Hank Azaria Wins an Emmy
By Jouni Paakkinen (jouni@snpp.com) - August 18, 2003
     Hank Azaria, the voice of Moe, Apu, Comic Book Guy, Chief Wiggum and several other regular Simpsons characters has won the voice-over Emmy for his performance in the 14th season episode “Moe Baby Blues.” While the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences still mentions the winning episode, it no longer singles out a specific character for this award.
     Previously, Azaria has won two voice-over Emmys for his work on The Simpsons (1998 and 2001). Additionally, three years ago, he received the Outstanding Supporting Actor award for “Tuesdays with Morrie.” This year Azaria may even snag his 5th Emmy as he is also nominated for his guest role on “Friends.“
     Outstanding Voice-Over Performance is one of the “juried” categories without a slate of nominees. The primetime awards will be announced on September 21.

Two Emmy Nominations for The Simpsons
By Don Del Grande (ddelgran@snpp.com) - July 22, 2003
     Once again, The Simpsons is nominated for Outstanding Animated Program (Less Than One Hour) Emmy Award. 14th season episode “Three Gays of the Condo” is up against Matt Groening's Futurama (“Jurassic Bark”), As Told by Ginger (“And She Was Gone”), Kim Possible (“Crush”) and SpongeBob SquarePants (“New Student Starfish / Clams”).
     Under new Emmy rules, only 14 producers, 3 writers, and 4 directors can be nominated for each show in the Animated Program categories. Something tells me the 30+ people receiving Emmy statues every time The Simpsons won in the past has something to do with this. Here are the 21 people who get Emmys if The Simpsons wins this year (as credited on the episode):

Executive Producers - James L. Brooks, Matt Groening, Al Jean Co-Executive Producers - Ian Maxtone-Graham, Matt Selman, Dan Greaney, Carolyn Omine, Tim Long, John Frink, Don Payne, Dana Gould, Kevin Curran Supervising Producer - Larina Jean Adamson Supervising Director - Jim Reardon Writer - Matt Warburton Director - Mark Kirkland Animation Producer - Mike Wolf Assistant Director - Matthew Faughnan Animation Timer - Milton Gray

     Maxtone-Graham and Selman had their names submitted as “Co-Executive Producer/Writer” and were counted as writers toward the limit. Gray was considered a director. Meanwhile, the following people were left out:

Co-Executive Producer - Brian Kelley, J. Stewart Burns, Michael Price Producer - George Meyer, Ron Hauge, Tom Gammill, Max Pross, Mike Scully, David Mirkin, Mike Reiss, Marc Wilmore, Richard Raynis, Bonita Pietila, Denise Sirkot, Richard Sakai (the last four were credited "Produced By") Animation Producer - John Hyde

     Also, Alf Clausen (music), Ian Maxtone-Graham and Ken Keeler (lyrics) are nominated in the Music & Lyrics (i.e. Original Song) category for “Everybody Hates Ned Flanders” from “Dude, Where's My Ranch?”.
     The “Creative Arts” awards will be handed out September 13 and the “main” awards on September 21.
     In addition, there are no announced nominations in the Voiceover Performance or Individual Achievement in Animation categories. The winners, if any, should be announced sometime in August.

Waiting for Season 15
By Nicolás Di Candia (nicolas@snpp.com) - May 27, 2003

NOTE: This article contains significant spoilers. Episode titles, airdates and descriptions are tentative and subject to change.

     The fourteenth season of The Simpsons wrapped up on May 18, almost certainly marking the last new episode until November. When eventually hitting the TV screens, season 15 will feature several episodes that have caused early buzz in the media.
     The family will be visiting Europe for the first time (only Bart has been to France) in an episode entitled “The Regina Monologues” which is set to be the first post-Halloween episode of the season. The show will feature several British guest stars including Prime Minister Tony Blair, actor Ian McKellen and Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling. Soccer (or, football) star David Beckham will not make an appearance in the episode, as he was apparently deemed not famous enough for The Simpsons. The plot involves Homer having an incident with Queen Elizabeth II.
     Likely airing prior to that, the 14th “Treehouse of Horror” episode will feature Jerry Lewis as professor Frink's father in the segment entitled “Frinkenstein.” Jennifer Garner, who plays agent Sydney Bristow in Alias, will appear as herself in the same episode, which also includes a Clockstoppers spoof starring Bart and Milhouse.
     Another episode that has had some media exposure is “The Fat and the Furriest,” in which Homer gets attacked by a bear and is declared a coward by the media.
     Also in season 15, Lisa becomes class president in an “Evita” parody, Krusty's once long lost father Rabbi Krustofsky returns, and Principal Skinner and Bart's teacher Edna Krabappel make their vows. Additionally, Mr. T will have a guest spot.
     For the last few years, The Simpsons seasons have premiered in November (rather than September) and lasted only for seven months, until the second half of May. The shorter season decreases the number of repeats and also means that unless Fox decides to air another “summer original” before the official season premiere, we'll have to wait six months until we see any of this.
     As reported earlier, the show will carry on at least until the end of season 16, ie. May 2005. Al Jean continues as the show runner in the upcoming season.
     For the latest information on the new episodes and schedules, see our Upcoming Episodes page.

Photo: The Design Team for the 15th season. It takes about 100 artists in the USA and lots more in Korea to animate The Simpsons. Left to right seated: Kevin Moore & Joe Wack. 2nd row: Hugh MacDonald, Lance Wilder, Kevin Newman & Maggie Blankenship. Back row: Jefferson R. Weekley, John Krause & Debbie Peterson.

Yet Another Milestone
By Nicolás Di Candia (nicolas@snpp.com) - January 28, 2003
     The Simpsons will reach the 300 episode mark on February 16th, with the airing of an episode titled “Barting Over.”
      In the episode, Bart becomes emancipated and leaves the family as he discovers that he was in commercials as a baby and Homer foolishly spent all the money on naming a star (which later went supernova) after the family. The episode features pro skateboarder Tony Hawk and the band Blink-182 (which will make the eighth musical guest of the 14th season).
      With at least two more seasons confirmed, The Simpsons is set to become the longest-running fictional show on the American television still in production, though it can end up losing that title to “Law & Order,” which premiered roughly at the same time and has been airing more episodes per season lately. Regardless of this, the show remains the longest-running animated prime time show in history, after surpassing The Flintstones in 1997. On the other hand, 300 episodes isn't even halfway through the run of “Gunsmoke,” which aired astonishing 633 episodes from 1955 to 1975 and is the longest-running fictional US series to date.
      It should be noted that while Fox is promoting “Barting Over” as the official 300th episode, this is not exactly correct. In fact, the 300th episode to be aired will be “Strong Arms of the Ma,” on February 2nd. “Barting Over” isn't the 300th produced episode either, as that title goes to “Strong Arms of the Ma” as well.
      Upon your preference, one of the two episodes joins the list of episodes noted by their round numbers, which are:

#50 “Homer Alone,” aired February 6th, 1992, during season 3. #100 “Sweet Seymour Skinner's Badassss Song,” aired April 28, 1994, during season 5. #150 “Raging Abe Simpson and his Grumbling Grandson in 'The Curse of the Flying Hellfish',” aired April 28th, 1996, during season 7. #200 “Trash of the Titans,” aired April 26th, 1998, during season 9. #250 “A Tale of Two Springfields,” aired November 5th, 2000, during season 12.

      Note that both episodes #200 and #250 featured a popular music group, like “Barting Over.”
      The recent contract with Fox will take The Simpsons at least through season 16 and May 2005, with Al Jean on the helm. The end isn't near for the show, as it was suggested last year by a misquoted Matt Groening.

Press release

The Simpsons Up for a Golden Globe
By Jouni Paakkinen (jouni@snpp.com) - December 27, 2002
     The Simpsons received a nomination for a Golden Globe award in The Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy category.
     The Simpsons, the only animated show in the category, competes against “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Friends,” “Sex and the City,” and “Will & Grace.” While our favorite family has been a frequent Emmy nominee and winner for more than a decade, this is the first Golden Globe nomination for the series.
     The awards are selected by the members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Television has been honored by the Golden Globes since 1955. The 60th annual ceremony will be held at the Beverly Hills Hilton on January 19, 2003, and telecast live on NBC.
     Update (01/20) The Simpsons did not win a Golden Globe. The award went to “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”

All Singing, All Dancing
By Jouni Paakkinen (jouni@snpp.com) - October 16, 2002
     For years, musically-inclined fans of The Simpsons have sought after their favorite Simpsons musical masterpieces in sheet music form. While the show's main title theme, composed by Danny Elfman, has been available in sheet format for years, there has never been a printed song book offered to the masses featuring a substantial variety of compositions from the show.
     Now the wait is over, with the release of “The Simpsons Songbook” from Warner Brothers Publications. Carefully compiled by The Simpsons' musical maven Alf Clausen and series creator Matt Groening, the book, whose pages and cover are adorned with original Simpsons art, features piano arrangements, guitar chords, and lyrics for 26 original numbers from the show's past 13 seasons.
     “Over the years, I have received many requests for sheet music of the songs on the show and on the CDs,” Alf Clausen told The Simpsons Archive. “I proposed this compilation to Fox Music as a great way to disseminate the sheet music for those songs to the fans.”
     When asked how he chose which numbers to include from the multitude of those available, Mr. Clausen indicated that his selections were based upon many of the titles presently out on Rhino's Simpsons soundtrack albums—“ Songs in the Key of Springfield” and “ Go Simpsonic”—and upon the suggestions of none other than Matt Groening. “I really appreciate his support and encouragement,” he added.
     Among the 26 tracks featured are such Springfieldian classics as the Emmy award-winning “We Put the Spring in Springfield,” “Happy Just the Way We Are,” “You're Checkin' In,” “Canyonero,” “We're Talkin' Softball,” and “Baby on Board.”
     “Do the Bartman” and “Happy Birthday Lisa”—the two songs written by Michael Jackson under a pseudonym—are also included.
     “They're really fun to play and sing,” said Clausen. “The piano and vocal arrangements in this compilation are all true to the songs as presented on the show.”
     “I appreciate the patience shown by the fans while waiting for this compilation to be released. My hope is that this first volume will be wildly welcomed,” said Clausen. If the book is successful, Simpsons devotees can expect additional volumes in the future. Eventually, all original Simpsons songs could be available as sheet music.
     Another musical item that's eagerly anticipated by Simpsons fans is the follow-up soundtrack album to “Go Simpsonic.” While it's not yet in the works, giving Rhino Records a friendly holler might help to speed up its development.