Season 16 - Fox Press Release

Includes SPOILERS on the 16th season!

For Immediate Release Thursday, July 15, 2004

"THE SIMPSONS" STARTING LINE-UP OF GUEST VOICES THIS SEASON INCLUDES ALL-STAR ATHLETES WARREN SAPP, YAO MING, LEBRON JAMES AND MICHELLE KWAN; TV/FILM STARS RAY ROMANO, KIM CATRALL, JAMES CAAN AND JOE MANTEGNA; AND RAPPER 50 CENT

Original Episode to Air Following Superbowl XXXIX

Seven-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Warren Sapp; NBA All-Stars Yao Ming and LeBron James; Olympic figure-skating medalist Michelle Kwan; TV/film stars Ray Romano, Kim Catrall, James Caan and Joe Mantegna; rapper 50 Cent; famed architect Frank Gehry; and author Thomas Pynchon are among the upcoming guest voices on THE SIMPSONS airing Sundays (8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT) on FOX. Entering its 16th season, THE SIMPSONS has become the longest-running primetime scripted series on television. THE SIMPSONS is also the most honored animated series in television history, having garnered 18 Emmys, a Peabody and numerous other accolades.

If you thought last year's Super Bowl half-time extravaganza was wild, see what happens when Homer is running the show! In THE SIMPSONS post-Super Bowl XXXIX episode, "Homer and Ned's Hail Mary Pass" airing Sunday, Feb. 6, after Homer inadvertently performs a wild crowd-pleasing dance at a local carnival, he is hired by several prolific sports figures including James, Sapp, Ming and Kwan, guest-starring as themselves, to choreograph their victory dances. After his dances prove successful, Homer is tapped to choreograph the Super Bowl halftime show. Panicked the night before the event, Homer enlists the help of his neighbor, Ned Flanders, and together they put on a non-violent, deeply meaningful halftime show that America chastises for its blatant display of decency.

Other upcoming guest voices include Romano as Homer's new best friend, Ray Magini; Catrall as Marge's former high school pal; journalist Chloe Talbot; rapper 50 Cent; architect Gehry; and author Pynchon as themselves, and Mantegna reprises his role as mob boss Fat Tony.

THE SIMPSONS is a Gracie Films Production in association with 20th Century Fox Television. James L. Brooks, Matt Groening and Al Jean are the executive producers. Film Roman is the animation house.

- FOX -

My note: Season 16 premiere is November 14, THOH apparently a week earlier.

-Jouni

<< after Homer inadvertently performs a wild crowd-pleasing dance at a local carnival, he is hired by several prolific sports figure >>

Wow, what an original idea!!!!!!

(please tell me this is a joke, Jouni)

n.

"Poisonmail" wrote in message news:[email]...

local

No, it's completely original. Homer creates the dance by dropping a bowling ball on his foot, then hops around shouting "Yabba-dabba-di, yi-yi-yi".

-Pynchon again? For a recluse, he sure gets around... -I thought "Dancin' Homer" aired in 1990... -Treehouse of Horror not October 31st? Oh, that's right - it's not a.k.a. "The Simpsons Halloween Special" anymore!

Jouni Paakkinen wrote:

[etc]

"Jouni Paakkinen" wrote in message news:[email]...

I wonder how many of these will bear any relevance, and how many will be a mere ten second cameo with no purpose. I miss the days when guest stars did character voices that spanned the entire episode. 50 Cent saying a few lines to Homer/Bart at a concert is just pointless.

In alt.tv.simpsons, on the "Re: Season 16 - Fox Press Release " thread, btm wrote:

You know, it just occurred to me a few days ago in one of the best-regarded guest appearences -- Ringo Starr on "Brush with Greatness (7F18)" -- the guest star had less than a minute of screen time. Daniel Stern had one or two lines in "Three Men and A Comic Book (7F21)" Conan O'Brien's appearance on "Bart Gets Famous (1F11)" is brief. Penn & Teller had a short yet sweet cameo on "Hello Gutter, Hello Fadder (BABF02)." It's not the length of the cameo that matters, but how good the dialogue is, and how much it contributes to the episode.

Usually when a celebrtity is playing themselves it is usually a short bit. But when a celebrity is voicing a character, they usually have a big part.

[email] (Benjamin Robinson) wrote in message news:...

Sometimes guest appearances by famous people, playing themselves, come across awfully stiff. A good example would be the guest voices of Kim Bassinger and Alec Baldwin playing themselves. For professional actors, they sure sounded like they were apprehensive to emote. Mel Gibson's guest voice (playing himself), was a good guest appearance because he came across as comfortable/able to emote and act natural.

Overall, I think the best utilization of a guest is when they make them into an original character, separate from their real person.

In alt.tv.simpsons, on the "Re: Carbs (the 21st century version of the nuke?)" thread, Jouni Paakkinen wrote:

So the 22 seasons of dialogue on "Gunsmoke" were improvised?

was it ALWAYS at primetime?

JQM

They probably mean the longest running show out of the present shows. It just states " on television". and not "in television history".

Isn't Law & Order still on??

n.

L&O started sept 1990 and has produced 325 episode OFF started dec 1989 and has produced 335 episodes -Mario "Poisonmail" wrote in message news:[email]...

oops. sorry, bad memory! I thought L&O started in '89 but looking at my Brooks/Marsh book I see you're right.

n.