General Information

The Simpsons is the longest-running American animated television series and overall sitcom, with 17 seasons and 367 episodes since it debuted on December 17, 1989 on FOX. The TV series, created by Matt Groening, is a spinoff of a series of animated shorts originally aired on The Tracey Ullman Show. It is produced by Gracie Films for 20th Century Fox. 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.
Highly satirical, the show lampoons many aspects of the human condition, but primarily parodies the "Middle US-citizen" lifestyle epitomized by its titular family, as well as USA culture, society, and even television itself. It has had a huge influence on post–Cold War popular culture. The Simpsons was also one of the pioneering shows that changed the view of cartoons to a more adult standard. 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.

History

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. 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. 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. 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. 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.

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). On January 14, 2000 the Simpsons were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The voice actors have been involved in much-publicized pay disputes with Fox on more than one occasion. In 1998, the voice actors stopped working, forcing 20th Century Fox TV to increase their salary from $30,000 per episode to $125,000. The actors were supported in their action by series creator Matt Groening. 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. They asked for $360,000 per episode, or $8 million for a 22-episode season. On May 2, 2004, the actors resolved their dispute with Fox after having their demands met. The universally reported claim that this dispute was in fact a full-blown strike is denied by Harry Shearer. 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. 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.