Homer and Lisa Exchange Cross Words
Encyclopedia
"Homer and Lisa Exchange Cross Words" is the sixth episode of The Simpsons
' twentieth season. It originally aired on Fox
in the United States on November 16, 2008. In the episode, Lisa discovers that she has a talent for solving crossword
puzzles, and she enters a crossword tournament. Lisa's feelings are hurt when she discovers that Homer bet against her in the championship match.
The episode was inspired by the 2006 documentary Wordplay
, and was written by Tim Long
, and directed by Nancy Kruse
. Crossword puzzle creators Merl Reagle
and Will Shortz
guest star as themselves in the episode while Scott Thompson
has a cameo as Grady, a character he first voiced in "Three Gays of the Condo
". Reagle created all of the crossword puzzles that appear in the episode and as promotion for the episode, a special Simpsons-related message (dedicated to this episode) that appeared in The New York Times
Sunday crossword on November 16, 2008. The episode received generally positive reviews from critics, and finished fourth in its timeslot during its initial airing on Fox, with a 3.9 Nielsen rating
.
and Lisa
start a lemonade stand
, but it is quickly closed due to them not having a vending permit. They get in line at the licensing bureau, only to find that the long line is standing still due to the clerk doing a crossword puzzle
. Impatient, Lisa
completes the puzzle herself, only to find herself addicted to the puzzles. Eventually, she becomes so obsessed with them that Superintendent Chalmers hands her a pamphlet for the Crossword City Tournament. Meanwhile, at Moe's, Edna Krabappel
offers to buy a beer for anyone who breaks up with Principal Skinner for her. Homer ends their relationship, and decides to take a second job in which he helps break up romantic relationships. Grady, one of his old roommates
, calls Homer and asks him to break up Grady's and his boyfriend's relationship because he found a new and "better" man. Homer successfully manages to break up the couple. After making a good deal of money, he dreams that he is pestered by the "ghosts" of the jilted lovers and thus quits the trade.
At the crossword tournament, Homer bets his money from his breakup business on Lisa and wins big. However, upon hearing Lisa saying that she's wary of the final round, he bets on the other finalist, Gil Gunderson. Gil plays Lisa for her sympathy and cons her into losing the round, which in turn lets Homer win his final bet. Upon realizing that Homer has come into some money by betting against her in the tournament, Lisa gets angry at him and refuses to acknowledge herself as Homer's daughter, even going so far as to take Marge
's maiden name and start calling herself "Lisa Bouvier." Feeling guilty, Homer commissions Merl Reagle
and Will Shortz
to create a special puzzle for the New York Times, with his apology to Lisa hidden in the clues and solution. The two of them make up, and Lisa is happy to call herself a Simpson again.
, and directed by Nancy Kruse
. James L. Brooks
got the inspiration for the episode from the 2006 documentary, Wordplay
, which chronicles the national crossword puzzle championships, and he thought that Lisa should go to a championship in the episode. Will Shortz
and Merl Reagle
, who both starred in the documentary, appear in the episode. "We felt both Will and Merl were very compelling, off-the-beaten-track personalities [in Wordplay], who would fit into our universe very well", Brooks said.
Shortz was the first guest star the producers of The Simpsons approached. Long later asked Reagle to make puzzles for the episode. Reagle recorded his lines in a studio near his home. Reagle told the Arizona Daily Wildcat
that "for me, to be such a total nut for animation since I was a kid, I never even dreamed [of being in a cartoon]. It's like a dream I never had coming true." He added that "you don't see [the crosswords] in the episode for very long, but when crossword fans watch this show, we want them to think that we got it right." Reagle designed every puzzle that appears in the episode, including one that appears in a hopscotch
court in Lisa's daydream. There were certain lines in the script that had to be incorporated into Reagle's puzzles, including one where Gil says "I think I'll throw some Q's around,", and he enters a number of Q's onto the grid. Reagle therefore had to create a puzzle which used words that included the letter Q more frequently than would be usual. Reagle said he saw the early script of the episode, "but they change it right up to the last minute. In a lot of ways, I'll be seeing it for the first time right along with everyone else." Scott Thompson
has a cameo in the episode as Grady, a character that he first voiced in the season 14
episode "Three Gays of the Condo
".
Sunday crossword on November 16, 2008. The crossword, which was titled "Sounds Like Somebody I Know", also appears as a plot point in the episode. Harry Shearer
recorded a clip of Mr. Burns
and Smithers
telling the winner of the National Public Radio's Sundays Puzzle on November 16, 2008, what they had won.
, finishing fourth in its timeslot. The episode did finish first in the 18-34 demographic with a 4.7 Nielsen rating
and a 13% share of the audience, narrowly beating an episode of 60 Minutes
featuring Barack Obama
in the demographic. Tim Long
was nominated for Writers Guild of America Award
in the animation category for writing the episode.
The episode received generally positive reviews from critics. Robert Canning of IGN
did not think there was anything "terrible" about the episode, but he did not think there was anything to get excited about, either. Canning thought there were a number of throwaway jokes in the episode that he felt worked well, "but the episode as a whole failed to grab me. As stated, there are a number of episodes that already fit this mold, and most of those are far superior." Daniel Aughey of TV Guide
thought the episode provided a "healthy balance" of humor, story and heart. "Exactly what makes a great Simpsons episode!" Aughey would have liked to see Homer's storyline explored as an A story in its own episode rather than cut short as a C story.
Erich Asperschlager of TV Verdict thought the puzzle-solving storyline was "a lot of fun", both for its references to the "highly entertaining" documentary Wordplay and the jokes it inspired. He thought the one problem with the final part of the storyline was that it took away from what could have been "one of the best Lisa-centric episodes in a long time. Marrying her bookish sensibilities with cruciverbal skills is an inspired idea. They should have done more with it. At the very least, it would have left more screentime for Will Shortz and Merl Reagle."
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
in the United States on November 16, 2008. In the episode, Lisa discovers that she has a talent for solving crossword
Crossword
A crossword is a word puzzle that normally takes the form of a square or rectangular grid of white and shaded squares. The goal is to fill the white squares with letters, forming words or phrases, by solving clues which lead to the answers. In languages that are written left-to-right, the answer...
puzzles, and she enters a crossword tournament. Lisa's feelings are hurt when she discovers that Homer bet against her in the championship match.
The episode was inspired by the 2006 documentary Wordplay
Wordplay (film)
Wordplay is a 2006 documentary film directed by Patrick Creadon. It features Will Shortz, the editor of the New York Times crossword puzzle, crossword constructor Merl Reagle, and many other noted crossword solvers and constructors...
, and was written by Tim Long
Tim Long
Tim Long is a comedy writer born in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada. Tim calls Exeter, Ontario, Canada his home town and has written for The Simpsons, Politically Incorrect, Spy Magazine and The Late Show with David Letterman. Currently credited as a consulting producer on The Simpsons, Long was - until...
, and directed by Nancy Kruse
Nancy Kruse
Nancy Kruse is a former animation director on The Simpsons. She started working on the show during the first season as a background clean-up artist. After that she did background layout and character layout for several years on the show before becoming an assistant director...
. Crossword puzzle creators Merl Reagle
Merl Reagle
Merl Reagle is an American crossword constructor. Since 1985, he has constructed a puzzle every Sunday for the San Francisco Chronicle ; it is now also published by the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Seattle Times, The Plain Dealer...
and Will Shortz
Will Shortz
Will Shortz is an American puzzle creator and editor, and currently the crossword puzzle editor for The New York Times.-Early life and education:...
guest star as themselves in the episode while Scott Thompson
Scott Thompson
Scott Thompson is a Canadian television actor and comedian, best known for his time as a member of the comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall.-Personal life:...
has a cameo as Grady, a character he first voiced in "Three Gays of the Condo
Three Gays of the Condo
"Three Gays of the Condo" is the seventeenth episode in the fourteenth season of The Simpsons and aired April 13, 2003.-Plot:Marge brings an "Oprah's Puzzle Club" jigsaw puzzle to the Simpson Family Wednesdays, for everyone to work on except for Grampa and Maggie, as the box clearly reads for ages...
". Reagle created all of the crossword puzzles that appear in the episode and as promotion for the episode, a special Simpsons-related message (dedicated to this episode) that appeared in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
Sunday crossword on November 16, 2008. The episode received generally positive reviews from critics, and finished fourth in its timeslot during its initial airing on Fox, with a 3.9 Nielsen rating
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
.
Plot
BartBart Simpson
Bartholomew JoJo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by actress Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
and Lisa
Lisa Simpson
Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening...
start a lemonade stand
Lemonade Stand
Lemonade Stand is a basic economics game created in 1973 by Bob Jamison of the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium. Charlie Kellner ported the game to the Apple II platform in February 1979...
, but it is quickly closed due to them not having a vending permit. They get in line at the licensing bureau, only to find that the long line is standing still due to the clerk doing a crossword puzzle
Crossword
A crossword is a word puzzle that normally takes the form of a square or rectangular grid of white and shaded squares. The goal is to fill the white squares with letters, forming words or phrases, by solving clues which lead to the answers. In languages that are written left-to-right, the answer...
. Impatient, Lisa
Lisa Simpson
Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening...
completes the puzzle herself, only to find herself addicted to the puzzles. Eventually, she becomes so obsessed with them that Superintendent Chalmers hands her a pamphlet for the Crossword City Tournament. Meanwhile, at Moe's, Edna Krabappel
Edna Krabappel
Edna Krabappel is a fictional character from the animated TV series The Simpsons, voiced by Marcia Wallace. She is a 4th grade teacher at Springfield Elementary School. Krabappel is the only character Wallace voices on a regular basis.- Profile :...
offers to buy a beer for anyone who breaks up with Principal Skinner for her. Homer ends their relationship, and decides to take a second job in which he helps break up romantic relationships. Grady, one of his old roommates
Three Gays of the Condo
"Three Gays of the Condo" is the seventeenth episode in the fourteenth season of The Simpsons and aired April 13, 2003.-Plot:Marge brings an "Oprah's Puzzle Club" jigsaw puzzle to the Simpson Family Wednesdays, for everyone to work on except for Grampa and Maggie, as the box clearly reads for ages...
, calls Homer and asks him to break up Grady's and his boyfriend's relationship because he found a new and "better" man. Homer successfully manages to break up the couple. After making a good deal of money, he dreams that he is pestered by the "ghosts" of the jilted lovers and thus quits the trade.
At the crossword tournament, Homer bets his money from his breakup business on Lisa and wins big. However, upon hearing Lisa saying that she's wary of the final round, he bets on the other finalist, Gil Gunderson. Gil plays Lisa for her sympathy and cons her into losing the round, which in turn lets Homer win his final bet. Upon realizing that Homer has come into some money by betting against her in the tournament, Lisa gets angry at him and refuses to acknowledge herself as Homer's daughter, even going so far as to take Marge
Marge Simpson
Marjorie "Marge" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the eponymous family. She is voiced by actress Julie Kavner and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
's maiden name and start calling herself "Lisa Bouvier." Feeling guilty, Homer commissions Merl Reagle
Merl Reagle
Merl Reagle is an American crossword constructor. Since 1985, he has constructed a puzzle every Sunday for the San Francisco Chronicle ; it is now also published by the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Seattle Times, The Plain Dealer...
and Will Shortz
Will Shortz
Will Shortz is an American puzzle creator and editor, and currently the crossword puzzle editor for The New York Times.-Early life and education:...
to create a special puzzle for the New York Times, with his apology to Lisa hidden in the clues and solution. The two of them make up, and Lisa is happy to call herself a Simpson again.
Production
The episode was written by Tim LongTim Long
Tim Long is a comedy writer born in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada. Tim calls Exeter, Ontario, Canada his home town and has written for The Simpsons, Politically Incorrect, Spy Magazine and The Late Show with David Letterman. Currently credited as a consulting producer on The Simpsons, Long was - until...
, and directed by Nancy Kruse
Nancy Kruse
Nancy Kruse is a former animation director on The Simpsons. She started working on the show during the first season as a background clean-up artist. After that she did background layout and character layout for several years on the show before becoming an assistant director...
. James L. Brooks
James L. Brooks
James Lawrence Brooks is an American director, producer and screenwriter. Growing up in North Bergen, New Jersey, Brooks endured a fractured family life and passed the time by reading and writing. After dropping out of New York University, he got a job as an usher at CBS, going on to write for the...
got the inspiration for the episode from the 2006 documentary, Wordplay
Wordplay (film)
Wordplay is a 2006 documentary film directed by Patrick Creadon. It features Will Shortz, the editor of the New York Times crossword puzzle, crossword constructor Merl Reagle, and many other noted crossword solvers and constructors...
, which chronicles the national crossword puzzle championships, and he thought that Lisa should go to a championship in the episode. Will Shortz
Will Shortz
Will Shortz is an American puzzle creator and editor, and currently the crossword puzzle editor for The New York Times.-Early life and education:...
and Merl Reagle
Merl Reagle
Merl Reagle is an American crossword constructor. Since 1985, he has constructed a puzzle every Sunday for the San Francisco Chronicle ; it is now also published by the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Seattle Times, The Plain Dealer...
, who both starred in the documentary, appear in the episode. "We felt both Will and Merl were very compelling, off-the-beaten-track personalities [in Wordplay], who would fit into our universe very well", Brooks said.
Shortz was the first guest star the producers of The Simpsons approached. Long later asked Reagle to make puzzles for the episode. Reagle recorded his lines in a studio near his home. Reagle told the Arizona Daily Wildcat
Arizona Daily Wildcat
The Arizona Daily Wildcat is a student newspaper serving the University of Arizona. It was founded in 1899 as the Sage Green and Silver. Previous names include Arizona Weekly Life, University Life, Arizona Life and Arizona Wildcat. Its distribution is within the university and the Tucson, Arizona...
that "for me, to be such a total nut for animation since I was a kid, I never even dreamed [of being in a cartoon]. It's like a dream I never had coming true." He added that "you don't see [the crosswords] in the episode for very long, but when crossword fans watch this show, we want them to think that we got it right." Reagle designed every puzzle that appears in the episode, including one that appears in a hopscotch
Hopscotch
Hopscotch is a children's game that can be played with several players or alone. Hopscotch is a popular playground game.- Court and rules :- The court :...
court in Lisa's daydream. There were certain lines in the script that had to be incorporated into Reagle's puzzles, including one where Gil says "I think I'll throw some Q's around,", and he enters a number of Q's onto the grid. Reagle therefore had to create a puzzle which used words that included the letter Q more frequently than would be usual. Reagle said he saw the early script of the episode, "but they change it right up to the last minute. In a lot of ways, I'll be seeing it for the first time right along with everyone else." Scott Thompson
Scott Thompson
Scott Thompson is a Canadian television actor and comedian, best known for his time as a member of the comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall.-Personal life:...
has a cameo in the episode as Grady, a character that he first voiced in the season 14
The Simpsons (season 14)
The fourteenth season of the animated television series The Simpsons was originally broadcast on the Fox network in the United States between November 3, 2002 and May 18, 2003. The show runner for the fourteenth production season was Al Jean, who executive produced 21 of 22 episodes. The other...
episode "Three Gays of the Condo
Three Gays of the Condo
"Three Gays of the Condo" is the seventeenth episode in the fourteenth season of The Simpsons and aired April 13, 2003.-Plot:Marge brings an "Oprah's Puzzle Club" jigsaw puzzle to the Simpson Family Wednesdays, for everyone to work on except for Grampa and Maggie, as the box clearly reads for ages...
".
Promotion
In order to promote this episode, guest stars Reagle and Shortz collaborated with the episodes' writer Tim Long to create a hidden Simpsons-related message (dedicated to this episode) that appeared in The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
Sunday crossword on November 16, 2008. The crossword, which was titled "Sounds Like Somebody I Know", also appears as a plot point in the episode. Harry Shearer
Harry Shearer
Harry Julius Shearer is an American actor, comedian, writer, voice artist, musician, author, radio host and director. He is known for his long-running role on The Simpsons, his work on Saturday Night Live, the comedy band Spinal Tap and his radio program Le Show...
recorded a clip of Mr. Burns
Montgomery Burns
Charles Montgomery "Monty" Burns, usually referred to as Mr. Burns, is a recurring fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons, who is voiced by Harry Shearer and previously Christopher Collins. Burns is the evil owner of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant and is Homer...
and Smithers
Waylon Smithers
Waylon Smithers, Jr., usually referred to as Smithers, is a recurring fictional character in the animated series The Simpsons, who is voiced by Harry Shearer. Smithers first appeared in the episode "Homer's Odyssey", although he could be heard in the series premiere "Simpsons Roasting on an Open...
telling the winner of the National Public Radio's Sundays Puzzle on November 16, 2008, what they had won.
Reception
On the night it aired, the episode was watched in 8,520,000 homes and had a 3.9 Nielsen ratingNielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
, finishing fourth in its timeslot. The episode did finish first in the 18-34 demographic with a 4.7 Nielsen rating
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
and a 13% share of the audience, narrowly beating an episode of 60 Minutes
60 Minutes
60 Minutes is an American television news magazine, which has run on CBS since 1968. The program was created by producer Don Hewitt who set it apart by using a unique style of reporter-centered investigation....
featuring Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
in the demographic. Tim Long
Tim Long
Tim Long is a comedy writer born in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada. Tim calls Exeter, Ontario, Canada his home town and has written for The Simpsons, Politically Incorrect, Spy Magazine and The Late Show with David Letterman. Currently credited as a consulting producer on The Simpsons, Long was - until...
was nominated for Writers Guild of America Award
Writers Guild of America Award
The Writers Guild of America Award for outstanding achievements in film, television, and radio has been presented annually by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West since 1949...
in the animation category for writing the episode.
The episode received generally positive reviews from critics. Robert Canning of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
did not think there was anything "terrible" about the episode, but he did not think there was anything to get excited about, either. Canning thought there were a number of throwaway jokes in the episode that he felt worked well, "but the episode as a whole failed to grab me. As stated, there are a number of episodes that already fit this mold, and most of those are far superior." Daniel Aughey of TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
thought the episode provided a "healthy balance" of humor, story and heart. "Exactly what makes a great Simpsons episode!" Aughey would have liked to see Homer's storyline explored as an A story in its own episode rather than cut short as a C story.
Erich Asperschlager of TV Verdict thought the puzzle-solving storyline was "a lot of fun", both for its references to the "highly entertaining" documentary Wordplay and the jokes it inspired. He thought the one problem with the final part of the storyline was that it took away from what could have been "one of the best Lisa-centric episodes in a long time. Marrying her bookish sensibilities with cruciverbal skills is an inspired idea. They should have done more with it. At the very least, it would have left more screentime for Will Shortz and Merl Reagle."
External links
- The solved NYT Sunday Crossword of Nov 11, 2008 as featured in this episode, complete with hidden messages in the puzzle and clues.