Krusty Gets Kancelled
Encyclopedia
"Krusty Gets Kancelled" is the twenty-second and final episode of The Simpsons
' fourth season
. It first aired on the Fox network
in the United States on May 13, 1993. In the episode, a new show featuring a puppet named Gabbo premieres in Springfield
and competes with Krusty the Clown's show. Krusty's show is soon canceled, and Bart Simpson
decides to help Krusty get back on the air by staging a comeback special.
John Swartzwelder
wrote the episode and David Silverman
served as director. Following the success of "Homer at the Bat
", the writers wanted to try a similar guest star heavy episode, except with celebrities instead of baseball players. The episode proved quite difficult as many of the actors asked to guest star declined at the last minute and the comeback special portion was nearly scrapped. Johnny Carson
, Hugh Hefner
, Bette Midler
, Luke Perry
and the Red Hot Chili Peppers
(Flea
, Anthony Kiedis
, Arik Marshall
and Chad Smith
) all guest star as themselves and appear on Krusty's special. Elizabeth Taylor
and Barry White
, both of whom guest starred in previous episodes this season, make cameo appearances.
and Bart
see a highly distracting commercial for something named "Gabbo". The advertisement is the start of a viral marketing
campaign around Springfield to build interest in whatever "Gabbo" is. Finally, "Gabbo" is revealed to be a ventriloquist
's dummy. Ventriloquist Arthur Crandall announces that Gabbo's new program will air in direct competition with the established Krusty the Klown Show on each afternoon at 4 p.m. Gabbo's catchphrase — "I'm a bad wittle boy" — instantly charms his intended audience, and this has a negative impact on Krusty and his show. The clown vows to withstand the competition from the new program, but Gabbo's cutthroat tactics quickly attract Krusty's audience. Krusty tries to fight back with a dummy of his own, but due to its gruesome appearance and poor condition, it falls apart on Krusty's lap, and scares off many of the children in the audience. And because Itchy & Scratch was now on the Gabbo Show, they had to replace it with a European cartoon that wasn't translated to English and thus made no sense whatsoever, leaving Krusty saying "What the hell was that!?" Eventually, Krusty's ratings hit rock bottom, and then his show is cancelled.
Left without work, Krusty falls on hard times and begins suffering from depression
. Meanwhile, Bart and Lisa, all along unimpressed with Gabbo, decide to try and help Krusty. After visiting his house and seeing photos of Krusty's celebrity friends, they suggest he host a comeback special. Bart and Lisa begin recruiting major celebrities to appear on Krusty's special: Bette Midler
, Johnny Carson
, the Red Hot Chili Peppers
, Hugh Hefner
, Luke Perry
(Krusty's "worthless half-brother"). They also try to recruit Elizabeth Taylor
but her agent declines the invitation before they can speak to her.
Bart and Lisa return to Krusty to declare their success, only to find him morbidly obese from drinking several fatty milkshakes after believing them to be weight-losing shakes. Fortunately, the entire Simpson family helps get him back into shape before the special airs.
Krusty's comeback special features his reunion with Sideshow Mel, Luke Perry getting shot out of a cannon, the Red Hot Chili Peppers singing "Give It Away" in their underwear, Johnny Carson lifting a 1987 Buick Skylark
over his head and Krusty and Bette Midler singing "Wind Beneath My Wings
". The show is a great success and Krusty's career gets back on track.
The idea of The Krusty the Clown Show being cancelled was pitched by writer John Swartzwelder
. The rest of the writers decided this would be an opportunity to include a group of celebrity guest stars. They had done a similar episode the year before
called "Homer at the Bat
" which starred nine Major League Baseball
players and had hoped to emulate its success. At that point, the writers had a list of celebrities that had wanted to do a guest spot on the show and decided to use this episode to burn through some of them. However, the episode was described by executive producer Mike Reiss
as "a nightmare" because several guests pulled out at the last minute and the script had to be changed several times. One of the goals for the episode was to have a living ex-President of the United States
. They wrote "very respectful but cute" parts for every living ex-President at the time, but they all turned them down. Only Ronald Reagan
responded, sending a politely worded reply.
All of the guest stars were recorded over a period of several months. One of the writers' goals was to get a musical act to appear, but several performers, including The Rolling Stones
and Wynonna Judd
, turned the role down. The Red Hot Chili Peppers
finally accepted, and were directed by George Meyer
who told them to ad-lib many of their lines. The celebrity aspect of the episode was almost canceled because the producers were unable to get an obligation before the record deadline. Johnny Carson
appears in the episode, and it was one of the few televised appearances he made after he retired from The Tonight Show
. He recorded his lines the night after the 44th Primetime Emmy Awards
. The original role pitched for Carson was one where he visited the Simpson family's house and mooched off them. Carson turned down the role, so the writers went the opposite way and made him look extremely versatile with several different talents. Bette Midler
's condition for guest starring was that the show promoted her anti-littering campaign. Elizabeth Taylor
guest starred as herself and also recorded a part as Maggie Simpson
in "Lisa's First Word
" on the same day. Luke Perry
was one of the first guest stars to agree to their part.
The character known as the Old Jewish Man appears in the episode.
The short cartoon "Worker and Parasite" is a reference to Eastern European cartoons
. To produce the animation, director David Silverman
xerox
ed several drawings and made the animation very jerky. The scene where Krusty sings "Send in the Clowns
" was very tricky for the animators because it involves two shots of the same scene from different angles. Parts of the scene were animated by Brad Bird
.
Folk singer
Judy Collins
' 1975 rendition of the song "Send in the Clowns
" is parodied in the episode, and Krusty sings the altered lyrics: "Send in those soulful and doleful, schmaltz-by-the-bowlful clowns" in a musical number of his comeback special. Gabbo's name comes from the 1929 film The Great Gabbo
. He was originally designed to be more square, but the second design was made to be "a demented Howdy Doody
". His voice was based on Jerry Lewis
. The sequence with Gabbo's song contains several references to the 1940 film Pinocchio
. Krusty mentions that he beat Joey Bishop
. Bishop was an entertainer who had his own show, The Joey Bishop Show
, which ran opposite of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
. Bette Midler's serenading Krusty is a reference to the way Bette sang to Johnny Carson on the penultimate episode of Carson's The Tonight Show. The scene in which Krusty instructs the Red Hot Chili Peppers to change the lyrics to the song "Give It Away" is a reference to Ed Sullivan
instructing The Doors
to change the lyrics to the song "Light My Fire
". The poses of the Red Hot Chili Peppers in the scene are based on the movie The Doors
. Several scenes in Krusty's special are based on Elvis Presley's '68 Comeback Special
. The musical piece that Hugh Hefner
plays on the wine glasses is from Peter and the Wolf
and was composed by Sergei Prokofiev
.
In its original broadcast, "Krusty Gets Kancelled" finished 24th in ratings for the week of May 10-16, 1993, with a Nielsen rating
of 12.3, equivalent to approximately 11.5 million viewing households. It was the highest-rated show on the Fox network that week, beating Married... with Children
.
In 2006, Bette Midler, Hugh Hefner, Johnny Carson, Luke Perry and the Red Hot Chili Peppers were listed at number four on IGN
's list of the best Simpsons guest stars. They all also appeared on AOL
's list of their favorite 25 Simpsons guest stars. In 2007, Vanity Fair
named "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as the ninth best episode of The Simpsons. John Orvet felt, "This is Krusty's best episode—better than the reunion with his father, or the Bar Mitzvah episode, which won an Emmy much later on. The incorporation of guest stars as themselves is top-notch, and we get to see the really dark side of Krusty's flailing showbiz career. Hollywood, television, celebrities, and fans are all beautifully skewered here." Brien Murphy of the Abilene Reporter-News
classed "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as one of his three favorite episodes of The Simpsons, along with "Behind the Laughter
" and "The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase
". Though Jim Schembri of The Age
put the episode among his top 10 episodes of the series, he also noted "Unfortunately, this signaled the beginning of the show's obsession with star cameos." An article in the Herald Sun
placed "Krusty Gets Kancelled" among the top 20 episodes of The Simpsons, and characterized "The sight of Krusty's feeble attempt to fight back with his own gruesome ventriloquist doll, which falls apart on his lap on air" as the highlight of the episode. In 1997, TV Guide
named "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as the second greatest Simpsons episode and the 66th greatest TV episode. In 2009, it was named the 24th Greatest TV Episode of All-Time.
In an article about the 2003 DVD release in The Independent
, "Krusty Gets Kancelled" was highlighted along with episodes "When You Dish Upon a Star
", "Lisa the Iconoclast
", "Dog of Death
", "Homer Badman
", and "Grampa vs. Sexual Inadequacy
". In a 2004 review of the release of The Simpsons season four on DVD, Andrew Pulver of The Guardian
highlighted episodes "Kamp Krusty
" and "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as part of "TV art at its peak". Mike Clark of USA Today
also highlighted "Kamp Krusty" and "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as better episodes of the season, along with "A Streetcar Named Marge
" and "Lisa the Beauty Queen
". Jen Chaney of The Washington Post
described episodes "A Streetcar Named Marge," "Mr. Plow
," "Marge vs. the Monorail
" and "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as "gems" of The Simpsons' fourth season. Spence Kettlewell of The Toronto Star described season 4 episodes "Krusty Gets Kancelled", "Kamp Krusty," "Mr. Plow," and "I Love Lisa" as "some of the best episodes" of the series. Forrest Hartman of the Reno Gazette-Journal
wrote that the large number of celebrity appearances detracted from the episode, commenting: "The result is a boring hodgepodge of scenes with Bette Midler, Johnny Carson, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and more where we're supposed to laugh simply because famous people are interacting with Krusty." The episode is one of co-executive producer Tim Long
's three favorites, including "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show
" and "A Milhouse Divided
".
In 2000
, the episode was released as part of a Twentieth Century Fox boxed set The Simpsons Go Hollywood, commemorating The Simpsons' 10th anniversary. The set included "some of the series' best spoofs of movies and TV", and also included episodes "Marge vs. the Monorail
," "A Streetcar Named Marge
," "Who Shot Mr. Burns", Parts 1 and 2, and "Bart Gets Famous
". The episode was included in a 2003 release of The Simpsons Classics on DVD by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
.
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 4)
The Simpsons fourth season originally aired on the Fox network between September 24, 1992 and May 13, 1993, beginning with "Kamp Krusty." The show runners for the fourth production season were Al Jean and Mike Reiss. The aired season contained two episodes which were hold-over episodes from season...
. It first aired on the Fox network
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 May 13, 1993. In the episode, a new show featuring a puppet named Gabbo premieres in 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...
and competes with Krusty the Clown's show. Krusty's show is soon canceled, and Bart Simpson
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...
decides to help Krusty get back on the air by staging a comeback special.
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...
wrote the episode and 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...
served as director. Following the success of "Homer at the Bat
Homer at the Bat
"Homer at the Bat" is the seventeenth episode of The Simpsons third season, which originally aired February 20, 1992. The episode follows the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant softball team, led by Homer, having a winning season and making the championship game. Mr. Burns makes a large bet that the...
", the writers wanted to try a similar guest star heavy episode, except with celebrities instead of baseball players. The episode proved quite difficult as many of the actors asked to guest star declined at the last minute and the comeback special portion was nearly scrapped. Johnny Carson
Johnny Carson
John William "Johnny" Carson was an American television host and comedian, known as host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson for 30 years . Carson received six Emmy Awards including the Governor Award and a 1985 Peabody Award; he was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 1987...
, Hugh Hefner
Hugh Hefner
Hugh Marston "Hef" Hefner is an American magazine publisher, founder and Chief Creative Officer of Playboy Enterprises.-Early life:...
, Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...
, Luke Perry
Luke Perry
Luke Perry is an American actor. Perry starred as Dylan McKay on the TV series Beverly Hills, 90210, a role he played from 1990–95, and then from 1998–2000. Much publicity was garnered over the fact that even though he was playing a sixteen-year-old when 90210 began, Perry was actually in his...
and the Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
(Flea
Flea (musician)
Michael Peter Balzary , better known by his stage name Flea, is an Australian-American musician and occasional actor. He is best known as the bassist, co-founding member, and one of the composers of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers...
, Anthony Kiedis
Anthony Kiedis
Anthony Kiedis is an American vocalist/lyricist, and occasional actor best known as the lead vocalist of the Grammy-winning American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. Kiedis spent his youth in Grand Rapids, Michigan with his mother before moving, shortly before his 12th birthday, to Hollywood,...
, Arik Marshall
Arik Marshall
Arik Marshall is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, poet, and author, best known as a one-time member of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. He has earned the respect and praise of artists as diverse as Joe Strummer, Prince, Gwen Stefani, Gavin Rossdale, Annabella Lwin of Bow Wow Wow, and Carlos...
and Chad Smith
Chad Smith
Chad Smith is an American musician, best known as the longtime and current drummer of Red Hot Chili Peppers. Smith is also the drummer of the hard rock supergroup Chickenfoot which includes Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani, and Michael Anthony, former Deep Purple vocalist Glenn Hughes' backing band and...
) all guest star as themselves and appear on Krusty's special. Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond "Liz" Taylor, DBE was a British-American actress. From her early years as a child star with MGM, she became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age...
and Barry White
Barry White
Barry White, born Barry Eugene Carter , was an American composer and singer-songwriter.A five-time Grammy Award-winner known for his distinctive bass voice and romantic image, White's greatest success came in the 1970s as a solo singer and with the Love Unlimited Orchestra, crafting many enduring...
, both of whom guest starred in previous episodes this season, make cameo appearances.
Plot
One afternoon while watching television, 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...
and 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...
see a highly distracting commercial for something named "Gabbo". The advertisement is the start of a viral marketing
Viral marketing
Viral marketing, viral advertising, or marketing buzz are buzzwords referring to marketing techniques that use pre-existing social networks to produce increases in brand awareness or to achieve other marketing objectives through self-replicating viral processes, analogous to the spread of viruses...
campaign around Springfield to build interest in whatever "Gabbo" is. Finally, "Gabbo" is revealed to be a ventriloquist
Ventriloquism
Ventriloquism, or ventriloquy, is an act of stagecraft in which a person manipulates his or her voice so that it appears that the voice is coming from elsewhere, usually a puppeteered "dummy"...
's dummy. Ventriloquist Arthur Crandall announces that Gabbo's new program will air in direct competition with the established Krusty the Klown Show on each afternoon at 4 p.m. Gabbo's catchphrase — "I'm a bad wittle boy" — instantly charms his intended audience, and this has a negative impact on Krusty and his show. The clown vows to withstand the competition from the new program, but Gabbo's cutthroat tactics quickly attract Krusty's audience. Krusty tries to fight back with a dummy of his own, but due to its gruesome appearance and poor condition, it falls apart on Krusty's lap, and scares off many of the children in the audience. And because Itchy & Scratch was now on the Gabbo Show, they had to replace it with a European cartoon that wasn't translated to English and thus made no sense whatsoever, leaving Krusty saying "What the hell was that!?" Eventually, Krusty's ratings hit rock bottom, and then his show is cancelled.
Left without work, Krusty falls on hard times and begins suffering from depression
Depression (mood)
Depression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity that can affect a person's thoughts, behaviour, feelings and physical well-being. Depressed people may feel sad, anxious, empty, hopeless, helpless, worthless, guilty, irritable, or restless...
. Meanwhile, Bart and Lisa, all along unimpressed with Gabbo, decide to try and help Krusty. After visiting his house and seeing photos of Krusty's celebrity friends, they suggest he host a comeback special. Bart and Lisa begin recruiting major celebrities to appear on Krusty's special: Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...
, Johnny Carson
Johnny Carson
John William "Johnny" Carson was an American television host and comedian, known as host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson for 30 years . Carson received six Emmy Awards including the Governor Award and a 1985 Peabody Award; he was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 1987...
, the Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
, Hugh Hefner
Hugh Hefner
Hugh Marston "Hef" Hefner is an American magazine publisher, founder and Chief Creative Officer of Playboy Enterprises.-Early life:...
, Luke Perry
Luke Perry
Luke Perry is an American actor. Perry starred as Dylan McKay on the TV series Beverly Hills, 90210, a role he played from 1990–95, and then from 1998–2000. Much publicity was garnered over the fact that even though he was playing a sixteen-year-old when 90210 began, Perry was actually in his...
(Krusty's "worthless half-brother"). They also try to recruit Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond "Liz" Taylor, DBE was a British-American actress. From her early years as a child star with MGM, she became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age...
but her agent declines the invitation before they can speak to her.
Bart and Lisa return to Krusty to declare their success, only to find him morbidly obese from drinking several fatty milkshakes after believing them to be weight-losing shakes. Fortunately, the entire Simpson family helps get him back into shape before the special airs.
Krusty's comeback special features his reunion with Sideshow Mel, Luke Perry getting shot out of a cannon, the Red Hot Chili Peppers singing "Give It Away" in their underwear, Johnny Carson lifting a 1987 Buick Skylark
Buick Skylark
The Buick Skylark was a passenger car produced by the Buick division of General Motors. The model was made in six production runs. In each run, the car design varied dramatically due to changing technology and tastes, as well as new standards implemented over the years.-1953–1954:Introduced to mark...
over his head and Krusty and Bette Midler singing "Wind Beneath My Wings
Wind Beneath My Wings
"Wind Beneath My Wings" is the title of a song written in 1982 by Jeff Silbar and Larry Henley. They recorded a demo of the song, which they gave to musician Bob Montgomery. Montgomery then recorded his own demo version of the song, changing it from the mid-tempo version he was given to a ballad...
". The show is a great success and Krusty's career gets back on track.
Production
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...
. The rest of the writers decided this would be an opportunity to include a group of celebrity guest stars. They had done a similar episode the year before
The Simpsons (season 3)
The Simpsons third season originally aired on the Fox network between September 19, 1991 and May 7, 1992. The show runners for the third production season were Al Jean and Mike Reiss who executive produced 22 episodes the season, while two other episodes were produced by James L. Brooks, Matt...
called "Homer at the Bat
Homer at the Bat
"Homer at the Bat" is the seventeenth episode of The Simpsons third season, which originally aired February 20, 1992. The episode follows the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant softball team, led by Homer, having a winning season and making the championship game. Mr. Burns makes a large bet that the...
" which starred nine Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
players and had hoped to emulate its success. At that point, the writers had a list of celebrities that had wanted to do a guest spot on the show and decided to use this episode to burn through some of them. However, the episode was described by executive producer Mike Reiss
Mike Reiss
Michael "Mike" Reiss is an American television comedy writer. He served as a show-runner, writer and producer for the animated series The Simpsons and co-created the animated series The Critic...
as "a nightmare" because several guests pulled out at the last minute and the script had to be changed several times. One of the goals for the episode was to have a living ex-President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
. They wrote "very respectful but cute" parts for every living ex-President at the time, but they all turned them down. Only Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
responded, sending a politely worded reply.
All of the guest stars were recorded over a period of several months. One of the writers' goals was to get a musical act to appear, but several performers, including The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
and Wynonna Judd
Wynonna Judd
Wynonna Ellen Judd is an American country music singer. Her solo albums and singles are all credited to the singular name Wynonna. Wynonna first rose to fame in the 1980s alongside her mother, Naomi, in the country music duo The Judds...
, turned the role down. The Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
finally accepted, and were directed by George Meyer
George Meyer
George A. Meyer is an American producer and writer. Raised in Tucson, Arizona in a Roman Catholic family, Meyer attended Harvard University. There, after becoming president of the Harvard Lampoon, he graduated in 1978 with a degree in biochemistry. Abandoning plans to attend medical school, Meyer...
who told them to ad-lib many of their lines. The celebrity aspect of the episode was almost canceled because the producers were unable to get an obligation before the record deadline. Johnny Carson
Johnny Carson
John William "Johnny" Carson was an American television host and comedian, known as host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson for 30 years . Carson received six Emmy Awards including the Governor Award and a 1985 Peabody Award; he was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 1987...
appears in the episode, and it was one of the few televised appearances he made after he retired from The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
. He recorded his lines the night after the 44th Primetime Emmy Awards
44th Primetime Emmy Awards
The 44th Primetime Emmy Awards were held on August 30, 1992. The ceremony was broadcast on Fox, from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, Pasadena, California. It was hosted by Tim Allen, Kirstie Alley, and Dennis Miller, and directed by Walter C. Miller. Presenters included Roseanne Barr, Tom Arnold,...
. The original role pitched for Carson was one where he visited the Simpson family's house and mooched off them. Carson turned down the role, so the writers went the opposite way and made him look extremely versatile with several different talents. Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...
's condition for guest starring was that the show promoted her anti-littering campaign. Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond "Liz" Taylor, DBE was a British-American actress. From her early years as a child star with MGM, she became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age...
guest starred as herself and also recorded a part as Maggie Simpson
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...
in "Lisa's First Word
Lisa's First Word
"Lisa's First Word" is the tenth episode of The Simpsons fourth season. It was first broadcast on Fox in the United States on December 3, 1992. In the episode, as the Simpson family gathers around Maggie and tries to encourage her to say her first word, Marge reminisces and tells the story of...
" on the same day. Luke Perry
Luke Perry
Luke Perry is an American actor. Perry starred as Dylan McKay on the TV series Beverly Hills, 90210, a role he played from 1990–95, and then from 1998–2000. Much publicity was garnered over the fact that even though he was playing a sixteen-year-old when 90210 began, Perry was actually in his...
was one of the first guest stars to agree to their part.
The character known as the Old Jewish Man appears in the episode.
The short cartoon "Worker and Parasite" is a reference to Eastern European cartoons
History of Russian animation
The History of Russian animation is very rich, but is so far a nearly unexplored field for Western film theory and history. As most of Russia's production of animation for film|cinema and television was created during Soviet times, it may also be referred to as the History of Soviet...
. To produce the animation, director 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...
xerox
Xerox
Xerox Corporation is an American multinational document management corporation that produced and sells a range of color and black-and-white printers, multifunction systems, photo copiers, digital production printing presses, and related consulting services and supplies...
ed several drawings and made the animation very jerky. The scene where Krusty sings "Send in the Clowns
Send in the Clowns
"Send in the Clowns" is a song by Stephen Sondheim from the 1973 musical A Little Night Music, an adaptation of Ingmar Bergman's film Smiles of a Summer Night. It is a ballad from Act II in which the character Desirée reflects on the ironies and disappointments of her life. Among other things, she...
" was very tricky for the animators because it involves two shots of the same scene from different angles. Parts of the scene were animated by Brad Bird
Brad Bird
Phillip Bradley "Brad" Bird is an Academy Award-winning American director, voice actor, animator and screenwriter. He is best known for writing and directing Disney/Pixar's The Incredibles and Ratatouille . He also adapted and directed the critically acclaimed 2D animated 1999 Warner Brothers...
.
Cultural references
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
Judy Collins
Judy Collins
Judith Marjorie "Judy" Collins is an American singer and songwriter, known for her eclectic tastes in the material she records ; and for her social activism. She is an alumna of the University of Colorado.-Musical career:Collins was born and raised in Seattle, Washington...
Send in the Clowns
"Send in the Clowns" is a song by Stephen Sondheim from the 1973 musical A Little Night Music, an adaptation of Ingmar Bergman's film Smiles of a Summer Night. It is a ballad from Act II in which the character Desirée reflects on the ironies and disappointments of her life. Among other things, she...
" is parodied in the episode, and Krusty sings the altered lyrics: "Send in those soulful and doleful, schmaltz-by-the-bowlful clowns" in a musical number of his comeback special. Gabbo's name comes from the 1929 film The Great Gabbo
The Great Gabbo
The Great Gabbo is an American early sound film musical drama film directed by James Cruze, based on a story by Ben Hecht and starring Erich von Stroheim and Betty Compson....
. He was originally designed to be more square, but the second design was made to be "a demented Howdy Doody
Howdy Doody
Howdy Doody is an American children's television program that was created and produced by E. Roger Muir and telecast on NBC in the United States from 1947 until 1960. It was a pioneer in children's television programming and set the pattern for many similar shows...
". His voice was based on Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis is an American comedian, actor, singer, film producer, screenwriter and film director. He is best known for his slapstick humor in film, television, stage and radio. He was originally paired up with Dean Martin in 1946, forming the famed comedy team of Martin and Lewis...
. The sequence with Gabbo's song contains several references to the 1940 film Pinocchio
Pinocchio (1940 film)
Pinocchio is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the story The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. It is the second film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, and it was made after the success of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and was released to theaters by...
. Krusty mentions that he beat Joey Bishop
Joey Bishop
Joey Bishop was an American entertainer who was perhaps best known for being a member of the "Rat Pack" with Frank Sinatra, Peter Lawford, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Dean Martin...
. Bishop was an entertainer who had his own show, The Joey Bishop Show
The Joey Bishop Show (talk show)
The Joey Bishop Show is an American talk show which was first broadcast on ABC on April 17, 1967, hosted by Joey Bishop and featuring Regis Philbin in his first concentrated national television exposure, as Bishop's sidekick/announcer...
, which ran opposite of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson is a talk show hosted by Johnny Carson under the Tonight Show franchise from 1962 to 1992. It originally aired during late-night....
. Bette Midler's serenading Krusty is a reference to the way Bette sang to Johnny Carson on the penultimate episode of Carson's The Tonight Show. The scene in which Krusty instructs the Red Hot Chili Peppers to change the lyrics to the song "Give It Away" is a reference to Ed Sullivan
Ed Sullivan
Edward Vincent "Ed" Sullivan was an American entertainment writer and television host, best known as the presenter of the TV variety show The Ed Sullivan Show. The show was broadcast from 1948 to 1971 , which made it one of the longest-running variety shows in U.S...
instructing The Doors
The Doors
The Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger...
to change the lyrics to the song "Light My Fire
Light My Fire
"Light My Fire" is a song by The Doors which was recorded in August 1966 and released the first week of January 1967 on the Doors' debut album. Released as a single in April, it spent three weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and one week on the Cash Box Top 100, nearly a year after...
". The poses of the Red Hot Chili Peppers in the scene are based on the movie The Doors
The Doors (film)
The Doors is a 1991 biopic about the 1960s-1970s rock band of the same name which emphasizes the life of its lead singer, Jim Morrison. It was directed by Oliver Stone, and stars Val Kilmer as Morrison, Meg Ryan as Pamela Courson , Kyle MacLachlan as Ray Manzarek, Frank Whaley as Robby Krieger,...
. Several scenes in Krusty's special are based on Elvis Presley's '68 Comeback Special
Elvis Presley's '68 Comeback Special
Elvis, starring Elvis Presley, was the title of a 1968 United States television special. Sponsored by The Singer Sewing Machine Company, it aired on December 2, 1968 on the NBC television network...
. The musical piece that Hugh Hefner
Hugh Hefner
Hugh Marston "Hef" Hefner is an American magazine publisher, founder and Chief Creative Officer of Playboy Enterprises.-Early life:...
plays on the wine glasses is from Peter and the Wolf
Peter and the Wolf
Peter and the Wolf , Op. 67, is a composition written by Sergei Prokofiev in 1936 in the USSR. It is a children's story , spoken by a narrator accompanied by the orchestra....
and was composed by Sergei Prokofiev
Sergei Prokofiev
Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor who mastered numerous musical genres and is regarded as one of the major composers of the 20th century...
.
Reception
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...
of 12.3, equivalent to approximately 11.5 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...
.
In 2006, Bette Midler, Hugh Hefner, Johnny Carson, Luke Perry and the Red Hot Chili Peppers were listed at number four on 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...
's list of the best Simpsons guest stars. They all also appeared on AOL
AOL
AOL Inc. is an American global Internet services and media company. AOL is headquartered at 770 Broadway in New York. Founded in 1983 as Control Video Corporation, it has franchised its services to companies in several nations around the world or set up international versions of its services...
's list of their favorite 25 Simpsons guest stars. In 2007, Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair (magazine)
Vanity Fair is a magazine of pop culture, fashion, and current affairs published by Condé Nast. The present Vanity Fair has been published since 1983 and there have been editions for four European countries as well as the U.S. edition. This revived the title which had ceased publication in 1935...
named "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as the ninth best episode of The Simpsons. John Orvet felt, "This is Krusty's best episode—better than the reunion with his father, or the Bar Mitzvah episode, which won an Emmy much later on. The incorporation of guest stars as themselves is top-notch, and we get to see the really dark side of Krusty's flailing showbiz career. Hollywood, television, celebrities, and fans are all beautifully skewered here." Brien Murphy of the Abilene Reporter-News
Abilene Reporter-News
Abilene Reporter-News is a daily newspaper based in Abilene, Texas, USA. The newspaper started publishing three months after Abilene was founded by C.E. Gilbert, effective June 17, 1881. It is hence the oldest continuous business in the city....
classed "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as one of his three favorite episodes of The Simpsons, along with "Behind the Laughter
Behind the Laughter
"Behind the Laughter" is the twenty-second episode of The Simpsons eleventh season. It first aired in the United States on the Fox network on May 21, 2000. In the episode, which is a parody of the VH1 series Behind the Music, the Simpson family are portrayed as actors on a sitcom, and their...
" and "The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase
The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase
"The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase" is the twenty-fourth episode of the eighth season of The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 11, 1997. The episode centers on fictional pilot episodes of non-existent television series derived from The Simpsons, and is a...
". Though Jim Schembri of The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
put the episode among his top 10 episodes of the series, he also noted "Unfortunately, this signaled the beginning of the show's obsession with star cameos." An article in the Herald Sun
Herald Sun
The Herald Sun is a morning tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia. It is published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Limited, itself a subsidiary of News Corporation. It is available for purchase throughout Melbourne, Regional Victoria, Tasmania, the Australian Capital...
placed "Krusty Gets Kancelled" among the top 20 episodes of The Simpsons, and characterized "The sight of Krusty's feeble attempt to fight back with his own gruesome ventriloquist doll, which falls apart on his lap on air" as the highlight of the episode. In 1997, 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...
named "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as the second greatest Simpsons episode and the 66th greatest TV episode. In 2009, it was named the 24th Greatest TV Episode of All-Time.
In an article about the 2003 DVD release in The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, "Krusty Gets Kancelled" was highlighted along with episodes "When You Dish Upon a Star
When You Dish upon a Star
"When You Dish Upon a Star" is the fifth episode of The Simpsons tenth season, which was originally broadcast on November 8, 1998. When the family spend the day at Lake Springfield, Homer meets Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger, who are hiding from the media in their secluded summer home...
", "Lisa the Iconoclast
Lisa the Iconoclast
"Lisa the Iconoclast" is the sixteenth episode of The Simpsons seventh season. It originally aired on Fox in the United States on February 18, 1996. In the episode, Springfield's bicentennial approaches, and Lisa writes an essay on town founder Jebediah Springfield...
", "Dog of Death
Dog of Death
"Dog of Death" is the nineteenth episode of The Simpsons third season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 12, 1992. In the episode, Santa's Little Helper falls ill and the Simpson family must make budget cuts in order to pay for his operation...
", "Homer Badman
Homer Badman
"Homer Badman", also known as "Homer: Bad Man" is the ninth episode of The Simpsons sixth season and originally aired November 27, 1994. It was written by Greg Daniels and directed by Jeffrey Lynch. After his attempt to grab a gummy candy off of the seat of a young feminist's pants is accused for...
", and "Grampa vs. Sexual Inadequacy
Grampa vs. Sexual Inadequacy
"Grampa vs. Sexual Inadequacy" is the tenth television episode of The Simpsons sixth season. It was first broadcast on the Fox network in the United States on December 4, 1994. In the episode, Marge and Homer's sex life is struggling, but Grampa perks things up with a homemade revitalizing tonic...
". In a 2004 review of the release of The Simpsons season four on DVD, Andrew Pulver of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
highlighted episodes "Kamp Krusty
Kamp Krusty
"Kamp Krusty" is the first episode of The Simpsons fourth season, which originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on September 24, 1992. During summer vacation, the children of Springfield attend Kamp Krusty, a summer camp named after Krusty the Clown. The camp is extremely...
" and "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as part of "TV art at its peak". Mike Clark of USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
also highlighted "Kamp Krusty" and "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as better episodes of the season, along with "A Streetcar Named Marge
A Streetcar Named Marge
"A Streetcar Named Marge" is the second episode of The Simpsons fourth season. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 1, 1992. In the episode, Marge wins the role of Blanche DuBois in a musical version of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire...
" and "Lisa the Beauty Queen
Lisa the Beauty Queen
"Lisa the Beauty Queen" is the fourth episode of The Simpsons fourth season, which first aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 15, 1992. In the episode, Homer enters Lisa into a beauty pageant to boost her confidence. Lisa is runner-up, but gains the title of Little Miss...
". Jen Chaney of The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
described episodes "A Streetcar Named Marge," "Mr. Plow
Mr. Plow
"Mr. Plow" is the ninth episode of The Simpsons fourth season, which originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 19, 1992. In the episode, Homer buys a snow plow and starts a business plowing driveways. It is a huge success, and inspired by this, Barney Gumble starts a...
," "Marge vs. the Monorail
Marge vs. the Monorail
"Marge vs. the Monorail" is the twelfth episode of The Simpsonss fourth season and originally aired on January 14, 1993. The plot focuses around Springfield's purchase of a monorail from a conman, and Marge's dislike of the purchase. It was written by Conan O'Brien and directed by Rich Moore...
" and "Krusty Gets Kancelled" as "gems" of The Simpsons
Reno Gazette-Journal
The Reno Gazette-Journal is the main daily newspaper for Reno, Nevada. It came into being when the Nevada State Journal and the Reno Evening Gazette were combined in 1983...
wrote that the large number of celebrity appearances detracted from the episode, commenting: "The result is a boring hodgepodge of scenes with Bette Midler, Johnny Carson, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and more where we're supposed to laugh simply because famous people are interacting with Krusty." The episode is one of co-executive producer 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...
's three favorites, including "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show
The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show
"The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show" is the fourteenth episode of the eighth season of The Simpsons, which originally aired February 9, 1997. In the episode, The Itchy & Scratchy Show attempts to regain viewers by introducing a hip new character named Poochie, who will be voiced by Homer...
" and "A Milhouse Divided
A Milhouse Divided
"A Milhouse Divided" is the sixth episode of The Simpsons eighth season, first aired by the Fox network on December 1, 1996. Milhouse's parents Kirk and Luann get a divorce, causing Homer to examine his own marriage...
".
In 2000
2000 in television
The year 2000 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 2000.For the American TV schedule, see: 2000-01 United States network television schedule.-Event:-Debuts:-1940s:...
, the episode was released as part of a Twentieth Century Fox boxed set The Simpsons Go Hollywood, commemorating The Simpsons
Marge vs. the Monorail
"Marge vs. the Monorail" is the twelfth episode of The Simpsonss fourth season and originally aired on January 14, 1993. The plot focuses around Springfield's purchase of a monorail from a conman, and Marge's dislike of the purchase. It was written by Conan O'Brien and directed by Rich Moore...
," "A Streetcar Named Marge
A Streetcar Named Marge
"A Streetcar Named Marge" is the second episode of The Simpsons fourth season. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 1, 1992. In the episode, Marge wins the role of Blanche DuBois in a musical version of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire...
," "Who Shot Mr. Burns", Parts 1 and 2, and "Bart Gets Famous
Bart Gets Famous
"Bart Gets Famous" is the twelfth episode of The Simpsons fifth season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 3, 1994. In the episode, Bart gets a job as Krusty the Clown's production assistant. However, he soon becomes sick of the job and comes close to quitting....
". The episode was included in a 2003 release of The Simpsons Classics on DVD by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment is the home video distribution arm of the 20th Century Fox film studio. It was established in 1976 as Magnetic Video Corporation, and later as 20th Century Fox Video, CBS/Fox Video and FoxVideo, Inc....
.