The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a satirical depiction of a dysfunctional middle-class American lifestyle starring the eponymous family: Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. Set in the town of Springfield, the show lampoons both American culture and the human condition. [1] The family was conceived by Groening shortly before a pitch for a series of animated shorts with producer James L. Brooks. Groening named each character (other than Bart) after members of his own family. The shorts became part of the Fox series The Tracey Ullman Show on April 19, 1987. [1] [2] After a three-season run, the sketch was developed into a half-hour primetime hit show. [3]
The show holds several American television longevity records. It is the longest-running primetime animated series and longest-running sitcom in the United States. [4] With its 21st season (2009–10), the series surpassed Gunsmoke (which had 20 seasons) to claim the spot as the longest-running American primetime scripted television series, and later also surpassed Gunsmoke (which had 635 episodes) for episode count in this category, starting with the 29th-season episode "Forgive and Regret" on April 29, 2018.
Episodes of The Simpsons have won dozens of awards, including 31 Emmys (ten for Outstanding Animated Program), 30 Annies, and a Peabody. [5] The Simpsons Movie , a feature-length film, was released in theaters worldwide on July 26 and 27, 2007, and grossed US$526.2 million worldwide. [6] The first 20 seasons are available on DVD in regions 1, 2, and 4, with the twentieth season released on both DVD and Blu-ray in 2010 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the series. On April 8, 2015, showrunner Al Jean announced that there would be no more DVD or Blu-ray releases, shifting focus to digital distribution, [7] although this was later reversed on July 22, 2017. [8] Almost two years later, on July 20, 2019, it was announced that Season 19 would be released on December 3, 2019, on DVD. [9]
On March 3, 2021, The Simpsons was renewed for seasons 33 and 34. [10] On February 19, 2012, The Simpsons reached its 500th episode in the 23rd season. [11] It reached its 600th episode on October 16, 2016, in its 28th season. On March 21, 2021, The Simpsons reached its 700th episode [12] in its 32nd season.
On January 26, 2023, The Simpsons was renewed for seasons 35 and 36. [13]
As of May 19,2024, [update] 768 episodes of The Simpsons have aired, concluding the thirty-fifth season.
Season | Episodes | Originally aired | Households / viewers | Rank | Rating | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | ||||||
1 | 13 | December 17, 1989 | May 13, 1990 | 13.4m h. [n1] [14] | 30 | 14.5 | |
2 | 22 | October 11, 1990 | July 11, 1991 | 12.2m h. [n1] [n2] | 38 [15] | 8.0 | |
3 | 24 | September 19, 1991 | August 27, 1992 | 12.0m h. [n1] [n3] | 33 [16] | — | |
4 | 22 | September 24, 1992 | May 13, 1993 | 12.1m h. [n1] [17] | 30 | 13.0 | |
5 | 22 | September 30, 1993 | May 19, 1994 | 10.5m h. [n1] [n4] | 53 [18] | — | |
6 | 25 | September 4, 1994 | May 21, 1995 | 9.0m h. [n1] [19] | 67 [19] | — | |
7 | 25 | September 17, 1995 | May 19, 1996 | 8.0m h. [n1] [20] | 75 [20] | — | |
8 | 25 | October 27, 1996 | May 18, 1997 | 8.6m h. [21] | 53 [21] | — | |
9 | 25 | September 21, 1997 | May 17, 1998 | 9.1m h. [22] | 30 | 9.2 | |
10 | 23 | August 23, 1998 | May 16, 1999 | 7.9m h. [23] | 46 [23] | — | |
11 | 22 | September 26, 1999 | May 21, 2000 | 8.2m h. [24] | 44 [24] | — | |
12 | 21 | November 1, 2000 | May 20, 2001 | 14.7m viewers [25] | 21 [25] | — | |
13 | 22 | November 6, 2001 | May 22, 2002 | 12.4m viewers [26] | 30 [26] | — | |
14 | 22 | November 3, 2002 | May 18, 2003 | 13.4m viewers [27] | 25 [27] | — | |
15 | 22 | November 2, 2003 | May 23, 2004 | 10.6m viewers [28] | 42 [28] | — | |
16 | 21 | November 7, 2004 | May 15, 2005 | 9.6m viewers [29] | 52 [29] | — | |
17 | 22 | September 11, 2005 | May 21, 2006 | 9.1m viewers [30] | 62 [30] | 3.2 | |
18 | 22 | September 10, 2006 | May 20, 2007 | 8.6m viewers [31] | 60 [31] | 4.1 | |
19 | 20 | September 23, 2007 | May 18, 2008 | 8.0m viewers [32] | 87 [32] | — | |
20 | 21 | September 28, 2008 | May 17, 2009 | 6.9m viewers [33] | 77 [33] | — | |
21 | 23 | September 27, 2009 | May 23, 2010 | 7.2m viewers [34] | 61 [34] | 3.4 | |
22 | 22 | September 26, 2010 | May 22, 2011 | 7.3m viewers [35] | 65 [35] | 3.3 | |
23 | 22 | September 25, 2011 | May 20, 2012 | 7.0m viewers [36] | 69 [36] | 3.3 | |
24 | 22 | September 30, 2012 | May 19, 2013 | 6.3m viewers [37] | 70 [37] | 2.9 | |
25 | 22 | September 29, 2013 | May 18, 2014 | 5.6m viewers [38] | 81 [38] | — | |
26 | 22 | September 28, 2014 | May 17, 2015 | 5.6m viewers [39] | 100 [39] | 2.6 | |
27 | 22 | September 27, 2015 | May 22, 2016 | 4.7m viewers [40] | 102 [40] | 2.1 | |
28 | 22 | September 25, 2016 | May 21, 2017 | 4.8m viewers [41] | 92 [41] | 2.1 | |
29 | 21 | October 1, 2017 | May 20, 2018 | 4.1m viewers [42] | 122 [42] | 1.7 | |
30 | 23 | September 30, 2018 | May 12, 2019 | 3.7m viewers [43] | 126 [43] | 1.4 | |
31 | 22 | September 29, 2019 | May 17, 2020 | 3.0m viewers [44] | 103 [44] | 1.1 | |
32 | 22 | September 27, 2020 | May 23, 2021 | 2.4m viewers [45] | 117 [45] | 0.8 | |
33 | 22 | September 26, 2021 | May 22, 2022 | 2.3m viewers [46] | 98 [46] | 0.7 | |
34 | 22 | September 25, 2022 | May 21, 2023 | 2.1m viewers [47] | 98 | 0.65 | |
35 | 18 | October 1, 2023 | May 19, 2024 | 1.99m viewers [48] | 106 | 0.58 |
Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
---|---|---|---|
The Longest Daycare | David Silverman | James L. Brooks, Matt Groening, Al Jean, David Mirkin, Joel H. Cohen & Michael Price | July 13, 2012 |
Playdate with Destiny | David Silverman | Al Jean, Tom Gammill, Max Pross, James L. Brooks, Matt Groening, Michael Price, Matt Selman & David Silverman | March 6, 2020 |
Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
---|---|---|---|
The Force Awakens from Its Nap | David Silverman | Joel H. Cohen, Al Jean & Michael Price | May 4, 2021 |
The Good, the Bart, and the Loki | David Silverman | Elisabeth Kiernan Averick, Jessica Conrad, John Frink, Al Jean & Jeff Westbrook | July 7, 2021 |
Plusaversary | David Silverman | Joel H. Cohen, Jessica Conrad, Al Jean, Loni Steele Sosthand & Dan Vebber | November 12, 2021 |
When Billie Met Lisa | David Silverman | Elisabeth Kiernan Averick, Broti Gupta, Al Jean, Cesar Mazariegos & David Mirkin | April 22, 2022 |
Welcome to the Club | David Silverman | J. Stewart Burns, Joel H. Cohen, Al Jean, Christine Nangle & Loni Steele Sosthand | September 8, 2022 |
The Simpsons Meet the Bocellis in 'Feliz Navidad' | David Silverman | Joel H. Cohen, Al Jean, Ryan Koh & David Mirkin | December 15, 2022 |
Rogue Not Quite One | David Silverman | Al Jean, Ryan Koh, Loni Steele Sosthand, Dan Vebber & Jeff Westbrook | May 4, 2023 |
May the 12th Be with You | David Silverman | Joel H. Cohen, Al Jean, Ryan Koh, David Mirkin & Jeff Westbrook | May 10, 2024 |
Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
---|---|---|---|
The Simpsons | Balenciaga | David Silverman | Joel H. Cohen,Al Jean &Michael Price | October 2, 2021 |
Te Deseo Lo Mejor | David Silverman | Joel H. Cohen,Al Jean, Ryan Koh &Christine Nangle | December 24, 2021 |
Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | Ratings/ Share |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
"Springfield's Most Wanted" | Bill Brown | Jack Parmeter &Bob Bain | September 17, 1995 | SP−9611 [53] | 8.4 [54] |
In a parody of America's Most Wanted ,host John Walsh explores the mystery behind who shot Mr. Burns,laying out the potential clues and identifying the possible suspects. Note: The special aired immediately before the Season 7 premiere of "Who Shot Mr. Burns? (Part Two)." | |||||
"The Simpsons 20th Anniversary Special –In 3-D! On Ice!" | Morgan Spurlock | Jeremy Chilnick &Morgan Spurlock | January 10, 2010 | LABF21 | 13.0 [55] |
The film examines the "cultural phenomenon" of The Simpsons and includes interviews with both the cast and some fans of the show. [56] Note: The special aired immediately following "Once Upon a Time in Springfield",was assigned production number LABF21 and technically counts as a component of the 20th production season (and of the 21st broadcast season). It does not,however,count towards the series' official episode count. | |||||
"Springfield of Dreams:The Legend of Homer Simpson" | Morgan Spurlock | Eric Brewster,Jeremy Chilnick &Morgan Spurlock | October 22, 2017 | N/A | N/A |
An hourlong mockumentary in the style of Ken Burns' Baseball,aired on Fox to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the episode "Homer at the Bat",as well as Homer's induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Note: The special was produced by Fox Sports. |
With its first season,The Simpsons became the Fox network's first series to rank among the top thirty highest-rated shows of a television season. [14] Due to this success,Fox decided to switch The Simpsons' timeslot in hopes of higher ratings for the shows airing after it. [57] The series moved from 8:00 p.m. eastern time on Sundays to the same time on Thursdays,where it competed with The Cosby Show ,the number-one show at the time. [58]
Many of the producers were against the move,as The Simpsons had been in the top ten while airing on Sunday,and they felt the move would destroy its ratings. [59] Ratings-wise,new episodes of The Cosby Show beat The Simpsons every time during the second season,and The Simpsons eventually fell out of the top ten. [60] At the end of the season,Cosby averaged as the fifth-highest-rated show on television,while The Simpsons was thirty-eighth. [57]
The show continued in its Thursday timeslot until the sixth season,which is when,in 1994,it reverted to its original slot on Sunday. It has remained there ever since. [58] [61]
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. Developed by Groening,James L. Brooks,and Sam Simon,the series is a satirical depiction of American life,epitomized by the Simpson family,which consists of Homer,Marge,Bart,Lisa,and Maggie. Set in the fictional town of Springfield,it caricatures society,Western culture,television,and the human condition.
Family Guy is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on January 31,1999,following Super Bowl XXXIII,with the rest of the first season airing from April 11,1999. The show centers around the Griffins,a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois,their children,Meg,Chris,and Stewie,and their anthropomorphic pet dog,Brian. Set in the fictional city of Quahog,Rhode Island,the show exhibits much of its humor in the form of metafictional cutaway gags that often lampoon American culture.
Gregory Martin Daniels is an American screenwriter,television producer,and director. He has worked on several television series,including writing for Saturday Night Live and The Simpsons,adapting The Office for the United States,and co-creating Parks and Recreation and King of the Hill. Daniels attended Harvard University,where he befriended and began collaborating with Conan O'Brien. His first writing credit was for Not Necessarily the News,before he was laid off because of budget cuts.
The American television network Fox has aired numerous animated television series. During the more than thirty-year existence of the network,there have been many successful prime time animated series. The first and most famous of these,The Simpsons,was the first such series since the end of The Flintstones in the 1960s.
The seventeenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons began airing on Sunday,September 11,2005,and finished airing on Sunday,May 21,2006. It broke Fox's tradition of pushing its shows' season premieres back to November to accommodate the Major League Baseball games airing on the network during September and October of each year. Season 17 was released on DVD and Blu-ray in Region 1 on December 2,2014,Region 2 on December 1,2014,and Region 4 on December 3,2014.
The eighteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons aired from September 10,2006 to May 20,2007. The season contained seven hold-over episodes from season 17’s HABF production line. Al Jean served as the showrunner,a position he has held since the thirteenth season,while the season was produced by Gracie Films and 20th Century Fox Television.
The fifteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons aired from Sunday,November 2,2003,to Sunday,May 23,2004. The season contains five hold-over episodes from the season 14 (EABF) production line. The most watched episode had 16.2 million viewers and the least watched had 6.2 million viewers. Season 15 was released on DVD and Blu-ray in Region 1 on December 4,2012,Region 2 on December 3,2012,and Region 4 on December 12,2012.
The Simpsons is an American animated television sitcom starring the animated Simpson family,which was created by Matt Groening. He conceived of the characters in the lobby of James L. Brooks's office and named them after his own family members,substituting "Bart" for his own name. The family debuted as shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show on April 19,1987. After a three-season run,the sketch was developed into a half-hour prime time show called The Simpsons,which debuted on December 17,1989. The show was an early hit for Fox,becoming the first Fox series to land in the top 30 ratings in a season (1990).
Samantha Who? is an American television sitcom that originally aired on ABC from October 15,2007,to July 23,2009. The series was created by Cecelia Ahern and Donald Todd,who also served as producers. Although highly rated during its first season,the sitcom lost momentum and viewers throughout its second season,and ABC canceled the show in May 2009 before the remaining seven episodes were burned off the 2008–09 TV schedule.
The nineteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons originally aired on the Fox network between September 23,2007,and May 18,2008. It was the final complete season to be broadcast in 4:3 and in standard definition,although the first nine episodes of season 20 would also retain this standard.
The Big Bang Theory is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady,both of whom served as executive producers and head writers on the series,along with Steven Molaro. It aired on CBS from September 24,2007,to May 16,2019,running for 12 seasons and 279 episodes.
The twentieth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons aired on Fox from September 28,2008,to May 17,2009. With this season,the show tied Gunsmoke as the longest-running American primetime television series in terms of total number of seasons. The season was released on Blu-ray on January 12,2010,making this the first season to be released on Blu-ray as well as the only one to contain both 16:9 widescreen and high-definition episodes. It was released on DVD in Region 1 on January 12,2010,and in Region 4 on January 20,2010. The season was only released on DVD in Region 2 on September 17,2010,in a few areas.
The fourth season of Family Guy aired on Fox from May 1,2005,to May 21,2006,and consists of thirty episodes,making it the longest season to date. The first half of the season is included within the volume 3 DVD box set,which released on November 29,2005,and the second half within the volume 4 DVD box set,which released on November 14,2006. Volume 4 is split into seasons 4 and 5 in regions outside the United States,leading to confusion over season numbers between U.S.,Australian,and UK consumers. The last three episodes of season 4 are the basis for the movie known as Stewie Griffin:The Untold Story,and are edited for content;Fox does not include these episodes in the official episode count.
NCIS is an American military police procedural television series and the first installment within the NCIS media franchise. The series revolves around a fictional team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS),combining elements of the military drama and police procedural genres with comedy. The concept and characters were initially introduced with two episodes of the CBS series JAG;as a spin-off from JAG,the series premiered on September 23,2003,on CBS. To date,it has entered into the 21st full season and has gone into broadcast syndication on the USA Network. Donald P. Bellisario and Don McGill are co-creators and executive producers of the premiere member of the NCIS franchise. As of 2022,NCIS is the third-longest-running scripted,live-action U.S. prime-time TV series currently airing,surpassed only by Law &Order:Special Victims Unit (1999–present) and Law &Order;it is the seventh-longest-running scripted U.S. prime-time TV series overall.