The Simpsons

**The Simpsons** is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. The show is set in the fictional town of Springfield and parodies American culture and society, television, and the human condition.

Since its debut on December 17, 1989, 750 episodes of the show have been broadcast. It is the longest-running American animated series, longest-running American sitcom, and the longest-running scripted American primetime television series. A feature-length film, The Simpsons Movie, was released in theaters worldwide on July 27, 2007, and grossed over $527 million, becoming the eighth highest-grossing film of 2007. A sequel of the film has been in development as of 2008.

## Premise

### Characters

*Main article: List of The Simpsons characters*
The Simpsons are a typical family that lives in the fictional Middle American town of Springfield. Homer Simpson, the father, works as a safety director at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, a position at odds with his careless, buffoonish personality. He is married to Marge, a stereotypical American housewife, and mother. They have three children: Bart, a ten-year-old troublemaker; Lisa, a precocious eight-year-old activist; and Maggie, a baby who rarely speaks, but communicates by sucking on a pacifier. The show continuously resets time so the characters don't age.

The family owns a dog, Santa's Little Helper, and a cat, Snowball V, renamed Snowball II in "I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot". Both pets have had starring roles in several episodes.

Despite the passing of yearly milestones such as holidays or birthdays, the Simpsons do not physically age and still appear just as they did at the end of the 1980s. Although the family is dysfunctional, many episodes examine their relationships and bonds with each other and they are often shown to care about one another.

The show includes an array of quirky supporting characters, which include Homer's co-workers (also friends) Lenny Leonard and Carl Carlson, the school principal Seymour Skinner and teachers Edna Krabappel and Elizabeth Hoover, neighbor Ned Flanders, friends Barney Gumble, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, Moe Szyslak, Milhouse Van Houten, and Nelson Muntz, extended relatives Patty and Selma Bouvier, townspeople such as Mayor Quimby, Chief Clancy Wiggum, local celebrities Krusty the Clown and news reporter Kent Brockman, and tycoon Charles Montgomery Burns, who often serves as the series antagonist, and his executive assistant Waylon Smithers.

The creators originally intended many of these characters to be one-time jokesters or fulfill needed functions in the town. A number of them have gained expanded roles and subsequently starred in their own episodes. According to Matt Groening, the show adopted the concept of a large, supporting cast from the comedy show *Second City Television*.

### Setting

The series is set in a fictional American town called Springfield. Although there are many real settlements in America named Springfield, this one is fictional. The state it's in is not established. The show is intentionally evasive with regard to Springfield's location. The fictional city's geography, surroundings, and layout are flexible, often changing to accommodate the plot of any given episode.

## Broadcast

### Episodes

*Main article: List of The Simpsons episodes*

### Syndication

The cable television network FXX, a sibling of 20th Television and formerly the Fox network, has exclusive cable and digital syndication rights for *The Simpsons.* Original contracts had previously stated that syndication rights for *The Simpsons* would not be sold to cable until the series conclusion, at a time when cable syndication deals were highly rare. The series has been syndicated to local broadcast stations in nearly all markets throughout the United States since September 1994.

FXX premiered *The Simpsons* on their network on August 21, 2014, by starting a twelve-day marathon that featured the first 552 episodes (every single episode that had already been released at the time) aired chronologically, including *The Simpsons Movie*, which FX Networks had already owned the rights to air. It was the longest continuous marathon in the history of television (until VH1 Classic aired a 433-hour, nineteen-day, marathon of *Saturday Night Live* in 2015; celebrating that program's 40th anniversary). The first day of the marathon was the highest rated broadcast day in the history of the network so far, the ratings more than tripled those of regular prime time programming for FXX. Ratings during the first six nights of the marathon grew night after night, with the network ranking within the top 5 networks in basic cable each night. In Australia, a marathon of every episode of the show (at the time) aired from December 16, 2019, to January 5, 2020, on Fox8 (a cable network operated on pay TV provider Foxtel and a corporate sibling to the American Fox network).

After Disney acquired both 20th Television and FX Networks, it was announced that *The Simpsons* would air on the company's Freeform channel starting October 2, 2019.

### Streaming and digital-sell through

On October 21, 2014, a digital service courtesy of the FXNOW app, called *Simpsons World*, launched with every episode of the series accessible to authenticated FX subscribers, and is available on game consoles such as Xbox One, streaming devices such as Roku and Apple TV, and online via web browser. There was early criticism of both wrong aspect ratios for earlier episodes and the length of commercial breaks on the streaming service, but that problem was soon amended with fewer commercial breaks during individual episodes. Later it was announced that *Simpsons World* would now let users watch all of the SD episodes in their original format. *Simpsons World* was discontinued after the launch of Disney+ on November 12, 2019, where the series streams exclusively. Initially, the series was only available cropped to 16:9 without the option to view the original 4:3 versions, reigniting criticisms of cropping old episodes. In response, Disney announced that "in early 2020, Disney+ will make the first 19 seasons (and some episodes from season 20) of *The Simpsons* available in their original 4:3 aspect ratio, giving subscribers a choice of how they prefer to view the popular series." On May 28, 2020, Disney+ made the first 19 seasons, along with some episodes from season 20, of *The Simpsons* available in both 16:9 and the original 4:3 aspect ratio. Season 31 came to Disney+ on October 2, 2020, with Hulu streaming the latest episodes of season 31 the next day. Season 32 came to Disney+ on September 29, 2021.

The season 3 premiere "Stark Raving Dad", which features Michael Jackson as the voice of Leon Kompowsky, was pulled out of rotation in 2019 by Matt Groening, James L. Brooks, and Al Jean after HBO aired the documentary *Leaving Neverland*, in which two men share details into how Jackson allegedly abused them as children. It is therefore unavailable on Disney+. However, the episode is still available on *The Complete Third Season* DVD box set released on August 26, 2003.

In July 2017, all episodes from seasons 4 to 19 were made available for purchase on the iTunes Store in Canada.

## Reception and achievements

### Early success

*The Simpsons* was the Fox network's first television series to rank among a season's top 30 highest-rated shows. In 1990, Bart quickly became one of the most popular characters on television in what was termed "Bartmania".Template:Sfn He became the most prevalent *Simpsons* character on memorabilia, such as T-shirts. In the early 1990s, millions of T-shirts featuring Bart were sold; as many as one million were sold on some days. Believing Bart to be a bad role model, several American public schools banned T-shirts featuring Bart next to captions such as "I'm Bart Simpson. Who the hell are you?" and "Underachiever ('And proud of it, man!')". *The Simpsons* merchandise sold well and generated $2 billion in revenue during the first 14 months of sales. Because of his popularity, Bart was often the most promoted member of the Simpson family in advertisements for the show, even for episodes in which he was not involved in the main plot.

Due to the show's success, over the summer of 1990 the Fox Network decided to switch *The Simpsons*Template:' time slot from 8:00 p.m. ET on Sunday night to the same time on Thursday, where it competed with *The Cosby Show* on NBC, the number one show at the time. Through the summer, several news outlets published stories about the supposed "Bill vs. Bart" rivalry. "Bart Gets an 'F'Template:-" (season two, 1990) was the first episode to air against *The Cosby Show*, and it received a lower Nielsen ratings, tying for eighth behind *The Cosby Show*, which had an 18.5 rating. The rating is based on the number of household televisions that were tuned into the show, but Nielsen Media Research estimated that 33.6 million viewers watched the episode, making it the number one show in terms of actual viewers that week. At the time, it was the most watched episode in the history of the Fox Network, and it is still the highest rated episode in the history of *The Simpsons*. The show moved back to its Sunday slot in 1994 and has remained there ever since.

*The Simpsons* has received overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics, and it has been noted for being described as "the most irreverent and unapologetic show on the air." In a 1990 review of the show, Ken Tucker of *Entertainment Weekly* described it as "the American family at its most complicated, drawn as simple cartoons. It's this neat paradox that makes millions of people turn away from the three big networks on Sunday nights to concentrate on The Simpsons." Tucker also described the show as a "pop-cultural phenomenon, a prime-time cartoon show that appeals to the entire family."

### Run length achievements

On February 9, 1997, *The Simpsons* surpassed *The Flintstones* with the episode "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show" as the longest-running prime-time animated series in the United States. In 2004, *The Simpsons* replaced *The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet* (1952 to 1966) as the longest-running sitcom (animated or live action) in the United States in terms of the number of years airing. In 2009, *The Simpsons* surpassed *The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet*Template:'s record of 435 episodes and is now recognized by *Guinness World Records* as the world's longest running sitcom (in terms of episode count). In October 2004, *Scooby-Doo* briefly overtook *The Simpsons* as the American animated show with the highest number of episodes (albeit under several different iterations). However, network executives in April 2005 again cancelled *Scooby-Doo*, which finished with 371 episodes, and *The Simpsons* reclaimed the title with 378 episodes at the end of their seventeenth season.Template:Sfn In May 2007, *The Simpsons* reached their 400th episode at the end of the eighteenth season. While *The Simpsons* has the record for the number of episodes by an American animated show, other animated series have surpassed *The Simpsons*. For example, the Japanese anime series *Sazae-san* has over 2,000 episodes (7,000+ segments) to its credit.

In 2009, Fox began a year-long celebration of the show titled "Best. 20 Years. Ever." to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the premiere of *The Simpsons*. One of the first parts of the celebration is the "Unleash Your Yellow" contest in which entrants must design a poster for the show. The celebration ended on January 10, 2010 (almost 20 years after "Bart the Genius" aired on January 14, 1990), with *The Simpsons 20th Anniversary Special – In 3-D! On Ice!*, a documentary special by documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock that examines the "cultural phenomenon of *The Simpsons*".

As of the twenty-first season (2009–2010), *The Simpsons* became the longest-running American scripted primetime television series, having surpassed the 1955–1975 run of *Gunsmoke*. On April 29, 2018, *The Simpsons* also surpassed *Gunsmoke*Template:'s 635-episode count with the episode "Forgive and Regret."

*The Simpsons* is both the longest-running and the highest ranking animated series to feature on TV Time's top 50 most followed TV shows ever.

On February 6, 2019, it was announced that *The Simpsons* has been renewed for seasons 31 and 32.

On March 3, 2021, it was announced that *The Simpsons* was renewed for seasons 33 and 34.

### Awards and honors

*Main article: List of awards and nominations received by *The Simpsons**
 File:The Simpsons star.jpg
*The Simpsons* has won dozens of awards since it debuted as a series, including 34 Primetime Emmy Awards, 34 Annie Awards and a Peabody Award. In a 1999 issue celebrating the 20th century's greatest achievements in arts and entertainment, *Time* magazine named *The Simpsons* the century's best television series. In that same issue, *Time* included Bart Simpson in the *Time 100*, the publication's list of the century's 100 most influential people. Bart was the only fictional character on the list. On January 14, 2000, the Simpsons were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Also in 2000, *Entertainment Weekly* magazine TV critic Ken Tucker named *The Simpsons* the greatest television show of the 1990s. Furthermore, viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 have voted *The Simpsons* at the top of two polls: 2001's 100 Greatest Kids' TV shows, and 2005's The 100 Greatest Cartoons, with Homer Simpson voted into first place in 2001's 100 Greatest TV Characters. Homer also placed ninth on *Entertainment Weekly*Template:'s list of the "50 Greatest TV icons". In 2002, *The Simpsons* ranked No. 8 on [[TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time|*TV Guide*Template:'s 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time]], and was ranked the No. 6 cult show in 2004. In 2007, it moved to No. 8 on TV Guide's cult shows list and was included in *Time*Template:'s list of the "100 Best TV Shows of All Time". In 2008 the show was placed in first on *Entertainment Weekly*Template:'s "Top 100 Shows of the Past 25 Years". *Empire* named it the greatest TV show of all time. In 2010, *Entertainment Weekly* named Homer "the greatest character of the last 20 years", while in 2013 the Writers Guild of America listed *The Simpsons* as the 11th "best written" series in television history. In 2013, TV Guide ranked *The Simpsons* as the greatest TV cartoon of all time and the tenth greatest show of all time. A 2015 *The Hollywood Reporter* survey of 2,800 actors, producers, directors, and other industry people named it as their No. 10 favorite show. In 2015, British newspaper *The Telegraph* named *The Simpsons* as one of the 10 best TV sitcoms of all time. Television critics Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz ranked *The Simpsons* as the greatest American TV series of all time in their 2016 book *TV (The Book)*. In 2022, *Rolling Stone* ranked *The Simpsons* as the second-greatest TV show of all time.

### Template:Visible anchor

#### Controversy

Bart's rebellious, bad boy nature, which underlies his misbehavior and rarely leads to any punishment, led some people to characterize him as a poor role model for children.Template:Sfn In schools, educators claimed that Bart was a "threat to learning" because of his "underachiever and proud of it" attitude and negative attitude regarding his education. Others described him as "egotistical, aggressive and mean-spirited". In a 1991 interview, Bill Cosby described Bart as a bad role model for children, calling him "angry, confused, frustrated". In response, Matt Groening said, "That sums up Bart, all right. Most people are in a struggle to be normal [and] he thinks normal is very boring, and does things that others just wished they dare do." On January 27, 1992, then-President George H. W. Bush said, "We are going to keep on trying to strengthen the American family, to make American families a lot more like the Waltons and a lot less like the Simpsons." The writers rushed out a tongue-in-cheek reply in the form of a short segment which aired three days later before a rerun of "Stark Raving Dad" in which Bart replied, "Hey, we're just like the Waltons. We're praying for an end to the Depression, too."Template:Sfn

The show also received criticism from the nuclear power industry in its early years, with its portrayal of the evil boss Mr. Burns and "bungling idiot" employees (including Homer Simpson himself) with their lack of safety and security. In a letter to the nuclear power-backed U.S. Council for Energy Awareness, producer Sam Simon apologized, stating, "I apologize that the Simpsons have offended a lot of people in the energy industry. I agree with you that in real life, Homer Simpson would not be employed at a nuclear power plant. On the other hand, he probably wouldn't be employed anywhere."

Various episodes of the show have generated controversy. The Simpsons visit Australia in "Bart vs. Australia" (season six, 1995) and Brazil in "Blame It on Lisa" (season 13, 2002) and both episodes generated controversy and negative reaction in the visited countries. In the latter case, Rio de Janeiro's tourist board—which claimed that the city was portrayed as having rampant street crime, kidnappings, slums, and monkey and rat infestations—went so far as to threaten Fox with legal action. Groening was a fierce and vocal critic of the episode "A Star Is Burns" (season six, 1995) which featured a crossover with *The Critic*. He felt that it was just an advertisement for *The Critic*, and that people would incorrectly associate the show with him. When he was unsuccessful in getting the episode pulled, he had his name removed from the credits and went public with his concerns, openly criticizing James L. Brooks and saying the episode "violates the Simpsons' universe." In response, Brooks said, "I am furious with Matt, ... he's allowed his opinion, but airing this publicly in the press is going too far. ... his behavior right now is rotten."

"The Principal and the Pauper" (season nine, 1997) is one of the most controversial episodes of *The Simpsons*. Many fans and critics reacted negatively to the revelation that Seymour Skinner, a recurring character since the first season, was an impostor. The episode has been criticized by Groening and by Harry Shearer, who provides the voice of Skinner. In a 2001 interview, Shearer recalled that after reading the script, he told the writers, "That's *so* wrong. You're taking something that an audience has built eight years or nine years of investment in and just tossed it in the trash can for no good reason, for a story we've done before with other characters. It's so arbitrary and gratuitous, and it's disrespectful to the audience."

#### Bans

The show has reportedly been taken off the air in several countries. China banned it from prime-time television in August 2006, "in an effort to protect China's struggling animation studios." In 2008, Venezuela barred the show from airing on morning television as it was deemed "unsuitable for children". The same year, several Russian Pentecostal churches demanded that *The Simpsons*, *South Park* and some other Western cartoons be removed from broadcast schedules "for propaganda of various vices" and the broadcaster's license to be revoked. However, a court decision later dismissed this request.

#### Perceived decline in quality

*Main article: Historiography of The Simpsons#Arguments for decline in quality*
Critics' reviews of early *Simpsons* episodes praised the show for its sassy humor, wit, realism, and intelligence. However, in the late 1990s, around the airing of season 10, the tone and emphasis of the show began to change. Some critics started calling the show "tired". By 2000, some long-term fans had become disillusioned with the show, and pointed to its shift from character-driven plots to what they perceived as an overemphasis on zany antics. Jim Schembri of *The Sydney Morning Herald* attributed the decline in quality to an abandonment of character-driven storylines in favor of celebrity cameo appearances and references to popular culture. Schembri wrote in 2011: "The central tragedy of *The Simpsons* is that it has gone from commanding attention to merely being attention-seeking. It began by proving that cartoon characters don't have to be caricatures; they can be invested with real emotions. Now the show has in essence fermented into a limp parody of itself. Memorable story arcs have been sacrificed for the sake of celebrity walk-ons and punchline-hungry dialogue."

In 2010, the BBC noted "the common consensus is that *The Simpsons*Template:' golden era ended after season nine", and Todd Leopold of CNN, in an article looking at its perceived decline, stated "for many fans ... the glory days are long past." Similarly, Tyler Wilson of *Coeur d'Alene Press has referred to seasons one to nine as the show's "golden age", and Ian Nathan of Empire described the show's classic era as being "say, the first ten seasons." Jon Heacock of LucidWorks stated that "for the first ten years [seasons], the show was consistently at the top of its game", with "so many moments, quotations, and references – both epic and obscure – that helped turn the Simpson family into the cultural icons that they remain to this day."*

Mike Scully, who was showrunner during seasons nine through twelve, has been the subject of criticism.Template:Sfn Chris Suellentrop of Slate wrote that "under Scully's tenure, *The Simpsons* became, well, a cartoon ... Episodes that once would have ended with Homer and Marge bicycling into the sunset now end with Homer blowing a tranquilizer dart into Marge's neck. The show's still funny, but it hasn't been touching in years." When asked in 2007 how the series' longevity is sustained, Scully joked: "Lower your quality standards. Once you've done that you can go on forever."

Al Jean, who was showrunner during seasons thirteen through thirty-three, has also been the subject of criticism, with some arguing that the show has continued to decline in quality under his tenure. Former writers have complained that under Jean, the show is "on auto-pilot", "too sentimental", and the episodes are "just being cranked out." Some critics believe that the show has "entered a steady decline under Jean and is no longer really funny." John Ortved, author of *The Simpsons: An Uncensored, Unauthorized History*, characterized the Jean era as "toothless", and criticized what he perceived as the show's increase in social and political commentary. Jean responded: "Well, it's possible that we've declined. But honestly, I've been here the whole time and I do remember in season two people saying, 'It's gone downhill.' If we'd listened to that then we would have stopped after episode 13. I'm glad we didn't."

In 2004, cast member Harry Shearer criticized what he perceived as the show's declining quality: "I rate the last three seasons as among the worst, so season four looks very good to me now." Cast member Dan Castellaneta responded: "I don't agree, ... I think Harry's issue is that the show isn't as grounded as it was in the first three or four seasons, that it's gotten crazy or a little more madcap. I think it organically changes to stay fresh." Also in 2004 author Douglas Coupland described claims of declining quality in the series as "hogwash", saying "*The Simpsons* hasn't fumbled the ball in fourteen years, it's hardly likely to fumble it now."Template:Sfn In an April 2006 interview, Groening said: "I honestly don't see any end in sight. I think it's possible that the show will get too financially cumbersome ... but right now, the show is creatively, I think, as good or better than it's ever been. The animation is incredibly detailed and imaginative, the stories do things that we haven't done before, so creatively there's no reason to quit."

In 2016, popular culture writer Anna Leszkiewicz suggested that even though *The Simpsons* still holds cultural relevance, "contemporary appeal" is only for the "first ten or so seasons," with recent episodes only garnering mainstream attention when a favorite character from the golden era is killed off, or when new information and shock twists are given for old characters. The series' ratings have also declined; while the first season enjoyed an average of 13.4 million viewing households per episode in the U.S., the twenty-first season had an average of 7.2 million viewers.

Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz argued in their 2016 book titled *TV (The Book)* that the peak of *The Simpsons* are "roughly seasons [three through twelve]", and that despite the decline, episodes from the later seasons such as "Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind" and "Holidays of Future Passed" could be considered on par with the earlier classic episodes, further stating that "even if you want to call the show today a thin shadow of its former self, think about how mind-boggingly great its former self had to be for so-diminished a version to be watchable at all."

In 2020, Uproxx writer Josh Kurp stated that while he agrees with the sentiment that *The Simpsons* is not as good as it used to be, it is because "it was working at a level of comedy and characterization that no show ever has." He felt there were still many reasons to watch the series, as it was "still capable of quality television, and even the occasional new classic" and the fact that the show was willing to experiment, giving examples such as bringing on guest animators like Don Hertzfeldt and Sylvain Chomet to produce couch gags, and guest writers like Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, Pete Holmes and Megan Amram to write episodes. In the season 32 episode, "I, Carumbus", the show itself makes a nod to these concerns in its credits gag where the god Jupiter notes that "It definitely feels like they're wrapping it up ... any day now."

In a 2021 interview with *NME*, Jean was quoted as saying, "To people who say *The Simpsons* isn't as good as it used to be, I would say I think the world isn't as good as it used to be. But we're declining at a slower rate".

#### Race controversy

Further information: Apu Nahasapeemapetilon § Accusations of racial stereotyping
The stereotypical nature of the character Apu Nahasapeemapetilon has been the subject of controversy. Indian-American comedian Hari Kondabolu stated in his 2017 documentary *The Problem with Apu* that as a child he was a fan of *The Simpsons* and liked Apu, but he now finds the character's stereotypical nature troublesome. Defenders of the character responded that the show is built on comical stereotypes, with creator Matt Groening saying, "that's the nature of cartooning." He added that he was "proud of what we do on the show", and "it's a time in our culture where people love to pretend they're offended". In response to the controversy, Apu's voice actor, Hank Azaria, said he was willing to step aside from his role as Apu: "The most important thing is to listen to South Asian people, Indian people in this country when they talk about what they feel and how they think about this character." In February 2020, he confirmed that he would no longer voice Apu. Groening stated at the same time that the character would remain in the show.

The criticisms were referenced in the season 29 episode "No Good Read Goes Unpunished", when Lisa breaks the fourth wall and addresses the audience by saying, "Something that started decades ago and was applauded and inoffensive is now politically incorrect. What can you do?" to which Marge replies, "Some things will be addressed at a later date." Lisa adds, "If at all." This reference was clarified by the fact that there was a framed photo of Apu with the caption on the photo saying "Don't have a cow, Apu", a play on Bart's catchphrase "Don't have a cow, man," as well as the fact that Hindus do not eat cows as they are considered sacred. In October 2018, it was reported that Apu would be written out of the show, which Groening denied.

On June 26, 2020, in light of the various Black Lives Matter protests, Fox announced that recurring characters of color (such as Carl Carlson and Dr. Hibbert, among others) will no longer be voiced by white actors. Beginning with season 32, Carl, a black character originally voiced by Azaria, is now voiced by black actor Alex Désert. In addition, Bumblebee Man, a Spanish-speaking Latino character also originally voiced by Azaria, is now voiced by Mexican-American actor Eric Lopez, and Dr. Hibbert, a black character originally voiced by Harry Shearer, is now voiced by black actor Kevin Michael Richardson.

## References

1. ↑ "Nielsen's top 50 shows", *USA Today* (April 18, 1990), p. 3D.
2. ↑ "Nielsen ratings", *The Tampa Tribune* (April 17, 1991), p. 4.
3. ↑ Gable, Donna (April 15, 1992). "CBS' historic jump", *USA Today*, p. 3D.
4. ↑ "Year-end ratings", *Deseret News* (April 22, 1993), p. C6.
5. ↑ FXX Lands 'The Simpsons' In Biggest Off-Network Deal In TV History Template:Webarchive *Deadline Hollywood*, November 15, 2013
6. ↑ "'The Simpsons' Launches on FXX With Longest Continuous Marathon Ever" (April 9, 2014).
7. ↑ VH1 Celebrates 40 Years of 'Saturday Night Live' with 'SNL Rewind: 2015 – 1975′ Mega-Marathon. VH1.
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34. ↑ Groening, Matt; Jean, Reiss; Moore, Rich; Reiss, Mike; Vitti, Jon. (2002). Commentary for "Lisa's Substitute", in *The Simpsons: The Complete Second Season* [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 Brooks, James L.; Groening, Matt; Jrean, Al; Reiss, Mike; Silverman, David. (2002). Commentary for "Bart Gets an 'F'Template:-", in *The Simpsons: The Complete Eighth Season* [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
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38. ↑ Potts, Kimberly (2006). 'The Simpsons' Best Episodes: No. 15–11. AOL.
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