page_title: There's Something About Marrying
section_title: Production
hierarchical_section_title: There's Something About Marrying / Production
caption_attribution_description: English: Al Jean at the 2010 Comic Con in San Diego
context_page_description: "There's Something About Marrying" is the tenth episode of the sixteenth season of The Simpsons. In the episode, Springfield legalizes same-sex marriage to increase tourism. After becoming a minister, Homer starts to wed people to make money. Meanwhile, Marge's sister Patty comes out as a lesbian and reveals that she is going to marry a woman named Veronica. Marge originally disapproves of this, making Patty frustrated. When Marge accidentally discovers that Veronica is a man cross-dressed as a woman, she decides to keep quiet about it knowing that Patty will be marrying a man. However, at the ceremony, she is so moved by Patty's vow that she is forced to reveal Veronica's secret. After the ceremony is abruptly cancelled, Marge tells Patty that she now accepts her sexuality.
  This was the third time that an episode of The Simpsons focused on homosexuality. The episode—written by J. Stewart Burns and directed by Nancy Kruse—was inspired by the 2004 same-sex weddings that occurred in San Francisco. According to executive producer Al Jean, the staff wanted the episode to explore what the different characters' stances on same-sex marriage were.
context_section_description: "There's Something About Marrying" was written by co-executive producer J. Stewart Burns and directed by Nancy Kruse as part of the sixteenth season of The Simpsons. Work on the episode started in March 2004, after the 2004 San Francisco same-sex weddings, a period during February 2004 when the city was issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. This served as the Simpsons staff's inspiration for "There's Something About Marrying". The plot point where Springfield tries to increase tourism by marketing towards the LGBT community also had a basis in reality. An example is Fort Lauderdale, which became a popular tourist destination for gays and lesbians in the mid-2000s. Executive producer Al Jean said they were interested in doing the episode because they could explore the various characters' different positions on gay marriage while remaining neutral. "Lisa thinks it's good for civil rights. The reverend of the local Protestant church is opposed to it. Other people think tourists will come to town. Mayor Quimby wants the money. We don't take a position as much as explore everybody's positions," he commented.
  Matt Groening, the creator of The Simpsons, stated that the staff wanted to out Patty as gay because portraying her as a "love-starved spinster [...] seemed old" on the show. There had previously been hints about Patty's orientation. For example, in the season thirteen episode "Jaws Wired Shut" she is part of the Springfield Gay Pride Parade's "stayin' in the closet" float, though only her voice was heard and she was not seen.
caption: Al Jean said the staff wanted to explore the characters' different positions on same-sex marriage.
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