Josh Weinstein (born May 5, 1966) is an American television writer and producer, known for his work on the animated comedy series ''
The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...
''. Weinstein and
Bill Oakley became best friends and writing partners at
St. Albans School; Weinstein then attended
Stanford University
Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
and was
editor-in-chief
An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies.
The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...
of the ''
Stanford Chaparral
The ''Stanford Chaparral'' (also known as the ''Chappie'') is a humor magazine published by students of Stanford University since 1899.
History
The ''Stanford Chaparral'' was established in 1899 by Bristow Adams. Published for more than 112 ye ...
''. He worked on several short-term media projects, including writing for the variety show ''Sunday Best'', but was then unemployed for a long period.
Weinstein and Oakley eventually penned a
spec script
A spec script, also known as a speculative screenplay, is a non-commissioned and unsolicited screenplay. It is usually written by a screenwriter who hopes to have the script optioned and eventually purchased by a producer, production company, or ...
for ''
Seinfeld'', after which they wrote "
Marge Gets a Job", an episode of ''The Simpsons''. Subsequently, the two were hired to write for the show on a permanent basis in 1992. After they wrote episodes such as "
", "
Bart vs. Australia" and "
Who Shot Mr. Burns?", the two were appointed
executive producer
Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...
s and
showrunner
A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...
s for the
seventh
Seventh is the ordinal form of the number seven.
Seventh may refer to:
* Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution
* A fraction (mathematics), , equal to one of seven equal parts
Film and television
*"The Seventh", a second-season e ...
and
eighth seasons of the show. They attempted to include several emotional episodes focusing on the
Simpson family
The Simpson family are the fictional characters featured in the animated television series ''The Simpsons''. The Simpsons are a nuclear family consisting of married couple Homer and Marge and their three children, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. Th ...
, as well as several high-concept episodes such as "
Homer's Enemy
"Homer's Enemy" is the twenty-third episode of the eighth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It was first broadcast on the Fox network in the United States on May 4, 1997. "Homer's Enemy" was directed by Jim Reard ...
", "
Two Bad Neighbors
"Two Bad Neighbors" is the thirteenth episode of the The Simpsons (season 7), seventh season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It was written by Ken Keeler, directed by Wes Archer and inspired by the animosity toward the ...
" and "
The Principal and the Pauper
"The Principal and the Pauper" is the second episode of the ninth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on September 28, 1997. In the episode, Seymour Skinner ...
", winning three
Primetime Emmy Awards
The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...
for their work.
After they left ''The Simpsons'', Oakley and Weinstein created ''
Mission Hill''. The show was and was swiftly canceled. They worked as
consulting producers on ''
Futurama
''Futurama'' is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of the professional slacker Philip J. Fry, who is cryogenically preserved for 1000 years a ...
'', then created ''
The Mullets
''The Mullets'' is an American sitcom created by Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein. Starring Michael Weaver, David Hornsby, Loni Anderson and John O'Hurley, it aired on UPN from September 11, 2003 to March 17, 2004.
Premise
The Mullets are blue-co ...
'' in 2003. The two wrote several unsuccessful TV pilots, and were due to serve as showrunners on ''
Sit Down, Shut Up'' in 2009. Oakley left the project over a contract dispute, but Weinstein remained until it was canceled. He co-produced and wrote for ''Futurama'' again during its
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...
revival, winning an Emmy in 2011. Since 2013, Weinstein has served as showrunner for the
CBBC
CBBC (initialised as Children's BBC and also known as the CBBC Channel) is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the bran ...
series ''
Strange Hill High'', and in 2015, ''
Danger Mouse''. He has also served as a writer for season two of ''
Gravity Falls
''Gravity Falls'' is an American mystery comedy animated television series created by Alex Hirsch for Disney Channel and Disney XD. The series follows the adventures of Dipper Pines (Jason Ritter) and his twin sister Mabel (Kristen Schaal) wh ...
'', co-writing nine of the season's episodes. In 2018, Weinstein co-developed the Netflix animated series ''
Disenchantment
In social science, disenchantment (german: Entzauberung) is the cultural rationalization and devaluation of religion apparent in modern society. The term was borrowed from Friedrich Schiller by Max Weber to describe the character of a modern ...
'' with creator
Matt Groening
Matthew Abram Groening ( ; born February 15, 1954) is an American cartoonist, writer, producer, and animator. He is the creator of the comic strip ''Life in Hell'' (1977–2012) and the television series ''The Simpsons'' (1989–present), ''Fut ...
, of which he and Oakley are currently serving as co-showrunners. Weinstein is married to journalist Lisa Simmons.
Early life
Weinstein was born and raised in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
[ to Rosa and Harris Weinstein. His mother is the director of the Himmelfarb Mobile University which provides education for the elderly, while his father is a lawyer for ]Covington & Burling
Covington & Burling LLP is an American multinational law firm. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the firm advises clients on transactional, litigation, regulatory, and public policy matters. In 2021, Vault.com ranked Covington & Burling as ...
. He has a brother, Jacob, and a sister, Teme. Weinstein attended St. Albans School in Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, where he met and became best friends with Bill Oakley in the eighth grade. The two created the school humor magazine ''The Alban Antic'' in 1983.[ He later attended ]Stanford University
Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
,[ where he served as ]editor-in-chief
An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies.
The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...
of the ''Stanford Chaparral
The ''Stanford Chaparral'' (also known as the ''Chappie'') is a humor magazine published by students of Stanford University since 1899.
History
The ''Stanford Chaparral'' was established in 1899 by Bristow Adams. Published for more than 112 ye ...
''. Weinstein is an honorary member of the ''Harvard Lampoon
''The Harvard Lampoon'' is an undergraduate humor publication founded in 1876 by seven undergraduates at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Overview
The ''Harvard Lampoon'' publication was founded in 1876 by seven undergraduates ...
'' as he worked on some of ''Lampoon'''s parody publications with Oakley over the summers between course years.
Career
Weinstein did not land a job on a major comedy series, despite writing numerous spec scripts
A spec script, also known as a speculative screenplay, is a non-commissioned and unsolicited screenplay. It is usually written by a screenwriter who hopes to have the script optioned and eventually purchased by a producer, production company, or s ...
for shows such as ''Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
'' and ''Late Night with David Letterman
''Late Night with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on NBC, the first iteration of the ''Late Night'' franchise. It premiered on February 1, 1982, and was produced by Letterman's production company ...
''; he moved back home to Washington, D.C.[ There, he worked as a copywriter for an advertising agency, writing print adverts for such clients as ]IKEA
IKEA (; ) is a Dutch multinational conglomerate based in the Netherlands that designs and sells , kitchen appliances, decoration, home accessories, and various other goods and home services. Started in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad, IKEA has been t ...
. In their free time, Oakley and Weinstein wrote for local comedy groups, such as Gross National Product.[ In 1989, they moved to ]New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
after being hired to write for a game show on Ha!, before writing for a variety show on the network featuring Denis Leary
Denis Colin Leary (born August 18, 1957) is an American actor and comedian. A native of Massachusetts, Leary first came to prominence as a stand-up comedian, especially through appearances on MTV (including the comedic song "Asshole (song), Assh ...
. The two also wrote for the '' National Lampoon'' and ''Spy
Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...
''.[ An editor of ''Spy'' was hired by ]NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
to run the variety show '' Sunday Best'', and took Oakley and Weinstein to Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
with him in 1991. When the show was canceled after three episodes, they were unemployed for a lengthy period.
''The Simpsons''
As a writer
After changing their agent
Agent may refer to:
Espionage, investigation, and law
*, spies or intelligence officers
* Law of agency, laws involving a person authorized to act on behalf of another
** Agent of record, a person with a contractual agreement with an insuranc ...
,[ they wrote a spec script for '' Seinfeld'', which was well received. Amongst those who liked it were ]Al Jean
Alfred Ernest Jean III (born January 9, 1961) is an American screenwriter and producer. Jean is well known for his work on ''The Simpsons''. He was raised near Detroit, Michigan, and graduated from Harvard University in 1981. Jean began his wri ...
and Mike Reiss
Michael L. Reiss ( '; born ) is an American television comedy writer and author. He served as a show-runner, writer and producer for the animated series ''The Simpsons'' and co-created the animated series '' The Critic''. He created and wrote ...
, showrunners
A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...
of ''The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...
''. There were no openings on the staff at the time, but Oakley and Weinstein were hired to write the episode " Marge Gets a Job", based on an idea by Conan O'Brien. The episode aired as part of season four. Their ''Seinfeld'' script and ''The Simpsons'' episode caught the attention of Diane English
Diane English (born May 18, 1948) is an American screenwriter, producer and director, best known for creating the television show '' Murphy Brown'' and writing and directing the 2008 feature film '' The Women''.
Early life
English was born in Bu ...
, and they were offered a job on a sitcom. Before they accepted this job, they were told that Jay Kogen
Jay Kogen is an American comedy writer, producer, actor and director.
Biography
He was born to a Jewish family. His father is comedy writer Arnie Kogen. In 2001, Kogen had a son, Charlie, who is now a musician.
Career
Kogen co-wrote several ep ...
and Wallace Wolodarsky
Wallace Wolodarsky, also billed as Wally Wolodarsky, is an American actor, screenwriter, television producer, and film director known for being one of the writers for ''The Simpsons'' during the first four seasons with his writing partner Jay K ...
were leaving ''The Simpsons'', and then joined the writing staff on a permanent basis in 1992, in the third season of that show.[Oakley, Bill & Weinstein, Josh. (2006). Easter egg Commentary for "Lisa the Simpson", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Ninth Season'' VD 20th Century Fox.] They began as story editors. They were initially quiet and felt "intimidated", being in the same room as "10 of the greatest minds in comedy", but eventually started pitching jokes with confidence. They wrote their scripts together, working side by side at a computer. Their first episode as staff writers was "Marge in Chains
"Marge in Chains" is the twenty-first and penultimate episode of the fourth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 6, 1993. In the episode, Marge is a ...
", an existing idea that they were assigned. The first draft of the script was based on research about women in prison conducted by Oakley and Weinstein, making it "slightly more realistic" than the final version of the episode, in which many realistic elements were replaced.
After season four, most of the original staff left the show. Before David Mirkin
David Mirkin (born ) is an American feature film and television director, writer and producer. Mirkin grew up in Philadelphia and intended to become an electrical engineer, but abandoned this career path in favor of studying film at Loyola Mar ...
arrived to take over as showrunner for season five, Oakley, Weinstein, O'Brien and Dan McGrath
Dan McGrath is an American television writer, educator and stage director. He is known primarily for his work as a writer/producer for several TV series including ''The Simpsons'', ''Saturday Night Live'', ''King of the Hill'', ''Gravity Falls'' ...
were the only writers working on the show and spent a month mapping out most of the season's episodes.[ Oakley and Weinstein wrote several episodes for season five, penning the "Terror at 5½ Feet" segment of "]Treehouse of Horror IV
"Treehouse of Horror IV" is the fifth episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'' and the fourth episode in the ''Treehouse of Horror'' series of Halloween specials. It originally aired on the Fox net ...
", "", "Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy
"Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy" is the fourteenth episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'', and the 95th episode overall. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 17, 1994. Li ...
", the show's 100th episode "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song
"Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song" is the nineteenth episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'', and the 100th episode overall. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on Ap ...
" and "Lady Bouvier's Lover
"Lady Bouvier's Lover" is the twenty-first and penultimate episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 12, 1994. In the episode, Abe S ...
". For season six they wrote "Sideshow Bob Roberts
"Sideshow Bob Roberts" is the fifth episode of the sixth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 9, 1994. Kelsey Grammer returns in his fourth major ...
", basing much of the episode on the Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation. The scandal stemmed from the Nixon administration's continual ...
, in which they had a great interest, as well as "Grampa vs. Sexual Inadequacy
"Grampa vs. Sexual Inadequacy" is the tenth episode of the sixth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It was first broadcast on the Fox network in the United States on December 4, 1994. In the episode, Homer and Mar ...
" and " Bart vs. Australia". For "Bart vs. Australia", the writing staff wanted to produce an episode in which the Simpsons family traveled to a foreign country; they selected Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
because they thought that everyone in Australia had a good sense of humor and "would get the jokes", with the episode being intentionally inaccurate. The episode proved somewhat controversial; some Australian fans said the episode was a mockery of their country. Shortly after it had aired, the ''Simpsons'' staff received over a hundred letters from Australians who were insulted by the episode. The pair wrote the two-part episode " Who Shot Mr. Burns?", which was initially proposed by series creator Matt Groening
Matthew Abram Groening ( ; born February 15, 1954) is an American cartoonist, writer, producer, and animator. He is the creator of the comic strip ''Life in Hell'' (1977–2012) and the television series ''The Simpsons'' (1989–present), ''Fut ...
. While deciding who the culprit was, Oakley and Weinstein pitched Barney Gumble
Barnard Arnold "Barney" Gumble is a recurring character in the American animated TV series ''The Simpsons''. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared in the series premiere episode "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire".
Barney is the to ...
because he was a character that could go to jail and it could change the dynamic of the show. Mirkin suggested Maggie because he felt it was funnier and wanted the culprit to be a family member. Oakley and Weinstein were initially unsure about having Maggie as the culprit, and it was decided that the episode would end with Maggie shifting her eyes and making it look like it was not a complete accident.
As showrunner
Oakley and Weinstein were appointed executive producer
Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...
s and showrunners of the seventh
Seventh is the ordinal form of the number seven.
Seventh may refer to:
* Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution
* A fraction (mathematics), , equal to one of seven equal parts
Film and television
*"The Seventh", a second-season e ...
and eighth seasons. They were chosen partly because they had been with the show since the third season and understood many of its dynamics.[ The showrunner is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the show's production. Each episode takes ten months to produce, so the showrunner must "oversee many different episodes in different stages of production all at the same time", with roles including head writer, making notes on the ]storyboard
A storyboard is a graphic organizer that consists of illustrations or images displayed in sequence for the purpose of pre-visualizing a motion picture, animation, motion graphic or interactive media sequence. The storyboarding process, i ...
s and working with the voice actors, animators, editors and composers. Oakley and Weinstein often set two script-rewriting rooms in motion at the same time, delegating leadership in the rooms to writers such as Steve Tompkins
Steve Tompkins is an American television writer. He attended Harvard University and wrote for the Harvard Lampoon; he graduated in 1988. He has worked on such television shows such as ''The Critic'', ''In Living Color'', ''Entourage'', ''The Bernie ...
and David Cohen. Mirkin, who had suggested that the two take over, remained on the show in an advisory capacity, helping Oakley and Weinstein with technical aspects of the show such as editing and sound mixing. When they took over the series, they wanted many of the episodes to be realistic ones that focused more on the five members of the Simpson family
The Simpson family are the fictional characters featured in the animated television series ''The Simpsons''. The Simpsons are a nuclear family consisting of married couple Homer and Marge and their three children, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. Th ...
and explored their feelings and emotions towards each other. They wanted to produce ''Treehouse of Horror
''Treehouse of Horror'' is an annual series of special Halloween-themed episodes of the animated sitcom ''The Simpsons'', with 33 anthology episodes between 1990 and 2022. Also known as ''The Simpsons Halloween Specials'', each episode typica ...
'' episodes, episodes about Sideshow Bob
Robert Underdunk Terwilliger Jr., PhD, better known as Sideshow Bob, is a recurring character in the animated television series ''The Simpsons''. He is voiced by Kelsey Grammer and first appeared in the episode " The Telltale Head". Bob is a se ...
, Itchy & Scratchy
''The Itchy & Scratchy Show'' (often shortened as ''Itchy & Scratchy'') is a Story within a story, fictional animated television series featured on ''The Simpsons''.
Description
The show depicts a blue mouse named Itchy who repeatedly and violen ...
and several "format-bending" episodes such as " 22 Short Films About Springfield", for which Weinstein wrote the scene featuring Comic Book Guy
Jeff Albertson, commonly known as Comic Book Guy, is a recurring fictional character in the animated television series ''The Simpsons''. He is voiced by Hank Azaria and first appeared in the second-season episode " Three Men and a Comic Book", wh ...
and Milhouse Van Houten
Milhouse Mussolini Van Houten is a recurring character in the Fox animated television series ''The Simpsons'' voiced by Pamela Hayden and created by Matt Groening. Milhouse is Bart Simpson's best friend in Mrs. Krabappel's fourth grade class at ...
. They aimed for "at least two episodes per season that 'pushed the envelope', ndexpanded the definition of what an episode could be". This was a style they employed for both seasons they produced. Season eight featured several episodes in which focus was given to secondary characters and in which new issues were explored, such as divorce. Their preferred choice of guest stars were those with unique and interesting voices, and several of their guest stars were "old grizzled men with distinctive voices" such as R. Lee Ermey, Donald Sutherland
Donald McNichol Sutherland (born 17 July 1935) is a Canadian actor whose film career spans over six decades. He has been nominated for nine Golden Globe Awards, winning two for his performances in the television films ''Citizen X'' (1995) an ...
, Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor and filmmaker. After an impoverished childhood, he made his film debut in ''The Strange Love of Martha Ivers'' (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck. Do ...
and Lawrence Tierney
Lawrence James Tierney (March 15, 1919 – February 26, 2002) was an American film and television actor who is best known for his many screen portrayals of mobsters and tough guys in a career that spanned over 50 years. His roles mirrored his ...
. Oakley considered season three to be the single greatest comedic season of television ever produced and so attempted to recreate the feel of that season for the two he ran, focusing on stories with real emotions and situations, as well as some off-the-wall episodes. Season three was their basis for Homer
Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...
: "We liked Homer the way he was in the second and third seasons. That was what we consciously used as our model. Dimwitted, loving, hyper-enthusiastic, creatively goofy, parody of the American father – drawn with real emotions, though admittedly amplified. This was exemplified in "Mother Simpson
"Mother Simpson" is the eighth episode of the seventh season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 19, 1995. After faking his own death to get a day off wo ...
", "Lisa the Iconoclast
"Lisa the Iconoclast" is the sixteenth episode of the seventh season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 18, 1996. In this episode, Lisa writes an ...
", " Diddly-Dum-Doodly", and a couple others. In some of the less reality-based episodes, i.e. the Beer Baron one – usually Swartzwelder's, we'd treat this stricture with a certain amount of latitude."[
One of their most notable episodes was "]Homer's Enemy
"Homer's Enemy" is the twenty-third episode of the eighth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It was first broadcast on the Fox network in the United States on May 4, 1997. "Homer's Enemy" was directed by Jim Reard ...
", an episode designed to "push the envelope conceptually". The idea for "Homer's Enemy" was first conceived by Oakley who thought that Homer should have an enemy. This evolved into the concept of a "real world" co-worker who would either love or hate Homer. The writers chose the latter as they thought it would have funnier results. The result was the character of Frank Grimes, a man who has had to work hard all his life with nothing to show for it and is dismayed and embittered by Homer's success and comfort in spite of his inherent laziness and ignorance. "Homer's Enemy" explores the comic possibilities of a realistic character with a strong work ethic
Work ethic is a belief that work and diligence have a moral benefit and an inherent ability, virtue or value to strengthen character and individual abilities. It is a set of values centered on importance of work and manifested by determination o ...
placed alongside Homer in a work environment. In the episode, Homer is portrayed as an everyman and the embodiment of the American spirit; however, in some scenes his negative characteristics and silliness are prominently highlighted. By the close of the episode, Grimes, a hard working and persevering "real American hero," is relegated to the role of antagonist; the viewer is intended to be pleased that Homer has emerged victorious. Oakley says the episode was "hyper- meta" and focused on "parodying to some degree the Homer we don't like. That's one of the things that episode is supposed to illustrate — "Homer gone wrong". Although, I would argue that in "Homer's Enemy" he's not even really even all that excessively stupid or immature, actually."[ Weinstein said: "We wanted to do an episode where the thinking was "What if a real life, normal person had to enter Homer's universe and deal with him?" I know this episode is controversial and divisive, but I just love it. It really feels like what would happen if a real, somewhat humorless human had to deal with Homer. There was some talk n NoHomers.netabout the ending—we just did that because (a) it's really funny and shocking, (2) we like the lesson of "sometimes, you just can't win"—the whole Frank Grimes episode is a study in frustration and hence Homer has the last laugh and (3) we wanted to show that in real life, being Homer Simpson could be really dangerous and life-threatening, as Frank Grimes sadly learned."] When the episode was first broadcast, many fans felt it was too dark, unfunny and that Homer was portrayed as overly bad-mannered. On the DVD commentary, Weinstein considers this episode one of the most controversial of the seasons he ran, as it involves sharp observational humor which many fans "didn't get". Weinstein also talks about a "generation gap"—the episode was originally panned by viewers, but has since become a favorite among fans who grew up with the show.
Other episodes included "Two Bad Neighbors
"Two Bad Neighbors" is the thirteenth episode of the The Simpsons (season 7), seventh season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It was written by Ken Keeler, directed by Wes Archer and inspired by the animosity toward the ...
", which sees Homer meet former President George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...
, a reference to the show's feud with the Bushes in the early 1990s. Weinstein said that the episode is often misunderstood. Many audiences expected a political satire, while the writers made special effort to keep the parody apolitical. Oakley stresses that "it's not a political attack, it's a personal attack!", and instead of criticizing Bush for his policies, the episode instead pokes fun at his "crotchetiness". Oakley described the episode as a companion piece to "Homer's Enemy", in that a character is juxtaposed alongside Homer and does not get along with him.
They considered working on the show to be similar to working in a bubble due to the lack of interference from the Fox network's executives, as is commonplace on other shows.[ This allowed them to produce any episodes they wanted, as Weinstein commented: "The great thing about ''The Simpsons'' is that we pretty much were able to get away with everything, so there weren't any episodes we really wanted to do that we couldn't do. Even the crazy high-concept ones like "Two Bad Neighbors" and "Homer's Enemy" we managed to put on the air because honestly there were no network execs there to stop us."] Such was the network's limited input, when an executive suggested the staff introduce a new character to live with the Simpsons so as to "liven up the show", the staff rejected the idea and instead created the episode "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show
"The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show" is the fourteenth episode of the eighth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 9, 1997. In the episode, ''T ...
", inserting the one-time character Roy, with no explanation as to who he was, or why he was living with the family, as a reference to the executive's proposal. The episode, which marked the point at which ''The Simpsons'' surpassed ''The Flintstones
''The Flintstones'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The series takes place in a romanticized Stone Age setting and follows the activities of the titular family, the Flintstones, and their next-door neighb ...
'' for the number of episodes produced for an animated series
An animated series is a set of animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can have either ...
, was named by the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
as one of the ten most memorable episodes of the show. They noted "the writers used the opportunity to pay tribute to the art of animation and rail against network interference in their show." The intrusion of the network
was limited: the normal procedure is for an episode's script to be sent to the censor and then faxed back with a list of lines and words that should be substituted, causing limited problems as often the offending lines are removed or changed for comedic purposes after animation. The episode "
" drew the censor's objections. Its script came back with two pages of notes about almost every single line. The censors stated that they did not like the use of the word "
", or the discussion of homosexuality at all, and closed with a paragraph which stated that "the topic and substance of this episode are unacceptable for
". The censor problems ultimately came to nothing when the episode came back from animation in South Korea, the then-Fox president had just been fired and replaced, with the censors being replaced as well. The new censors sent back merely one line: "acceptable for broadcast".
Oakley and Weinstein stood down as showrunners after season eight because they "didn't want to break
. Oakley said: "We always said we'd never do a joke that we'd done before."