in
8190-440: The common practice among live-action series to produce clip shows. It has received positive reviews, and was one of the most watched episodes of the seventh season, with a Nielsen rating of 9.5. Troy McClure hosts the episode, which highlights individual scenes and sequences from throughout the series and offers never-before-seen outtakes . McClure starts the episode by showing a brief presentation of how The Simpsons series
8320-467: The concept of a large supporting cast from the comedy show SCTV . Despite the depiction of yearly milestones such as holidays or birthdays passing, the characters never age. The series uses a floating timeline in which episodes generally take place in the year the episode is produced. Flashbacks and flashforwards do occasionally depict the characters at other points in their lives, with the timeline of these depictions also generally floating relative to
8450-632: The conventions of traditional highlights shows, such as a grand introduction and relentlessly showbizzy host. The episode makes references to several films and television shows. The Tracey Ullman Show is referred to as "the nation's showcase for psychiatrist jokes and musical comedy numbers", while the outtakes right before the commercial breaks parodies television series such as Roseanne and Home Improvement (which regularly aired similar outtakes). The deleted scene from " $ pringfield (or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling) " in which Homer plays blackjack with James Bond parodies
8580-407: The crude drawings were due to a lack of time for proper animation during that era. The fan mail segment showed letters supposedly sent in by distinguished professors and diplomats; Oakley said the joke was that no one of their pedigrees would actually watch the series, let alone write to the staff. The show's producers are also depicted as animated characters in this episode. Creator Matt Groening
8710-452: The dictionary in August 2007. Many quotes/scenes have become popular Internet memes , including Jasper Beardley's quote "That's a paddlin ' " from " The PTA Disbands " ( season 6 , 1995) and "Steamed Hams" from " 22 Short Films About Springfield " ( season 7 , 1996). The Simpsons was the first successful animated program in American prime time since Wait Till Your Father Gets Home in
8840-538: The divorce of Milhouse van Houten 's parents, and the marriage and subsequent parenthood of Apu and Manjula . The Simpsons takes place in a fictional American town called Springfield . Although there are many real settlements in America named Springfield, the town the show is set in is fictional. The state it is in is not established. In fact, the show is intentionally evasive with regard to Springfield's location. Springfield's geography and that of its surroundings
8970-468: The earlier seasons, most of the guest stars voiced characters, but eventually more started appearing as themselves. Tony Bennett was the first guest star to appear as himself, appearing briefly in the season two episode " Dancin' Homer ". The Simpsons holds the world record for "Most Guest Stars Featured in a Television Series". The Simpsons has been dubbed into several other languages , including Japanese, German, Spanish, Portuguese and Italian. It
9100-408: The ending credits includes the original animation of Homer and Marge snuggling from " Grampa vs. Sexual Inadequacy ", which was reanimated in that episode after Fox censors thought it was too explicit. Due to the amount of interest in the ending of the " Who Shot Mr. Burns? " episode, David Mirkin wrote several "terrible endings" and recorded several alternate endings with Harry Shearer serving as
9230-460: The entire series like the previous two, it also shows clips from the original Simpsons shorts from The Tracey Ullman Show and other previously unaired material. Like the Halloween specials , the episode is considered non-canon and falls outside of the show's regular continuity. The "138th Episode Spectacular" was written by Jon Vitti and directed by David Silverman , and is a parody of
9360-476: The episode " Bart 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
9490-484: The episode contains "a number of great self-referential moments". Simone Knox praised its visual style in her article Reading the Ungraspable Double-Codedness of "The Simpsons" . Knox referred to it 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". The episode itself has been described by some critics as
9620-415: The episode received a Nielsen rating of 9.5, and a Nielsen rank of 48. The episode has become study material for sociology courses at University of California, Berkeley , where it is used to "examine issues of the production and reception of cultural objects, in this case, a satirical cartoon show", and to figure out what it is "trying to tell audiences about aspects primarily of American society, and, to
9750-437: The episode. The staff tried to entertain themselves while producing the clip show, and Oakley said by having the only actor be Phil Hartman as Troy McClure, it was "guaranteed to be fun". Hartman's lines in this episode were recorded during the sessions for " A Fish Called Selma ", which also aired during Season 7. A lot of the humor in the episode comes from the show's staff mocking themselves and their own work. Troy McClure
9880-474: The episodes cheaper. The success of The Simpsons and the lower production cost prompted US television networks to take chances on other adult animated series. This development led US producers to a 1990s boom in new, animated prime-time shows for adults, such as Beavis and Butt-Head , South Park , Family Guy , King of the Hill , Futurama (which was created by Matt Groening), and The Critic (which
10010-723: The family in some horror, science fiction, or supernatural setting and often parody or pay homage to a famous piece of work in those genres. They always take place outside the normal continuity of the show. Although the Treehouse series is meant to be seen on Halloween, this changed by the 2000s (and again in 2020), when new installments have premiered after Halloween due to Fox 's current contract with Major League Baseball 's World Series . Prior to 2020 (between 2011 and 2019), every Treehouse of Horror episode had aired in October. The show's humor turns on cultural references that cover
10140-411: The family making a gay friend and Homer's initial hostility to him. In 1990, The Simpsons became the first animated early evening show to depict a kiss between two men in " Simpson and Delilah ". The Simpsons ' opening sequence is one of the show's most memorable hallmarks. The standard opening has gone through three iterations (a replacement of some shots at the start of the second season, and
10270-463: 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
10400-485: The first three seasons, Klasky Csupo animated The Simpsons in the United States. In 1992, the show's production company, Gracie Films, switched domestic production to Film Roman , who continued to animate the show until 2016 when they were replaced by Fox Television Animation , which allowed the show to be made more in-house. In Season 14 , production switched from traditional cel animation to digital ink and paint . The first episode to experiment with digital coloring
10530-404: The future, explaining that they are really just "educated guesses" and stating that "if you throw enough darts, you're going to get some bullseyes." Producer Bill Oakley stated, "There are very few cases where The Simpsons predicted something. It's mainly just coincidence because the episodes are so old that history repeats itself." Fact-checking sources such as Snopes have debunked many of
10660-453: 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
10790-476: 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
10920-410: The job on the spot. Cartwright is the only one of the six main Simpsons cast members who had been professionally trained in voice acting prior to working on the show. Azaria and Shearer do not voice members of the title family, but play a majority of the male townspeople. Azaria, who has been a part of the main voice cast since the second season in one episode " Old Money " and then perpetually part of
11050-423: The last episode of the first season, because of animation problems. In 1992, Tracey Ullman filed a lawsuit against Fox, claiming that her show was the source of the series' success. The suit said she should receive a share of the profits of The Simpsons —a claim rejected by the courts. List of showrunners throughout the series' run: Matt Groening and James L. Brooks have served as executive producers during
11180-488: The lifelong Simpsons fans in the area. Several different U.S. and international studios animate The Simpsons . Throughout the run of the animated shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show , the animation was produced domestically at Klasky Csupo . With the debut of the series, because of an increased workload, Fox subcontracted production to several local and foreign studios. These are AKOM , Anivision , Rough Draft Studios , USAnimation , and Toonzone Entertainment. For
11310-486: The lobby of Brooks's office for the pitch meeting, hurriedly formulating his version of a dysfunctional family that became the Simpsons. He named the characters after his own family members, substituting "Bart" for his own name, adopting an anagram of the word brat . The Simpson family first appeared as shorts in The Tracey Ullman Show on April 19, 1987. Groening submitted only basic sketches to
11440-613: The main cast, Pamela Hayden , Tress MacNeille , Marcia Wallace , Maggie Roswell , and Russi Taylor voice supporting characters. From 1999 to 2002, Roswell's characters were voiced by Marcia Mitzman Gaven . Karl Wiedergott has also appeared in minor roles, but does not voice any recurring characters. Wiedergott left the show in 2010, and since then Chris Edgerly has appeared regularly to voice minor characters. Repeat "special guest" cast members include Albert Brooks , Phil Hartman , Jon Lovitz , Joe Mantegna , Maurice LaMarche , and Kelsey Grammer . Following Hartman's death in 1998,
11570-519: 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 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
11700-458: The most famous example comes from the episode " Bart to the Future ", which mentions billionaire Donald Trump having been president of the United States at one time and leaving the nation broke. The episode first aired in 2000, sixteen years before Trump (who at the time was exploring a presidential run ) was elected. Another episode, " When You Dish Upon a Star ", lampooned 20th Century Fox as
11830-399: The network: The Chevy Chase Show (1993) and Alien Autopsy: Fact or Fiction (1995). Several famous musical themes are used or parodied in the clips, such as when Homer sings the theme song from The Flintstones , and Johann Strauss II 's Blue Danube is heard in the background of one scene. The show's producers are depicted as animated characters in the introduction: Groening is
11960-410: The only voice actor. Mirkin's original intention was to fool the production staff and also leak the endings to various media outlets; much to his surprise, Mirkin failed to successfully fool the staff. Several endings were animated that showed various characters, such as Barney , Moe , and Apu , shooting Mr. Burns, and were presented as part of this episode. During the opening credits the episode
12090-524: The other members of the Writers Guild of America, East . The show's writers had joined the guild in 1998. In May 2023, the writers of The Simpsons went on strike together with the other members of the Writers Guild of America, East . The Simpsons has six main cast members: Dan Castellaneta , Julie Kavner , Nancy Cartwright , Yeardley Smith , Hank Azaria , and Harry Shearer . Castellaneta voices Homer Simpson , Grampa Simpson , Krusty
12220-525: The phrase from James Finlayson , an actor in many Laurel and Hardy comedies, who pronounced it in a more elongated and whining tone. The staff of The Simpsons told Castellaneta to shorten the noise, and it went on to become the well-known exclamation in the television series. Groundskeeper Willie 's description of the French as " cheese-eating surrender monkeys " was used by National Review columnist Jonah Goldberg in 2003, after France's opposition to
12350-405: The political spectrum. The show portrays government and large corporations as evil entities that take advantage of the common worker. Thus, the writers often portray authority figures in an unflattering or negative light. In The Simpsons , politicians are corrupt, ministers such as Reverend Lovejoy are dismissive to churchgoers, and the local police force is incompetent. Religion also figures as
12480-679: The proposed invasion of Iraq . The phrase quickly spread to other journalists. " Cromulent " and "embiggen", words used in " Lisa the Iconoclast ", have since appeared in the Dictionary.com 's 21st Century Lexicon, and scientific journals respectively. "Kwyjibo", a fake Scrabble word invented by Bart in " Bart the Genius ", was used as one of the aliases of the creator of the Melissa worm . "I, for one, welcome our new insect overlords",
12610-456: The regular main voice cast since the third season, voices recurring characters such as Moe Szyslak , Chief Wiggum , Apu Nahasapeemapetilon and Professor Frink . Shearer provides voices for Mr. Burns , Mr. Smithers , Principal Skinner , Ned Flanders , Reverend Lovejoy and formerly Dr. Hibbert . Every main cast member has won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance . With one exception, episode credits list only
12740-479: The same period. The 1995 episode " Lisa's Wedding " takes place during Lisa's college years in the then-future year of 2010, the same year the show began airing its 22nd season , in which Lisa was still 8. Regarding the contradictory flashbacks, Selman stated that "they all kind of happened in their imaginary world." The show follows a loose and inconsistent continuity. For example, Krusty the Clown may be able to read in one episode, but not in another . However, it
12870-468: The school chalkboard, Lisa plays different solos on her saxophone (or occasionally a different instrument), and different gags accompany the family as they enter their living room to sit on the couch. The special Halloween episode has become an annual tradition. " Treehouse of Horror " first broadcast in 1990 as part of season two and established the pattern of three separate, self-contained stories in each Halloween episode. These pieces usually involve
13000-511: 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,
13130-417: The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family , which consists of Homer , Marge , Bart , Lisa , and Maggie . Set in the fictional town of Springfield , it caricatures society, Western culture, television, and the human condition . The family was conceived by Groening shortly before a solicitation for a series of animated shorts with producer Brooks. He created
13260-431: The series progressed, it became more difficult for the writers to come up with a fake name and to write Moe's angry response, and the pranks were dropped as a regular joke during the fourth season. The Simpsons also often includes self-referential humor . The most common form is jokes about Fox Broadcasting. For example, the episode " She Used to Be My Girl " included a scene in which a Fox News Channel van drove down
13390-459: The series' main canon are the Treehouse of Horror episodes, which often feature the deaths of main characters. Characters who die in "regular" episodes, such as Maude Flanders , Mona Simpson and Edna Krabappel , however, stay dead. Most episodes end with the status quo being restored, though occasionally major changes will stick, such as Lisa's conversions to vegetarianism and Buddhism ,
13520-564: 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
13650-402: The show's entire history, and also function as creative consultants. Sam Simon , described by former Simpsons director Brad Bird as "the unsung hero" of the show, served as creative supervisor for the first four seasons. He was constantly at odds with Groening, Brooks and the show's production company Gracie Films and left in 1993. Before leaving, he negotiated a deal that sees him receive
13780-462: The show. As well as "cheese-eating surrender monkeys", Homer's lines, "Kids, you tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is never try", from " Burns' Heir " ( season five , 1994) as well as "Kids are the best, Apu. You can teach them to hate the things you hate. And they practically raise themselves, what with the Internet and all", from " Eight Misbehavin' " ( season 11 , 1999), entered
13910-515: The staff on The Simpsons from spoiling the mystery. Troy McClure ends the episode by showing a montage of The Simpsons characters naked, set to the KC and the Sunshine Band song " (Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty ". As the title suggests, "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular" is the 138th episode of The Simpsons , although it is the 155th episode when placed in production order . It
14040-617: The street while displaying a large "Bush Cheney 2004" banner and playing Queen 's " We Are the Champions ", in reference to the 2004 U.S. presidential election and claims of conservative bias in Fox News . The show uses catchphrases , and most of the primary and secondary characters have at least one each. Notable expressions include Homer's annoyed grunt " D'oh! ", Mr. Burns' "Excellent" and Nelson Muntz 's " Ha -ha!" Some of Bart's catchphrases, such as " ¡Ay, caramba! ", "Don't have
14170-486: The talk show Late Night . English comedian Ricky Gervais wrote the episode " Homer Simpson, This Is Your Wife ", becoming the first celebrity both to write and guest star in the same episode. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg , writers of the film Superbad , wrote the episode " Homer the Whopper ", with Rogen voicing a character in it. At the end of 2007, the writers of The Simpsons went on strike together with
14300-481: 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 the role due to his ability to pull "the maximum amount of humor" out of any line he
14430-459: The voice actors, and not the characters they voice. Both Fox and the production crew wanted to keep their identities secret during the early seasons and, therefore, closed most of the recording sessions while refusing to publish photos of the recording artists. However, the network eventually revealed which roles each actor performed in the episode " Old Money ", because the producers said the voice actors should receive credit for their work. In 2003,
14560-415: The voice of Lisa Simpson , is the only cast member who regularly voices only one character, although she occasionally plays other episodic characters. The producers decided to hold casting for the roles of Bart and Lisa. Smith had initially been asked to audition for the role of Bart, but casting director Bonita Pietila believed her voice was too high, so she was given the role of Lisa instead. Cartwright
14690-481: 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
14820-411: 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
14950-499: The writers are satirizing? What is the difference between satire and parody?" 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. The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide , Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, thought that "the out-takes [were] up to standard" and said that
15080-445: The writers at Gracie Films for any changes to be made before the work is shipped overseas. The overseas studios then draw the inbetweens , ink and paint, and render the animation to tape before it is shipped back to the United States to be delivered to Fox three to four months later. The series began high-definition production in season 20; the first episode, " Take My Life, Please ", aired February 15, 2009. The move to HDTV included
15210-423: The year the episode is produced. For example, the 1991 episodes " The Way We Was " and " I Married Marge " depict Homer and Marge as high schoolers in the 1970s who had Bart (who is always 10 years old) in the early '80s, while the 2008 episode " That '90s Show " depicts Homer and Marge as a childless couple in the '90s, and the 2021 episode " Do Pizza Bots Dream of Electric Guitars " portrays Homer as an adolescent in
15340-572: Was " Radioactive Man " in 1995. Animators used digital ink and paint during production of the season 12 episode " Tennis the Menace ", but Gracie Films delayed the regular use of digital ink and paint until two seasons later. The already completed "Tennis the Menace" was broadcast as made. The production staff at the U.S. animation studio, Film Roman, draws storyboards , designs new characters, backgrounds, props and draws character and background layouts, which in turn become animatics to be screened for
15470-454: Was a "No Photo Available" disclaimer. One of the clips shown in the episode comes from the season four episode " Marge Gets a Job ", in which Smithers has a dream that he is sleeping and Mr. Burns flies through a window into his room. The sequence shows Burns flying towards a happy-looking Smithers. The original clip went on for a few seconds longer, but had to be trimmed down in order to remove portions that showed "Mr. Burns land[ing] in
15600-608: 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 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
15730-433: Was also produced by Gracie Films). For Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane , " The Simpsons created an audience for prime-time animation that had not been there for many, many years ... As far as I'm concerned, they basically re-invented the wheel. They created what is in many ways—you could classify it as—a wholly new medium." The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular " The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular "
15860-426: Was conceived by Matt Groening , James L. Brooks , and Sam Simon . He goes on to present some clips of the original shorts that aired on The Tracey Ullman Show . McClure then responds to questions from fan mail by showing clips that contain the answers. McClure then presents deleted scenes from several episodes and reveals that alternate endings to part two of " Who Shot Mr. Burns? " were created to prevent
15990-468: Was created by David Silverman , and was the first task he did when production began on the show. The series' distinctive theme song was composed by musician Danny Elfman in 1989, after Groening approached him requesting a retro-style piece. This piece has been noted by Elfman as the most popular of his career. One of the most distinctive aspects of the opening is that three of its elements change from episode to episode: Bart writes different things on
16120-408: Was cut from "Burns' Heir" because the writers did not think it was funny, nor did it do well with a test audience , although Oakley thought the animation was terrific. To the production staff's surprise, the scene would make the audience "erupt with laughter" when screened at animation conventions and college presentations, so they decided to insert it in this episode. The montage of nude scenes over
16250-404: 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 , the writers often used McClure as
16380-524: Was his prank calls to Moe's Tavern owner Moe Szyslak where he asks for a gag name . Moe tries to find that person in the bar, but soon realizes it is a prank call and angrily threatens Bart. These calls were apparently based on a series of prank calls known as the Tube Bar recordings , though Groening has denied any causal connection. Moe was based partly on Tube Bar owner Louis "Red" Deutsch , whose often profane responses inspired Moe's violent side. As
16510-429: Was one of the most common names for a city in the U.S. In anticipation of the success of the show, I thought, 'This will be cool; everyone will think it's their Springfield.' And they do." Many landmarks, including street names, have connections to Portland. When producer James L. Brooks was working on the television variety show The Tracey Ullman Show , he decided to include small animated sketches before and after
16640-413: Was originally brought in to voice Lisa, but upon arriving at the audition, she found that Lisa was simply described as the "middle child" and at the time did not have much personality. Cartwright became more interested in the role of Bart, who was described as "devious, underachieving, school-hating, irreverent, [and] clever". Groening let her try out for the part instead, and upon hearing her read, gave her
16770-475: Was soon resolved and, from 1998 to 2004, they were paid $ 125,000 per episode. The show's revenue continued to rise through syndication and DVD sales, and in April 2004 the main cast stopped appearing for script readings, demanding they be paid $ 360,000 per episode. The strike was resolved a month later and their salaries were increased to something between $ 250,000 and $ 360,000 per episode. In 2008, production for
16900-588: Was used by Kent Brockman in " Deep Space Homer " and has become a snowclone , with variants of the utterance used to express obsequious submission. It has been used in media, such as New Scientist magazine. The dismissive term " Meh ", believed to have been popularized by the show, entered the Collins English Dictionary in 2008. Other words credited as stemming from the show include "yoink" and "craptacular". The Oxford Dictionary of Modern Quotations includes several quotations from
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