Playmate Marge Celebrates 20 Years of The Simpsons
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Two decades of D’oh and Eat My Shorts.
America’s favourite dysfunctional family, The Simpsons celebrated their 20th anniversary this week commemorating the first appearance on US television.
In California, stars adorned the yellow carpet (obviously) to congratulate Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie on two decades in the business. The family show has broken all records in the US as the longest-running sitcom and longest-running cartoon to be scheduled on TV, with over 440 episodes aired since 1989.
Among the supporters at the celebratory bash were Star Trek‘s Mr Sulu and Freddy Kreuger, both of whom have appeared in the show to voice characters. Creator Matt Groening commented: “I thought the show would be successful. But the fact that we’re still standing here some 20 years later and talking about it is very peculiar. But very happy.”
Very happy indeed. The Simpsons exploded in popularity in its first year of being aired and generated over $2 billion worldwide in merchandise in its opening 14 months alone. That was in 1990 before people started buying DVDs of the show. Now The Simpsons is a multi-billion dollar brand and rightfully one of America’s greatest institutions.
In the age of boundary-pushing animated sitcoms such as South Park and Family Guy, it’s easy to accuse The Simpsons of losing their edge, but The Simpsons paved the way for such comedies to be made, and was not without its own controversies.
Homer was initially denounced as a terrible father figure, whereas Bart’s complete lack of respect for authority, coupled with overtly rebellious messages: “Underachiever and Proud of It” threatened American core family values.
The Simpsons though are loved because of their imperfections, they aren’t The Waltons, but neither should they be. Here’s to 20 fantastic years of comedy animation, long may it continue.
Homer totally represents the USA. Dumb and proud of it, and the world loves it.
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