A college term paper on "The Simpsons," written in 1994. THE STAYING POWER OF A PRIME TIME CARTOON By Dave Blanton a.k.a. The RCA Dog The success of the sitcom "The Simpsons" and the place it now holds in the television market come at the end of long, unusual journey. One that finds its origins both in the showÍs creator, and its fans „ whose support has made the cartoon both a marketing and entertainment phenomenon. -----The Emergence: from the mind of Matt Groening------ Matt GroeningÍs first really big success came when his family of five appeared in short sketches of "The Tracey Ullman Show" in 1989. He went on to team up with Sam Simon, a sitcom writer who later became an executive producer of the weekly "The Simpsons." But Groening was busy before that. He was a successful print cartoonist. His strip "Life in Hell" was a burgeoning success in a host of underground, or alternative newspapers. (Waters) GroeningÍs Life in Hell featured profane rabbits and gay twins in fezzes. It was pure cult classicism. The strip, still thriving, was in 1990 syndicated in 185 U.S. newspapers. Groening, who is 34, by 1989 had written "Love is Hell," "School is Hell," "Childhood is Hell" and "The Big Book of Hell." They were books he said he wrote as self-help books „ books to help himself. (Hammer, Reese) One strip called "Those Childhood Favorites We Read Again and Again and Again" features such titles as "The Little Child Who Was Always Called ÍClumsyÍ," "The Pet That Was Given Away Despite the ChildrenÍs Pleas," and "The Father Who Never Said ÍI Love YouÍ." And thereÍs a whole series of single panels where the put-upon child, having broken glass or written on the wall, cowers beneath the shadow of an angry father, expecting the worse. An odd approach at humor, for sure. (Waters) 1990 James L. Brooks became excited about GroeningÍs work on "The Ullman Show" „ an Emmy Winner in 1988 and 1989 „ and eventually co-produced "The Simpsons" with Groening. It made it network debut in 1990. Brooks was a three time Oscar winner (Terms of Endearment) and nine-time Emmy winner ("Taxi" and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show"). (Hammer, Reese) -----A Gamble for Fox Broadcasting----- Despite the momentum the concept had gained on UllmanÍs show, the first step to take GroeningÍs idea to the big market would require a gamble on the part of Fox executives. AmericaÍs fourth network was just getting on its feet in October 1989. (Hammer, Reese) Three years earlier in 1986, with losses at a staggering $94 million since the networkÍs debut in the fall of 1986, the network was suffering from a lack of depth and exposure „ it was broadcast to only about 80 percent of American homes. The company might not have lasted much longer. Richard Sarazen, chief financial officer of MurdochÍs News Corp., FoxÍs parent company, reportedly predicted that Murdoch would pull the plug in six months. (Hammer, Reese) By 1989 all that had changed. FoxÍs quirky program mix „ ranging from "tabloid television" to hip, irreverent comedies „ have attracted a new generation of young viewers unencumbered by loyalties to the Big Three networks. (Waters) As the majorsÍ audience declines „ down to 69 percent of prime time viewers in 1989 „ FoxÍs has grown 56 percent since the 1987-88 season; it now pulls in 14 percent of TV viewers on Sunday nights. Says Larry Gerbrandt, vice president of Paul Kagan & Associates, a media analysis firm: "TheyÍre definitely the fourth force. TheyÍre (italics) there." WhatÍs more, the networkÍs appeal among teenagers and young adults had made it a must buy among advertisers, even though Fox shows underperform what the Big ThreeÍs offered. About five million homes watch FoxÍs "21 Jump Street" and 22 million watch The Cosby Show. But 90 percent of "Jump Street"Ís audience is under 30. That age distinction changed the image of the network, which continued to grow. (Elder) For the 1989-90 season, Fox sold $300 million in advertising „ three times what it sold its first year. ThatÍ much less than NBCÍs $1.7 million „ but FoxÍs staff and overhead are much smaller. The network (italics) had begun to turn a profit since July 1989. (Waters) Said Betsy Frank, senior vice president of Satchi & Satchi Advertising, New York, "The three networks have been losing audiences „ mostly from [kids] looking for alternatives. Fox gives advertisers the chance to buy back those [kids]." (Coe) Still, there were risks. "Despite the familyÍs popular putting on UllmanÍs show, Groening at the time is still regarded as an alternative cartoonist, definitely not mainstream." FoxÍ ultimate interest reflected that fact too. One month before "The Simpsons" would air, Fox had committed to only 13 of its shows, which originally aired on Sunday nights. (Hammer, Reese) Then executive producer James L. Brooks called the show, "an incredible roll of the dice." [Michael Reese.] Not since "The Flintstones" and "The Jetsons" in the 1960Ís has a weekly cartoon series been successful inprime time. It was hard to convince the network to develop the show into a full blown weekly sitcom. But when Fox chairman Barry Diller saw the showÍs first rough cut, he was convinced it was going to turn heads „ and sell. (Hammer, Reese) Said Diller: "ItÍs not often IÍve had this experience „ the experience of watching something great and praying that the next minute doesnÍt dash it. And not only having that not happen, but saying at the end: ÍThis is the real thing! This is the one that can crack the slab for us.Í" -----The Mass Appeal------ Perhaps what made the show as popular as it was, and still is, is its portrayal of the American family. Even its critics couldnÍt blame the show glazing over problems that other shows had done in the past. It was a breath of fresh air for many viewers. "TheyÍre no vapid, pristine Brady Bunch. It is the typical American family ... in a way most family-based shows never acknowledge." (Rebeck) Bart and Lisa, the 10- and 8-year-old children of Homer and Marge were the object of their parents useless „ maybe damaging „ advice. (Rebeck) In one early episode, Lisa was feeling alienated from her peers. Her mother tells her that "itÍs not what you feel on the inside that counts, itÍs how you look on the outside," said Marge to daughter Lisa. That was the advice children had been getting for years. Lisa, in what would characterize the showÍs plot lines, would take her motherÍs weak advice to heart, only later to pay the consequences. The Simpsons is a new breed of satire. Rather than engage in the showÍs pretentious misrepresentation of family life that one finds in the "model family" shows (from "The Donna Reed Show" to "The Cosby Show"), this program admits that most parents arenÍt perfect. They havenÍt worked out their own childhood confusion, and they donÍt have the answers to all their childrenÍs problems. (Rebeck) The characters, in all their trials, were, like those watching, only human. Bart SimpsonÍs presence on the screen and on the lips of millions of young boys invited debate around the show. "Bart T-shirts do not plant ideas in childrenÍs heads. The need to rebel is part of their psyche. School principals concerned about the need for positive role models should concentrate on providing these role models, not on proscribing clothing or attacking a clever piece of satire." (Rebeck) -------"The Simpsons": an Asset to Fox------- By 1990 "The Simpsons" have become the soul of Fox Broadcasting, dependably notching Top Twenty Nielsen ratings. The Ullman show, which had ended by 1990, rarely got out of the bottom ten of the Nielsen ratings. (Rolling Stone) "Seemingly overnight, FoxÍs The Simpsons has emerged as a breakaway ratings hit, an industry trendsetter, a merchandising phenomenon, a cultural template and among its fanatical followers, a viewing experience verging on the religious." (Hammer, Reese) Success in the prime time had several reasons. Within two months of its January premiere, the show had rocketed into NielsenÍs Top 10 „ an astonishing performance considering that the Fox network reaches only four fifths of the country. (Hammer, Reese) Surprisingly, "The Simpsons" was a hit with adult viewers as well. But nowhere did the show hit home than in the heartÍs of the nationÍs adolescent psyches. (Rebeck) In playgrounds and school cafeterias millions of BartÍs fans echoed their idolÍs most revered sayings: Eat my shorts ...DonÍt have a cow. The rage had hit and began to sweep every corner of American pop culture: the letters B-A-R-T shaved into the back of spiky haircut was not far behind. Simpson T-shirts are being sold at about 1 million per week. ------The Path to Popularity------ Aside from the strong writing and fresh approach "The Simpsons" used, it was demographics that ultimately allowed the show to lead. (Elder) In 1993, there were reports that there was renewed popularity of animated TV programming „ and films. That had improved the standard of production. That can be a boon to advertisers, as kids become a more discerning audience. Advertisers spent $500 million last year on what they call "the only sure-fire medium" for reaching kids. (Coe) And advertisers could care less about the shows that sell „ only that they sell, and sell a lot. Said Steve Sternberg, senior vice-president of broadcast research for Bozell Worldwide: "Advertisers are going after as many kids as they can get and are not really concerned about specific programs." In 1993, "The Simpsons" is the most watched show among kids and teens combined, according to Nielsen Media Research. It also ranked fourth among males 18-34, Nielsen reports. (Coe) An average Saturday morning cartoon reaches 600-700 kid viewers per 1,000 households. "The Simpsons" only delivers 479 kids per 1,000 households. At 10,000 for a thirty-second spot, some advertising said "The Simpsons" isnÍt an efficient buy for them, Nolan said. Groening attributes his showÍs success to the fact that viewers can identify with its characters. ItÍs hardly the stuff of Saturday morning programming. A prediction that holds that its fans, like those of other Fox efforts, will include the young, hip viewers who have emerged as FoxÍs target audience. And what young person canÍt identify with the rambunctious Bart. GroeningÍs reflections: "Bart reminds a lot of people of their disgusting little brother. I mean, nobody IÍve ever met has ever said, ÍYou know, IÍm just like Bart Simpson.Í" Says Jack Nachbar, professor of popular culture at Bowling Green State University: "The Simpsons is a joke on traditional sitcoms because its characters are so far from the norm. But in actuality, theyÍre closer to the real norm than anything weÍve ever seen." There may not be must question as to why the SimpsonsÍ story is so appealing to the younger set. The series aims to give us a childÍs eye view of the world: parents give bad advice and tell us not to do things, school is a drag and happiness can be attained only by bucking the system. (Rebeck) During focus-group sessions conducted by a New York research company, boys between the ages of 10 and 14 ranked Bart as one of their top heroes „ equal in popularity to Michael Jordan and Bo Jackson. (Coe) Says Selina Guber, that firmÍs president: "They see him a misfit, but cool." When asked to pinpoint the appeal of the ten-year-old the boys repeatedly used the word "real." The Simpsons, like many American families, fight and have money problems. Roseanne Conner of the TV show "Roseanne" and "The Simpsons" Homer are obvious heirs of Ralph Kramden and Archie Bunker. But the American Everyman has changed, and not just because one of them is a woman. For one thing, compared with their TV ancestors, the Simpsons are well off. They live in houses, compared with Alice and Ralph KramdenÍs stark walk-up flat. Homer Simpson wears a tie to work. RoseanneÍs husband Dan is an independent construction contractor. They are the new middle class, making a good living during good times. (Rebeck) Then thereÍs Bart. HeÍs not a bad kid, merely an independent spirit. That makes him genuinely dangerous. We cheer when he cheats on an IQ test, because the teacher has explained: this wonÍt affect your grade in the class, it will merely determine your fate for the rest of your life," (Kinsley.) If you agree that TV mirrors us more than it molds us, then our television sets are sending out a certain message about ourselves. "WeÍre beginning to revolt against the tubeÍs idealized images of domestic life „ and, at the same time, lovingly embracing messed-up families with collars of blue." (Kinsley) Why do adults like the show, as well? Boomers who liked "The Flinstones" and "The Jetsons" are naturally going to be attracted to the show. But the cartoonÍs antics, however, are loaded with sophisticated satire and cultural asides only adults would dig: One episode dropped references to photographers Helmut Newton and Diane Arbus. In the opinion of the showÍs creator, the SimpsonÍs appeal begins with its foolhearted father Homer. (Waters) Groening said of Homer: "The world kicks Homer in the ass but he doesnÍt resent it. ThatÍs because he doesnÍt get it. A lot of people identify with getting kicked around, so itÍs fun to see someone not understand it and struggle through fairly happily anyway." -----Not Everyone is a Fan------ The series has sparked several letter-writing campaigns, mostly from angry parents. In 1988 sponsors were slow to buy time on the show because of its style and off-color antics. Anheuser Busch was one key sponsor. It also refused to buy adds during real-life police action "Cops." General Mills was concerned about that show, as well. Some of FoxÍ other sitcoms have also brought controversy. (Waters) Prompted by "anti-family attitudes" of Married ... With Children" a Michigan housewife whipped up a letter-writing campaign; Fox had to rethink its "anything goes" creative policy. Says Frank: "Fox needs to find shows that the target audience wants to watch, and not alienate advertisers in the process." (Waters) ------Syndication Success----- "The Simpsons" is going to be syndicated this fall. ItÍs one of the most eagerly awaited off-network sitcoms. (Coe) Said Dick Kurlander, vice-president and director of programming for Petry Television, about this FallÍs line-up for freshly syndicated shows: It will be one of the best syndication line-ups in a long time „ acknowledging that some of the line-up is goes to "different" audiences. "The Simpsons" will nevertheless draw a wide, general audience. In fact, out of all the shows, "The Simpsons" will have the most potential for longevity „ partly because the kid stars of the show wonÍt outgrow their parts. One early sign: the cartoon has already cleared in 143 markets representing 92 percent of the country. (Coe) One clause wonÍt allow for "The Simpsons" to be double-run. ThatÍs one feature of the package that will enable the show to be kept fresh. Double runs might be permitted by the showÍs third year in syndication.