Itchy & Scratchy & Marge
Encyclopedia
"Itchy & Scratchy & Marge" is the ninth episode of The Simpsons
' second season
and first aired on December 20, 1990. In the episode, which is a satire of censorship issues, Maggie
attacks Homer
with a mallet and Marge
blames The Itchy & Scratchy Show
for Maggie's actions. It was written by John Swartzwelder
and was the first episode to be directed by Jim Reardon
. Alex Rocco
makes his first of three guest appearances as Roger Meyers, Jr.
clumsily attempts to build Marge
a spice rack. While he is doing so, Maggie
sneaks up behind Homer and hits him on the head with a mallet
. Marge is initially clueless as to what would motivate Maggie to do such a deed, but then notices that, when Maggie sees an episode of The Itchy & Scratchy Show
, a cartoon which is known for its violence, she mimics its content and tries to stab Homer with a pencil
. Marge immediately blames The Itchy & Scratchy Show for Maggie's actions and bans Bart
and Lisa
from watching the show. Despite the ban, Bart and Lisa still manage to watch Itchy & Scratchy at their friends' houses. Marge writes a letter to the producers of the show asking them to tone down their violence, but in response, Roger Meyers, Jr. — the chairman of Itchy & Scratchy International — writes a letter to Marge, telling her one person can not make a difference and calls her a "screwball". In response, Marge decides to "show what one screwball can do".
Marge forms "Springfield
ians for Nonviolence, Understanding, and Helping" (SNUH for short), and forces the family to picket outside the Itchy & Scratchy Studios. Marge's protest gains momentum and soon more people join the group and even start to picket The Krusty the Klown Show, on which Itchy & Scratchy is shown. Marge appears on Kent Brockman
's show, Smartline where she confronts Roger Meyers over the violence and suggests that concerned parents send letters to Meyers. Many angry letters are sent to the Studio and Roger Meyers concedes defeat, and agrees to eliminate violence in Itchy & Scratchy. Eventually, a new short in which Itchy & Scratchy sit on a porch drinking lemonade airs, but Bart, Lisa, and other kids across Springfield reject the cleaned-up show. A lengthy montage follows, in which the children of Springfield go outside and engage in various wholesome activities and that night Bart and Lisa brag about their various outdoor activities while Marge listens happily.
Meanwhile, Michelangelo
's David goes on a coast-to-coast tour of the United States
, and Springfield is one of its scheduled destinations. The members of SNUH try to urge Marge to protest the sculpture, insisting that it is offensive and unsuitable. However, Marge reveals that she believes that the sculpture is a masterpiece. While appearing on Smartline, Marge admits that it is wrong to censor one form of art but not another, and sadly concludes that while one person can make a difference, at the end of the day they probably should not. Because it is now legally able to, Itchy & Scratchy immediately returns to its old form and Springfield's children abandon their wholesome activities and return to spending every day indoors watching the violent Itchy & Scratchy cartoons. Homer and Marge go to see David and Marge expresses her disappointment that the kids are at home watching "a cat
and mouse
disembowel each other" rather than seeing the sculpture. She cheers up when Homer tells her that the school will be forcing them to see the sculpture on a school trip.
cartoons, which many fans had been clamoring for. The episode was written by John Swartzwelder
, who loved Itchy & Scratchy and wrote several episodes that have them at the center. The episode was partially inspired by Terry Rakolta
, who protested the Fox network over the show Married... with Children
. For the episode, which handles a large issue, the writers tried not to have a point of view and looked at both sides, despite what the writers personally felt. During the original airing of the episode, the Fox satellite blew out and the entire West coast of the United States missed the first act of the episode.
This was the first episode directed by Jim Reardon
, who had previously made a student film called "Bring Me the Head of Charlie Brown
" which was very violent and the experience served him well for this episode. There are several characters who work at I&S studios who are caricatures of real people: the cartoonist who draws the Marge/Squirrel is based on Eddie Fitzgerald, who worked at Filmation
and the three people with Meyers when he is asking Marge for suggestions are caricatures of Rich Moore
, David Silverman
and Wes Archer
.
Alex Rocco
makes his first of three appearances as Roger Meyers. Many people behind The Simpsons were huge fans of The Godfather
and Jim Reardon looked for a way to shoot him in the eye as a reference to Rocco's character, Moe Greene
.
The long montage of the Kids of Springfield playing was directed by Bob Anderson
and is making a satirical point by saying the opposite of what the writers believed. The segment was written by John Swartzwelder and the idea of using Beethoven's 6th Symphony
was in the original script. James L. Brooks
had wanted the episode to end with the montage, but the writers disagreed. Roger Meyers, Jr. makes his first appearance in this episode, as does Sideshow Mel, although he does not have any lines until the later episode "Black Widower
".
The scene where Maggie hits Homer over the head with a mallet is an extensive parody of the shower scene from Psycho
, in which the music and camera angles are almost identical. The music heard while the children play outside is the first movement of Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony
, and is similar to the Disney film Fantasia
.
of 12.9, equivalent to approximately 12.0 million viewing households. It was the highest-rated show on the Fox network that week, beating Married... with Children
. Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, the authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide praised the episode, stating that "Homer's doomed attempt to build a spice rack is only the start of another great episode, which works as a superb debate about television violence and politically inspired censorship." As well as noting that "the ending is especially poignant, as the pedagogues of Springfield swoop on Michelangelo's David as an example of filth and degradation". Nathan Rabin of The A.V. Club
praised the episode for its satire. He wrote, "[The episode] contains one of my favorite sequences not just in The Simpsons but in television as a whole. In it, a censorship-happy Marge has neutered Itchy & Scratchy to the point where the children of Springfield are moved to do the unthinkable: stop watching television. [...] A dystopia instantly becomes a small-town paradise, a happy realm of frolicking children and sunny innocence as kids wake up from a TV fog and embrace life’s rich pageantry. It’s a lovely, lyrical, even beautiful sequence even if it’s light on gags. It presents, then ruthlessly yanks back, an alternate universe Springfield ruled by dewy innocence rather than greed and mob mentality." He also felt that the episode "got to make a relevant point in line with writer John Swartzwelder’s libertarianism without sacrificing the momentum of the episode or losing track of the characters and turning them into mere sounding boards for their creator’s beliefs."
Empire
named the Psycho parody as the second best film parody in the show. "The best throwaway gags blindside the unsuspecting viewer in episodes that are nominally about something else [...] Hitchcock is ripped off more than any other director but this is the most lovingly rendered reference." The Psycho parody was named the 22nd greatest film reference in the history of the show by Total Film
' s Nathan Ditum.
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...
The Simpsons (season 2)
The Simpsons second season originally aired between October 11, 1990 and May 9, 1991, and contained 22 episodes, beginning with "Bart Gets an F". Another episode, "Blood Feud" aired during the summer after the official season finale. The show runners for the second production season were Matt...
and first aired on December 20, 1990. In the episode, which is a satire of censorship issues, Maggie
Maggie Simpson
Margaret "Maggie" Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She first appeared on television in the Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Maggie was created and designed by cartoonist Matt Groening while he was waiting in the lobby of James...
attacks Homer
Homer Simpson
Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the patriarch of the eponymous family. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared on television, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
with a mallet and 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...
blames The Itchy & Scratchy Show
The Itchy & Scratchy Show
The Itchy & Scratchy Show is a show within a show in the animated television series The Simpsons. It usually appears as a part of The Krusty the Clown Show, watched regularly by Bart and Lisa Simpson...
for Maggie's actions. It was written by John Swartzwelder
John Swartzwelder
John Swartzwelder is an American comedy writer and novelist, best known for his work on the animated television series The Simpsons, as well as a number of novels. He is credited with writing the largest number of Simpsons episodes by a large margin...
and was the first episode to be directed by Jim Reardon
Jim Reardon
Jim Reardon is an animation director and storyboard consultant, best known for his work on the animated TV series The Simpsons. He has directed over 30 episodes of the series, and was credited as a supervising director for seasons 9 through 15...
. Alex Rocco
Alex Rocco
Alex Rocco is an American actor. His roles have ranged from comedy to playing gangsters in Mafia movies.-Early life:...
makes his first of three guest appearances as Roger Meyers, Jr.
Plot
HomerHomer Simpson
Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the patriarch of the eponymous family. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared on television, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
clumsily attempts to build 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...
a spice rack. While he is doing so, Maggie
Maggie Simpson
Margaret "Maggie" Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She first appeared on television in the Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Maggie was created and designed by cartoonist Matt Groening while he was waiting in the lobby of James...
sneaks up behind Homer and hits him on the head with a mallet
Mallet
A mallet is a kind of hammer, usually of rubber,or sometimes wood smaller than a maul or beetle and usually with a relatively large head.-Tools:Tool mallets come in different types, the most common of which are:...
. Marge is initially clueless as to what would motivate Maggie to do such a deed, but then notices that, when Maggie sees an episode of The Itchy & Scratchy Show
The Itchy & Scratchy Show
The Itchy & Scratchy Show is a show within a show in the animated television series The Simpsons. It usually appears as a part of The Krusty the Clown Show, watched regularly by Bart and Lisa Simpson...
, a cartoon which is known for its violence, she mimics its content and tries to stab Homer with a pencil
Pencil
A pencil is a writing implement or art medium usually constructed of a narrow, solid pigment core inside a protective casing. The case prevents the core from breaking, and also from marking the user’s hand during use....
. Marge immediately blames The Itchy & Scratchy Show for Maggie's actions and bans Bart
Bart 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...
from watching the show. Despite the ban, Bart and Lisa still manage to watch Itchy & Scratchy at their friends' houses. Marge writes a letter to the producers of the show asking them to tone down their violence, but in response, Roger Meyers, Jr. — the chairman of Itchy & Scratchy International — writes a letter to Marge, telling her one person can not make a difference and calls her a "screwball". In response, Marge decides to "show what one screwball can do".
Marge forms "Springfield
Springfield (The Simpsons)
Springfield is the fictional town in which the American animated sitcom The Simpsons is set. A mid-sized town in an undetermined state of the United States, Springfield acts as a complete universe in which characters can explore the issues faced by modern society. The geography of the town and its...
ians for Nonviolence, Understanding, and Helping" (SNUH for short), and forces the family to picket outside the Itchy & Scratchy Studios. Marge's protest gains momentum and soon more people join the group and even start to picket The Krusty the Klown Show, on which Itchy & Scratchy is shown. Marge appears on Kent Brockman
Kent Brockman
Kent Brockman is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Harry Shearer and first appeared in the episode "Krusty Gets Busted"...
's show, Smartline where she confronts Roger Meyers over the violence and suggests that concerned parents send letters to Meyers. Many angry letters are sent to the Studio and Roger Meyers concedes defeat, and agrees to eliminate violence in Itchy & Scratchy. Eventually, a new short in which Itchy & Scratchy sit on a porch drinking lemonade airs, but Bart, Lisa, and other kids across Springfield reject the cleaned-up show. A lengthy montage follows, in which the children of Springfield go outside and engage in various wholesome activities and that night Bart and Lisa brag about their various outdoor activities while Marge listens happily.
Meanwhile, Michelangelo
Michelangelo
Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni , commonly known as Michelangelo, was an Italian Renaissance painter, sculptor, architect, poet, and engineer who exerted an unparalleled influence on the development of Western art...
's David goes on a coast-to-coast tour of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and Springfield is one of its scheduled destinations. The members of SNUH try to urge Marge to protest the sculpture, insisting that it is offensive and unsuitable. However, Marge reveals that she believes that the sculpture is a masterpiece. While appearing on Smartline, Marge admits that it is wrong to censor one form of art but not another, and sadly concludes that while one person can make a difference, at the end of the day they probably should not. Because it is now legally able to, Itchy & Scratchy immediately returns to its old form and Springfield's children abandon their wholesome activities and return to spending every day indoors watching the violent Itchy & Scratchy cartoons. Homer and Marge go to see David and Marge expresses her disappointment that the kids are at home watching "a cat
Cat
The cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...
and mouse
Mouse
A mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
disembowel each other" rather than seeing the sculpture. She cheers up when Homer tells her that the school will be forcing them to see the sculpture on a school trip.
Production
"Itchy & Scratchy & Marge" is an acclaimed episode which dealt with censorship issues and allowed the writers to have a lot of Itchy & ScratchyThe Itchy & Scratchy Show
The Itchy & Scratchy Show is a show within a show in the animated television series The Simpsons. It usually appears as a part of The Krusty the Clown Show, watched regularly by Bart and Lisa Simpson...
cartoons, which many fans had been clamoring for. The episode was written by John Swartzwelder
John Swartzwelder
John Swartzwelder is an American comedy writer and novelist, best known for his work on the animated television series The Simpsons, as well as a number of novels. He is credited with writing the largest number of Simpsons episodes by a large margin...
, who loved Itchy & Scratchy and wrote several episodes that have them at the center. The episode was partially inspired by Terry Rakolta
Terry Rakolta
Terry Rakolta led a boycott against the Fox Broadcasting Company sitcom Married... with Children.A Mother Is Heard as Sponsors Abandon a TV Hit New York Times Born Terry Lynn Stern, she is the sister of Ronna Romney, former daughter-in-law of former Michigan governor George Romney. Rakolta's...
, who protested the Fox network over the show Married... with Children
Married... with Children
Married... with Children is an American surrealistic sitcom that aired for 11 seasons that featured a dysfunctional family living in Chicago, Illinois. The show, notable for being the first prime time television series to air on Fox, ran from April 5, 1987, to June 9, 1997. The series was created...
. For the episode, which handles a large issue, the writers tried not to have a point of view and looked at both sides, despite what the writers personally felt. During the original airing of the episode, the Fox satellite blew out and the entire West coast of the United States missed the first act of the episode.
This was the first episode directed by Jim Reardon
Jim Reardon
Jim Reardon is an animation director and storyboard consultant, best known for his work on the animated TV series The Simpsons. He has directed over 30 episodes of the series, and was credited as a supervising director for seasons 9 through 15...
, who had previously made a student film called "Bring Me the Head of Charlie Brown
Bring Me the Head of Charlie Brown
Bring Me the Head of Charlie Brown is an animated short directed and animated by Jim Reardon, who would later become director and storyboard consultant for The Simpsons. The cartoon was made in 1986 while he was at CalArts...
" which was very violent and the experience served him well for this episode. There are several characters who work at I&S studios who are caricatures of real people: the cartoonist who draws the Marge/Squirrel is based on Eddie Fitzgerald, who worked at Filmation
Filmation
Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animation and live action programming for television during the latter half of the 20th century. Located in Reseda, California, the animation studio was founded in 1963...
and the three people with Meyers when he is asking Marge for suggestions are caricatures of Rich Moore
Rich Moore
Rich Moore is an American animation director and a business partner in Rough Draft Studios, Inc., where he serves as Sr. Vice President of creative affairs. He is one of a handful of artists who in the early 90s redefined prime time television animation with his work on The Simpsons...
, David Silverman
David Silverman
David Silverman is an animator best known for directing numerous episodes of the animated TV series The Simpsons, as well as The Simpsons Movie...
and Wes Archer
Wes Archer
Wesley Meyer Archer is a television animation director. He was one of the original three animators on The Simpsons' Tracey Ullman shorts and subsequently directed a number of The Simpsons episodes before becoming supervising director at King of the Hill. A...
.
Alex Rocco
Alex Rocco
Alex Rocco is an American actor. His roles have ranged from comedy to playing gangsters in Mafia movies.-Early life:...
makes his first of three appearances as Roger Meyers. Many people behind The Simpsons were huge fans of The Godfather
The Godfather
The Godfather is a 1972 American epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, based on the 1969 novel by Mario Puzo. With a screenplay by Puzo, Coppola and an uncredited Robert Towne, the film stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Sterling Hayden, John Marley, Richard...
and Jim Reardon looked for a way to shoot him in the eye as a reference to Rocco's character, Moe Greene
Moe Greene
Moe Greene is a fictional character appearing in Mario Puzo's 1969 novel The Godfather and the first installment of the The Godfather trilogy of films, in which he was portrayed by actor Alex Rocco...
.
The long montage of the Kids of Springfield playing was directed by Bob Anderson
Bob Anderson (director)
Bob Anderson is an animation director on The Simpsons. He also contributed additional sequence direction on The Simpsons Movie....
and is making a satirical point by saying the opposite of what the writers believed. The segment was written by John Swartzwelder and the idea of using Beethoven's 6th Symphony
Symphony No. 6 (Beethoven)
Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, also known as the Pastoral Symphony , is a symphony composed by Ludwig van Beethoven, and was completed in 1808...
was in the original script. 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...
had wanted the episode to end with the montage, but the writers disagreed. Roger Meyers, Jr. makes his first appearance in this episode, as does Sideshow Mel, although he does not have any lines until the later episode "Black Widower
Black Widower
"Black Widower" is the 21st episode of The Simpsons third season, originally airing on the Fox network in the United States on April 9, 1992. It was written by Jon Vitti, directed by David Silverman, and saw Kelsey Grammer guest star as Sideshow Bob for the second time. In the episode, Sideshow...
".
Cultural references
Psycho (1960 film)
Psycho is a 1960 American suspense/psychological horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Janet Leigh and Anthony Perkins. The film is based on the screenplay by Joseph Stefano, who adapted it from the 1959 novel of the same name by Robert Bloch...
, in which the music and camera angles are almost identical. The music heard while the children play outside is the first movement of Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony
Symphony No. 6 (Beethoven)
Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, also known as the Pastoral Symphony , is a symphony composed by Ludwig van Beethoven, and was completed in 1808...
, and is similar to the Disney film Fantasia
Fantasia (film)
Fantasia is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released by Walt Disney Productions. The third feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film consists of eight animated segments set to pieces of classical music conducted by Leopold Stokowski, seven of which are...
.
Reception
In its original broadcast, "Itchy & Scratchy & Marge" finished 34th in ratings for the week of December 17-23, 1990, with a 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...
of 12.9, equivalent to approximately 12.0 million viewing households. It was the highest-rated show on the Fox network that week, beating Married... with Children
Married... with Children
Married... with Children is an American surrealistic sitcom that aired for 11 seasons that featured a dysfunctional family living in Chicago, Illinois. The show, notable for being the first prime time television series to air on Fox, ran from April 5, 1987, to June 9, 1997. The series was created...
. Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, the authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide praised the episode, stating that "Homer's doomed attempt to build a spice rack is only the start of another great episode, which works as a superb debate about television violence and politically inspired censorship." As well as noting that "the ending is especially poignant, as the pedagogues of Springfield swoop on Michelangelo's David as an example of filth and degradation". Nathan Rabin of The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
praised the episode for its satire. He wrote, "[The episode] contains one of my favorite sequences not just in The Simpsons but in television as a whole. In it, a censorship-happy Marge has neutered Itchy & Scratchy to the point where the children of Springfield are moved to do the unthinkable: stop watching television. [...] A dystopia instantly becomes a small-town paradise, a happy realm of frolicking children and sunny innocence as kids wake up from a TV fog and embrace life’s rich pageantry. It’s a lovely, lyrical, even beautiful sequence even if it’s light on gags. It presents, then ruthlessly yanks back, an alternate universe Springfield ruled by dewy innocence rather than greed and mob mentality." He also felt that the episode "got to make a relevant point in line with writer John Swartzwelder’s libertarianism without sacrificing the momentum of the episode or losing track of the characters and turning them into mere sounding boards for their creator’s beliefs."
Empire
Empire (magazine)
Empire is a British film magazine published monthly by Bauer Consumer Media. From the first issue in July 1989, the magazine was edited by Barry McIlheney and published by Emap. Bauer purchased Emap Consumer Media in early 2008...
named the Psycho parody as the second best film parody in the show. "The best throwaway gags blindside the unsuspecting viewer in episodes that are nominally about something else [...] Hitchcock is ripped off more than any other director but this is the most lovingly rendered reference." The Psycho parody was named the 22nd greatest film reference in the history of the show by Total Film
Total Film
Total Film is a British film magazine published 13 times a year by Future Publishing. The magazine was launched in 1997 and offers film, DVD and Blu-ray news, reviews and features...
External links
- "Itchy & Scratchy & Marge" at The Simpsons.com