Eat my shorts! How a low-key start led to one of TV’S greatest series
British entertainer Tracey Ullman was the first woman to be offered her own sketch show in both the UK and the United States – no mean feat, but on the third episode of the US show, an animated sketch was shown which launched what went on to become a cultural icon.
The sketch featured a disfunctional American family, and their name was The Simpsons.
First shown on April 19 1987, The Simpsons ran an animated short within the The Tracey Ullman Show for three seasons, before being developed into a half-hour show, debuting on the Fox channel on December 17, 1989.
It is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomised by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie. Set in the fictional town of Springfield, it caricatures society, western culture, television and the human condition.
The show is now in its 35th season, with 764 episodes having been broadcast, making it the longest-running American animated series, longestrunning American sitcom and the longest-running American scripted primetime television series.
During that time, celebrity characters who have appeared on the show playing themselves include media mogul Rupert Murdoch; Coldplay singer Chris Martin; The Far Side cartoonist Gary Larson, Simon Cowell; Stephen Hawking; Mark Zuckerberg; Martha Stewart; Katy Perry; Halle Berry; Gordon Ramsey; and Lady Gaga.
The show has also become famous for its jokes that have then appeared to become reality. Perhaps the most famous example comes from the episode Bart To The Future, which mentions billionaire Donald Trump having been president of the United States at one time and leaving the nation broke. The episode first aired in 2000, 16 years before Trump, who at the time was exploring a presidential run, was elected.
Another episode, When You Dish Upon A Star, portrayed iconic film studio 20th Century Fox as a division of The Walt Disney Company. Nineteen years later, Disney purchased Fox.
Other examples of Simpsons plotlines that came true include the introduction of the Smartwatch, video chat services, autocorrection technology, Richard Branson’s spaceflight, Lady Gaga’s acrobatic performance at the Super Bowl and the Titan submarine implosion. Meanwhile, the show has managed to put phrases into the language. Groundskeeper Willie’s description of the French as “cheese-eating surrender monkeys” was used by National Review columnist Jonah Goldberg in 2003, after France’s opposition to the proposed invasion of Iraq.
The Oxford Dictionary of Modern Quotations includes several quotes from the show. As well as “cheeseeating surrender monkeys”, Homer’s lines, “Kids, you tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is never try”, as well as “Kids are the best. You can teach them to hate the things you hate. And they practically raise themselves, what with the Internet and all”, entered the dictionary in August 2007.
Time magazine named it the best TV series of the 20th Century and it has garnered 31 Emmys and a Peabody Award to recognise “Distinguished and meritorious public service” in broadcasting.