As mentioned near the start of this panel, “The Simpsons” has pretty much beat every other prime-time television show in terms of longevity, number of episodes, etc. — except for “Gunsmoke” and “Lassie,” which also makes it the all-time king of sitcoms with a reservoir of goodwill able to withstand more than one below-par season. This appearance by the show’s main creative team was a predictably relaxed and mirthful affair in which creator Matt Groening and writers Al Jean and Matt Selman did most of the talking — quieter panelists included director David Silverman, who helmed “The Simpsons Movie,” and writer Carolyn Omine.
Before the official start of the panel, Groening introduced some clips from next Fall’s “Treehouse of Horror” episode, including a brief segment involving Homer Simpson and a particularly violent form of vote rigging that goes well beyond the worst imagingings of Diebold-fearing liberals, as well as a spot on parody of “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” with a Linus-like Milhouse accidentally tricking the supernatural pumpkin into a form of vegetarian cannibalism. (It’s complicated.)
Wasting no time, the event was immediately thrown open to questions. The first young questioner asked if the long-suffering Marge Simpson, tiring from her numerous attempts to get the permanently obese Homer to lose weight, would start gaining weight herself. The writers’
response was they would promptly steal the idea and that it would likely show up in a Simpsons comic book, if not the actual show.
Another question referred to a recent episode parodying the comic book world featuring an appearance by mad comic writing genius Alan Moore (“Watchmen,” “V for Vendetta,” “From Hell”) and a joke about an animated “Watchmen Babies” series. Writer Matt Selman expressed his own intimidation at working with the artistically and personally imposing Moore, who apparently got the joke but also stipulated that the gag itself was also an example of an evil corporation (this is Fox, after all) debasing one of Moore’s creations.
Upcoming guest appearances were also discussed, including an episode written by and featuring Seth Rogen for some time in 2009. Other upcoming guest stars include Dennis Leary (something about his involvement in “Everybody Poops: The Movie”) and character actor Robert Forster, recreating, Simpsons-style, his role as bail bondsmen Max Cherry from “Jackie Brown.”
Groening and the rest of the panel responded to the inevitable questions about ongoing rumors of the show’s eventual end, saying that nothing was planned, and repeated his oft-repeated joke that the show’s producers needed three seasons to wrap things up: one to coast, one to go downhill, and one to completely run it into the ground.
Responding to a question about his still ongoing “Life in Hell” comic strip (which Groening started shortly after moving to Los Angeles in the late seventies), Groening took the opportunity to plug an upcoming project. “Will and Abe’s Guide to the Universe.” The book is drawn from comments made by his two sons as they were growing up and Groening said it was probably his personal favorite project. He also took the opportunity to do as he has done for years and mock the reputedly anti-gay editor of the San Diego Reader for dropping “Life in Hell” on account of its resident same-sex couple, Akbar and Jeff.
Another subject that came up was the new Simpsons attractions at the Universal theme parks in Los Angeles and Orlando, Florida. The panel expressed pride in the ride, which reportedly racked up over a million visitors in record time at the Florida park. Groening compared the experience to watching “The Simpsons” while high and stated that such chemical enhancements were no longer necessary. (Our own Will Harris recently experienced the attraction for himself here in California. We’re fairly certain he’s far too upright to be able make any comparisons, though he was duly impressed.) Matt Selman also claimed to have attempted to persuade Homer Simpson voice performer Dan Castellenetta to yell out obscene remarks in the voice of his character so that Universal vistitors would take it to be an official part of the ride, but the sensible Castellenetta reportedly refused.
Other questions involved the “influence” of “The Simpsons” animated Fox brethren Seth McFarland’s “Family Guy” and “American Dad.” A possibly diplomatic Groening expressed happiness in a general sense on the progress of televised animation and said he hoped to see even more new animated shows of all types.
And then there was the age-old question of censorship. This time, the Simpson-ites related the story of how network “standards and practices” rejected their original name for a Viagra-like drug, “Bonestra,” but eventually accepted a substitution, “Jammitin.” Ah, comedy.
