The Simpsons make huge change to show as Homer strangling Bart gag is dropped
THE Simpsons have made a huge change to the show as the Homer strangling Bart gag is dropped forever.
The hit animated sitcom first aired in 1989 and is the longest-running scripted show in history.
Die-hard Simpsons fans well know that Homer often reprimands Bart by squeezing his neck so hard that Bart’s eyes bulge and his tongue sticks out.
Despite being one of the most recognisable features of the show, in recent years the action has been frequently criticised for its brutality.
However, things have changed now and in the third episode of season 35, titled McMansion & Wife, Homer declared that he’s changed his ways.
It all happened when Homer introduced himself with a handshake, the a new character remarked how firm Homer’s grip is, to which The Simpsons patriarch replied: “See, Marge, strangling the boy paid off.”
Before adding: “Just kidding, I don’t do that anymore. Times have changed.”
The last time Homer was depicted strangling Bart was in season 31 (2019-2020).
Meanwhile, earlier this year, Brian Volk-Weiss, director of the documentary series Icons Unearthed: Simpsons spilled the beans on secrets from the world famous cartoon.
Speaking to The Sun he said: “What surprised me is that, there’s never been a real documentary about The Simpsons.
“We could have made 10 episodes, there’s that much material.”
The documentary revealed some surprising facts about The Simpsons that a lot of fans never knew.
TV producer and screenwriter Ken Estin got the idea to hire underground cartoonist Matt Groening after receiving a birthday card of his Life in Hell comic strip, which features anthropomorphic rabbits.
Ken wanted to turn it into a series of animated bumpers that aired between scenes on The Tracey Ullman Show, which he co-created with director and screenwriter James L. Brooks.
But Matt wasn’t happy to give up the rights to his popular comic strip to the network Fox.
While in the waiting room about to have a meeting with the network, he came up with the “sitcom family from hell” idea.
Homer, Marge, Lisa, and Maggie were all named after his own family. His mum even had a beehive hairdo like Marge.
Maggie’s stuffed bunny is actually the main character from Life In Hell.
Fox also initially wasn’t keen on buying 13 full-length episodes.
But award-winning director and screenwriter James L. Brooks wasn’t taking no for an answer.
At the time he had a film deal with the company due to be renewed, and he used this as leverage to push the network into picking up The Simpsons.
Brian recalled: “He had just directed four movies for Fox and every single one of them was staggeringly profitable. He was their huge shining star.
“They couldn’t get this deal done. Brooks said to his lawyer, ‘I got a solution. Tell the lawyers if they greenlight The Simpsons, then I’ll close my deal for the four movies.’”
Garth Ancier, then the founding entertainment president for Fox, reveals in the documentary that he told a “little white lie” to management to get The Simpsons over the line.
He told boss Barry Diller, who he calls “the one guy you don’t lie to”, that the network ABC had offered The Simpsons six episodes. Although he is still unsure whether it worked.
He adds: “In fairness, because I do think Barry has an extraordinary bulls**t metre, I think he knew it was a lie and he went along with it anyway knowing this was a good idea.”
While Bart was originally The Simpsons’ main character, Homer soon became the fan favourite.
Brian said: “Bart was always supposed to be the star, but all of a sudden Homer started getting more fan mail.
“I’m talking about Homer, and not Dan Castellaneta who voices him. He was getting millions and millions of letters every month.
“We saw some of these letters and they’re in one of the episodes. People were saying things like, ‘we love you, you’re an inspiration, you make me feel better about my life’.
“People are always like, ‘what’s the secret to The Simpsons’ success, how can a show run for more than 30 years?’ And this is a case in point. You have a show that had a massive star with Bart. But they’re paying attention to the mail. And all of a sudden, they kind of flipped it.
“Starting around season six or seven, Homer became the flagship character of the show. And that’s highly unusual, for a change like that to happen.
“I think that’s at the heart of why The Simpsons has lasted so long – it evolves.”