Electronic Media have compiled this years list of the Most Bankable Stars in Syndication. Bart and The Simpsons came in at #4 on their list, following Jerry Seinfeld and just missing out on #3 by the cast of Friends. “Coming in at No. 4 is TV’s longest-running comedy series and longest-running animated show in prime time. Don’t have a cow, but it remains a cash cow for the Fox Network. Neither double nor triple runs seem to be able to slow down its success. Simpsons still holds its own but fans have been upset to learn the writers are mulling an end to the prime-time run two or three years down the road, even if it will play on in syndication forever. Still, young and old alike continue to flock to Springfield. “Bankable because not since Dennis the Menace has America identified so warmly with a yellow-haired troublesome child. It seems that every family has a little Bart running around,” said one panelist.” The Simpsons came in at #5 last year. Read More >>>
Author: Adam
Lisa Welcome To Apply
“Local women’s college officials reacted with humor to the national attention Smith and Mount Holyoke received in a recent episode of The Simpsons. Lisa Simpson was tempted to cheat in a spelling bee and lose to win a scholarship to one of the Seven Sisters colleges. “Lisa Simpson is welcome to apply to Smith – and she doesn’t need to throw a spelling bee to strengthen her case,” said Laurie Fenlason, Smith’s media relations director. “She’s smart, witty, talented and independent. She’d be in good company here.” Jane Brown, vice president for enrollment at Mount Holyoke, commented, “We say bravo to Lisa for refusing to throw the spelling bee, even though her scruples cost her a free college education. “Lisa sounds like the kind of bright, talented, principled, independent young women who thrive at Mount Holyoke,” Brown added. “We would certainly consider her for early admission — or, in her case, early, early, early admission.” Read More >>>
No Longer Just A Fantasy
“If you saw the Simpsons’ episode where Homer is sent off to Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp and thought “that would be cool” well good news, it is real. Promoter Paul Fishof is holding the Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp in New York City from June 18-22. Confirmed for this year’s bootcamp are Roger Daltrey (The Who), Ace Frehley (Kiss), Markie Mark (The Ramones), Simon Kirke (Bad Company), Bret Michaels (Poison), Mark Farner (Grand Funk Railroad) as well as members from the bands of Billy Joel, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts and Hall and Oates. The camp attracts everyone from dentists to homemakers. It’s not cheap. Registration for this years event is currently $US5,995 and that doesn’t include getting there.” You can check out more at the official site, or Read More >>>
Reality And Morals? D’oh!
“It’s worth remembering that the America which has produced Texas fundamentalism is also producing The Simpsons, which has become so much a part of popular culture that most people have absorbed more of the show’s sensibilities than they may realise. The Simpsons is the rock on which Rupert Murdoch built his American TV empire. This empire is now being used in support of the war effort. Twelve years ago, CNN ruled the Gulf War and Fox News didn’t even exist. Now it is outmuscling CNN in America and changing the ideological landscape. So strong are its ratings that Fox News is rivalling The Simpsons as Murdoch’s American media jewel, but the cartoon, which mocks the tabloid values of Fox, shows no sign of losing its iconic status or its brilliant edge. It is probably the most important entertainment in the world.” Read More >>>
Simpsons Head To Sweden
“The Simpsons are going to Sweden! Simpsons producer Denise Sirkot told the Swedish news agencys that The Simpsons will go to the Nobel Prize party in Stockholm! Professor Frink will win the prize in physics, and Bart, Lisa, Maggie, Homer and Marge will follow him to the land that invented meatballs.” Thanks to Christian Hedlund for translating this article. It is believed that this episode will air at the beginning of Season 15 in November this year, in Treehouse Of Horror XIV which will feature Jerry Lewis as Professor Frink Senior. Read More >>> (in Swedish)
JK Rowling: Simpsons Nut
“JK Rowling is a Simpsons nut – that’s official! JK’s one of the world’s busiest authors and is constantly bombarded with TV requests. So why did she agree to appear in The Simpsons, as we told you on Wednesday? She’s been a fan of the show for years, and was especially pleased when the programme did a Potter spoof in 2000, with Bart and Lisa going to wizard school. “I love The Simpsons because of the detail – there are so many layers and it works for kids and for adults. That’s one of the reasons I like it so much.” JK Rowling told us then. “When I lived in Portugal, a group of us used to sprint to a cafe after work so we could watch The Simpsons. It was the highlight of our TV week – if only I had known one day that they’d be spoofing me!” The Harry Potter Halloween spoof was a great success. And Simpson’s creator Matt Groening is a huge fan of Harry Potter anyway. But now, he’s gone one step further letting JK playing herself.” Read More >>>
D’oh! You’re The Voice
“He’s one of the most famous people in America, but nobody knows his face. Actor Dan Castellaneta is the voice of that lovable, well-meaning goof-off Homer Simpson. At 45, Castellaneta is the same age as Homer, but that’s where the similarities end. Castellaneta is a shy introvert, the kind of guy who could never muster the courage to return an item to the store. He was destined to be an art teacher; in fact, he was student teaching and occasionally entertained his students by slipping into funny voices.
OFF’s Visit To England
Finally, after more than 300 episodes the Simpsons are finally visiting England! They’ve been to Scotland before but have never made it south of the border until now. They’re going to meet JK Rowling but that’s about all we know. What else do you think they should do once they’re here! Should they meet the Queen, sing with Queen (the group that is) or play Twister with Nick Laws? Let us know your funniest ideas! Read More >>>
FOX Wins Sweeps For The 1st Time Ever
“Fox Television on Wednesday claimed its first victory ever in the battle for young adult viewers in the crucial ratings sweeps season and vowed to bring back the reality hit centered on a working man posing as a millionaire that powered the upset. The network which began the year in last place in ratings said it had devised a way to reprise the blockbuster ‘Joe Millionaire,’ in which a group of women competed for the affections of a hunky construction worker posing as the heir to a $50 million fortune. Fox also gained considerable ratings mileage from the second edition of its talent contest show ‘American Idol,’ and from its long-running animated family sitcom ‘The Simpsons.'” Read More >>>
Rowling, McKellen Meet OFF
Daniel Radcliffe wanted it, but the producers managed to get the next best thing. JK Rowling is to make an appearance on The Simpsons. In the episode, the family travel to England to find a girl Grandpa had a wartime fling with. In London, they meet up with the Harry Potter author. Lisa turns out to be a Potter fan and questions the millionaire. Don Payne, executive producer of the cartoon, said: “The Simpsons bump into JK Rowling outside a bookshop and they talk all about Harry Potter. “We’re very excited about the episode and rest assured every British cliche will be trotted out to get a laugh.”
Ready, Set, D’oh!
“Los Angeles is a town wallpapered with tickets, but few tickets are as elusive as one to The Simpsons. Only 22 times each year the writers, voice cast and Matt Groening and Al Jean gather in a bungalow on the 20th Century Fox lot to read through that week’s script. Tickets are by invitation only, and today – episode #EABF20, titled The President Wore Pearls, which will not be seen until late in 2003 – I find myself sitting between a handful of British government ministers and Hank Azaria’s dog. A decade ago, the “read-throughs” were open only to a hallowed few. Today, there are no fewer than two dozen people in the room, and for a moment it looks like we might even run out of seats at the table. It is, to be sure, a very big table. But The Simpsons, to be sure, is a very big show.” Read More >>>
Man Enjoys Plenty Of D’oh!
“Twenty-six-year-old Travis McNall spent literally half his life surrounded by an imaginary family. Last Sunday was a milestone for McNall, who spent the night watching the 300th and 301st episodes of The Simpsons, the dysfunctional but fun animated family which has been beamed out to America by the Fox television network in one form or another since 1987, when they first appeared in short intermission films on The Tracey Ullman Show. McNall said his older brother told him one day that The Simpsons were going to have their own show, and after they sat down to watch an early episode in 1990, that was it.