The Simpsons (TV Series)

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This article is about the television show. For the franchise, see The Simpsons (franchise). For other uses, see The Simpsons (disambiguation).

The Simpsons
The Simpson family in front of their house. Clockwise from top left: Marge, Homer, Bart, Santa's Little Helper (dog), Snowball II (cat), Lisa, and Maggie in the center
Genre	Animated sitcom Sitcom Adult animation
Created by	Matt Groening
Developed by	James L. Brooks Matt Groening Sam Simon
Voices of	Dan Castellaneta Julie Kavner Nancy Cartwright Yeardley Smith Hank Azaria Harry Shearer (Complete list)
Theme music composer	Danny Elfman
Opening theme	"The Simpsons Theme"
Composer(s)	Richard Gibbs (1989–90) Arthur B. Rubinstein (1990) Alf Clausen (1990–present)
Country of origin	United States
Language(s)	English
No. of Seasons	28
No. of episodes	604 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Al Jean John Frink James L. Brooks Matt Groening Matt Selman Sam Simon Ron Hauge
Running time	21–24 minutes
Production company(s)	Gracie Films (1989-present) 20th Century Fox Television Klasky Csupo (1989–92) Film Roman (1992–16) Fox Television Animation (2016–present, uncredited) The Curiosity Company (2015–present, uncredited)
Distributor	20th Television
Broadcast
Original channel	FOX
Picture format	480i/576i (4:3 SDTV) (1989–2009) 720p (16:9 HDTV) (2009–present)
Audio format	Stereo (1989–91) Dolby Surround 2.0 (1991–2009) 5.1 surround sound (2009–present)
Original run	December 17, 1989 – present
Chronology
Preceded by	The Simpsons shorts from The Tracey Ullman Show
External links
Official website

The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of working-class life epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. The show is set in the fictional town of Springfield and parodies American culture, society, television, and the human condition.

The family was conceived by Groening shortly before a solicitation for a series of animated shorts with producer James L. Brooks. Groening created a dysfunctional family and named the characters after members of his own family, substituting Bart for his own name. The shorts became a part of The Tracey Ullman Show on April 19, 1987. After a three-season run, the sketch was developed into a half-hour prime time show and became an early hit for Fox, becoming the network's first series to land in the Top 30 ratings in a season (1989–90).

Since its debut on December 17, 1989, [[List of The Simpsons episodes|The Simpsons episodes]] of The Simpsons have been broadcast. Its 28th season began on September 25, 2016. It is the longest-running American sitcom and the longest-running American animated program, and, in 2009, it surpassed Gunsmoke as the longest-running American scripted primetime television series. The Simpsons Movie, a feature-length film, was released in theaters worldwide on July 27, 2007, and grossed over $527 million. On May 4, 2015, the series was renewed for seasons 27 (2015–16) and 28 (2016–17), consisting of 22 episodes each. On November 4, 2016, the series was renewed for seasons 29 (2017–18) and 30 (2018–19), consisting of 22 episodes each.

The Simpsons received widespread critical acclaim throughout its first nine seasons, which are generally considered its "Golden Age". Time named it the 20th century's best television series, and The A.V. Club named it "television's crowning achievement regardless of format". On January 14, 2000, the Simpson family was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It has won dozens of awards since it debuted as a series, including 31 Primetime Emmy Awards, 30 Annie Awards, and a Peabody Award. Homer's exclamatory catchphrase "D'oh!" has been adopted into the English language, while The Simpsons has influenced many adult-oriented animated sitcoms. Despite this, the show has also been criticized for what many perceive as a decline in quality over the years.

Contents 1 Premise 1.1 Characters 1.2 Setting 2 Production 2.1 Development 2.2 Executive producers and showrunners 2.3 Writing 2.4 Voice actors 2.5 Animation 3 Themes 4 Hallmarks 4.1 Opening sequence 4.2 Halloween episodes 4.3 Humor 5 Influence and legacy 5.1 Idioms 5.2 Television 6 Reception and achievements 6.1 Early success 6.2 Run length achievements 6.3 Awards and accolades 6.4 Criticism 6.4.1 Controversy 6.4.2 Ban 6.4.3 Declining quality 7 Other media 7.1 Comic books 7.2 Film 7.3 Music 7.4 The Simpsons Ride 7.5 Video games 8 Syndication and streaming availability 9 Merchandise 10 Frinkiac 11 References 11.1 Notes 11.2 Bibliography 12 Further reading 13 External links

Premise

Characters

Main article: List of The Simpsons characters

Setting

Production

Development

Main article: History of The Simpsons and The Simpsons shorts

Executive producers and showrunners

Writing

Main article: List of The Simpsons writers

Voice actors

Animation

Themes

Main article: Media in The Simpsons, Politics in The Simpsons, and Religion in The Simpsons

Hallmarks

Opening sequence

Main article: The Simpsons opening sequence

Halloween episodes

Main article: Treehouse of Horror

Humor

Influence and legacy

Idioms

Television

Reception and achievements

Season	Time Slot (ET)	Season premiere	Season finale	TV season	No. of episodes	Avg. viewers (in millions)	Most watched episode	Viewers (millions)

Early success

Run length achievements

Awards and accolades

Main article: List of awards and nominations received by The Simpsons

Criticism

Controversy

Ban

Declining quality

Other media

Main article: The Simpsons (franchise)

Comic books

Main article: List of The Simpsons comics

Film

Main article: The Simpsons Movie

Music

Main article The Simpsons discography

The Simpsons Ride

Main article: The Simpsons Ride

Video games

Further information: List of The Simpsons video games

Syndication and streaming availability

Merchandise

See also: List of The Simpsons books and List of The Simpsons home video releases

Frinkiac

References

Notes

Bibliography

Further reading

External links