IF a person were to, for the sake of art or science, sit down and watch every episode of "The Simpsons dvd" ever made, it would take him more than a week of no-sleep, back-to-back viewing in 350 half-hour increments.
In that marathon the viewer would learn that life on a street called Evergreen Terrace never really changes, that Bart, Lisa and Maggie, along with their creator, Matt Groening, will not grow up, and thatThe Simpsons, once viewed as the shock troops of cultural mortification, are a shining exemplar of family stability in the come and go world of television.
And even though some of its most ferocious fans suggest that it ran out of gas some time ago, the show remains in high gear, with 20 writers working on next year's season, searching for yet another joke that has yet to be told on "The Simpsons." South park dvd An animated sitcom that seemed to lose some of its bite as it grew long in the tooth has been back in the news, with an episode on gay marriage earlier this year and later this season, a satirical, some would say sacrilegious, episode about the Simpsons' dalliance with Catholicism and another about the apocalypse. "The Simpsons," which had become as familiar as a pair of Homer's roomy trousers, has found a way to get its finger back in the eyes of viewers.Disney dvd set|Disney dvd
Mr. Groening, in spite of his own hints in previous interviews that the show might be running its course, has found a second wind. "I think the show has almost reached its halfway point, which means another 17 years," he said - and this of a show that is already the longest running now on television.family guy dvd|family guy
James L. Brooks, the veteran television producer who helped develop the series, said the episodes Warner Bros DVDcurrently being worked for next year will be "vintage," in part because of the influx of new writing blood. And just in case that does not satisfy the apparently bottomless appetite for all things Simpson, Mr. Groening, along with Mr. Brooks and several of the show's longtime writers, are all hard at work in an office on the 20th Century Fox lot on the long-rumored Simpsons movie. "Part of the reason that we are still around is that there is a real emotional depth to these characters," said Mr. Groening, sitting in his office at 20th Century Fox earlier this month, a second-story hideaway on the lot that was denuded of the boxes of pop culture clutter - obscure world music CD's, knock-off "Simpsons" collectibles Dawson’s creek dvd box set - that generally surround him in order to create enough space for an interview. "And I think there is a relative lightness of sprit over at the studio," he added, with a laugh. "They seem pretty happy over there."
With more than $1 billion in green kicked up by the yellow people of Springfield, Dreamworks animation DVD there is little reason that Fox would not be in a good mood. Although through last week, "The Simpsons" was 68th out of all network shows, according to Neilsen Media Research, it still attracts almost 10 million viewers, many of them in the younger demographic groups that advertisers crave. They are apparently happy enough to give a party tomorrow night memorializing the 350th show, a seemingly random number, but one no other currently running show has achieved.
Mr. Groening, the series's creator; the series's actors; and the legions of guest stars will make a yellow-carpet arrival for a crew party that will include fortunetellers, caricaturists and air brush artists. And then the whole Simpsons' family will plop down in front of a big screen to watch "Don't Fear the Roofer," the 350th episode, with guest appearances by Ray Romano and the physicist Stephen Hawking. The episode will be broadcast next Sunday.baby einstein dvd collection
The party will be a rare break in a year-round schedule. Ten days ago, Nancy Cartwright, the voice of Bart, was at the microphone recording on the Marge Simpson Stage - the Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell stages are elsewhere in the building - recording additional tracks for an episode that will be broadcast later this season. Pain, the leitmotif of life as a Simpson, is getting another workout.American dad dvd
Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow," she said, in the helium-inflected voice of American's favorite word scramble for the word "brat" as she watched an animation of Bart being serially mauled by a rotating mattress. The painful fun of making "The Simpsons" has yet to wear off. "The Simpsons," a show Mr. Groening conceived in 15 minutes before a pitch meeting with Fox - in the rush, he used the names of his family for the characters - has outlived "Friends," "Seinfeld" and "Cheers." What began as an animated sideshow to break up the live-action sketches for Tracey Ullman's show became its own show in December 1989 and has gone on to become a maypole for American culture.
always thought the show would be a hit," Mr. Groening said. "At the time Fox was brand-new and willing to experiment. To this day, I don't think it could get on any other network." Looking very much like the tidied up ex-hippie he is - mod glasses, slight paunch - Mr. Groening, 51, pointed out that "The Simpsons" might be the only sitcom that has never had to deal with program notes from studio executives, an exalted status arranged by Mr. Brooks, one of the show's other godfathers."We always say to ourselves that we will know when to call it a day and there have been times when we have seriously considered it," Rurouni Kenshin DVDMr. Brooks said. "But I think we are all feeling great about the show right now." Getting new rubber on an old tire is no small effort - the show is always in danger of self-parody. An episode of "South Park" once suggested that every possible comedic riff had already been done on "The Simpsons." But Mr. Groening and Al Jean, an executive producer, have been around since the beginning and both ardently and insist that the current season will have its share of classic episodes.
"We all take very seriously how beloved the show is, and we don't want to be the ones who let it slip," Mr. Jean said. The table read, a rehearsal with actors present, on this particular Thursday seemed to go very well. A room with about 50 people was divided among writers, actors and people from on and off the lot who clamor for a chair. "My Fair Laddy" tells the story of Lisa's attempt to transform Groundskeeper Willie, the brutish Scottish janitor at Springfield Elementary, into a proper gentleman as her Pygmalion-esque experiment for the annual science fair.
The table read had the feel and sound of an old-time radio drama, though with more updated cultural references. Owing to his time in mock stirrups with "Spamalot," Hank Azaria was piped in by phone, as was Yeardley Smith, but the rest of the cast was there. The episode belongs principally to Dan Castellaneta, who plays Homer, Groundskeeper Willie, Krusty the Clown and five other characters in just this episode and who shifts octaves, inflections and accents in the time it would take most civilians to clear their throat. In the middle of the read Mr. Castellaneta kicks into a version of "Wouldn't It Be Loverly" from "My Fair Lady," which becomes "Wouldn't It Be Adequate," coming from the shack-dwelling, Scottish maintenance man.that 70s show dvd|that 70s show
"Matching socks for both my feet, dining on untainted meat, a toilet what still has its seat, oh, wouldn't it be adequate," he sang. Mr. Groening, who sat in the middle chair making notes on the script, emitted some of the loudest guffaws.
Mr. Groening has embraced the show's success with childlike and mercenary relish, happily producing a legion of books and licensing thousands of ancillary products - a three-foot inflatable replica of a can of Duff beer is available. He still draws his weekly comic strip "Life in Hell" because he likes having a solitary pursuit, but clearly enjoys collaborating as well with the show's writers - many of whom where kids themselves when Bart first stepped on the block.
"I get to work with writers who write funnier than I do, animators who draw better than I do and network executives who dress better than I do," Mr. Groening said. "I'm in a great mood."
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