A recent conversation between some peers and I involved mention of childhood fisticuffs and self-defense with an encyclopedia.
The story reminded me of a few things — not the least which being how modern technology keeps some dangerous, heavy items like encyclopedias, that can be used as weaponry, out of our backpacks and living rooms. I prefer heavy books to their lighter, digital counterparts, in most cases, and I wish regular, old encyclopedias could be updated and reprinted, inexpensively, with a simple web edit.
That way, we could all see the way various elements of pop culture helped shape the world we live in — we’d simply change from the “P through R” to the “S through V” encyclopedia in order to see an entry about “The Simpsons” TV show. The “S” entries of an encyclopedia would like include entries about the Ernest Hemingway classic “The Sun Also Rises,” as well as “The Sound of Music,” Samuel L. Jackson, The Smiths, The Supremes and The Smashing Pumpkins.
All of these people and elements of the arts have made major contributions to our society, but none have made the impact similar to the one made by Bart, Homer, Marge, Lisa, Maggie and their family and neighbors. “The Family Guy” and other animated and live-action shows and movies have taken greater risks, and, arguably, made younger viewers laugh harder.
“The Simpsons” broke revolutionary new ground in its beginning and at many other points, and accomplished more with one show that some networks have done with a whole media empire. In the late winter and spring of 1990, when Bart Simpson’s phrase “Don’t have a cow, man” started appearing on school folders and T-shirts, it became obvious the show was at least a temporary phenomenon.
It wasn’t quite as obvious the show and the franchise would last for more than two decades, making sly socio-political commentary and becoming a staple of American entertainment culture in an unprecedented way. The success not only vaulted the Fox network into legitimacy in a way “21 Jump Street,” “Married ... With Children” and “Cops” couldn’t quite accomplish, and it also pushed animation into prime time in a way that had never been done.
Somehow, the show became something even greater. Watching Sunday’s latest episode reminded me again why Homer and others are as reliable for current social commentary as any late-night comedians, and the updated wit of the show always seems to be timely. Homer referenced something that was “useless — like emails from LinkedIn.”
Unlike some 90s icons, the changes over the past couple years on shows such as the late-night talk shows and “The Daily Show,” “The Simpsons” are poised to keep things going for years to come. Producer Dan Jean announced in October that the show was going into production for 2015-16, its 27th season, and since the cartoon voices could be kept around much longer than the aging bodies of any actors, “The Simpsons” could outlast some of the almost-unstoppable daytime soap operas.
Homer and Bart don’t seem to give us indispensable one-liners quite as often. “SpiderPig” was the last iconic song-statement, and that was in “The Simpsons” movie, released nearly eight years ago. However, the show still seems to chime in and always be there to lightheartedly comment on sometimes-heavy adult issues of the day.
Weaknesses for donuts and bacon are just two of the ways many male 40-somethings can relate to Homer, and there is probably a little tiny bit of us in at least one of the main characters. It’s important to acknowledge how an old friend has stuck around — even if that old friend trips, and Nelson is there to point and utter his patented “Ha ha.”
Contact Jason W. Brooks
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or jbrooks@newtondailynews.com