Like Father, Like Clown

Like Father, Like Clown is the sixth episode of Season 3.
==Synopsis==
Krusty the Clown has dinner with The Simpsons (as a thank-you to Bart for clearing his name in "Krusty Gets Busted"), but the fun turns to tears when Krusty confesses that he's Jewish and that his rabbi father has disowned him for wanting to go into showbiz.
== Full Story ==
After finishing his show, Krusty decides to free himself up for the night and cancels all his plans, including a thank-you dinner with Bart. Krusty is reminded of how Bart saved him from prison, but still cancels and not for the first time. This makes Bart extremely upset even to the point of turning in his membership badge. He sends a letter to Krusty and after his secretary reads it, she is very disappointed and forces Krusty to go. Marge tells Bart that Krusty is coming and he instantly cheers up.
At dinner, the Simpsons ask Krusty to say grace and he starts to recite a prayer in Hebrew. Realizing that Krusty is Jewish, Lisa speaks of his heritage, making Krusty break down in tears. After some convincing from the family to why he is so depressed about it, Krusty tells the family his real name, Herschel Krustofsky, and describes his upbringing in the Lower East Side of Springfield. His father is a rabbi at Temple Beth Springfield synagogue and he always wanted Krusty to follow in his footsteps. Krusty, however, always wanted to be a clown, angering and disappointing his father who was determined to stop him. When Krusty was looking through the window of a joke shop his father dragged him away and when he told a joke in class his father strangled him. One night Krusty got a chance to perform at a rabbi's convention but unfortunately for him his father had turned up. His performance was going well but he was sprayed with seltzer by one of the rabbi's, his make-up fell off and his father recognized him and disowned him. After the story is over, Krusty becomes very emotional. He ends up outstaying his welcome at the Simpsons, not leaving until after 1am. He finally leaves and tries calling his dad, but is afraid that his dad will reject him again, so he doesn't say anything. 
Bart and Lisa notice him getting increasingly depressed (even to the point of crying during his TV show) so they agree to try to locate and reunite Krusty with his father. They first ask Rev. Lovejoy for help (he thinks they want to confirm until they mention Krusty's father) as it turns out they know each other very well as they do a radio show together and gives them the address and visit Temple Beth Springfield to speak with him. He welcomes them in but the moment Bart and Lisa mention that it's regarding his son he declares that he has no son and slams the door on them. They then call him on a radio studio where a framed "Larry Davis Experience" gold record hangs on the wall. Bart pretending to be a person called Dimitri living in Springfield asks if a person should be forgiven for doing something different, while the others say that they deserve forgiveness Krusty's father is still mad at him and refuses to forgive him. After several tries, they finally convince Hyman to forgive Krusty by saying a quote from Sammy Davis, Jr., a Jewish entertainer just like Krusty, in which the entertainer makes a passionate speech about the struggles that the Jewish people have overcome. This finally convinces Rabbi Krustofsky that entertainers have a place in Jewish heritage. Bart, Lisa, and the now proud father meet Krusty on the set of his show, where they reconcile their differences together.
== Citations ==
de:Der Vater eines Clowns
fr:Tel père, tel clown
pl:Like Father, Like Clown
pt:Tal pai, tal palhaço
Category:Religion-themed episodes
Category:Krusty the Clown Episodes
Category:Voice-Over Performance Emmy winning episodes
Category:Episodes featuring guest stars
Category:Television-themed Episodes
Category:Episodes named after a character
Category:Bart episodes
Category:Flashback episodes
Category:Rabbi Hyman Krustofsky Episodes
Category:Episodes named after a film or TV Show
Category:Episodes named after songs
Category:Lisa episodes
Category:Episodes on DVD
Category:Written by Jay Kogen and Wallace Wolodarsky
Category:Episodes where Homer chokes Bart
Category:Episodes Where Bart cries
Category:Dramatic episodes