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Treehouse of Horror II

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"Treehouse of Horror II"
The Simpsons episode
Episode no.Season 3
Episode 7
Directed byJim Reardon
Written byThe Monkey's Paw (Lisa's nightmare):
Al Jean
Mike Reiss
The Bart Zone (Bart's nightmare):
Jeff Martin
George Meyer
If I Only Had a Brain (Homer's nightmare):
Sam Simon
John Swartzwelder
Production code8F02
Original air dateOctober 31, 1991 (1991-10-31)
Guest appearance
Episode features
CommentaryMatt Groening
Al Jean
Mike Reiss
Dan Castellaneta
Jeff Martin
Jim Reardon[1]
Episode chronology
← Previous
"Like Father, Like Clown"
Next →
"Lisa's Pony"
The Simpsons (season 3)
List of episodes

"Treehouse of Horror II" is the seventh episode of the third season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 31, 1991. It is the second annual Treehouse of Horror episode, consisting of three self-contained segments, told as dreams of Lisa, Bart and Homer and is the only Treehouse of Horror episode to date where each segment name is not stated inside the episode. In the first segment, which was inspired by W. W. Jacobs's short story The Monkey's Paw and The New Twilight Zone episode "A Small Talent for War", Homer buys a Monkey's Paw that has the power to grant wishes, although all the wishes backfire. In the second part, which parodies the Twilight Zone episode "It's a Good Life", Bart is omnipotent, and turns Homer into a jack-in-the-box, resulting in the two spending more time together. In the final segment, Mr. Burns attempts to use Homer's brain to power a giant robotic laborer.

The episode was written by Al Jean, Mike Reiss, Jeff Martin, George Meyer, Sam Simon and John Swartzwelder while Jim Reardon was the director. The episode is presented in a similar format to the previous season's "Treehouse of Horror" and contains several similarities to the previous episode, such as Marge's opening warning, the tombstones in the opening credits and the appearance of the alien characters Kang and Kodos. "Treehouse of Horror II" was the first episode that employed the "scary names" idea, in which many of the credits have unusual names. The episode contains numerous parodies and references to horror and science fiction works, including The Twilight Zone, Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, The Thing with Two Heads and Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

In its original airing on Fox, the episode had a 12.1 Nielsen rating and finished the week ranked 39th. The episode received positive reviews, and in 2006, IGN listed the third story as the eighth best Treehouse of Horror segment. The episode was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards: Outstanding Individual Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Comedy Series or a Special and Alf Clausen for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series.

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Fox Broadcasting Company

Fox Broadcasting Company

The Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly known simply as Fox and stylized in all caps as FOX, is an American commercial broadcast television network owned by Fox Corporation and headquartered in New York City, with master control operations and additional offices at the Fox Network Center in Los Angeles and the Fox Media Center in Tempe. Launched as a competitor to the Big Three television networks on October 9, 1986, Fox went on to become the most successful attempt at a fourth television network. It was the highest-rated free-to-air network in the 18–49 demographic from 2004 to 2012 and again in 2020, and was the most-watched American television network in total viewership during the 2007–08 season.

Bart Simpson

Bart Simpson

Bartholomew Jojo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional character in the American animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening created and designed Bart while waiting in the lobby of James L. Brooks' office. Groening had been called to pitch a series of shorts based on his comic strip, Life in Hell, but instead decided to create a new set of characters. While the rest of the characters were named after Groening's family members, Bart's name is an anagram of the word brat. After appearing on The Tracey Ullman Show for two years, the Simpson family received its own series on Fox, which debuted December 17, 1989. Bart has appeared in every Simpsons episode except "Four Great Women and a Manicure".

Homer Simpson

Homer Simpson

Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Homer was created and designed by cartoonist Matt Groening while he was waiting in the lobby of producer James L. Brooks's office. Groening had been called to pitch a series of shorts based on his comic strip Life in Hell but instead decided to create a new set of characters. He named the character after his father, Homer Groening. After appearing for three seasons on The Tracey Ullman Show, the Simpson family got their own series on Fox, which debuted December 17, 1989. The show was later acquired by Disney in 2019.

A Small Talent for War

A Small Talent for War

"A Small Talent for War" is the second segment of the fifteenth episode from the first season (1985–86) of the television series The Twilight Zone. In this segment, an advanced alien race claims to have created human beings and proposes to wipe them out unless they change their ways.

It's a Good Life (The Twilight Zone)

It's a Good Life (The Twilight Zone)

"It's a Good Life" is the 8th episode of the third season of the American television series The Twilight Zone, and the 73rd overall. It was written by series creator/showrunner Rod Serling, based on the 1953 short story "It's a Good Life" by Jerome Bixby. The episode was directed by James Sheldon, and is considered by some, such as Time and TV Guide, to be one of the best episodes of the series. It originally aired on November 3, 1961. The episode was one of four from the original 1959 series which formed the basis of the 1983 film Twilight Zone: The Movie.

Al Jean

Al Jean

Alfred Ernest Jean III 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 writing career in the 1980s with fellow Harvard alum Mike Reiss. Together, they worked as writers and producers on television shows such as The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, ALF and It's Garry Shandling's Show.

George Meyer

George Meyer

George Meyer is an American producer and writer. Meyer is best known for his work on The Simpsons, where he led the group script rewrite sessions. He has been publicly credited with "thoroughly shap[ing] ... the comedic sensibility" of the show.

Frankenstein (1931 film)

Frankenstein (1931 film)

Frankenstein is a 1931 American pre-Code science fiction horror film directed by James Whale, produced by Carl Laemmle Jr., and adapted from a 1927 play by Peggy Webling, which in turn was based on Mary Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. The Webling play was adapted by John L. Balderston and the screenplay written by Francis Edward Faragoh and Garrett Fort, with uncredited contributions from Robert Florey and John Russell.

Bride of Frankenstein

Bride of Frankenstein

Bride of Frankenstein is a 1935 American science fiction horror film, and the first sequel to Universal Pictures' 1931 film Frankenstein. As with the first film, Bride of Frankenstein was directed by James Whale starring Boris Karloff as the Monster and Colin Clive as Dr. Frankenstein. The sequel features Elsa Lanchester in the dual role of Mary Shelley and the titular character at the end of the film. Colin Clive reprises his role as Henry Frankenstein, and Ernest Thesiger plays the role of Doctor Septimus Pretorius. Oliver Peters Heggie plays the role of the old blind hermit.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978 film)

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978 film)

Invasion of the Body Snatchers is a 1978 American science-fiction horror film directed by Philip Kaufman and starring Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, Veronica Cartwright, Jeff Goldblum, and Leonard Nimoy. Released on December 22, 1978, it is based on the 1955 novel The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney. The novel was previously adapted into the 1956 film of the same name. The plot involves a San Francisco health inspector and his colleague who over the course of a few days discover that humans are being replaced by alien duplicates; each is a perfect copy of the person replaced, but devoid of human emotion.

IGN

IGN

IGN is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former editor-in-chief, Peer Schneider. The IGN website was the brainchild of media entrepreneur Chris Anderson and launched on September 29, 1996. It focuses on games, films, anime, television, comics, technology, and other media. Originally a network of desktop websites, IGN is also distributed on mobile platforms, console programs on the Xbox and PlayStation, FireTV, Roku, and via YouTube, Twitch, Hulu, and Snapchat.

Alf Clausen

Alf Clausen

Alf Heiberg Clausen is an American film and television composer. He is best known for his work scoring many episodes of The Simpsons, for which he was the sole composer between 1990 and 2017. Clausen has scored or orchestrated music for more than 30 films and television shows, including Moonlighting, The Naked Gun, ALF and Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Clausen received an Honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee College of Music in 1996.

Plot

After eating too much Halloween candy, Homer, Lisa and Bart have nightmares.

In Lisa's nightmare, titled "The Monkey's Paw", Homer buys a cursed monkey's paw that will grant its owner four wishes. While he, Bart and Lisa argue, Marge pleads with them to heed the vendor's warning and not use it at all. Despite this, Maggie is granted the first wish: a new pacifier. Bart wishes for the Simpsons to be rich and famous, but the public soon tires of the family's antics and ubiquity. Horrified by the wasteful wishes, Lisa wishes for world peace, but aliens Kang and Kodos enslave the defenseless Earth. Determined to make a harmless wish, Homer demands a turkey sandwich, but the turkey is dry. With all the wishes used, he gives the paw to his neighbor Ned, who wishes for the aliens to leave and transforms his home into a castle.

In Bart's nightmare, titled "The Bart Zone", Springfield lives in fear of Bart's omnipotent powers, including the ability to read minds, magically move objects and turn living things into grotesque forms. When Homer refuses to turn off a football game so Bart can watch The Krusty the Clown Show, Bart transports him to the football stadium in place of the ball for a field goal kick. As Homer creeps into the house trying to surprise him with a blow to the head, Bart transforms Homer into a jack-in-the-box. After Dr. Marvin Monroe says Bart is desperate for attention from his father, Homer spends quality time with his son. Bart restores Homer's human form and they share a warm moment, causing Bart to wake up screaming.

In Homer's nightmare, titled "If I Only Had a Brain", Homer becomes a grave digger after Mr. Burns fires him for incompetence. While building a giant robotic laborer to replace human workers, Burns searches a graveyard for a human brain to implant in the robot. After mistaking Homer, asleep in an open grave, for a corpse, he removes his brain and places it in the robot. Since Robo-Homer is just as incompetent as the old Homer, Burns declares the experiment a failure. After restoring the brain to Homer's body, Burns kicks the robot, which topples over and crushes him. Homer wakes from the nightmare to find Burns' head grafted on his shoulder. Homer tries to reassure himself that he is only dreaming, but Burns' head insists otherwise.

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Homer Simpson

Homer Simpson

Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Homer was created and designed by cartoonist Matt Groening while he was waiting in the lobby of producer James L. Brooks's office. Groening had been called to pitch a series of shorts based on his comic strip Life in Hell but instead decided to create a new set of characters. He named the character after his father, Homer Groening. After appearing for three seasons on The Tracey Ullman Show, the Simpson family got their own series on Fox, which debuted December 17, 1989. The show was later acquired by Disney in 2019.

Lisa Simpson

Lisa Simpson

Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child and most accomplished of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa was born as a character in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening created and designed her while waiting to meet James L. Brooks. Groening had been invited to pitch a series of shorts based on his comic Life in Hell, but instead decided to create a new set of characters. He named the older Simpson daughter after his younger sister Lisa Groening Bartlett. After appearing on The Tracey Ullman Show for three years, the Simpson family were moved to their own series on Fox, which debuted on December 17, 1989.

Bart Simpson

Bart Simpson

Bartholomew Jojo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional character in the American animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening created and designed Bart while waiting in the lobby of James L. Brooks' office. Groening had been called to pitch a series of shorts based on his comic strip, Life in Hell, but instead decided to create a new set of characters. While the rest of the characters were named after Groening's family members, Bart's name is an anagram of the word brat. After appearing on The Tracey Ullman Show for two years, the Simpson family received its own series on Fox, which debuted December 17, 1989. Bart has appeared in every Simpsons episode except "Four Great Women and a Manicure".

Marge Simpson

Marge Simpson

Marjorie Jacqueline "Marge" Simpson is a character in the American animated sitcom The Simpsons and part of the eponymous family. Voiced by Julie Kavner, she first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Marge was created and designed by cartoonist Matt Groening while he was waiting in the lobby of James L. Brooks' office. Groening had been called to pitch a series of shorts based on Life in Hell but instead decided to create a new set of characters. He based the character on his mother Margaret Groening. After appearing on The Tracey Ullman Show for three seasons, the Simpson family received their own series on Fox, which debuted December 17, 1989.

Maggie Simpson

Maggie Simpson

Margaret Evelyn Lenny "Maggie" Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and a part of the Simpson family, notably the youngest member. She first appeared on television in the Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Maggie was created and designed by cartoonist Matt Groening while he was waiting in the lobby of James L. Brooks' office. She received her first name from Groening's youngest sister. After appearing on The Tracey Ullman Show for three years, the Simpson family was given their own series on the Fox Broadcasting Company which debuted December 17, 1989.

Simpson family

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. They live at 742 Evergreen Terrace in the fictional town of Springfield, United States, and they were created by cartoonist Matt Groening, who conceived the characters after his own family members, substituting "Bart" for his own name. The family debuted on Fox on April 19, 1987, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" and were later spun off into their own series, which debuted on Fox in the U.S. on December 17, 1989.

World peace

World peace

World peace, or peace on Earth, is the concept of an ideal state of peace within and among all people and nations on Planet Earth. Different cultures, religions, philosophies, and organizations have varying concepts on how such a state would come about.

Kang and Kodos

Kang and Kodos

Kang and Kodos Johnson are a duo of fictional recurring characters in the animated television series The Simpsons. Kang is voiced by Harry Shearer and Kodos by Dan Castellaneta. They are green, perpetually drooling, octopus-like aliens from the fictional planet Rigel VII and appear almost exclusively in the "Treehouse of Horror" episodes. The duo has appeared in at least one segment of all thirty-three Treehouse of Horror episodes. Sometimes, their appearance is the focus of a plot. Other times, it is a brief cameo. Kang and Kodos are often bent on the conquest of Earth and are usually seen working on sinister plans to invade and subjugate humanity.

Ned Flanders

Ned Flanders

Nedward "Ned" Flanders Jr. is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons, voiced by Harry Shearer and first appearing in the series premiere episode "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire." He is the good-natured, cheery next-door neighbor to the Simpson family and is generally loathed by Homer Simpson, though there are numerous instances where the two are portrayed as good friends. A scrupulous and devout evangelical Christian, he is among the friendliest and most compassionate of Springfield's residents and is generally considered a pillar of the Springfield community.

Krusty the Clown

Krusty the Clown

Herschel Shmoikel Pinchas Yerucham Krustofsky, better known by his stage name Krusty the Clown, is a recurring character on the animated television series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta. He is the long-time clown host of Bart and Lisa's favorite TV show, a combination of kiddie variety television hijinks and cartoons including The Itchy & Scratchy Show. Krusty is often portrayed as a cynical, burnt-out, addiction-riddled smoker who is made miserable by show business but continues on anyway. He has become one of the most frequently occurring characters outside the main Simpson family and has been the focus of several episodes, many of which also feature Sideshow Bob.

Mr. Burns

Mr. Burns

Charles Montgomery Plantagenet Schicklgruber "Monty" Burns, usually referred to as Mr. Burns, Monty, or C. Montgomery Burns, is a recurring character and the main antagonist of the animated television series The Simpsons, voiced initially by Christopher Collins and currently by Harry Shearer. He is the mostly evil, devious, greedy, and wealthy owner of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant and, by extension, Homer Simpson's boss. He is assisted at almost all times by Smithers, his loyal and sycophantic aide, adviser, confidant, and secret admirer. He is between 81 to 104 years old.

Production

The episode was executive-produced and co-written by Al Jean, who also pitched the idea of having "scary names" in the opening credits.
The episode was executive-produced and co-written by Al Jean, who also pitched the idea of having "scary names" in the opening credits.

"Treehouse of Horror II", the second edition of the Treehouse of Horror series of episodes, was written by Al Jean, Mike Reiss, Jeff Martin, George Meyer, Sam Simon, and John Swartzwelder. Jim Reardon was the director.[1][2] The episode is presented in a similar format to the previous season's "Treehouse of Horror", and contains several similarities to the previous episode, such as Marge's opening warning, the tombstones in the opening credits and the appearance of the alien characters Kang and Kodos. "Treehouse of Horror II" was the first episode that employed the "scary names" idea, in which many of the names in the opening and closing credits have unusual nicknames. The idea came from Al Jean, who was inspired by old issues of EC Comics.[3] Although the names quickly became more silly than scary, there has been a wide variety of special credits. For example, the director's name is given as Jim "Rondo" Reardon, a reference to his idol, Rondo Hatton.[4] The "scary names" became such a burden to write that they were cut for "Treehouse of Horror XII" and "Treehouse of Horror XIII", but after hearing complaints from the fans, Jean decided to bring them back.[3] The alien characters Kang and Kodos had been introduced in the previous year. There was a debate about whether to include them in all Halloween specials after the episode; eventually, the writers agreed to make it a tradition.[5]

During the beginning of the segment "The Monkey's Paw", Hank Azaria faked some Arabic. Usually, the writers get inspiration for the Halloween specials from old horror stories, but recently, the writers tried to conceive of their own stories instead of creating more parodies.[6] Also, when the Moroccan salesman tries to warn Homer Simpson, saying "You'll be sorry", the animators forgot to move his lips. They realized their error only after the broadcast.[7] While writing the segment, Sam Simon, one of the writers, wanted the fingers to go down in such an order so they would eventually have the middle finger sticking up. Once the animation would have been complete, however, they could not have gone through; Fox would have refused to air the episode. They had considered the alternative of deliberately blurring the middle finger themselves, but decided that Fox would have also refused.[8] For this episode, there were a lot of loop lines; for instance, the ending to "The Monkey's Paw" was added to the last second. As a result of the loop, they still retained Flanders's old house next to his newly created castle. In order to make the episode fill the time needed, the animators often extended the laughing time for Kang and Kodos.[8]

The second segment is based on The Twilight Zone television series episode "It's a Good Life".[9] That episode had also inspired the third segment of Twilight Zone: The Movie, which starred Nancy Cartwright in her debut feature film role.[10] The segment parodies the narration of The Twilight Zone, and the producers were pleased with Harry Shearer's portrayal of Rod Serling. (Shearer had previously impersonated Serling while he was a cast member on Saturday Night Live) [6] In addition, though it took a long time, the design of the monster version of Snowball II by Dale Hendrickson was greatly enjoyed by the producers, who thought it looked "just hideous, just right".[4] Bart's prank call to Moe was thought of by John Swartzwelder, one of the writers; however, Hank Azaria detested the line.[5] According to George Meyer, the animation for when Bart sits up screaming was extremely tough, especially to make the mouthlines natural.[5]

In the third segment, Burns and Smithers go down to the lab during Homer's nightmare. The animators decided to make the animation a bit more impressive, and decided to do the concave and convex images of Burns and Smithers. Even though it was tough and took up more time, the producers felt it was a necessary tour-de-force.[2] Originally, Homer's robotic voice was done post-animation in order to avoid stress on the voice actor. Then-head writer Jay Kogen, who created the Davy Crockett joke, thought it was so funny he actually mimicked the actions of Mr. Burns putting on Homer's brain in the writing room; the producers thought it was hilarious, so they decided to add it into the episode.[2]

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Treehouse of Horror

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 typically consists of three separate, self-contained segments. Each segment involves the Simpson family in some comical horror, science fiction, or supernatural setting; plot elements operate beyond the show's normal continuity, with segments exaggeratedly more morbid and violent than a typical Simpsons episode.

Treehouse of Horror (The Simpsons episode)

Treehouse of Horror (The Simpsons episode)

"Treehouse of Horror" is the third episode of the second season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 25, 1990. The episode was inspired by 1950s horror comics, and begins with a disclaimer that it may be too scary for children. It is the first Treehouse of Horror episode. These episodes do not obey the show's rule of realism and are not treated as canon. The opening disclaimer and a panning shot through a cemetery with humorous tombstones were features that were used sporadically in the Treehouse of Horror series and eventually dropped. This is also the first episode to have the music composed by Alf Clausen.

Kang and Kodos

Kang and Kodos

Kang and Kodos Johnson are a duo of fictional recurring characters in the animated television series The Simpsons. Kang is voiced by Harry Shearer and Kodos by Dan Castellaneta. They are green, perpetually drooling, octopus-like aliens from the fictional planet Rigel VII and appear almost exclusively in the "Treehouse of Horror" episodes. The duo has appeared in at least one segment of all thirty-three Treehouse of Horror episodes. Sometimes, their appearance is the focus of a plot. Other times, it is a brief cameo. Kang and Kodos are often bent on the conquest of Earth and are usually seen working on sinister plans to invade and subjugate humanity.

EC Comics

EC Comics

Entertaining Comics, more commonly known as EC Comics, was an American publisher of comic books, which specialized in horror fiction, crime fiction, satire, military fiction, dark fantasy, and science fiction from the 1940s through the mid-1950s, notably the Tales from the Crypt series. Initially, EC was owned by Maxwell Gaines and specialized in educational and child-oriented stories. After Max Gaines' death in a boating accident in 1947, his son William Gaines took over the company and began to print more mature stories, delving into genres of horror, war, fantasy, science-fiction, adventure, and others. Noted for their high quality and shock endings, these stories were also unique in their socially conscious, progressive themes that anticipated the Civil Rights Movement and dawn of 1960s counterculture. In 1954–55, censorship pressures prompted it to concentrate on the humor magazine Mad, leading to the company's greatest and most enduring success. Consequently, by 1956, the company ceased publishing all of its comic lines except Mad.

Rondo Hatton

Rondo Hatton

Rondo Hatton was an American journalist and actor. After writing for The Tampa Tribune, Hatton found a career in film due to his unique facial features, which were the result of acromegaly. He headlined horror films with Universal Studios near the end of his life, earning him a reputation as a cult icon.

Hank Azaria

Hank Azaria

Henry Albert Azaria is an American actor, comedian, and writer. He is known for voicing many characters in the animated sitcom The Simpsons (1989–present), most notably Moe Szyslak, Chief Wiggum, Comic Book Guy, Snake Jailbird, and formerly Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, Lou, Carl Carlson, and Bumblebee Man, among others. He joined the show with little voice acting experience, but became a regular in its second season, with many of his performances on the show being based on famous actors and characters. For his work, he has won six Emmy Awards, an Annie award and a Screen Actors Guild Award.

Twilight Zone: The Movie

Twilight Zone: The Movie

Twilight Zone: The Movie is a 1983 American science fiction anthology film produced by Steven Spielberg and John Landis. Based on Rod Serling's 1959–1964 television series of the same name, the film features four stories directed by Landis, Spielberg, Joe Dante, and George Miller. Landis' segment is an original story created for the film, while the segments by Spielberg, Dante, and Miller are remakes of episodes from the original series. The film's cast includes Dan Aykroyd, Albert Brooks, Scatman Crothers, John Lithgow, Vic Morrow, and Kathleen Quinlan. Original series cast members Burgess Meredith, Patricia Barry, Peter Brocco, Murray Matheson, Kevin McCarthy, Bill Mumy, and William Schallert also appear in the film, with Meredith assuming Serling's role as narrator.

Nancy Cartwright

Nancy Cartwright

Nancy Cartwright is an American actress. She is the long-time voice of Bart Simpson on the animated television series The Simpsons, for which she has received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance and an Annie Award for Best Voice Acting in the Field of Animation. Cartwright also voices other characters for the show, including Nelson Muntz, Ralph Wiggum, Todd Flanders, Kearney, Database, and Maggie.

Harry Shearer

Harry Shearer

Harry Julius Shearer is an American actor, comedian, writer, musician, radio host, director and producer. Born in Los Angeles, California, Shearer began his career as a child actor. From 1969 to 1976, Shearer was a member of The Credibility Gap, a radio comedy group. Following the breakup of the group, Shearer co-wrote the film Real Life (1979) with Albert Brooks and worked as a writer on Martin Mull's television series Fernwood 2 Night.

Rod Serling

Rod Serling

Rodman Edward Serling was an American screenwriter, playwright, television producer, and narrator/on-screen host, best known for his live television dramas of the 1950s and his anthology television series The Twilight Zone. Serling was active in politics, both on and off the screen, and helped form television industry standards. He was known as the "angry young man" of Hollywood, clashing with television executives and sponsors over a wide range of issues, including censorship, racism, and war.

Saturday Night Live

Saturday Night Live

Saturday Night Live is an American late-night live television sketch comedy, political satire, and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves as the program's showrunner. The show premiere was hosted by George Carlin on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title NBC's Saturday Night. The show's comedy sketches, which often parody contemporary culture and politics, are performed by a large and varying cast of repertory and newer cast members. Each episode is hosted by a celebrity guest, who usually delivers the opening monologue and performs in sketches with the cast, with featured performances by a musical guest. An episode normally begins with a cold open sketch that ends with someone breaking character and proclaiming, "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!", properly beginning the show.

Cultural references

Lisa's dream is a parody of W. W. Jacobs' The Monkey's Paw
Lisa's dream is a parody of W. W. Jacobs' The Monkey's Paw

In the opening sequence of the episode, the Peanuts gang scurry by as trick-or-treaters, à la It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.[11] Marge's hair in the opening segment recalls Elsa Lanchester's character in Bride of Frankenstein.[11]

The plot of Lisa's nightmare is a reference to W. W. Jacobs's short story The Monkey's Paw, and The New Twilight Zone episode "A Small Talent for War".[11][12] Near the beginning of the segment, Moroccan soldiers stop and search the Simpsons, finding souvenirs taped to Homer's body which he was attempting to smuggle out of the country. This is a reference to the opening drug-smuggling scene of the film Midnight Express.[4][9] A billboard advertisement with Bart saying "Get a Mammogram, Man!" can be seen. This was a reference to Bart's popular slogan "Don't have a cow, man!"[2][12]

The plot of Bart's nightmare is a parody of The Twilight Zone episode "It's a Good Life",[9] which was remade as part of Twilight Zone: The Movie- the remake featured Nancy Cartwright in the role of Ethel.[11] Jasper's transformation into a dog is a reference to the 1978 remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers.[7] The scene in which Homer goes out with Bart during Bart's nightmare to spend time with the boy, as well as the music accompanying the scene, parody an old anti-smoking public service announcement, while the church layout was taken from a Norman Rockwell painting.[8]

Homer's nightmare is based on much of the film Frankenstein, and the end references The Thing with Two Heads.[9] While Mr. Burns scoops out Homer's brain, he hums the tune of "If I Only Had a Brain" which is sung by the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz. Burns also calls the robot that had Homer's brain a "clinking, clattering cacophony of caliginous cogs and camshafts", similar to the Wizard's line to the Tin Man: "You clinking, clanking, clattering collection of caliginous junk!"[11] In Homer's nightmare, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson is broadcast on a TV.[9] When Mr. Burns puts on Homer's brain, he says "Look at me! I'm Davy Crockett", a reference to Crockett's popular image as a frontiersman who wore a hat made of raccoon fur.[2]

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The Monkey's Paw

The Monkey's Paw

"The Monkey's Paw" is a horror short story by English author W. W. Jacobs. It first appeared in Harper's Monthly in 1902, and was reprinted in his third collection of short stories, The Lady of the Barge also in 1902. In the story, three wishes are granted to the owner of The Monkey's Paw, but the wishes come with an enormous price for interfering with fate.

Peanuts

Peanuts

Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz. The strip's original run extended from 1950 to 2000, continuing in reruns afterward. Peanuts is among the most popular and influential in the history of comic strips, with 17,897 strips published in all, making it "arguably the longest story ever told by one human being". At the time of Schulz's death in 2000, Peanuts ran in over 2,600 newspapers, with a readership of around 355 million in 75 countries, and was translated into 21 languages. It helped to cement the four-panel gag strip as the standard in the United States, and together with its merchandise earned Schulz more than $1 billion.

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is a 1966 American prime time animated television special based on the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.

Elsa Lanchester

Elsa Lanchester

Elsa Sullivan Lanchester was a British-American actress with a long career in theatre, film and television.

A Small Talent for War

A Small Talent for War

"A Small Talent for War" is the second segment of the fifteenth episode from the first season (1985–86) of the television series The Twilight Zone. In this segment, an advanced alien race claims to have created human beings and proposes to wipe them out unless they change their ways.

Midnight Express (film)

Midnight Express (film)

Midnight Express is a 1978 prison drama film directed by Alan Parker and adapted by Oliver Stone from Billy Hayes's 1977 memoir of the same name. The film centers on Hayes, a young American student, who is sent to a Turkish prison for trying to smuggle hashish out of the country. The film's title is prison slang for his escape attempt. The cast also features Irene Miracle, John Hurt, Bo Hopkins, Paul L. Smith and Randy Quaid.

Public service announcement

Public service announcement

A public service announcement (PSA) is a message in the public interest disseminated by the media without charge to raise public awareness and change behavior. In the UK, they are generally called a public information film (PIF); in Hong Kong, they are known as an announcement in the public interest (API).

Norman Rockwell

Norman Rockwell

Norman Percevel Rockwell was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of the country's culture. Rockwell is most famous for the cover illustrations of everyday life he created for The Saturday Evening Post magazine over nearly five decades. Among the best-known of Rockwell's works are the Willie Gillis series, Rosie the Riveter, The Problem We All Live With, Saying Grace, and the Four Freedoms series. He is also noted for his 64-year relationship with the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), during which he produced covers for their publication Boys' Life, calendars, and other illustrations. These works include popular images that reflect the Scout Oath and Scout Law such as The Scoutmaster, A Scout Is Reverent and A Guiding Hand, among many others.

If I Only Had a Brain

If I Only Had a Brain

"If I Only Had a Brain" is a song by Harold Arlen (music) and Yip Harburg (lyrics). The song is sung in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz by the character Scarecrow, played by Ray Bolger, when he meets Dorothy, played by Judy Garland. The characters pine about what each wants from the Wizard. It was also sung in Jeremy Sams and Andrew Lloyd Webber's 2011 musical adaptation with an additional reprise called "If We Only Had a Plan" when the characters discuss how to rescue Dorothy in Act II.

Scarecrow (Oz)

Scarecrow (Oz)

The Scarecrow is a character in the fictional Land of Oz created by American author L. Frank Baum and illustrator W.W. Denslow. In his first appearance, the Scarecrow reveals that he lacks a brain and desires above all else to have one. In reality, he is only two days old and merely naïve. Throughout the course of the novel, he proves to have the brains he seeks and is later recognized as "the wisest man in all of Oz," although he continues to credit the Wizard for them. He is, however, wise enough to know his own limitations and all too happy to hand the rulership of Oz, passed to him by the Wizard, to Princess Ozma, and become one of her trusted advisors, though he typically spends more time having fun than advising.

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson is an American late-night talk show hosted by Johnny Carson on NBC, the third iteration of the Tonight Show franchise. The show debuted on October 1, 1962, and aired its final episode on May 22, 1992. Ed McMahon served as Carson's sidekick and the show's announcer.

Davy Crockett

Davy Crockett

David Crockett was an American folk hero, frontiersman, soldier, and politician. He is often referred to in popular culture as the "King of the Wild Frontier". He represented Tennessee in the U.S. House of Representatives and served in the Texas Revolution.

Reception

In its original airing on Fox, the episode had a 12.1 Nielsen rating and was viewed in approximately 11.14 million homes. It finished the week ranked 39th. It was the highest rated show on Fox the week it aired, tied with In Living Color.[13]

The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood praised the episode as "A marked improvement on the first, uneven Hallowe'en special. All three tales succeed, with Bart's nightmare of gaining awesome powers being perhaps the most successful".[11] Bill Gibron of DVD Verdict lauded the episode for having "wonderfully wild moments", especially "the parody of The Twilight Zone's 'It's a Good Life,' with Bart in the place of Billy Mumy's omnipresent monster". He gave the episode a score of 90 out of 100 a possible score.[14] DVD Movie Guide's Colin Jacobson critiqued the episode as "not so hot their first couple of years", though he admitted that "the 1991 incarnation does top the original from 1990". However, he thought that "None of the three stories stands out as particularly excellent, though the monkey's paw one probably works the best. Chalk up this episode as a decent Halloween set."[15] He thought the best quote was "Damn it Smithers, this isn't rocket science. It's brain surgery!"[15]

In 2006, IGN published a list of the top ten Treehouse of Horror segments, and they placed the third segment at number eight. They wrote, "'Treehouse of Horror II' contained three quality segments, but [the third] was easily the best. Featuring a story reminiscent to Frankenstein, this episode made us laugh from beginning to end with Homer's crazy antics. [...] The humor that is derived from the multiple movie and literary parodies was enough to leave a last impression on us as an audience — and who doesn't like a robot whose primary function is to find donuts?"[16] Writing for the Star Tribune, Neal Justin rated the episode as the one of his ten favorite episodes, writing, "The annual Halloween specials glow because all the rules are thrown out, never with more ingenuity than in this second installment."[17] The episode's reference to Midnight Express was named the 18th greatest film reference in the history of the show by Total Film's Nathan Ditum.[18]

The episode was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards: Outstanding Individual Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Comedy Series or a Special and Alf Clausen for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series.[19]

Discover more about Reception related topics

Nielsen ratings

Nielsen ratings

Nielsen TV ratings are the audience measurement systems operated by Nielsen Media Research that seek to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States using a rating system. Nielsen is no longer accredited by the Media Rating Council (MRC).

In Living Color

In Living Color

In Living Color is an American sketch comedy television series that originally ran on Fox from April 15, 1990 to May 19, 1994. Keenen Ivory Wayans created, wrote and starred in the program. The show was produced by Ivory Way Productions in association with 20th Television and was taped at stage 7 at the Fox Television Center on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, California.

IGN

IGN

IGN is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former editor-in-chief, Peer Schneider. The IGN website was the brainchild of media entrepreneur Chris Anderson and launched on September 29, 1996. It focuses on games, films, anime, television, comics, technology, and other media. Originally a network of desktop websites, IGN is also distributed on mobile platforms, console programs on the Xbox and PlayStation, FireTV, Roku, and via YouTube, Twitch, Hulu, and Snapchat.

Star Tribune

Star Tribune

The Star Tribune is the largest newspaper in Minnesota. It originated as the Minneapolis Tribune in 1867 and the competing Minneapolis Daily Star in 1920. During the 1930s and 1940s, Minneapolis's competing newspapers were consolidated, with the Tribune published in the morning and the Star in the evening. They merged in 1982, creating the Star and Tribune, and it was renamed to Star Tribune in 1987. After a tumultuous period in which the newspaper was sold and re-sold and filed for bankruptcy protection in 2009, it was purchased by local businessman Glen Taylor in 2014.

Total Film

Total Film

Total Film is a British film magazine published 13 times a year by Future Publishing. The magazine was launched in 1997 and offers a cinema, DVD and Blu-ray news, reviews, and features. Total Film is available both in print and interactive iPad editions.

Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series

Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series

This is a list of winners and nominees of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series.

Source: "Treehouse of Horror II", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2022, December 14th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treehouse_of_Horror_II.

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References
  1. ^ a b Alberti, John (2003). John Alberti (ed.). Leaving Springfield: the Simpsons and the possibility of oppositional culture Contemporary approaches to film and television series Contemporary film and television series. Wayne State University Press, 2003. p. 313. ISBN 9780814328491. Retrieved 2009-08-31.
  2. ^ a b c d e Groening, Matt. (2003). Commentary for "Treehouse of Horror II", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  3. ^ a b Jean, Al. (2004). Commentary for "Treehouse of Horror III", in The Simpsons: The Complete Fourth Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  4. ^ a b c Reardon, Jim. (2003). Commentary for "Treehouse of Horror II", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  5. ^ a b c Jean, Al. (2003). Commentary for "Treehouse of Horror II", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  6. ^ a b Reiss, Mike. (2003). Commentary for "Treehouse of Horror II", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  7. ^ a b Martin, Jeff. (2003). Commentary for "Treehouse of Horror II", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  8. ^ a b c Castellaneta, Dan. (2003). Commentary for "Treehouse of Horror II", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  9. ^ a b c d e Richmond & Coffman 1997, pp. 68–69.
  10. ^ Cartwright, Nancy (2000). My Life as a 10-Year-Old Boy. New York City: Hyperion. pp. 26–27. ISBN 0-7868-8600-5.
  11. ^ a b c d e f Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Treehouse of Horror II". BBC. Archived from the original on 2012-11-13. Retrieved 2009-09-01.
  12. ^ a b Turner 2005, p. 176.
  13. ^ "CBS predicts ratings victory for season". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. 1991-11-30.
  14. ^ Gibron, Bill (2005-02-23). "The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season". DVD Verdict. Archived from the original on 2009-06-29. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
  15. ^ a b Jacobson, Colin (August 21, 2003). "The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season (1991)". DVD Movie Guide. Retrieved 2009-06-06.
  16. ^ Goldman, Eric; Iverson, Dan; Zoromski, Brian (2010-11-05). "The Simpsons' Best Treehouse of Horror Segments". IGN. Retrieved 2022-01-15.
  17. ^ Justin, Neal (January 28, 2000). "Homer's odyssey — What a long, strange trip it's been for TV's longest-running sitcom, "The Simpsons." Here are 10 of our favorite stops along the way". Star Tribune.
  18. ^ Ditum, Nathan (June 6, 2009). "The 50 Greatest Simpsons Movie References". Total Film. GamesRadar. Retrieved 2022-01-15.
  19. ^ "Primetime Emmy Awards Advanced Search". Primetime Emmy Awards. Retrieved 2010-03-20.
Bibliography
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