Spiritual Life of Our Favorite Family
By Jouni Paakkinen (jouni@snpp.com) - September 1, 2001
     Mark I. Pinsky, author of “The Gospel According to The Simpsons: The Spiritual Life of the World's Most Animated Family,” says he is a little nervous about the September 1 publication of his book in North America by Westminster John Knox Press.
     “I feel like I'm in the roller coaster car as it clacks up that first hill,” he says. “I know that a wild ride is about to begin soon, and it's too late to climb out.” Pinsky says he hopes Simpsons fans will like his take on their favorite family, and that they won't find too many distracting errors from the show.
     “Fans, like the people who contribute to The Simpsons Archive, have been of immense help to me in writing this book,” he says. “Without them, it would have taken three times as long.”
     “The Gospel According to The Simpsons” takes an intriguing look at the treatment of religion in the show – God, Jesus, heaven and hell, the Bible and prayer are discussed, as well as the most religious people in Springfield, including evangelistic next-door neighbor Ned Flanders, and the town's pastor, Reverend Lovejoy. The show's approach to Catholics, Jews, and Hindus is also explained in depth. If you've been under the impression that reading a book about religion isn't very entertaining, this book can easily make you a convert.
     Excerpts, like the one posted on the Archive, and articles about the book should be popping up around the net in the next few weeks, as well as in magazines and newspapers. Then will come the reviews. Pinsky says he plans to do some touring in support of the book later this fall, including trips to Boston, Dallas, New York, and also to the United Kingdom, where the book will be published in mid-October. The current schedule of appearances and signings is available at www.markpinsky.com.
     The trade paperback original is 160 pages and is priced at $12.95. “It's not a huge commitment, in terms of reading time or money, so I hope a lot of people will take a chance on it,” Pinsky says. “It's possible that if Christians who would never think of watching The Simpsons read this book, they might tune in and expand the audience, even this late in the run.”
     For a closer look at the book and its author, read an exclusive excerpt, as well as our previous story.
     Also see recent articles elsewhere: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] and a few older ones available in the Miscellaneous section.

Simpsons Get Two Emmy Nominations
By Jouni Paakkinen (jouni@snpp.com) - July 13, 2001
     The Simpsons received two Emmy nominations from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences this Thursday.
     In the category of Outstanding Animated Program, “HOMR,” the twelfth season episode in which Homer's true IQ suddenly emerged, was chosen along with Matt Groening's other show Futurama (“Amazon Women in the Mood”), as well as The Powerpuff Girls (“Moral Decay & the Beat Alls”), As Told By Ginger (“Hello Stranger”) and King of the Hill (“Chasing Bobby”).
     The Simpsons and composer Alf Clausen were nominated in Outstanding Music Composition for a Series category for “Simpson Safari.” The other nominations in the category went to Star Trek: Voyager, The West Wing and Xena: Warrior Princess.
     In addition to these, The Simpsons may also receive Voice-Over Performance awards, which do not involve prior nominations.
     The Emmy is the most prestigious award for excellence in television, conceded by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Emmy awards ceremonies have taken place since 1949, with the upcoming event, marking the 53rd annual. The complete list of this year's nominations is available on the official Emmy site.

Simpsons DVDs to Arrive This Fall
By Jouni Paakkinen (jouni@snpp.com) - May 5, 2001 - Revised June 19, 2001
     For years, Simpsons fans have yearned for a comprehensive collection of episodes in high-resolution, digital format. That dream nearly came true in early 1998, when 20th Century Fox Home Video and Gracie Films began a collaborative effort to produce laserdisc releases of the series.
     Plans initially called for a season 1 boxed set, complete with ancillary materials and "directors' commentary"-style audio tracks featuring the show's key producers and creator. When Chatsworth, California-based Image Entertainment was charged with remastering the series' first 13 episodes for the release, there seemed to be little doubt that the show was indeed about to make its debut in the world of digital video.
     But following the tweaked master tapes' return to Fox, no laserdiscs ever materialized, and 20th Home eventually confirmed without explanation that the project had been postponed indefinitely.
     The good news is that Fox is now preparing a similar product in the wildly more popular DVD format, with plans for multiple regional editions throughout the world. Scheduled for a Sept. 25 release, the 3-disc Season 1 DVD boxed set will feature all 13 episodes from the series' first season (1989-1990), each complete with creator's commentary by Matt Groening on alternate audio tracks. The release date was first confirmed on June 14 by a Variety story.
     Along with original scripts, early sketches, magazine covers, foreign language clips, and stills, the release will also offer fans a look at the unaired version of “Some Enchanted Evening” (7G01), which was scrapped on account of production woes.
     Other bonus features will include Albert Brooks outtakes from the episode “Life on the Fast Lane” (7G11), the first Simpsons vignette aired April 19, 1987 on The Tracey Ullman Show (“Good Night Simpsons” #MG01), the British TV special “Making of The Simpsons: America's First Family,” and an easter egg ABC News report on on the famous Bart Simpson T-Shirt controversy of the early 1990s.
     Fox asked fans for their feedback concerning possible bonus contents earlier this year with an official ePoll.com questionnaire.
     20th Century Fox Home Entertainment will launch the release with a full-scale marketing and advertising campaign, set to cover general interest and entertainment magazines as well as national television and online media. Additional information about the release's availability will be highlighted at the official Simpsons web site (www.thesimpsons.com) in addition to Fox Home Entertainment Online (www.foxhome.com).
     Offered at the suggested US retail price of $39.98 ($49.98 Canada), the Simpsons Season 1 DVD Collector's Box Set will take the form of 3 dual-layered DVD discs (1.33:1 full frame), each with episodes presented in English 5.1, and Dolby Surround in English and French. English and Spanish subtitles will also be available. According to details provided by 20th Century Fox Home's Italy office to DVDweb.it, special attention will be given to the packaging, which is said to have "high-tech" features.

Disc 1 “Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire” (7G08 - December 17, 1989); “Bart the Genius” (7G02 - January 14, 1990 - official series premiere); “Homer's Odyssey” (7G03 - January 21, 1990); “There's No Disgrace Like Home” (7G04 - January 28, 1990); “Bart the General” (7G05 - February 4, 1990); “Moaning Lisa” (7G06 - February 11, 1990); Bonus features: Original scripts with notes by Matt Groening for “Bart the Genius,” “Bart the General”, and “Moaning Lisa.” Disc 2 “Call of the Simpsons” (7G09 - February 18, 1990); “The Telltale Head” (7G07 - February 25, 1990); “Life on the Fast Lane” (7G11 - March 18, 1990); “Homer's Night Out” (7G10 - March 25, 1990); “The Crepes of Wrath” (7G13 - April 15, 1990); “Krusty Gets Busted” (7G12 - April 29, 1990); Disc 3 “Some Enchanted Evening” (7G01 - May 13, 1990); Bonus features: Original script with notes by Matt Groening for “Some Enchanted Evening,” outtakes from the unaired version of “Some Enchanted Evening,” an excerpt of the animatic version of “Bart the General” (1m:49s) with commentary from Matt Groening and former director David Silverman, Albert Brooks Outtakes from “Life on the Fast Lane” (3m:43s), the BBC “America's First Family” television special (4m:48s), an ABC News Special Report on the Bart Simpson T-Shirt controversy (1m:45s), the first-ever Simpsons short to air on “The Tracey Ullman Show,” five foreign-language clips, a stills gallery of early Simpsons sketches, and magazine covers. Press release

     According to Fox Home Entertainment, a second DVD boxed set featuring all 22 episodes from the series' second season (1990-1991) may be released in time for the Christmas season. Additional Simpsons DVD boxed sets would follow, at the average rate of 2 each year.
     Future news concerning the DVDs will be added as it becomes available. In the meantime, keep an eye on our DVD news page for future DVD news and rumors.
     Update (07/02) Amazon.com is taking advance orders for the set ($29.98).

D'oh Defined
By Jouni Paakkinen (jouni@snpp.com) - June 14, 2001
     Homer Simpson's popular catchphrase “d'oh!” is one of the 250 new entries added to the updated online edition of Oxford English Dictionary, published on Thursday. The dictionary's research reveals that the grunt was used extensively in the 1950s, but The Simpsons only popularized it. “My job is the perfect excuse for watching action films, soaps, quiz programmes – where the language is busy right now,” said chief editor John Simpson.
     The Oxford English Dictionary defines the term as “Expressing frustration at the realization that things have turned out badly or not as planned, or that one has just said or done something foolish.” In addition to the standard Simpsons way of spelling the utterance, the dictionary includes a variant “doh.”
     It was Dan Castellaneta, the voice of Homer Simpson, who first came up with the popular catchphrase. In the early scripts for The Tracey Ullman Show shorts, Matt Groening had simply written “annoyed grunt.” Castellaneta adapted “d'oh!” from a Scottish actor named James Finlayson, who appeared in Laurel and Hardy comedies. Whenever Finlayson's character was frustrated, he used to say “dooooh.”
     By Groening's request, Castellaneta speeded it up, and “d'oh!” was born. In the Simpsons scripts and episode names, however, only “annoyed grunt” remains to be used.

Classical Tribute to The Simpsons
By Jouni Paakkinen (jouni@snpp.com) - June 1, 2001
     Classical music may not be Homer Simpson's obsession, but there is a classical composer who loves Homer and his family.
     Influenced by the deep emotional messages he had seen on the show, composer Paul Crabtree of San Francisco, California, sat down and composed five dramatic works with lyrics originally uttered by Simpsons characters. “They're totally serious pieces about these little characters,” said Crabtree, 41, to San Francisco Chronicle. “They're not cartoony or cheap in any way. It's an in-depth probing of these cartoon lives.”
     The songs in “Five Romantic Miniatures from The Simpsons” are named after the characters behind the lines. The first piece, “Abe,” features Grampa Simpson's love confession to Marge's mom. “Lisa” continually repeats the lyric, “I like Langdon Alger. He is very quiet and he enjoys puzzles.” In “Marge,” the line is “I love you so much, my little bitty Barty.” The song “Homer“ repeats “Marge, you make the best pork chops. Mmmmm, pork chops,“ and a second piece with the same name includes emotional lines from episode “Secrets of a Successful Marriage.” “Homer's a loving man, but he doesn't have a clue about how to express it. He's brutally stupid, but he's lovable and he tries,” Crabtree explained.
     “Five Romantic Miniatures from The Simpsons” will be performed in San Francisco and Burlingame by the San Francisco Concert Chorale, and in Seattle by the Seattle Bach Choir this weekend. For tickets call (650) 589 3276 in San Francisco/Burlingame and (206) 324 4828 in Seattle. For more information on Paul Crabtree, visit his web site.
     Source: San Francisco Chronicle (courtesy Dave Allard)