Formats: ePub, Mobi, PDF

Freelance writer Ortved tells the story of a cartoon about a dysfunctional
family living in the shadow of a nuclear power plant that became the longest-
running prime time series in American television history. The Simpsons first
appeared as a series of shorts on The Tracy Ullman Show in 1987 and debuted
as a full-length series in 1989. Almost immediately it became an
international phenomenon, helping to establish the then-upstart Fox network.
Since then, The Simpsons has featured dozens of celebrity guests, from Michael
Jackson to Tom Wolf, and has become a major influence on the development of
television comedy and on a generation of Americans. Ortved has done dozens of
in-depth interviews, and they make the book. His oral history approach is
particularly compelling through the first 200 pages, where the disagreements
over who deserves credit for The Simpsons take on a Rashomon-like complexity.
Ortved seems evenhanded in his assessments of principals like Matt Groening
and James Brooks-few of whom come through unscathed. As the book progresses,
it loses focus, and Ortved inserts more of his own opinions and analyses,
which are generally less interesting than the interviews (hating Everybody
Loves Raymond isn't exactly a radical stance). Nevertheless, Ortved has done
a remarkable job of bringing to light the creators of our beloved four-
fingered creatures with the bright yellow skin.

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