Original: Homer 's middle initial '' J '' , which stands for '' Jay '' , is a '' tribute '' to animated characters such as Bullwinkle J. Moose and Rocket J. Squirrel from The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show who got their middle initial from Jay Ward .
Simplified: Homer 's middle initial '' J , '' which was discovered to stand for '' Jay '' , was a '' tribute '' to Bullwinkle J. Moose from Rocky and Bullwinkle , a show Matt Groening loved as a child .