The Simpsons episodes 60 through 65
Kamp Krusty
This episode premiered on September 24th 1992. It was followed by Martin and ran opposite Delta (Staring Delta Burke) Top Cops and Different World.
The chalkboard gag is "This punishment is not boring and pointless" and the couch gag is when they run in they find the Flintstones sitting on the couch, Fred gives Homer a friendly wave. (This was in response to critics who claimed The Simpsons was just a ripoff of the classic animated series.)
It's the last day of school and bart got straight F's. Bart asks Mrs. Krabappel for better grades so she changes them all to C's. Principal Skinner comes on and tells the kids "lets trash this dump" and they destroy the school while Alice Cooper's Schools Out For Summer plays in the background. It turns out to be a dream. Homer wakes up Bart to tell him it's the last day of school. Miss Hoover gives Lisa a B+ and she freaks out. Bart tries to butter up Mrs Krabappel but she gives him straight D-. Bart alters his D's to A's, nobody believes him. While mowing Homer runs over a roller skate that gets stuck, he asks Bart to reach up and get it out but then the mower kicks over and spits it out. Homer knows Bart got D's but doesn't want him hanging out all summer so he plans on sending him to camp anyhow. Martin is being sent off to fat camp. The camp is a disaster, meanwhile at home Homer has lost 5 pounds and regained hair. Barney shows up as Krusty and Bart revolts. Just as the queen is going to knight Krusty he gets a call about the camp. Homer and Marge see a news story about Bart taking over the camp, Homer immediately gains weight and loses his new hair. To make up for the crappy camp Krusty takes all the kids to Tijuana.
This was the first episode of the 92-93 season even though another episode had run a month before.
Bart uses a wrecking ball to destroy Springfield Elementary. This will come back in a later episode.
Lottery numbers 17 32 5 8 47. So far every Simpson lottery drawing has featured the number 17.
Kamp Krusty the Krustiest Place On Earth. Mr. Black, the head counselor at Kamp Krusty originally ran Euro KrustyLand. It blew up. Reference to Euro Disneyland. The school bullies Dolf, Jimbo and Carney are the councilors. The camp serves Krusty Brand Imitation Gruel. In the fake Gucci wallet workshop Kerney keeps a rhythm by beating on a drum, this is a spin on the galley ship drummer from Ben Hur. Krusty says he approved of the camp because they drove a dump truck full of money up to his house. This kind of sentiment will be repeated in future episodes.
The fat camp is Chief Starving Bear Weight Loss Center. (not exactly a PC name)
Krusty goes to Wimbledon and is sitting near the queen. She recently passed away. Later he wears a "I got smashed at Wimbledon" T shirt. Reporter asks Krusty if he and Diana are "just friends". She would die in a car crash 5 years later. Krusty once starred in a sitcom called President Clown. When the camp kids rip open Krusty's shirt they see his pacemaker scar, as mentioned in Krusty Gets Busted episode, his cow skull birthmark and third nipple. These will all come back in a future episode.
When Bart calls out the fake Krusty is similar to the scene in the Ullman shorts. The original idea was that Krusty was really Homer's alter ego but the storyline was dropped.
Marge and Homer are watching Sadruddin Mabaradid's Yoga Party on TV, one of his books was featured in Blood Feud. (The ghost writer Mr. Burns was going to hire wrote The Unsinkable Sadruddin Mahbaradid, spelled with an extra h in the episode)
Self aware joke, Bart says "I'd never lend my name to an inferior product", the Simpsons were seen in a number of commercials and sold a wide variety of merchandise. I still have a Simpsons chess board and a Kamp Krusty t shirt.
Tijuana photos: All the kids wearing oversized sombreros, betting on cockfighting, Krusty passed out on tequila, Bart getting an Ay Caramba tattoo, the bus returning from Mexico, follow by Krusty chasing the bus.
Dated reference: Back in the day you could cross the Mexican border by just stating that you were an American citizen. In the modern world you need a passport or a passport card.
A Streetcar Named Marge
This episode premiered on October 1st 1992. It ran in its usual time slot and opposite the regular programs.
The chalkboard gag is My name is not "Dr. Death" and the couch gag is the family plops down on the couch, which then turns into a monster and swallows them.
The Simpsons are watching The Miss American Girl Pageant from Laughlin Nevada, sponsored by Meryl Streep's Versatility, first seen in Lisa The Greek. Troy McClure is the host of the show. Marge is trying out for a play and nobody is paying attention. Marge gets rejected by the director until he sees her talking to Homer on the phone and decides that she's the perfect Blanch. Since Marge has to bring Maggie the director insists she drop the baby off at his sister's daycare center. Marge is bad at being Blanch until Homer shows up and then she goes full in. The daycare doesn't allow pacifiers but Maggie starts plotting how to get it back. At the play Homer feels bad about how he treated Marge.
Judges at pageant, Rowena, William F. George (a play on the name William F. Buckley and George Will) Dredrick Tatum and Mr. Boswell (a take on Blackwell) "Memo to Goldie Hawn, cheerleader tryouts were 30 years ago, time to grow up." The finalists, Miss Montana "A beaut from Butte", South Carolina "Nothing could be finer" and Delaware "good for her" (Homer can't come up with anything to say about the state)
Maggie plays Sugarplum Faries on the toy xylophone, Homer yells at her to be quiet.
Marge prepares Krusty Brand Slender Vittles for dinner.
Sign at the Springfield Community Center Oh! Streetcar! A Musical Audition Tonite.
Dated reference: Homer is playing with a gameboy in bed.
Self aware joke, when Maggie is seeking an alternative for her pacifier she tries a Bart doll.
Pop Culture Reference: The daycare center is the Ayn Rand School For Tots. When Maggie tries to get her pacifier the theme from The Great Escape plays. When she gets caught she is sent to "the box", a play pen. One of the other babies tosses her a ball like Steve McQueen's character in the movie. When Homer can't open his can of putting he starts yelling at Marge in the classic Marlon Brando style. Maggie drops down from the ceiling to try to steal the daycare director's keys 4 years before Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible. When Homer shows up to pick up Maggie the place is full of pacifier sucking babies like the final scene from The Birds, complete with a Alfred Hitchcock cameo. Otto has a Rat Fink tattoo on his chest.
Homer The Heretic
This episode premiered on October 8th 1992. It ran in its regular time slot and opposite the regular programs.
The chalkboard gag is "I will not defame New Orleans" and the couch gag is the family sits down and the entire wall spins around as they wind up in some secret chamber.
The episode starts off with Homer in the womb but then he is born, it's a dream and Marge is pulling him out of bed to go to church. Outside it's a raging blizzard and a bear is rummaging through their trash for discarded fish. Homer rips his church pants and decides to stay home. While he's having the best morning in a long time everyone else is stuck at church where the furnace isn't working. After the perfect breakfast, winning a radio contest, watching The Three Stooges, a football game and finding a penny Homer gives up going to church and starts his own religion. In Homer's dream God shows up and they talk about religion. Marge invites Reverend Lovejoy to dinner to convince Homer to come back to church. Homer takes off work for The Feast Of Maximum Occupancy (there is some debate as to when it should be celebrated so there isn't a May The Fourth or Festivus type of celebration in the real world). The Flanders try to win Homer back by singing about Noah, it turns into a 70's detective show car chase. Marge tries to convince Homer to come to church but he's watching a show about making your own ladder. Homer falls asleep with a cigar in his mouth and sets the house on fire. Ned breaks into the house and saves Homer. Homer imagines sitting in his hammock watching Ned burn. Homer decides to go back to church, where he sleeps through the service, he dreams of God telling him that most new religions fail (in heaven Ben Franklin is playing air hockey with Jimmi Hendrix).
Pop Culture Reference: Homer dances to Who Wears Short Shorts in his underwear like Tom Cruise in Risky Business.
Homer listens to Johnny Calhoun singing Gonna Find Me A Genie With a Magic Bikini on the radio, he wins a radio contest by know the name of the second album These Things I Believe (Homer has a copy and mispronounces the name, This Things I Believe).
The penny Homer finds under the couch is a 1991 D, for the Denver mint.
Homer's best days of his life, married to Marge and crashed tanker spraying beer all over freeway.
God has five fingers, the producers worried people would be angry if he was shown with only four like most cartoon characters.
Homer walking around his yard in a robe like St. Francis with the animals coming to him. Later he has to tell them to get lost while he tries to take a shower.
The maximum occupancy of Moe's is 65.
Moe is a snake handler.
Blinky the three eyed fish is seen on the sign for Springfield Harbor.
Itchy And Scratch episode "Slay Me To The Moon" Itchy ties Scratchy's tongue to a rocket launch. It gets tied around the moon and when his tongue retracts it pulls the moon down to Earth and crushes Scratchy.
Homer reads a Playdude magazine from 1966 that has an interview with Lorne Michaels, at the time he was working for the Canadian Broadcast Company. "Don't laugh, it's a car from Japan"
SLH rushed to Homer during the fire but only pulls a Hershey's bar out of his pocket. You couldn't do that joke in the modern world since we know chocolate is dangerous for dogs.
Apu is the fire chief for Springfield. Krusty, Barney and Wiggums are also volunteers.
We meet Apu's nephew Little Jumpshid. He pulls a shotgun on the bullies.
Continuity error: Ned is perhaps the most religious person in Springfield but on Sunday morning he is home and able to save Homer.
A note on the chalkboard gag, this episode ran after the Streetcar Named Marge episode in which they sang about New Orleans:
Lisa The Beauty Queen
This episode premiered on October 15th 1992. It ran in its regular time slot and opposite the regular programs.
The chalkboard gag is "I will not prescribe medication" and the couch gag is the family runs past the couch and off the film strip and then back.
The episode starts at the Springfield Elementary Carnival where Bart is running a three card monty game. Willy is trying to sell Haggis. Lisa sits for a caricature artist and is embarrassed by the ugly drawing. Homer wins a ride on the Duff blimp, he imagines riding over the Super Bowl where they do his face with cards. Homer sees an ad for the Little Miss Springfield pageant, he sells his blimp ticket to Barney for the $250 entrance fee. Bart is teaching Lisa how to win a beauty contest and starts walking around high heels. Lisa's talent is singing Rollin' on the River, the Tina Turner version. (18 years before Little Miss Sunshine) Amber Dempsy, the professional beauty pageant contestant wins, Lisa comes in second. Amber gets struck my lightning and Lisa becomes Little Miss Springfield. When Lisa has to be the spokesmodel for Larame Cigarette she causes a scene at the parade. Lisa is removed as Little Miss Springfield when Homer wrote OK in a space where it says "Do not fill out this space".
Dated Reference: In the couch gag the family runs past the sprocket holes on the film strip. Even when these episodes originally ran they were on digital tape. Kent Brockman has an interview with Pope John Paul II, he died in 2005. Caricature artist drawings, Farrah Fawcett in the famous swim suit, The Fonze and Darth Vader.
Pop Culture Reference: Disney lawyers are insisting that Skinner get rid of the banner that says "Springfield Elementary School Carnival The Happiest Place On Earth". Krusty makes references to Vanessa Williams and the Miss America scandal. Barney crashes the Duff Blimp like the Hindenburg disaster, Kent Brockman says "Oh the humanity!" Dr. Ruth's body used for Lisa's at wax museum. Ruth's head on spike in chamber of horrors along with Mr. T and Ronald Reagan. (In Game Of Thrones they used an old George Bush head for victims on spikes). Bob Hope does a show at Fort Springfield. Laramie tobacco has Menthol Moose, a versions of Joe Camel from Camel cigarettes.
Homer is 239 pounds in this episode. This is his average.
Willey's haggis stand is against the law in the United States since it's banned here.
Ride at the carnival, The Paralyzer. Otto runs it at full speed on a dare from Bart, one of the cars flies off and crashes into the school.
Milhouse attends the carnival in his Junior Campers uniform. No reason is given for it but we'll learn more about them in a later episode.
Self Aware joke, Homer says "This is how you would look as a cartoon character"
Jack Larson president of Larame Cigarettes appears in a commercial and later at the pageant, the parade and the meeting to remove Lisa.
Beauty salon, Turn Your Head and Coif, makeup artist based on Jose Eber.
Ye Olde Off-Ramp Inn "We're now rat free! Little miss Springfield Pageant Tonight!" The motel was first seen in the episode Homer's Night Out.
Pahusacheta Nahasapeenapetilon, Apu's niece, she plays MacArthur Park for her talent (Personally I consider it the worst song ever.) While Apu and Sanje are at the talent show the bullies are stealing the Squishy machine.
Treehouse of Horror III (The Simpsons Halloween Special III)
This episode premiered on October 29th 1992 and ran opposite the regular programs.
The episode opens with Homer giving the warning about the show being scary and graphic.
Opening Headstones, Drexell's Class (a show that had followed The Simpsons but was cancelled in March), I'm With Stupid (pointing at) R Buckminster Fuller, American Workmanship (which is hit by lightning and crumbles), the opening also features the couch gag where the family rushes in and sits on the couch, but they are all skeletons.
The Simpsons are holding a Halloween party. They share Halloween stories:
Lisa's Story, Clown Without Pity. It's Bart's birthday but Homer forgot to get him a gift so he rushes out to get one. Homer buys a cursed Krusty the Clown doll. The doll comes to life and tries to kill Homer. Homer catches the curse doll and throws him down the bottomless pit but the doll returns, tied to the bottom of the car. Marge calls the number on the back of the box and the repair man shows up "Here's your problem, someone set this to evil" Switch on the back of the doll. The doll becomes Homer's slave.
Grandpa tells a story based on King Kong, King Homer. Mr. Smithers is taking an expedition to Ape Island to capture the giant ape, he brings along Marge as bait. Homer comes for Marge and eats Lenny. Burns tries to gas him but gasses himself. Smithers gasses Homer but gets eaten by the sleeping ape. In Springfield Homer escapes from the theater and eats Shirley Temple. He kidnaps Marge but can't climb to the top of the building, the pilots waiting to shoot him have to go back for fuel. Marge marries Homer, who eats her father.
Bart's story Dial Z For Zombie For his book report Bart reads Baby's First Pop-Up Book. Mrs. Krabappal orders him to read a real book. Bart reads Find Waldo Yet Again, on the first page Waldo is standing by himself while a kid points at him. Bart discovers the Occult Section of the library and reads a book of spells. At home Lisa is missing her cat Snowball I 1988-90 (Ironically a black cat btw). Bart's spell brings zombies to life who then go on a rampage through Springfield. The zombies pass on Homer because they are only after brains. Lisa suggests that there might be a book to reverse the zombie spell so the family heads to the library. The spell to reverse the zombies is all the names of condoms. After the crisis the family is glad they aren't mindless zombies, while watching TV.
The show does an Alfred Hitchcock Presents opening with Homer walking into the outline of Alfred Hitchcock. Homer calls people who refuse to turn off their set chicken, there is a click sound and screen goes to black except for center dot, dated reference to the days of tube tv's where the dot remained as the tube cooled off.
Halloween costumes, Marge as Cleopatra, Homer in sheet and laurel as Caesar, he looks more like Bluto from Animal House (the sheet gets hooked on a nail and he winds up in his underwear) Bart as Alex from A Clockwork Orange, Lisa as Lady Liberty, Milhouse as Radioactive Man, Nelson as a pirate. Martin as Calliope.
Clown Without Pity's name is based on the 1961 movie Town Without Pity and the plot is based on the Twilight Zone episode Living Doll. The store Homer goes to is The House Of Evil Your One Stop Evil Shop. Based on the shop from The Gremlins. Cursed Krusty doll rides back to the Simpson's house under car, a reference to Cape Fear.
Dated Reference: Homer sings the Oscar Mayer bologna commercial song but switch out "Homer" in the spelling part. The stories all end with a Love American Style fading heart and song.
Homer runs through the kitchen naked, Patty says "There goes the last lingering thread of my heterosexuality" In a later episode she'll confirm that she's a lesbian.
Doll box, Problems? Call 1-900-Don't-Sue, the hold song is Everybody Loves a Clown by Gary Lewis.
King Homer In the want ads the one above Burn's ad is the lyrics from the song Escape (The Pina Colada song) by Rupert Holmes.
When Burns is hiring Marge for the sea voyage Smither's says "Women and seamen don't mix". This was probably the most obvious "Smithers is Gay" joke on the series to date. (I had an argument with a coworker the next day and pointed out all the other references. I would be proven right 24 years later)
Marquee "King Homer" Eighth Wonder Of The World, Plus the Chubbiest Kickline In Town. Homer is followed by Dugan and Dershowitz.
Marge says Homer isn't dead, Mr. Burns says he career is like when Al Jolson ran amok at the Winter Garden and tried to climb the Chrysler building. Al Jolson had appeared at the Winter Garden in 1922 but hadn't run amok.
News headlines: Woman Weds Ape. Dick Cavett Born (the paper is dated November 19, 1936 the actual birth date of Cavett)
Dial Z for Zombie. The title of the story is based on the Hitchcock movie Dial M For Murder.
In the book Finding Waldo Yet Again there is the image of the Sleeping Mexican. This wouldn't be allowed in the modern world since it's considered a racist stereotype.
Tine Life Book of Magick and Spelles Vol II (actual misspellings on the cover) Time Life was a popular book club in which subscribers would get a different volume every month. Their most popular series was The Old West. (I have the complete set btw). When Bart opens the book a series of spirits tell him "Evil, Beware" (this will be repeated in the Simpsons Movie) When Bart slams the book shut the spirits all say "ow". Lisa says Snowball I was killed by the mayor's brother Clovis. Bart wears the record jacket for the Michael Jackson Thriller album which featured the song Thriller, the song and the video are both about zombies.
Headstones at the Pet Cemetery: Eaten By Mistake (with image of lobster, will come back in a later episode). Fish Police (An animated series on CBS that was cancelled after three episodes), Capitol Critters (An ABC animated series that was cancelled after 13 episodes), Family Dog (An animated series that ran on ABC, it was a spinoff from Amazing Stories, had a series of shorts and 10 thirty minute episodes before it was cancelled)
When Krusty is attacked by zombie Sideshow Mel we see the Technical Difficulty card with drunken cameraman.
Homer pulls out a gun and shouts "To the book depository", a twisted joke about the assassination of JFK.
Homer shoots Ned, Bart says "You killed the zombie Flanders" to which Homer replies "He was a zombie?"
The radio station is now KZMB, the all zombie radio station.
The aliens fly over the earth and celebrate waiting for the zombies to wipe out all humans so they can take over. (Originally the aliens weren't evil)
Itchy And Scratchy The Movie
This episode premiered on November 3rd, 1992. It ran on Tuesday, as opposed to its usual Thursday time slot, it was followed by a repeat of Martin, it ran opposite the results of the 1992 Presidential Election on the Big Three networks. (Spoiler alert, Bill Clinton beat sitting President George H W Bush)
The chalkboard gag is "I will not bury the new kid" and the couch gag is the family sits down and the couch pops, it is an inflatable.
The kids are watching TV while Marge and Homer are going to the Parent Teacher conference. Homer is going to see Lisa's teachers while Marge goes to see Bart's. Homer makes fart noises with his armpits, Marge has to see the collection of stuff confiscated from Bart including a chain, a bone and a Krusty doll with a hidden knife. At home Bart steals Grandpa's teeth. Homer gets an honor roll student bumper sticker while Marge has to write on the chalkboard. When Mrs. Krabappal tells Marge there is no telling how low Bart could sink she imagines him as a stripper. At the house Bart breaks Grandpa's teeth and tries to tape them back together. Marge decides it's time to start punishing Bart so he gets sent to bed without supper. As the family goes to bed Bart starts to learn his lesson, however Homer shows up with the pizza. At the nursing home Grandpa tries to steal Jasper's teeth but he has a gun. Bart and Lisa see a preview for the Itchy and Scratchy Movie. When Bart fails to take out the trash Homer is going to punish him but is convinced to watch Mexican TV instead. When Bart squishes mustard packets in the living room Homer become distracted by the ice cream truck, later Bart convinces Homer they were talking about getting out of jury duty "The trick is to say you're prejudice against all races". Bart tears up the carpet in the living room, Homer orders him to go to his room but Bart heads out the back door. Homer asked Bart to watch Maggie but instead he's watching TV and she takes off in Homer's car. She crashes into the prison and Snake escapes. Homer decides this time he really has to punish Bart and takes away his ticket to the Itchy and Scratchy movie and bans him from the movie forever. Lisa points out that the movie is the defining event of their generation and asks how he would feel if he was banned from watching the moon landing, flashback to Abe watching the live broadcast while Homer listens to Yummy Yummy Yummy by the Ohio Express. The line for the movie reaches all the way to the Simpson's house. Bart tries to entertain himself and imagines Itchy and Scratchy standing around doing nothing. Bart reads Itchy And Scratchy The Movie by Norman Mailer, a very thick and dull book. Marge and Lisa try to convince Homer to let Bart see the movie but he refused to give in. Bart tries to sneak in but the guy at the box office has Bart's photo up and won't sell him a ticket. The movie ran for 8 months and was nominated for 9 Academy Awards the new movie coming out is a film staring Lisa Minnelli and Mickey Rourke. Flash forward 40 years to 2032 Homer and Supreme Court Justice Bart finally go to see the movie.
The show starts out with a preview for Star Trek XII: So Very Tired. A joke on Star Trek VI The Undiscovered Country which featured the aging original cast in another action film. At the time this Simpsons episode aired William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy were 61, DeForest Kelly and James Doohan were 72, Nichelle Nichols was 60, George Takei was 55 and Walter Koenig was 56.
The banner at Parent/Teacher Night "Lets share the blame"
Home remembers reading the TV guide to a baby Lisa. Mr. T on the cover and he reads that on Happy Days the Fonz is worried about losing his cool.
Homer had a Where's The Beef bumper sticker, a slogan for the Wendy's chain in 1984 and a question Walter Mondale asked during the Democratic debates.
Introduction of BumbleBee Man on channel Ocho.
Ice Cream Truck: Native American Ice Cream (formerly "Big Chief Crazy Cone") with racist image on the side. Today the whole thing would be cancel cultured.
Eye On Springfield: Man who has been hiccuping for 45 years "Kill me"
Self aware joke, Eye On Springfield goes to a cartoon factory in Korea where animators are forced to work at the end of a gun barrel. When Lisa comes back from the movie she lists off the celebrities who did voice cameos, Dustin Hoffman, Michael Jackson, and they didn't use their real names, just like in the TV series.
Itchy and Scratchy billboard, Itchy hits Scratchy with a camera, blood sprays down onto passing cars. Later replaced with an ad for a barber college, still spraying blood.
Itchy and Scratchy Movie Scenes: Scratchy is tied to a log in a sawmill but it's too slow so Itchy uses an axe. Scratchy falls in love with a stack of dynamite disguised as a woman and is blown up, first Scratchy cartoon That Happy Cat, Scratchy walks down the street and whistles. First Itchy and Scratchy cartoon Steamboat Itchy (a parody of Disney's Steamboat Willie, the first Mickey cartoon) Itchy is sailing a steamboat when Scratchy comes along, Itchy shoots his legs out and then jams his head into the furnace. WWII Itchy and Scratchy, they look like Tom and Jerry and are beating up Hitler until Itchy cuts off Scratchy's head, then FDR comes out and kicks Hitler's body while Itchy holds up a sign that says "Save Scrap Iron" The Itchy And Scratchy Movie, Itchy ties Scratchy to the railroad tracks but has to pass Engineer school and get a job before he can drive the train. Just as Scratchy is untying himself the train comes along and runs him over.
Flashback to 1928 "where you might see Al Capone dancing the Charleston on top of a flag pole"
Dated Reference: On his crime spree Snake steals a Beta video player. Milhouse says he's seen the movie 13 times, Nelson says he saw it 17 times. Back in the day before streaming people boasted about the number of times they saw a popular movie, a trend started with the repeated viewing of Star Wars in 1977.
40 years later Aztec theater marquee, Classics of Animation The Itchy and Scratchy Movie (in smaller letters) with "Beauty and the Beast" (the animated Disney film had come out in 1991). First Fifty Customers Get A Free Glexnor. The tickets cost $650. A guy at the snack bar orders Soylent Green, hold the butter.
Extra chalkboard gag, Marge had to write "I will try to raise a better child"
Real world note: George Bush was the first duly elected Republican President to only serve one term since Herbert Hoover lost the vote to FDR in 1932, 60 years earlier.
On a note, early on I only posted 4 episodes in a blog and it threw my count off. To make up for it there are 6 episodes in this blog and it puts me back in the right numerical order.
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