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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.

The family was conceived by Groening shortly before a solicitation for a series of animated shorts with producer Brooks. He created a dysfunctional family and named the characters after his own family members, substituting Bart for his own name; he thought Simpson was a funny name in that it sounded similar to "simpleton". The shorts became a part of The Tracey Ullman Show on April 19, 1987. After three seasons, the sketch was developed into a half-hour prime time show and became Fox's first series to land in the Top 30 ratings in a season (1989–1990).

Since its debut on December 17, 1989, 763 episodes of the show have been broadcast. It is the longest-running American animated series, longest-running American sitcom, and the longest-running American scripted primetime television series, both in seasons and individual episodes. A feature-length film, The Simpsons Movie, was released in theaters worldwide on July 27, 2007, to critical and commercial success, with a sequel in development as of 2018. The series has also spawned numerous comic book series, video games, books, and other related media, as well as a billion-dollar merchandising industry. The Simpsons is a joint production by Gracie Films and 20th Television. (Full article...)

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Hank Azaria in November 2005
Hank Albert Azaria (born April 25, 1964) is an American actor, director, comedian and voice artist. He is most famous for his long-running career as one of the main voice actors on the animated television series The Simpsons. He performs the voices of Moe Szyslak, Chief Wiggum, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon and numerous other characters. He became better known for starring in the one off drama Tuesdays With Morrie, and through his appearances in films including The Birdcage and Godzilla. He starred in the drama Huff, playing the titular character, to critical acclaim, as well as appearing in the popular stage musical Spamalot. Married to Helen Hunt for a year, he has won four Emmys and a Screen Actors Guild Award.

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Buzz Cola
Buzz Cola
Credit: CoolKid1993

A can of Buzz Cola, an officially licensed product of Twentieth Century Fox. Buzz Cola is one of the many products in The Simpsons which spoofs real-life products. Buzz Cola was sold in 7-Eleven stores as a promotion for The Simpsons Movie.

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Executive Producer, David Mirkin
"The Joy of Sect" is the thirteenth episode of The Simpsons' ninth season. It originally aired on the FOX network in the United States on February 8, 1998. In the episode, a cult called the "Movementarians" takes over Springfield, and Homer and the rest of the Simpson family become members. Homer and Bart are initially introduced to a pair of young Movementarian recruiters in an airport. Homer becomes brainwashed, and moves his family into the cult compound. David Mirkin had the initial idea for the episode, Steve O'Donnell was the lead writer, and Steven Dean Moore directed. The writers drew on many groups to develop the Movementarians, but were principally influenced by Scientology, Heaven's Gate, the Unification Church and Peoples Temple. The episode was later analyzed from religious, philosophical and psychological perspectives, and books compared the Movementarians to many of the same groups that the writers had drawn influences from. The show contains many references to popular culture, including the title reference to The Joy of Sex and a gag involving Rover from the television program The Prisoner.

Did you know...

Did you know?
  • ...that Nancy Cartwright originally auditioned for the role of Lisa, but soon thought that her voice would be better suited for Bart, so Matt Groening let her try out for the part and gave her the job on the spot?

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The following are images from various The Simpsons-related articles on Wikipedia.

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Matt Groening
It is pretty amazing to go from being a print cartoonist to having a hit animated television show, although I secretly expected it do well.

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