The Simpsons

Overseas animation studios involved:. Rather, a combination of British and American security personnel would ensure that the wanted men remained imprisoned in Jericho. In 2005 English comedian Ricky Gervais was asked to write an episode, which should be airing in 2006. Arafat was finally allowed to leave his compound on May 3, 2002 after intense negotiations led to a settlement[8]: six militants wanted by Israel, who had been holed up with Arafat in his compound, would not be turned over to Israel, but neither would they be held in custody by the Palestinian Authority. The character Professor John Frink was named for a friend of Al Jean's, John Frink, who later became a writer/producer of the show. Marwan Barghouti emerged as a leader during the Al-Aqsa intifada but Israel had him arrested and sentenced to 4 life terms. Ian was the basis for the Very Tall Man character in the Season 7 episode 22 Short Films About Springfield. Persistent attempts by the Israeli government to identify another Palestinian leader to represent the Palestinian people failed; and Arafat was enjoying the support of groups that, given his own history, would normally have been quite wary of dealing with him or of supporting him.

Ian Maxtone-Graham has been a prominent writer for The Simpsons since the eighth season. Israel then launched a major military offensive into the West Bank (see "Operation Defensive Shield".). the Monorail" (9F10), "Homer Goes to College" (1F02) and part of "Treehouse of Horror IV" (1F04). Ariel Sharon, who had previously demanded that Arafat speak out strongly in Arabic against suicide bombings, declared that Arafat "assisted the terrorists and made himself an enemy of Israel and irrelevant to any peace negotiations". He wrote "New Kid on the Block" (9F06), "Marge vs. Shortly afterward, attacks carried out by Palestinian militants killed more than 135 Israeli civilians. Current late-night talk show host Conan O'Brien was a writer during the fourth and fifth season. Israel ignored what it deemed to be a facile offer.

George Meyer became a writer for the show in 1989, and in 2000 was called the "the funniest man behind the funniest show on TV" by The New Yorker.[3]. Supporters of this declaration saw this offer, which included recognition of Israel by the Arab states, as a historic opportunity for comprehensive peace in the region, while critics of this offer say that it would constitute a heavy blow to Israel's security, while not even guaranteeing Israel the cessation of suicide bombing attacks. When the state of California passed an anti-smoking law, Swartzwelder bought a diner booth and installed it in his house, allowing him to smoke and write in peace. In March 2002, the Arab League made an offer to recognize Israel in exchange for Israeli retreat from all territories captured in the Six-Day War and statehood for Palestine and Arafat's Palestinian Authority. According to the DVD commentaries, he used to write episodes while sitting at a booth in his favorite restaurant "drinking copious amounts of coffee and smoking endless cigarettes" (Matt Groening). On May 6, 2002, the Israeli government released a report, based in part on documents captured during the Israeli occupation of Arafat's Ramallah headquarters, with copies of papers signed by Arafat authorizing funding for the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades' activities. John Swartzwelder is the most prolific writer on the Simpsons' staff, personally writing over 50 episodes (more than any other Simpsons writer). Some allege that activities of these groups were tolerated by Arafat as a means of applying pressure on Israel (see PLO and Hamas.) Some Israeli government officials opined in 2002 that the Fatah's faction Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades began attacks on Israel to compete with Hamas.

Guest stars had performed as well. They appeared to be out of Arafat's influence and control and were actively fighting with Arafat's Fatah group. Julius Hibbert, and many more. In the 1990s, these groups seemed to threaten Arafat's capacity to hold together a unified secular nationalist organization with a goal of statehood. Burns, Smithers, Principal Seymour Skinner, Otto, Ned Flanders, Kent Brockman, Reverend Lovejoy, Dr. Arafat's ability to adapt to new tactical and political situations, was perhaps exemplified by the rise of the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad organizations, Islamist groups espousing rejectionist opposition to Israel and employing new tactics such as suicide bombing, often intentionally targeting non-military targets, such as malls and movie theaters, to increase the psychological damage. Harry Shearer performs perhaps the largest array of characters, including Mr. The complex and fragile web of relations between the U.S., Israel, Saudi Arabia, and other Arab states also contributed to Arafat's longevity as Palestinian leader.

Hank Azaria voices Moe, Chief Wiggum, and Apu, as well as other miscellaneous characters. Others believe that Israel kept Arafat alive because they feared Arafat less than Hamas and the other Islamist movements gaining support over Arafat's secular organization. Nancy Cartwright, anomalously, performs the voice of Bart Simpson and other children from the school that he attends. Some commentators believe his survival was largely due to Israel's fear that he could become a martyr for the Palestinian cause if he was to be assassinated or even arrested by Israel. Dan Castellaneta performs the voices of Homer Simpson, his dad, Abraham Simpson, and Krusty the Klown, among others, while Julie Kavner performs the voices of Marge Simpson and her sisters, mother, and (in one episode) her aunt. Arafat's long personal and political survival was taken by most Western commentators as a sign of his mastery of asymmetric warfare and his skill as a tactician, given the extremely dangerous nature of politics of the Middle East and the frequency of assassinations. Yeardley Smith, voice actress of Lisa Simpson, and Marcia Wallace, voice actress of Edna Krabappel, are the only cast members who only do one voice, though both have on occasion voiced one-shot characters. After the start of the Second Intifada, Arafat's wife moved to live with her mother and daughter in Paris.

All episodes (with the exception of one) list only the voice actors (not the characters they voice) in keeping with the mystique of having the audience not associate any one character with an actor — this is to discourage the audience from easily identifying exactly which voice actor did what. When the Al-Aqsa Intifada, or Second Palestinian Intifada, was launched (2000-present), the peace process completely collapsed. Some consider its parody of the prequel Star Wars trilogy in the episode Co-Dependent's Day being very harsh considering the show's own "downfall." These attacks have been countered by other fans stating that the show was always more or less mainstream, and nonsensical personality changes and the structural changes were done in a spirit of creative experimentation, and has not damaged the show. In a move widely criticized and even by a member of his negotiating team and Cabinet, Nabil Amr, Arafat rejected Barak's offer and refused to make a counter-offer. Since as early as Season 4, the show has drawn criticism from some fans for straying too far from its comedic structure, for becoming too "mainstream," and changing character personalities without explanation. Also included in the offer was a return of a number of refugees and compensation for the rest. [2]. In addition, under the Israeli proposal, Israel would retain some control of the Palestinian state's borders, customs, and defense.

The universally reported claim that this dispute was in fact a full-blown strike is denied by Harry Shearer. Israel would annex the resting 9-10% of the West Bank encompassing large settlement blocs, in exchange for land in the Negev. On May 2, 2004, the actors resolved their dispute with Fox after having their demands met. The final proposal proffered by Barak would have meant establishment of Palestinian State on 90-91% of the West Bank and the whole of the Gaza Strip. They asked for $360,000 per episode, or $8 million for a 22-episode season. Due partly to his own politics (Barak was from the leftist Labor Party, whereas Netanyahu was from the rightist Likud Party) and partly due to immense pressure placed by American President Bill Clinton, Barak offered Arafat a Palestinian state in the majority of the West Bank and all of the Gaza Strip with an outlying suburb of East Jerusalem as its capital. [1] As the revenue generated by the show continued to increase through syndication and DVD sales, six actors (playing over 50 characters) — Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, and Harry Shearer — stopped showing up for script readings in April 2004 after weeks of unsuccessful negotiations with Fox. Arafat continued negotiations with Netanyahu's successor, Ehud Barak, at the Camp David 2000 Summit.

The actors were supported in their action by series creator Matt Groening. The resulting Wye River Memorandum of 23 October 1998 detailed the steps to be taken by the Israeli government and PA to complete the peace process. In 1998, the voice actors stopped working, forcing 20th Century Fox TV to increase their salary from $30,000 per episode to $125,000. President Bill Clinton intervened, arranging meetings with the two leaders. The voice actors have been involved in much-publicized pay disputes with Fox on more than one occasion. In 1998, U.S. On January 14, 2000 the Simpsons were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Netanyahu allegedly sought to obstruct the transition to Palestinian statehood outlined in the Israel-PLO accord.

The Simpsons has won dozens of awards since it debuted as a series, including 21 Emmy Awards, 22 Annie Awards, a Peabody and numerous others (see the list of awards won by The Simpsons for more details). Palestinian-Israeli relations grew even more hostile as a consequence of continued conflict. Over the years, virtually every Simpsons character has appeared on a magazine cover, ranging from TIME to Christianity Today and even Airliners. In mid-1996, Benjamin Netanyahu was elected Prime Minister of Israel. Since the series originated as part of The Tracey Ullman Show, it is also considered the longest running and most successful spinoff of all time. The mass media uses both terms. He was the only fictional character on the list. translate the title as "president".

In that same issue, Bart Simpson was named to the Time 100, the publication's list of the century's 100 most influential people. interpret the title as "chairman" while Palestinians and the U.N. In its 1998 issue celebrating the greatest achievements in arts and entertainment of the 20th Century, TIME magazine named The Simpsons the century's best television series. Israel and the U.S. Some take the view that The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet should continue to be counted as the longest-running sitcom as The Simpsons is animated, not live-action, although this view is declining as more authorities unambiguously credit The Simpsons as television's longest-running sitcom. After 1996, Arafat's title as Palestinian Authority leader was "head" (Arabic Ra'is). In 2004, the series was renewed through its 19th season. The following elections scheduled for January 2002 were later postponed; the stated reason being inability to campaign due to the emergency conditions imposed by the al-Aqsa intifada and Israel Defense Force incursions and restrictions on freedom of movement in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

In January 2003, it was announced that the show had been renewed by Fox through 2005 — meaning it has replaced The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1952 to 1966) as longest-running sitcom (animated or live action) ever in the United States. However, because Hamas and other opposition movements chose not to participate in the presidential election, the choices were limited. In 2004 it surpassed Scooby Doo in number of episodes. Independent international observers reported the elections to have been free and fair. On February 9, 1997 The Simpsons surpassed The Flintstones as the longest-running prime time animated series in America, however it has not yet beaten several Japanese anime series such as Sazae-san (which has been running since 1969) and Doraemon (running since 1979). On January 20, 1996, Arafat was elected president of the PA, with an overwhelming 88.2 percent majority (the only other candidate was Samiha Khalil) [7]. The creator Matt Groening and some of writers didn't go for the plane's first trip as they feared it would crash, and they would die with the plane. On July 24, 1995, his wife Suha gave birth to a daughter, who was named Zahwa after his deceased mother.

In 1995, Western Pacific Airlines repainted a Boeing 737 jet with Simpsons characters to promote the series. In 1994, Arafat moved to the territory controlled by the Palestinian Authority (PA) — the provisional entity created by the Oslo Accords. The writers have shown a love for cameo appearances by celebrities and extended pastiches of contemporary and classic movies, as well as subtle visual jokes. Arafat returned to Palestine as a hero to some but a traitor and collaborator to others. Bush said that America needed to be closer to The Waltons than to The Simpsons, causing Bart to say they were a lot like the Waltons, since they were both praying for an end to the Depression. (See: Israel-Palestine Liberation Organization letters of recognition.) The following year Arafat was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize along with Shimon Peres and Yitzhak Rabin. In another address, Mr. In return Prime Minister Rabin, on behalf of Israel, officially recognized the PLO.

The Simpsons Complete Fourth Season DVD set includes a special feature that presents an exchange of letters between the First Lady and show staff. Prior to signing the accords, Arafat as Chairman of the PLO and as its official representative signed two letters renouncing violence and officially recognizing Israel on September 9, 1993. Bush were both portrayed by voice actors. In the early 1990s Arafat engaged the Israelis in a series of secret talks and negotiations that led to the 1993 Oslo Accords calling for the implementation of Palestinian self rule in the West Bank and Gaza Strip over a five year period. and Mrs. The pilot and several passengers were killed and Arafat received several broken bones and other injuries. Mr. Arafat narrowly escaped death again in 1992 as his aircraft crash-landed in the Libyan desert during a sandstorm.

Wilson). disregarding his claims of being a partner for peace. Six years later, an episode had George and Barbara Bush move to Springfield and leave after George gets involved in a feud with the Simpson family (in a style reminiscent of Dennis the Menace and Mr. attack on Iraq, alienating many of the Arab states, and leading to the U.S. In September 1990, Barbara Bush said in an interview for People magazine that The Simpsons was the dumbest thing she had ever seen. Prior to the Gulf War of 1991, Arafat opposed the U.N. How old is this thing?". During the 1991 Madrid Conference, Israel conducted open negotiations with the PLO for the first time.

Bart reads his, quoting "Underachiever and proud of it.. [6]. and proud of it." The T-shirt is also quoted in the later episode Skinner's Sense of Snow in a student riot, where children find their permanent record books. In 1990 Arafat married Suha Tawil, a Palestinian Orthodox Christian working for the PLO in Tunis, who converted to Islam before marrying him. In this episode, the school counselor quotes the controversial T-shirt by stating, "He is an underachiever.. However, on April 2, 1989, Arafat was elected by the Central Council of the Palestine National Council (the governing body of the PLO) to be the president of the proclaimed State of Palestine. The outcry against Bart was reflected in the second season opener, featuring an episode called Bart Gets an F where Bart's school wants to make him repeat the fourth grade. Arafat's statement indicated a shift from one of the PLO's primary aims — the destruction of Israel (as in the Palestinian National Covenant) — towards the establishment of two separate entities, an Israeli state within the 1949 armistice lines and a Palestinian state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

When a Simpsons T-shirt was marketed featuring Bart and the logo "Underachiever ('And proud of it, man!')", Simpsons T-shirts and other merchandise were banned from public schools in several areas of the United States. administration, which insisted on the recognition of Israel as a necessary starting point in the Camp David peace negotiations. Parents' groups and conservative spokespersons felt that a cartoon character like Bart Simpson provided a poor role model for children. Arafat's December 13 statement was encouraged by the U.S. It also sparked controversy, as Bart Simpson was portrayed as a rebellious troublemaker who caused trouble and got away with it. In a December 13, 1988 address, Arafat accepted UN Security Council Resolution 242, promised future recognition of Israel, and renounced "terrorism in all its forms, including state terrorism" [5]. The Simpsons was the first true TV series hit for the FOX Network; it was the first Fox show to appear in the top twenty highest-rated shows of the time. On November 15, 1988, the PLO proclaimed the independent State of Palestine, a government-in-exile for the Palestinians which laid claim to the whole of Palestine as defined by the British Mandate of Palestine, rejecting the idea of partition.

The first full length episode shown was "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", however the intended first episode was "Some Enchanted Evening", but when "Some Enchanted Evening" was completed it was rejected due to poor animation, so Fox aired "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire" first. Although the Intifada was a spontaneous uprising against Israeli occupation, within weeks Arafat was attempting to direct the revolt, and Israelis believe that it was mainly because of Fatah forces in the West Bank that the civil unrest was able to continue for the duration. The Simpsons was converted, by a team of production companies that included what is now the Klasky Csupo animation house, into a series for the FOX Network in 1989 and has run as a weekly show on that network ever since. This was particularly useful during the First Intifada in December, 1987. The shorts were aired by the BBC in the UK the first time the shows were broadcast, but not subsequently, though some of them, including "Good Night", were included in a Simpsons anniversary episode. During the 1980s, Arafat received assistance from Iraq and Saudi Arabia, which allowed him to reconstruct the badly-battered PLO. Matt Groening admits the reason that they were so crudely drawn in the beginning was because he could not draw well and the animators did nothing more than just trace over his drawings. In Operation Wooden Leg, IAF F-15s bombed his headquarters in Tunis leaving 73 people dead; Arafat had gone out jogging that morning.

The Simpson family first appeared in animated form as shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, with the first short "Good Night" airing on April 19, 1987. Arafat again narrowly survived an Israeli attack in 1985. In fact, the highest rated episode featuring celebrity guest voices was New Kids on the Blecch, shown during the 12th season, in which pop stars N*Sync supplied their voices to give helpful advice and dance moves to Bart's boy band "The Party Posse". In September 1982, during the Israeli offensive into Lebanon, the Americans and Europeans brokered a cease-fire deal in which Arafat and the PLO were allowed to leave Lebanon; Arafat and his leadership eventually arrived in Tunisia, which remained his center of operations up until 1993. seasons 7 to 13) or as fictional characters (mainly during the early and later seasons). Arafat did not return to Lebanon personally after this second expulsion, though many Fatah fighters did. Many episodes feature celebrity guests contributing their voices to the show, as either themselves (especially during the middle of the Simpsons' years, i.e. Instead of being expelled by Israel, this time Arafat was expelled by a fellow Palestinian working for Hafez al-Assad.

Other Treehouse segment name parodies include "Citizen Kang", "The Nightmare on Evergreen Terrace", "The Thing and I", "House of Whacks", and "Reaper Madness". Arafat actually returned to Lebanon a year after he was evicted from Beirut, this time establishing himself in Tripoli. Another recent episode featured a CGI trailer for a comedy about humanoid playing cards. During the Israeli siege of Beirut (1982), the United States and European powers brokered a deal guaranteeing safe passage for Arafat and the PLO to exile in Tunis. This was one of the few times The Simpsons have strayed from their traditional 2D animation, along with a live action cameo by Regis and Kathie Lee in "Treehouse of Horror IX", a couple of claymation scenes in "'Tis The Fifteenth Season" featuring The California Prunes and Jimmy Stewart, and a live action couch gag consisting of a sketchbook being flipped by a hand to make the characters run towards the couch and sit down. Arafat himself narrowly escaped with assistance from the Saudis and Kuwaitis. This segment from the Halloween episode was also used as a segment of a film shown in the IMAX 3D film Cyberworld. The Civil War's first phase ended for Arafat with the siege and fall of the Palestinian refugee camp of Tal al-Zaatar.

In a section of "Treehouse of Horror VI" called "Homer³", Homer and Bart go into a three-dimensional world, which Homer likens to Tron, created by Pacific Data Images, a computer animation company. During the Civil War, Arafat allied the PLO with Lebanese Muslim groups, however, fearing a loss of power Syria's President Assad switched sides, and sent in his army to help the right-wing Christian Phalangists. Another mainstay of the Halloween shows is the appearance of the two space aliens Kang and Kodos, introduced in the second segment of the first "Treehouse of Horror". After having taken control over West Beirut, and under siege by the Israeli army, Arafat declared Beirut to be the "second Stalingrad." Beirut ended up in much ruin as a result of subsequent Israeli artillery and aerial bombardment with close to 17,000 civilians dead. The names have changed in subsequent seasons. The PLO played an important part in the Lebanese Civil War. This also became a tradition, and has been done in every Halloween episode except I, XII, and XIII. The PLO was admitted to full membership in the Arab League in 1976.

In "Treehouse of Horror II" the writers decided to give the cast and crew of the show scary names in the opening and closing credits (like "Mad Matt Groening" and "James Hell Brooks"). Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand." His speech increased international support of the Palestinian cause. For several years the characters broke the fourth wall and introduced their pieces directly to the audience. In the same year, Arafat became the first representative of a nongovernmental organization to address a plenary session of the UN General Assembly, and Arab heads of state recognized the PLO as "the sole legitimate spokesman of the Palestinian people." In his UN address, Arafat condemned Zionism, but said, "Today I have come bearing an olive branch and a freedom fighter's gun. In later years the series dropped the framing device of characters telling stories, but kept the Treehouse title. Arafat denied responsibility for terrorist acts committed by these groups. The yearly Halloween special was named "Treehouse of Horror" because the original special depicted the Simpson children in their treehouse telling scary stories to one another. Israel claimed that Arafat was in ultimate control over these organizations and hence had not abandoned terrorism.

In addition to parodying many classic horror and science fiction films such as The Shining, these Halloween segments frequently spoof episodes of The Twilight Zone such as "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet", "To Serve Man", "Living Doll", "It's a Good Life" and "Little Girl Lost". The Fatah movement continued to launch attacks against Israeli civilians and the security forces within the West Bank and Gaza Strip; moreover, in the late 1970s numerous leftist Palestinian organizations appeared which carried out attacks against civilian targets both within Israel and outside of it. Regular Simpsons characters play humorous special roles, occasionally being killed in gruesome ways by zombies, monsters, or even each other. In 1973-4, Arafat closed Black September down, ordering the PLO to withdraw from acts of violence outside Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, because overseas attacks attracted too much bad publicity. These pieces usually involve the family in some horror, science fiction, or supernatural setting; they always take place outside the normal continuity of the show (and are therefore considered to be non-canon), and completely abandon any pretence of being realistic. The killings were internationally condemned and Arafat publicly disassociated himself and the PLO from such attacks. An annual tradition is a special Halloween episode consisting of three separate, self-contained pieces. A number of sources, including Mohammed Daoud and Benny Morris, have stated that Black September was an arm of Fatah used for terrorist operations.

Marge Simpson finds the theme tune annoying (Episode 1F11 - "Bart gets famous".). In September 1972, the Black September group killed 11 Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympic Games. The current arrangement, which dates back to the third season, is orchestrated by Alf Clausen. The PLO mounted intermittent cross-border attacks against Israeli targets, including civilians, from there. The series' distinctive theme tune was composed by musician Danny Elfman. Because of Lebanon's weak central government, the PLO was able to operate virtually as an independent state. The first season opening sequence featured a number of differences from the later seasons, including a scene in which Bart snatched a bus stop sign, forcing several dazed Springfieldians to chase the bus (replaced from the second season by a sequence showing Bart weaving his skateboard between a group of characters), and a shot of Lisa riding her bike on the way home (changed to a camera whip pan across a crowd of characters towards the Simpsons' house). Following the expulsion from Jordan, Arafat relocated the PLO to Lebanon.

The chalkboard gag lasted several seasons before it was cut to save time; however, it was reintroduced for the premier episode of the 17th season with a self- and education-jeering "Does any kid still do this anymore?". See also History of Jordan and Black September. Most couch gags last only about five seconds, but the longest one on record lasted 46 seconds. By September 24, the Jordanian army achieved dominance and the PLA agreed to a series of ceasefires [4]. The "couch gag" sequence is frequently used to help show staff make the show longer or shorter, depending on the length of the episode itself. Navy dispatched the Sixth Fleet to the eastern Mediterranean and Israel deployed troops to aid Hussein, if necessary. During three episodes, the opening sequence were parodied; once as "The Thompsons" where the Simpsons enter a witness protection program, once with an overweight Bart, where he cracks the pavement as he leaves the school, runs over pedestrians on the sidewalk, gets hit by Marge's car and crushes the roof of Homer's car, and once as "The Hurricane". The fighting was mainly between the Jordanian army and the PLA; the U.S.

In the syndicated version, part or all of the opening sequence is usually cut in order to include more commercials in the show's allotted timeslot. In the ensuing civil war, the PLO had the active support of Syria, which sent a force of around 200 tanks into Jordan to aid them. For each episode, the sequence includes a number of variations:. On that same day, Arafat became supreme commander of the Palestine Liberation Army (PLA), the regular military force of the PLO. Upon entering, they all speed towards the family room couch where, in comedic parallel with the audience, they settle to watch their "must-see" TV show. On September 16, King Hussein declared martial law. The members of the family weave dangerously through traffic and in between fellow (and, from the second season onward, familiar) Springfield denizens, all miraculously reaching home at the exact same time. Other Arab governments attempted to negotiate a peaceful resolution, but continuing fedayeen actions in Jordan (such as the destruction by the PFLP, on September 12, of three international airliners hijacked and held in Dawson's Field in Zarqa) prompted the Jordanian government to take action to regain control over its territory.

Burns (seen putting his watch to his ear, then shaking it to get it to work) and Smithers in the background (second season onwards); Marge and Maggie are shown checking out at the supermarket with Maggie traveling across the scanner, ringing up at $847.63, the then-monthly cost of raising a baby (although a 'trivia question' shown as a wraparound for commercials during the episode "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular" claims that the register says "NRA4EVER" ("National Rifle Association Forever"), ironically and comedically portraying the non-aligned writers of the show as gun-crazed right-wingers); the sequence then introduces Lisa (who leaves a band rehearsal, usually playing a different saxophone solo); the family is then shown on their way to their house at 742 Evergreen Terrace (the address varied in the beginning, but the writers now use 742 Evergreen Terrace exclusively). Open fighting erupted in June of 1970. Almost every episode opens with a title shot coming through the cumulus clouds and into the school where Bart is writing lines on the class chalkboard, presumably set as a punishment by one of his teachers for some mischievous deed or wayward comment; Homer is shown leaving the power plant, with Mr. Jordan considered this a growing threat to its sovereignty and security and attempted to disarm the Palestinian militias. The Simpsons opening sequence is one of the show's most memorable hallmarks. In the 1960s tensions between Palestinians and the Jordanian government had greatly increased; heavily armed Palestinian resistance elements (fedayeen) had created a virtual "state within a state" in Jordan, eventually controlling several strategic positions in Jordan, including the oil refinery near Az Zarq. Examples of these stock scenes include:. Arafat became commander-in-chief of the Palestinian Revolutionary Forces two years later and, in 1973, the head of the PLO's political department.

There are several types of scenes that recur often and have become conventions of the show's storytelling style. By the late 1960s, Fatah had come to dominate the PLO, and at the Palestinian National Congress in Cairo on February 3, 1969 Arafat was appointed Palestinian Liberation Organization leader, replacing Ahmad Shukeiri. Recurring themes in episodes include:. Many young Palestinians joined as the ranks and armaments of Fatah swelled. However the plots have never been particularly predictable or constant and tend to be very character-driven. Amid the post-war environment, the profiles of Arafat and Fatah were raised by this important turning point, as he came to be regarded as a national hero who dared confront Israel. The plots of many episodes focus on the adventures of one particular family member, frequently Homer. The battle was covered in detail by Time magazine, and Arafat's face appeared on the cover, bringing the wider world their first image of the man.

However, this has nothing to do with the rest of the episode other than serving as a location from which the family drives before reaching the building site. Despite the high Palestinian death toll, Fatah considered themselves victorious because of the Israeli army's eventual withdrawal. In the first few scenes, Homer believes he has won a motor boat in a competition, but when he attempts to claim the prize, it emerges he is a victim of a police plot to catch criminals - in Homer's case, for 235 unpaid parking tickets. In 1968, Fatah was the target of an Israeli Defense Force operation in the Jordanian village of Al-Karameh ("honor" in Arabic language) in which 150 relatively poorly armed Palestinians and 29 Israeli soldiers were killed. One example of this is the episode "Lisa the Skeptic" in which Lisa discovers a fake 'angel' fossil later revealed to be a tool for advertising the opening of a new mall. After the Six-Day War, Arafat is said to have escaped Israel by crossing the Jordan River dressed as a woman carrying a baby. It can be said that the first few minutes of most Simpsons episodes have little to do with the rest of the plot. Fatah's first operation was an unsuccessful attempt to blow up an Israeli water pump station in 1965.

For example, the description of the 2003 episode "Dude, Where's My Ranch?" offered to Shaw Cable subscribers reads: "After David Byrne turns Homer's anti-(Ned) Flanders song into a monster hit, the family vacations at a dude ranch, where Lisa falls in love.". Arafat worked hard in Kuwait to establish the groundwork for Fatah's future financial support by enlisting contributions from the many Palestinians working there, who gave generously from their high salaries in the oil industry (ibid., p.91). Episode plots rarely follow any sort of linear course, often taking several digressions to move story lines in unexpected directions, often termed plot drift. According to journalist John Cooley, the name means "victory" and is also an acrostic taken from the initials, read backwards, of Harahkat al-Tahrir al Filistini (H-T-F, letters are reversed in FaTaH due to the negative meaning of the H-T-F root in Arabic.), meaning the Palestine Liberation Movement.² Fatah dedicated itself to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and the destruction of the state of Israel. Each episode presents some sort of change in that situation, its consequences, and almost always how things get back to normal. In Kuwait in 1959, with the help of friends Yahia Ghavani and Khalil al-Wazir (Abu Jihad) [3], together with a group of refugees from Gaza, Arafat founded one of the groups that became al-Fatah. A standard "template" Springfield situation, in terms of characters and events, has emerged over the years. Arafat had decided that the best way for Palestinians to gain control of Palestine was for them to fight and not rely on support from Arab governments.

Fox News has been portrayed as extremely biased towards conservatives. After Suez, Arafat moved to Kuwait, where he found work as a civil engineer and eventually set up his own contracting firm. In fact, ridiculing Fox has become a running joke, of sorts. Fathi Arafat founded the Palestinian Red Crescent and was involved in the humanitarian aspect of the conflict. Even Rupert Murdoch—whose corporate empire includes The Simpsons' broadcast network, Fox—has been gently spoofed in a couple of episodes. Arafat's younger brother Dr. Many wealthy characters are members of the Republican Party, which meets in a dark castle. By 1956, Arafat graduated with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering and served as a second lieutenant in the Egyptian Army during the Suez Crisis.[2] Later, in 1956, at a conference in Prague, he donned the keffiyeh, the traditional chequered head-dress which was to become his emblem.

Kent Brockman is a self-important, spoiled TV news anchorman with little regard for journalistic ethics. After returning to university, Arafat joined the Muslim Brotherhood and served as president of the Union of Palestinian Students from 1952 to 1956. He will endorse any product for a price. Arafat felt that he had been "betrayed by these [Arab] regimes". Krusty the Klown has an enthusiastic following among Springfield's kids, but offstage he is a jaded, cynical hack, in poor health from a long history of overindulgence, gambling and substance abuse. He was disarmed and turned back by Egyptian military forces, who refused to allow the poorly trained partisans to enter the war zone. The show also routinely mocks and satirizes show business conventions and personalities. But by 1946 he had become a Palestinian nationalist and was procuring weapons in Egypt to be smuggled into Palestine in the Arab cause.[1] During the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, Arafat left university and, along with other Palestinians, sought to enter Palestine to fight for Palestinian independence.

Furthermore, Police Sergeant Lou is constantly lecturing Chief Wiggum on his inept law enforcement practices, and even Homer's co-worker Carl, in addition to possessing a Master's degree in Nuclear Engineering, occasionally lambastes Homer's stupidity. He later claimed to have sought to better understand Judaism and Zionism by engaging in discussions with Jews and reading publications by Theodor Herzl and other Zionists. Nick Riviera. Arafat attended the University of King Fuad I (later renamed Cairo University). Hibbert, despite a tendency to laugh at the most inappropriate times, is arguably among the least dysfunctional characters in the series, and is certainly more professionally qualified for medical practice than Dr. The marriage did not last, and when his father married once more, Arafat's sister Inam was left in charge of the upbringing of her siblings. For instance, Dr. When he was eight, his father re-married and the family moved back to Cairo.

Some people interpret this as a satire of Hollywood and TV's portrayal of exaggerated 'reverse stereotypes' in which the computer genius is always a black actor. In Jerusalem, they lived in a house near the Western Wall and the Al-Aqsa Mosque or Temple Mount, a holy site to Jews, Christians and Muslims. Race relations are also the subject of satire in the show, as the handful of African American characters are almost always portrayed as being more intelligent and rational than their "Yellow" counterparts. Arafat was four when his mother died, and he and his father moved to Jerusalem from Cairo, where the family had been living. As compared with the Simpsons family, the Flanders family is relatively well-off and less dysfunctional, reflecting certain theories expressed by sociologist Max Weber in his seminal work, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. A birth certificate registered in Cairo, Egypt shows August 24, 1929 as his date of birth and Cairo as the place. In several episodes, God actually intervenes to protect the Flanders family, invoking such Protestant concepts as Predestination. Arafat claimed to have been born in Jerusalem on August 4, 1929; some of his legal personal documentation states the same.

Social conservatives and some evangelical Christians have also pointed to the positive role model of devout Christian Ned Flanders, whose fretfulness is occasionally ridiculed but whose decency never wavers despite constant provocation from Homer (except that time that he had extra-marital sex, or married a cocktail waitress in Las Vegas). His father was a Palestinian textile merchant and his mother came from a prominent Palestinian family. Nevertheless, these affairs never occur, and by the end of every episode, Homer and Marge's marriage is strongly affirmed. Arafat was the fifth or sixth (sources disagree) of seven children. The show has toyed with the possibility of extramarital affairs, such as when Homer falls for a female nuclear technician who shares his love of donuts, or when Marge's ex-boyfriend Artie Ziff tries to rekindle their old romance. . One of the main explanations of this shift is that the Simpsons portrays a traditional nuclear family among a lineup of television sitcoms that now portray less traditional families.
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During the more recent years of Simpsons production, some social conservatives have come to embrace the show. Still others accused him of being a deeply corrupt politician or a weak leader who made too many concessions to the Israeli government during efforts to settle the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Nearly every authority figure in the show is portrayed unflatteringly:. While his supporters viewed him as a heroic freedom fighter who symbolized the national aspirations of the Palestinian people, his opponents often described him as an unrepentant terrorist with a long legacy of promoting violence. This negative reaction was most pronounced during the early seasons of the show. Arafat was a controversial and polarizing figure throughout his lengthy career. This probably explains the often strong negative reaction to the show from social conservatives. Yasser Arafat (Arabic: ياسر عرفات‎) (August 4 or August 24, 1929 – November 11, 2004), born Mohammed Abdel-Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini (محمد عبد الرؤوف القدوة الحسيني) and also known by the kunya Abu `Ammar (أبو عمّار), was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) (1969–2004); President¹ of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) (1993–2004); and a co-recipient of the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize.

Authority, especially in undeserving hands, is a constant target of the show's often sharp satire. ISBN 9993251305. This allows for far more flexibility in plot development than in a typical live-action sitcom constrained by physical limitations and logistics. Wallach, Janet and John Wallach, Arafat: In the Eyes of the Beholder, Carol Pub Group, 1990. The cost of having an episode of The Simpsons take place in the mountains, Europe, the city park, or a cruise ship on the ocean (all of which simply use drawn and painted backgrounds) is hardly more than placing the family in the more conventional sitcom settings of a living room, a kitchen, and perhaps one or two related settings. ISBN 1883642108. Animation scholars and fans have noted that the series uses the medium of animation to its advantage, allowing the show to take place in many settings and feature a far greater cast of characters than a live-action sitcom. Rubinstein, Danny and Dan Leon The Mystery of Arafat, Steerforth Press, 1995.

This has not been confirmed officially. ISBN 0195166892. According to David Silverman, writer for the series, Springfield is in North Tacoma. and Judith Colp Rubin, Yasir Arafat: A Political Biography, Oxford University Press, 2003. Many monuments can be seen all at once, including the Gateway Arch in Missouri and the Needle in Washington. Rubin, Barry M. When she climbs up, there is a large panoramic view of what is supposedly Springfield. ISBN 0283062207.

To do so, she climbs up to prevent the team from cutting it down. Hart, Alan, Arafat, Sidgwick & Jackson, 1994. In one episode, Lisa is trying to protect the oldest tree in Springfield. ISBN 1852279249. Creator Matt Groening has stated that Springfield has much in common with Portland, Oregon, the city he grew up in (see Matt Groening's Portland), and the name "Springfield" was chosen because virtually every state has a town or city with that name. Gowers, Andrew and Tony Walker, Arafat: The Biography, Virgin Books, 2005. One of the couch gags zoomed out and showed the Simpson's house in Springfield, Illinois. ISBN 1582340498.

As the camera pans away from earth, the concentric radio signals are shown to be emanating from Louisiana. Aburish, Said K., Arafat: From Defender to Dictator, Bloomsbury Publishing, 1998. When Kang initiates telepathic contact with Maggie, baby Maggie responds by transmitting a signal with her pacifier. During one of the Halloween specials, it is proposed that Kang, a space alien, is the real father of Maggie. There is also evidence that the Simpsons live in Louisiana.

The star is placed geographically in Kentucky. Also, in the episode, Brake My Wife, Please, when Homer breaks out in a singing routine, we can see a star on the map on which Homer walks from to California. Also, in the behind-the-scenes episode "Behind the Laughter", the narrator says "...but that wasn't the end for this Northern Kentucky family." Looking closely at a map of Kentucky in the northern part of the state, the towns of Simpsonville and its neighbor city Shelbyville can be clearly seen. In an earlier episode it was also implied that the family came from Kentucky.

Burns states they will smuggle sugar in from south of the border to which Homer replies, "Oh, you mean Tennessee?", implying they live in Kentucky. In an episode during season 13, Mr. This Confederate symbol is an outrage, particularly because we are a northern state", meaning that the state could not be part of the old Confederacy. The Third Grade", the Capitol City Goofball mascot and delegate says "It is time to address our state's flag.

Lisa vs. Also, in the episode "Bart vs. Another factor to consider is the weather, as a town in Florida would not have the large amounts of snow we see in the show during the Christmas episodes. There is also evidence to disprove this point in the episode "Kill the Alligator and Run", in which the family vacations to Florida (which Homer refers to as "USA's wang") and is prohibited from returning.

636 is in Missouri (See Where Is The Simpsons' Springfield? for more information on this issue.) According to the video game The Simpsons Hit & Run, the town of Springfield is in Florida, but this could be ruled out in the episode "Special Edna", in which a sign in Springfield shows the distance to Orlando too far for Springfield to be in the same state. Simpson's area code changes from 636 to 939. It seems it is kept indeterminate on purpose so that the location can suit any plot, as Springfield and its surrounding areas have been shown to contain coastlines, deserts, vast farmland, and tall mountains, or whatever the story requires. has been both suggested and ruled out by conflicting "evidence" of a location for Springfield, so that the town could not really be anywhere.

Both the town itself and its location are fictional; nearly every state and region in the U.S. Throughout the show's history fans have tried to determine where Springfield is by taking the town's characteristics, surrounding geography and nearby landmarks as clues (as Lisa once said of the state, "It's a bit of a mystery, yes, but if you look at the clues, you'll figure it out"). The Simpsons is set in the fictional United States town of Springfield. Some of these, like Itchy and Scratchy, ultraviolent versions of Tom and Jerry, are fictional even within the Simpsons universe.

For a comprehensive list, see characters from The Simpsons. Many of these characters have developed a vast cult following of their own, and many of them each serve to represent facets of the USA society that the show scathingly critiques. The show also has a vast array of quirky supporting characters, including co-workers, teachers, family friends, extended relatives, and local celebrities. There are other clues as well, such as the avocado-green kitchen equipment (this color was popular in the 1960s and '70s) and the family's two cars, both of which appear to have been manufactured in the early 1980s (Homer's being made from "recycled Soviet tanks").

The Simpsons go several years into the internet age before acquiring a computer, reflecting the fact that the Simpson family is perpetually several years out of date. The Simpson lifestyle yo-yos depending on whether or not Homer is employed at the time; Marge is largely a stay-at-home mom. The Simpson family (which sometimes includes Homer's father, Abraham "Abe" Simpson) lives in a relatively large four-bedroom house bordering a friendly neighbor on one side, Ned Flanders, and many varying things, including a cemetery, on the other. Homer describes his family as "upper lower middle class", and this appears to be about right.

Some characters' ages have fluctuated throughout the years; this is most likely due to simple oversight on the part of the writers. Maggie is an eternal baby, and despite the fact that numerous years (and birthdays) clearly pass (for example, many Christmas episodes), the Simpsons do not appear to age. Lisa, the 8 year old once portrayed having a genius intellect (with adult mannerisms, perception and extraordinary articulation), has leveled into a more average girl yet brainy student, who also happens to be a vegetarian, Buddhist and jazz music fan who dreams of a better future (she is referred to as "the future of the family"). Bart, the oldest sibling at the age of 10, is a troublemaker and classroom terror ("the devil's cabana boy", as Lisa once described him) who thinks of himself as a rebel.

Marge (of French origin) was once intelligent and sophisticated, but has come to conform with the stereotype of housewife/mother. Homer, a safety inspector at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, is a generally well-meaning buffoon whose short attention span often draws him into outrageous schemes and adventures. Bart, however, is an anagram for brat, with Groening having stated that he thought naming the boy "Matt" would be too obvious. The main characters were originally created by Matt Groening as part of a series of original animated segments for The Tracey Ullman Show. Over the course of the series Groening has used many of the themes present in his long-running comic strip series, Life in Hell. (For instance, the idea of creative school children constantly being persecuted and suppressed by totalitarian grown-ups stems from the strip.) Many of the characters in The Simpsons take their names from important people and places in Groening's life — for example Lisa, Maggie, Marge and Homer share names with Groening's sisters, mother and father respectively.

. It is considered a sign of definite status as a celebrity or other important figure to be featured or asked to parody oneself in an episode of the show; this has become a phenomenon with many A-list celebrities willing to participate in even the most minute cameo appearance. The Simpsons was also one of the pioneering shows that changed the view of cartoons to a more adult standard. It has had a huge influence on post–Cold War popular culture.

Highly satirical, the show lampoons many aspects of the human condition, but primarily parodies the "Middle American" lifestyle epitomized by its titular family, as well as American culture, society, and even television itself. The Simpsons has been seen by many critics as one of the finest television shows ever; it was named the best television series of the 20th century by TIME magazine in 1998, and it made the top 10 on TV Guide's list of the greatest shows of all time in 2002. It is produced by Gracie Films for 20th Century Fox. The TV series, created by Matt Groening, is a spinoff of a series of animated shorts originally aired on The Tracey Ullman Show.

The Simpsons is the longest-running USA animated television series and overall sitcom, with 17 seasons and 367 episodes since it debuted on December 17, 1989 on FOX. Often, when a person escapes or just leaves a room, the sound of a pulling out car will be audible immediately, no matter how long the realistic way from the door/exit to the car would be. Maggie never speaks. Burns, which leads to the occasional awkward situation.

Burns's assistant, is secretly in love with Mr. Smithers, Mr. Homer, when frustrated or making a obvious blunder, shouts out the famous catch phrase 'D'OH!'. Maggie Simpson falls when she tries to walk and is constantly sucking on a pacifier.

When Marge doesn't approve of something she'll make a throaty humming noise similar to hmmmm. Homer always choking Bart. Nelson Muntz appears from time to time to mock a funny situation with his own 'HA-ha!'. The famous 'Aye carumba!', 'Don't have a cow, man!', and 'Eat my shorts!' lines were used extensively by Bart in the earlier seasons.

This gag seems to have been retired. One example would be the Missing Baby Hotline playing "Baby come back" by Player. The "Stay-On-the-Line and Cry" routine (more prevalent in earlier seasons of the show), a running gag in which one of the members of the Simpson family - usually Homer and Marge - would wait on the phone, but then break down and cry when a popular song pertaining to the situation would be played as Soft/Easy Listening Music. Krusty the Clown never remembers Bart despite the numerous times Bart helped him out of jams.

The "Family Guy" gag, a recent gag in which the creators of the Simpsons will poke fun at Family Guy from time to time. Barney Gumbel's trademark belch (this was first introduced in Season 1, but then modified for all subsequent seasons). (unintelligible)". blaargh..

(tasty thing).. Homer encounters something tasty, like a donut, and utters in a long drawn-out tone: "Mmmm.. Smithers has to remind him.). Burns unable to remember Homer Simpsons' name, despite the countless times the two have worked together (and every time Mr.

Mr. This is usually followed by Moe shouting threats back at Bart through the phone. Bart's Prank Call, a recurring gag in which Bart Simpson would make a call to the oblivious Moe of Moe's Tavern and would get him to fall for the trap every time. How to draw the Simpsons by Matt Groening *Miniclip.com.

Keller. The Gospel According to Bart: Examining the Religious Elements of The Simpsons by Beth L. Conard (Editor), Aeon Skoble (Editor) ISBN 0812694333. The Simpsons and Philosophy: The D'oh! of Homer by William Irwin (Editor), Mark T.

Parvin ISBN 066422590X. Pinsky, Samuel F. The Gospel According to the Simpsons: Leaders Guide for Group Study by Mark I. Pinsky ISBN 0664224199.

The Gospel According to The Simpsons: The Spiritual Life of the World's Most Animated Family by Mark I. The Simpsons And Society: An Analysis Of Our Favorite Family And Its Influence In Contemporary Society by Steven Keslowitz ISBN 1587362538. Leaving Springfield: The Simpsons and the Possibility of Oppositional Culture (Contemporary Film and Television Series) by John Alberti ISBN 0814328490. Planet Simpson: How a Cartoon Masterpiece Documented an Era and Defined a Generation by Chris Turner ISBN 0679313184.

Produced "The Fat and the Furriest" and "She Used to Be My Girl". Produced "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular". Jointly produced "Radioactive Man" with Anivision. Produced animation for episodes from season four onwards.

Produced animation for episodes from seasons 3–10. Produced various episodes throughout the run of the series. Exclusively produced the first two seasons of the series. The family attempts to sit on the couch as something goes awry in an often surreal manner.

Homer screams in a different way (only done in the first couple of seasons);. Bart weaves between pedestrians but in the first season, he is seen passing a queue of people waiting for a bus;. Lisa may play a different solo on her baritone saxophone;. Bart writes something different on the chalkboard;.

A fantasy in which one of the Simpsons imagines how something might turn out. Burns, is doing at the time. Scenes that cut from the main action to show what a secondary character, like Krusty or Mr. TV anchorman Kent Brockman reporting on the events of the plot.

Many recurring minor characters appear and speak. A crowd scene, in which the entire town of Springfield convenes to witness some notable event, protest something, attend a civic meeting, or even start a riot. A scene in which one or more Simpsons are watching a TV program, which the viewer watches along with them, or watches them watch it, often to be interrupted. A scene in which Homer is at Moe's Tavern escaping the hassles of work and family to be with his friends.

This is often near the start of the episode. A scene in the morning in which Marge is preparing breakfast, and the kids and Homer are eating before going to work or school as they talk about what they are going to do. Conceptually this is very similar to the "Homer and Marge in bed" scenes, but including the children. A scene in which the family is eating dinner together and talking about the events of the plot.

A scene, often near the middle of the show, in which Homer and Marge are in bed together discussing the events of the story so far. A scene in which Bart prank calls Moe. After a few minutes there, the main plot begins. A scene at the very beginning of the show in which the family goes somewhere together, like a cartoon festival or a cider mill.

The episode is a clip show. Sideshow Bob attempts to kill Bart. Grampa Simpson needs help sorting out issues from his past and calls upon the main Simpsons family. (Because of these vacations the entire family has been to every continent on Earth with the exception of Antarctica.).

The entire family goes on vacation. Lisa embraces or advocates the merits of a particular political cause or group. Bart causes a large problem and attempts to fix it. Homer and Marge break up, then get back together.

Marge attempts to escape the monotony of keeping house by finding employment or taking up a hobby. Homer gets a new job (Simpson writers had Homer count 30 of them in a recent episode but the actual list is far longer) or attempts to make money in a get-rich-quick scheme. Evil and cruel, Burns is aided in his campaign of terror against the residents of Springfield by his trusted assistant Waylon Smithers, who secretly harbors an unrequited love for Burns. Montgomery Burns, owner of the Springfield Nuclear Plant and Homer Simpson's boss.

While most of these characters are more incompetent than truly evil there is one true sadist: C. Reverend Timothy Lovejoy, the pastor of the local church, is judgmental and moralistic (but only regarding other people), with a monotone voice that always puts Homer to sleep during Sunday sermons. Based on comedian Rich Hall. Moe Szyslak, the owner of Moe's Tavern (where Homer spends most of his free time), is a borderline sociopath who threatens people with his loaded shotgun, and attempts suicide every Christmas.

Her name is an allusion to the word Crabapple, as if to suggest the USA idiom. Edna Krabappel is Bart's depressed, sexually-promiscuous, chain-smoking elementary school teacher who is impatient and ignorant of her class, and demands darkness and silence when she is hung over. Ms. He has frequent flashbacks to his capture and imprisonment by the Viet Cong, and in early seasons, Skinner was repeatedly likened to Norman Bates in Psycho though this ultimately was dropped later on in the series.

Seymour Skinner - who sounds like Charles Kuralt - the principal of Springfield Elementary School, is an uptight, humorless bachelor who lives with his domineering mother. Kennedy — is a corrupt, spendthrift womanizer. Mayor Quimby — who sounds like John F. Robinson-influenced tone) is very obese, stupid, lazy, corrupt and not overly concerned with constitutional rights (not to mention that he somewhat resembles a pig).

Springfield police chief Clancy Wiggum (voiced by Hank Azaria in an Edward G. Marge Simpson is also of the 1950s stereotype category, and attempts to exercise control to compensate for her husband's failings. Homer is thoughtless and irresponsible, the antithesis of the ideal 1950s TV father, though he always comes through for his family in the end.