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The Simpsons


 

Production/history

The Simpson family first appeared in animated form as shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, with the first short "Good Night" airing on April 19, 1987. Matt Groening admits the reason that they were so crudely drawn in the beginning was because he could not draw well and the animators did nothing more than just trace over his drawings. The shorts were never aired by the BBC in the UK, though some of them, including "Good Night", were included in a Simpsons anniversary episode. The Simpsons was converted, by a team of production companies that included what is now the Klasky Csupo animation house, into a series for the Fox Network in 1989 and has run as a weekly show on that network ever since. The first full length episode shown was "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", however the intended first episode was "Some Enchanted Evening", but when "Some Enchanted Evening" was completed it was rejected due to poor animation, so Fox aired "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire" first.

Related Topics:
Shorts on ''The Tracey Ullman Show'' - April 19 - 1987 - BBC - UK - Klasky Csupo - Fox Network - 1989 - Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire - Some Enchanted Evening

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The Simpsons was the first true TV series hit for Fox; it was the first Fox show to appear in the top twenty highest-rated shows of the time. It also sparked controversy, as Bart Simpson was portrayed as a rebellious troublemaker who caused trouble and got away with it. Parents' groups and conservative spokespersons felt that a cartoon character like Bart Simpson provided a poor role model for children. When a Simpsons T-shirt was marketed featuring Bart and the logo "Underachiever ('And proud of it, man!')", Simpsons T-shirts and other merchandise were banned from public schools in several areas of the United States.

Related Topics:
Role model - Merchandise - United States

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The outcry against Bart was reflected in the second season opener, featuring an episode called Bart Gets an F where Bart's school wants to make him repeat the fourth grade. In this episode, the school counsellor quotes the controversial T-shirt by stating, "He is an underachiever... and proud of it."

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In September 1990, Barbara Bush said in an interview for People magazine that The Simpsons was the dumbest thing she had ever seen. Six years later, an episode had George and Barbara Bush move to Springfield and leave after George gets involved in a feud with the Simpson family (in a style reminiscent of Dennis the Menace and Mr. Wilson). Mr. and Mrs. Bush were both portrayed by voice actors. One of the Simpsons DVD sets includes a special feature that presents an exchange of letters between the First Lady and show staff. In another address, Mr. Bush said that America needed to be closer to The Waltons than to The Simpsons, causing Bart to say they were a lot like the Waltons, since they were both praying for an end to the Depression.

Related Topics:
1990 - Barbara Bush - ''People'' magazine - George - Dennis the Menace - Mr. Wilson - DVD - The Waltons - The Depression

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The writers have shown a love for cameo appearances by celebrities and extended pastiches of contemporary and classic movies, as well as subtle visual jokes.

Related Topics:
Cameo appearance - Pastiche - Movies

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In 1995, Western Pacific Airlines repainted a Boeing 737 jet with Simpsons characters to promote the series.

Related Topics:
1995 - Western Pacific Airlines - Boeing 737

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On February 9, 1997 The Simpsons surpassed The Flintstones as the longest-running prime time animated series in America, however it has not yet beaten several Japanese anime series such as Sazae-san (which has been running since 1969) and Doraemon (running since 1979). In 2004 it was Scooby Doo who surpassed The Simpsons in number of episodes.

Related Topics:
February 9 - 1997 - The Flintstones - Prime time - Anime - Sazae-san - Doraemon - 2004 - Scooby Doo

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In January 2003, it was announced that the show had been renewed by Fox through 2005 — meaning it has replaced The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1952 to 1966) as longest-running sitcom (animated or live action) ever in the United States. In 2004, the series was renewed through its 19th season. Some take the view that The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet should continue to be counted as the longest-running sitcom as The Simpsons is animated, not live-action, although this view is declining as more authorities unambiguously credit The Simpsons as television's longest-running sitcom.

Related Topics:
2003 - 2005 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - 1952 - 1966 - Live action - 2004

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In its 1998 issue celebrating the greatest achievements in arts and entertainment of the 20th Century, TIME magazine named The Simpsons the century's best television series. In that same issue, Bart Simpson was named to the Time 100, the publication's list of the century's 100 most influential people. He was the only fictional character on the list.

Related Topics:
1998 - 20th Century - TIME - Time 100

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Since the series originated as part of The Tracey Ullman Show, it is also considered the longest running and most successful spinoff of all time.

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Over the years, virtually every Simpsons character has appeared on a magazine cover, ranging from TIME to Christianity Today and even Airliners.

Related Topics:
TIME - Christianity Today - Airliners

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The Simpsons has won dozens of awards since it debuted as a series, including 21 Emmy Awards, 22 Annie Awards, a Peabody and numerous others. On January 14, 2000 the Simpsons were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Related Topics:
Emmy Award - Annie Award - Peabody - January 14 - 2000 - Hollywood Walk of Fame

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The voice actors have been involved in much-publicized pay disputes with Fox on more than one occasion. In 1998, the voice actors stopped working, forcing 20th Century Fox TV to increase their salary from $30,000 per episode to $125,000. The actors were supported in their action by series creator Matt Groening. http://www.snpp.com/other/interviews/groening99e.html As the revenue generated by the show continued to increase through syndication and DVD sales, six actors (playing over 50 characters) — Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, and Harry Shearer — stopped showing up for script readings in April 2004 after weeks of unsuccessful negotiations with Fox. They asked for $360,000 per episode, or $8 million for a 22-episode season. On May 2, 2004, the actors resolved their dispute with Fox after having their demands met. The universally reported claim that this dispute was in fact a full-blown strike is denied by Harry Shearer. http://www.metronews.ca/column_tube_talk.asp?id=2347&cid=650

Related Topics:
Voice actor - 1998 - 20th Century Fox - Dan Castellaneta - Julie Kavner - Nancy Cartwright - Yeardley Smith - Hank Azaria - Harry Shearer - 2004 - May 2 - 2004

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From season 9, the show has drawn criticism from some fans for straying too far from its comedic structure, for becoming too "mainstream," and changing character personalities without explanation. Some consider its parody of the prequel Star Wars trilogy in the episode Co-Dependent's Day being very harsh considering the show's own "downfall." These attacks have been countered by less hardcore fans stating that the show was always more or less mainstream, and nonsensical personality changes and the structural changes were done in a spirit of creative experimentation, and has not damaged the show (see Criticism).

Related Topics:
Star Wars - Co-Dependent's Day

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Producers

The series has gone through numerous executive producers, also known as show runners, throughout its run. The showrunner is in charge of every aspect of the show for a season.

Related Topics:
Executive producer - Show runner

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Voice actors and their characters

All episodes (with the exception of one) list only the voice actors (not the characters they voice) in keeping with the mystique of having the audience not associate any one character with an actor — this is to discourage the audience from easily identifying exactly which voice actor did what. Yeardley Smith and Marcia Wallace are the only cast members who only do one voice, though both have on occasion voiced one-shot characters.

Related Topics:
Voice actor - Yeardley Smith - Marcia Wallace

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Here is a list of all the major voice actors and the characters they voice:

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Regular cast

Recurring guest stars

Writing

John Swartzwelder is the most famous of the writers on the Simpsons' staff. He has written the most episodes. According to the DVD commentaries, he used to write episodes while sitting at a booth in his favourite restaurant. When the restaurant closed down, he bought the booth and had it installed in his house.

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Current late-night talkshow host Conan O'Brien was a writer during the fourth and fifth season. He wrote "New Kid on the Block" (9F06), "Marge vs. the Monorail" (9F10), "Homer Goes to College" (1F02) and "Treehouse of Horror IV" (1F04).

Related Topics:
Conan O'Brien - New Kid on the Block - Marge vs. the Monorail - Homer Goes to College - Treehouse of Horror IV

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Ian Maxtone-Graham has been a prominent writer for The Simpsons since the eighth season.

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The character Professor John Frink was named for writer/producer John Frink.

Related Topics:
Professor John Frink - John Frink

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Animation

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Overseas animation studios involved:

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AKOM—191 episodes

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  • Exclusively produced the first two seasons of the series.
  • Produced various episodes throughout the run of the series.

    • Anivision—55 episodes

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  • Produced animation for episodes from seasons 3?10.

    • Rough Draft Studios—110 episodes

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  • Produced animation for episodes from season four onwards.

    • U.S. Animation, Inc.—2 episodes

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  • Jointly produced "Radioactive Man" with Anivision.
  • Produced "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular"

    • Toonzone Entertainment—2 episodes

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  • Produced "The Fat and the Furriest" and "She Used to Be My Girl".

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    The Simpsons has been animated by many different studios over the past 18 years, both domestic and overseas. Throughout the run of the animated shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, the animation was solely produced domestically at Klasky Csupo. Klasky Csupo was also the animation studio during the first three seasons of the half-hour length series, however, due to the increased workload, production was now being subcontracted to overseas studios, usually in Korea, where labor is cheaper. While character and background layout is done by the domestic studio, inbetweening, coloring and filming is done by the overseas studios. Throughout the years, different overseas studios have animated different episodes, even episodes within the same season.

    Related Topics:
    Klasky Csupo - Korea - Inbetween

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    During season four, Gracie Films made a decision to switch domestic production to DPS Film Roman, which continues to animate the show to this day. The last episode to be animated by Klasky Csupo was "A Streetcar Named Marge".

    Related Topics:
    Gracie Films - DPS Film Roman - A Streetcar Named Marge

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    After season 13, production was switched from traditional cel animation to digital ink and paint. Originally, the switch was intended to happen during season 12 with the episode "Tennis the Menace", but after seeing the results, Gracie Films decided to hold off for two more seasons. Tennis the Menace, however, being already completed, was broadcast this way.

    Related Topics:
    Cel animation - Digital ink and paint - Tennis the Menace

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Distributors

The Simpsons list of television distributors by country:

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Episodes

"The Simpsons" is one of the longest running TV shows ever created. By the end of its 16th season, the show had accumulated 356 episodes.

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◄ The Simpsons: Trademarks
The Simpsons: Cultural impact ►

~ Table of Content ~

►Introduction
►Setting, characters, and plot
►Trademarks
►Production/history
►Cultural impact
►Simpsons publications
►See also
►External links

 

 

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