Springfield Elementary School

:This article is about the fictitious Springfield Elementary School in the television program "The Simpsons." There are also many real Springfield Elementary Schools in the United States.

Staff

Otto Mann

Voiced by Harry Shearer, Otto is the school bus driver. He is notable for his occasional maniacal driving style, his love of heavy metal music, and his propensity for sounding and acting like a perpetual '70s teenager, and is a bit of a stoner. He has also been seen at Alcoholics Anonymous meetings: "My name is Otto, and I love to get blotto!" He is often homeless, having been evicted from his apartment and forced to live with the Simpsons in one episode, and found squatting in the Simpsons' recently-vacated home in another.

Related Topics:
Harry Shearer - Heavy metal music - '70s - Stoner - Alcoholics Anonymous

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His father is an admiral, and the two do not get along. There have been suggestions that this is a reference to Jim Morrison of The Doors, whose father was also an admiral. However, he also bears a striking resemblance to Slash, famous guitarist, and his obvious enjoyment of metal music.

Related Topics:
Jim Morrison - The Doors - Slash

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In at least one episode, Otto's last name is 'Mechanic'. In one episode, Otto was engaged to be married, but when forced to choose between his fiancee and his music; he preferred the latter, dumping her. Once, Otto claimed to have been trained as a “certified blood-letting-tech-dude”.

Related Topics:
Music - Certified blood-letting-tech-dude

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Otto is also the only adult working at Springfield Elementary who gets along well with the students. Bart, in particular, thinks Otto is "the coolest adult ever met". When he tells Otto this, Otto responds, "Wow! I've never been called an adult before! I've been tried as one, though..."

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Otto used to take medicinal marijuana. When he was under the influence, he stated that "Shemp" was "hemp" spelled backwards. Then Homer pointed out that "Otto" was "Otto" spelled backwards, which scared him.

Related Topics:
Marijuana - "Otto" was "Otto" spelled backwards

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According to Otto's drivers' license, he was born on January 18, 1963, he is 5'10", and weighs 150 lbs.

Related Topics:
January 18 - 1963

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In 2010, Otto would be the boss of Springfield's cab company (established 2003). An employee was former mayor Diamond Joe Quimby.

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Groundskeeper Willie

Voiced by Dan Castellaneta, Willie is the school's groundskeeper, with flaming red hair and an outrageously exaggerated Scottish accent. His years of heavy work have given him an amazingly muscled physique, occasionally revealed, notably when he had to crawl through ventilation shafts to retrieve Santa's Little Helper. Needing some assistance to get through the narrow tunnels, he turns to Lunchlady Doris to coat him with oil, with the memorable lines, "Lunchlady Doris, have you got any grease?" She replies by saying, "Yes. Yes we do." Willie bellows "Then grease me up, woman!" as he dramatically tears his shirt open, to which she replies, "Okey-dokey."

Related Topics:
Dan Castellaneta - Groundskeeper - Scottish accent - Santa's Little Helper

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Sometimes, Willie wears a kilt. He does not however wear anything under the kilt - the mark of a true Scotsman. At Scotchtoberfest, Bart attaches a number of balloons to Willie's kilt. This led to the kilt flying up. The gathered crowd gasped, and one woman fainted. In response, Willie cried, "Ach! 'Tis no more than what God gave me, you puritan pukes!"

Related Topics:
Kilt - Scotsman - Scotchtoberfest - Puritan

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In the second part of "Who Shot Mr. Burns?", Willie has his kilt on while being interviewed by the police. During the interview Willie uncrosses and then recrosses his legs. In response, the officers point a gun at Willie with a warning to stop doing that. The scene was a spoof of Sharon Stone's interrogation scene from the film Basic Instinct.

Related Topics:
Who Shot Mr. Burns? - Basic Instinct

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In the episode "Monty Can't Buy Me Love", Willie is re-united with his mother and father on the banks of Loch Ness, Scotland, where Mr. Burns leads a successful expedition to catch the Loch Ness Monster - Nessie - and bring it to Springfield.

Related Topics:
Monty Can't Buy Me Love - Loch Ness - Loch Ness Monster

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According to Superintendent Chalmers, Willie is an escaped patient from a mental hospital that Skinner hired. According to Willie, he has worked at the school for 20 years, just as long as Principal Skinner, so he was likely hired soon after Skinner got his job.

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At one time, Willie was engaged to Shary Bobbins (a parody of Mary Poppins), until she recovered her eyesight at which point, in Willie's words, "suddenly the ugliest man in Glasgow wasn't good enough for anymore."

Related Topics:
Mary Poppins - Glasgow

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Willie's hobbies include videotaping couples in cars, something which proves to the benefit of Homer Simpson when he is later wrongfully accused of sexual harassment. He says America thinks it's wrong but every Scotsman does it.

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Willie's nationality is also hinted to be the cause of his hostility. Example:

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Willie: "Brothers and sisters are natural born enemies! Like Englishmen and Scots! And Welshmen and Scots! And Japanese and Scots! And Scots and other Scots! Lousy Scots! They ruin Scotland..."

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Skinner: "You Scots sure are a contentious people."

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Willie: "You just made an enemy for life!"

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It was recently revealed that Willie's personal enemy is another Groundskeeper that speaks with a heavy Irish accent: Seamus.

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When Homer pretended to be a Scot and said to Willie that he was from "North Kilt Town," Willie responded: "Noo fooling, I'm from North Kilt Town too! You know Angus Macleod?" This goes on until Homer accuses Willie of not being Scottish, and Willie suprisingly agrees.

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Lunchlady Doris

Voiced by Doris Grau, Lunchlady Doris is the overweight, middle-aged, and laconic worker at the cafeteria. It was occasionally intimated that she and Groundskeeper Willie are romantically involved. She has served many weird things to the students, including whole beef hearts, horse testicles ("more testicles means more iron"), Grade-F meat ("Mostly circus animals, some filler"), rat's milk, ground newspapers, and ground-up gym mats ("There's very little meat in these gym mats").

Related Topics:
Doris Grau - Heart - Testicle - Circus - Rat

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After Doris Grau died, the character of Lunchlady Doris was retired out of respect. However, Doris has since been seen in crowds and groups of other faculty members. It was implied in one episode that she is the mother of the Squeaky Voiced Teen.

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