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Rosebud (The Simpsons)
Encyclopedia
"Rosebud" is the fourth episode of The Simpsons
' fifth season
. It first aired on the Fox network
in the United States on October 21, 1993. The episode begins by showing how on the eve of his birthday, Mr. Burns starts to miss his childhood teddy bear
Bobo. The bear ends up in the hands of Maggie Simpson
and Burns does everything in his power to get Bobo returned to him.
"Rosebud" was written by John Swartzwelder
and was the first episode to be executive produced by David Mirkin
, who was the show runner
for the fifth and sixth
seasons of the show. Directed by Wes Archer
, supervising director David Silverman
describes the episode as "one of the more challenging ones" to direct. The Ramones (Joey Ramone
, Johnny Ramone
, C. J. Ramone
and Marky Ramone
) guest star in the episode as themselves. The episode is largely a parody of the 1941
Orson Welles
film Citizen Kane
and the title references Charles Foster Kane
's dying word "Rosebud." The episode also contains references to The Wizard of Oz
, Planet of the Apes
, actor George Burns
, Charles Lindbergh
and Adolf Hitler
.
Critical reaction to "Rosebud" was largely positive and in 2003 Entertainment Weekly
placed the episode in second place on their list of the 25 best episodes of The Simpsons.
Smithers
finds Mr. Burns having a nightmare in which he constantly murmurs the name "Bobo". In a flashback, it is revealed that as a child, Burns lived with his family and cherished his teddy bear
Bobo, but he dropped it in the snow when he left to live with a "twisted, loveless billionaire
". Meanwhile, preparations for Burns' birthday are underway and Homer
is chosen to entertain the party guests with a comedy routine; however, Burns merely finds Homer's routine offensive as he moons
the crowd and angrily orders his security guards to break up the party. Afterwards, Homer is left with a cracked skull and Bart
is sent to the store to get some ice.
Burns reveals to Smithers that he misses his cherished bear Bobo and desperately wants it back but has no idea where it is. Another flashback reveals Bobo's history: after Burns drops it, the bear is washed downriver to New York where it is picked up by Charles Lindbergh
and flown across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927. Upon arrival in Paris, Lindbergh tosses the bear out the window, where it is caught by Adolf Hitler
. In 1945, in his Führerbunker
in Berlin
, Germany
, Hitler blames Bobo for losing World War II
and tosses him away. Bobo is seen again in 1957 onboard the USS Nautilus
headed for the North Pole
. Bobo becomes encased in a block of ice
until picked up by an ice-gathering expedition. In 1993, the bag of ice with him in it is sent to Apu
's Kwik-E-Mart
in Springfield. Bart Simpson
buys the bag of ice, finds Bobo inside and gives it to Maggie
to play with.
Mr. Burns starts looking for his bear, and Homer finally realizes that Maggie's new toy is Bobo. Homer negotiates with Burns and agrees to give it back in exchange for "a million dollars and three Hawaiian islands. The good ones, not the leper ones
." However, when Maggie refuses to give Bobo up, Homer decides to stick up for his daughter and sends Burns away. Mr. Burns is outraged and promises vengeance on Homer unless he gets his teddy bear back.
Burns' first few attempts at retrieving Bobo fail, so he instead takes over every television channel and re-routes all of the beer trucks heading to Springfield, swearing he will not return them until Bobo is given back. This causes the town to rally, wanting their TV and beer back, but even an angry mob cannot bring themselves to tear the beloved bear from a baby's arms. At last, in desperation, Burns has Smithers literally beg Homer for the bear. Homer tells Burns that it is Maggie's now, and she is the only one that can return it. Burns decides to talk to Maggie and becomes deeply depressed and asks Maggie to look after his bear. Maggie, in an act of pity, lets the desperate Burns have the bear.
The episode ends with a Planet of the Apes
scenario in one million AD, where a cyborg
Burns (his head in a jar, on a robot body) and Smithers (his head on a robotic dog's body) once again discover Bobo and run off into the sunset.
and was the first episode to be executive produced and run
by David Mirkin
. Mirkin enjoyed working on the episode so much that he spent "an enormous amount of time on post production" experimenting with various elements of the episode. Originally, the backstory for Bobo included several much darker scenes, including one where the bear was involved in the assassination
of John F. Kennedy
. The scenes were cut because the writers felt it was in bad taste. The ending of the episode was originally longer, but two segments were cut. The first saw Washington D.C. destroyed by invading Canadian troops, who found Bobo. The second featured the entire planet being over-run by giant Redwood
s and spotted owl
s.
David Silverman
describes the episode as "one of the more challenging ones" to direct.
Guest stars The Ramones were "gigantic obsessive Simpsons fans" and their characters were designed by Wes Archer
. Marky Ramone
later called their appearance "a career highlight".
Orson Welles
film Citizen Kane
. The title is a reference to Charles Foster Kane
's dying word "Rosebud", a sled that Kane had as a child; the teddy bear Bobo is a substitute for Rosebud in this episode, even down to the fact that Burns discards it in the snow when offered a new life of riches and power. The scene where he drops a snow globe
, while whispering the name of his lost toy, also parodies Kane's death scene at the start of the film. The guards outside Mr. Burns's manor chant and march similarly to the Wicked Witch of the West
's guards from the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz
. The last scene where Mr. Burns's robotic body runs off with Bobo is a reference to the film Planet of the Apes
in which herds of human
s are enslaved by humanoid apes. Burns and Smithers' attempt to steal Bobo from the Simpsons mirrors Mission: Impossible
, and their sitcom is similar to The Honeymooners
. Both Mr. Burns and Homer make references to the cancellation of the TV series The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo
. Mr Burns' brother is revealed to be comedian George Burns
, and both Charles Lindbergh
and Adolf Hitler
were once in possession of Bobo.
of 11.9. The episode was the second highest-rated show on the Fox network that week after Married... with Children
.
In 2003, Entertainment Weekly
' s placed "Rosebud" second on their top 25 The Simpsons episode list, writing that "despite being one of The Simpsons most spectacularly overstuffed episodes, "Rosebud" has plenty of heart". IGN.com
ranked The Ramones's performance as the fifteenth best guest appearance in the show's history. In 2007, Vanity Fair
named it the best episode of the show, calling it, "A perfect episode. Mr. Burns's lamentations for his childhood bear, Bobo, lead to a show-long parody of Citizen Kane. At once a satire and a tribute, the episode manages to both humanize Mr. Burns and delve deep into Homer's love for his oft-forgotten second daughter, Maggie."
In his book Planet Simpson, author Chris Turner
listed "Rosebud" as one of his five favorite episodes of The Simpsons, calling the episode "genius." He added that the Ramones gave "possibly the finest guest musical performances ever." David Silverman
and Matt Groening
describe the sequence where Homer eats 64 slices of American cheese
as "one of the most hilarious segments ever done". The episode's reference to Rosebud was named the 14th 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 5)
The Simpsons fifth season originally aired on the Fox network between September 30, 1993 and May 19, 1994. The show runner for the fifth production season was David Mirkin who executive produced 20 episodes. Al Jean and Mike Reiss executive produced the remaining two, which were both hold overs...
. 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 October 21, 1993. The episode begins by showing how on the eve of his birthday, Mr. Burns starts to miss his childhood teddy bear
Teddy bear
The teddy bear is a stuffed toy bear. They are usually stuffed with soft, white cotton and have smooth and soft fur. It is an enduring form of a stuffed animal in many countries, often serving the purpose of entertaining children. In recent times, some teddy bears have become collector's items...
Bobo. The bear ends up in the hands of 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...
and Burns does everything in his power to get Bobo returned to him.
"Rosebud" 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 executive produced by David Mirkin
David Mirkin
David Mirkin is an American feature film and television director, writer and producer. Mirkin grew up in Philadelphia and intended to become an electrical engineer, but abandoned this career path in favor of studying film at Loyola Marymount University. After graduating, he became a stand-up...
, who was the show runner
Show runner
Showrunner is a term of art originating in the United States and Canadian television industry referring to the person who is responsible for the day-to-day operation of a television seriesalthough such persons generally are credited as an executive producer...
for the fifth and sixth
The Simpsons (season 6)
The Simpsons sixth season originally aired on the Fox network between September 4, 1994 and May 21, 1995 and consists of 25 episodes. The Simpsons is an animated series about a working class family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie...
seasons of the show. Directed by 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...
, supervising 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...
describes the episode as "one of the more challenging ones" to direct. The Ramones (Joey Ramone
Joey Ramone
Joey Ramone was an American vocalist and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist in the punk rock band the Ramones. Joey Ramone's image, voice and tenure as frontman of the Ramones made him a countercultural icon.-Early life:Joey Ramone was born Jeffry Hyman to parents Noel and Charlotte Hyman...
, Johnny Ramone
Johnny Ramone
John William Cummings , better known by his stage name Johnny Ramone, was an American guitarist and songwriter, best known for being the guitarist for the punk rock band the Ramones. He was a founding member of the band, and remained a member throughout the band's entire career...
, C. J. Ramone
C. J. Ramone
Christopher Joseph Ward , better known as C. J. Ramone, is an American musician best known as working as the bassist of punk rock group Ramones from 1989 to 1996.-Background:...
and Marky Ramone
Marky Ramone
Marky Ramone is an American musician. He is best known for being the drummer for the Ramones, but has also played in other notable bands like Dust, Wayne County and the Backstreet Boys, Richard Hell & The Voidoids, and the Misfits.Although he is not the original drummer , Marky is the only living...
) guest star in the episode as themselves. The episode is largely a parody of the 1941
1941 in film
The year 1941 in film involved some significant events.-Events:Citizen Kane, consistently rated as one of the greatest films of all time, was released in 1941.-Top grossing films :-Academy Awards:...
Orson Welles
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
film Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film, directed by and starring Orson Welles. Many critics consider it the greatest American film of all time, especially for its innovative cinematography, music and narrative structure. Citizen Kane was Welles' first feature film...
and the title references Charles Foster Kane
Charles Foster Kane
Charles Foster Kane is a fictional character and the subject of Orson Welles' 1941 film Citizen Kane. Welles played Kane , with Buddy Swan playing Kane as a child...
's dying word "Rosebud." The episode also contains references to The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
, Planet of the Apes
Planet of the Apes (1968 film)
Planet of the Apes is a 1968 American science fiction film directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, based on the 1963 French novel La Planète des singes by Pierre Boulle. The film stars Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans, James Whitmore, James Daly and Linda Harrison...
, actor George Burns
George Burns
George Burns , born Nathan Birnbaum, was an American comedian, actor, and writer.He was one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, film, radio, television and movies, with and without his wife, Gracie Allen. His arched eyebrow and cigar smoke punctuation became...
, Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
and Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
.
Critical reaction to "Rosebud" was largely positive and in 2003 Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
placed the episode in second place on their list of the 25 best episodes of The Simpsons.
Plot
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...
finds Mr. Burns having a nightmare in which he constantly murmurs the name "Bobo". In a flashback, it is revealed that as a child, Burns lived with his family and cherished his teddy bear
Teddy bear
The teddy bear is a stuffed toy bear. They are usually stuffed with soft, white cotton and have smooth and soft fur. It is an enduring form of a stuffed animal in many countries, often serving the purpose of entertaining children. In recent times, some teddy bears have become collector's items...
Bobo, but he dropped it in the snow when he left to live with a "twisted, loveless billionaire
Billionaire
A billionaire, in countries that use the short scale number naming system, is a person who has a net worth of at least one billion units of a given currency, usually the United States dollar, Euro, or Pound sterling. Forbes magazine updates a complete list of U.S. dollar billionaires around the...
". Meanwhile, preparations for Burns' birthday are underway and 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...
is chosen to entertain the party guests with a comedy routine; however, Burns merely finds Homer's routine offensive as he moons
Mooning
Mooning is the act of displaying one's bare buttocks by removing clothing, e.g., by lowering the backside of one's trousers and underpants, usually bending over, whether also exposing the genitals or not...
the crowd and angrily orders his security guards to break up the party. Afterwards, Homer is left with a cracked skull 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...
is sent to the store to get some ice.
Burns reveals to Smithers that he misses his cherished bear Bobo and desperately wants it back but has no idea where it is. Another flashback reveals Bobo's history: after Burns drops it, the bear is washed downriver to New York where it is picked up by Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
and flown across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927. Upon arrival in Paris, Lindbergh tosses the bear out the window, where it is caught by Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
. In 1945, in his Führerbunker
Führerbunker
The Führerbunker was located beneath Hitler's New Reich Chancellery in Berlin, Germany. It was part of a subterranean bunker complex which was constructed in two major phases, one part in 1936 and the other in 1943...
in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Hitler blames Bobo for losing World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and tosses him away. Bobo is seen again in 1957 onboard the USS Nautilus
USS Nautilus (SSN-571)
USS Nautilus is the world's first operational nuclear-powered submarine. She was the first vessel to complete a submerged transit beneath the North Pole on August 3, 1958...
headed for the North Pole
North Pole
The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as the point in the northern hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface...
. Bobo becomes encased in a block of ice
Ice
Ice is water frozen into the solid state. Usually ice is the phase known as ice Ih, which is the most abundant of the varying solid phases on the Earth's surface. It can appear transparent or opaque bluish-white color, depending on the presence of impurities or air inclusions...
until picked up by an ice-gathering expedition. In 1993, the bag of ice with him in it is sent to Apu
Apu Nahasapeemapetilon
Apu Nahasapeemapetilon is a character in the animated television series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Hank Azaria and first appeared in the episode "The Telltale Head". Apu is the proprietor of the Kwik-E-Mart, a popular convenience store in Springfield, and a friend of Homer Simpson. He is also...
's Kwik-E-Mart
Kwik-E-Mart
The Kwik-E-Mart is a fictional chain of convenience stores in the animated television series The Simpsons. It is a parody of American convenience store chains, such as 7-Eleven and Circle K, and represents many myths and stereotypes of them. It is notorious for its high prices and the poor quality...
in Springfield. 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...
buys the bag of ice, finds Bobo inside and gives it to 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...
to play with.
Mr. Burns starts looking for his bear, and Homer finally realizes that Maggie's new toy is Bobo. Homer negotiates with Burns and agrees to give it back in exchange for "a million dollars and three Hawaiian islands. The good ones, not the leper ones
Molokai
Molokai or Molokai is an island in the Hawaiian archipelago. It is 38 by 10 miles in size with a land area of , making it the fifth largest of the main Hawaiian Islands and the 27th largest island in the United States. It lies east of Oahu across the 25-mile wide Kaiwi Channel and north of...
." However, when Maggie refuses to give Bobo up, Homer decides to stick up for his daughter and sends Burns away. Mr. Burns is outraged and promises vengeance on Homer unless he gets his teddy bear back.
Burns' first few attempts at retrieving Bobo fail, so he instead takes over every television channel and re-routes all of the beer trucks heading to Springfield, swearing he will not return them until Bobo is given back. This causes the town to rally, wanting their TV and beer back, but even an angry mob cannot bring themselves to tear the beloved bear from a baby's arms. At last, in desperation, Burns has Smithers literally beg Homer for the bear. Homer tells Burns that it is Maggie's now, and she is the only one that can return it. Burns decides to talk to Maggie and becomes deeply depressed and asks Maggie to look after his bear. Maggie, in an act of pity, lets the desperate Burns have the bear.
The episode ends with a Planet of the Apes
Planet of the Apes (1968 film)
Planet of the Apes is a 1968 American science fiction film directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, based on the 1963 French novel La Planète des singes by Pierre Boulle. The film stars Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans, James Whitmore, James Daly and Linda Harrison...
scenario in one million AD, where a cyborg
Cyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
Burns (his head in a jar, on a robot body) and Smithers (his head on a robotic dog's body) once again discover Bobo and run off into the sunset.
Production
"Rosebud" was written by John SwartzwelderJohn 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 executive produced and run
Show runner
Showrunner is a term of art originating in the United States and Canadian television industry referring to the person who is responsible for the day-to-day operation of a television seriesalthough such persons generally are credited as an executive producer...
by David Mirkin
David Mirkin
David Mirkin is an American feature film and television director, writer and producer. Mirkin grew up in Philadelphia and intended to become an electrical engineer, but abandoned this career path in favor of studying film at Loyola Marymount University. After graduating, he became a stand-up...
. Mirkin enjoyed working on the episode so much that he spent "an enormous amount of time on post production" experimenting with various elements of the episode. Originally, the backstory for Bobo included several much darker scenes, including one where the bear was involved in the assassination
John F. Kennedy assassination
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the thirty-fifth President of the United States, was assassinated at 12:30 p.m. Central Standard Time on Friday, November 22, 1963, in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas...
of John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
. The scenes were cut because the writers felt it was in bad taste. The ending of the episode was originally longer, but two segments were cut. The first saw Washington D.C. destroyed by invading Canadian troops, who found Bobo. The second featured the entire planet being over-run by giant Redwood
Redwood
-Trees:Conifers* Family Cupressaceae *** Sequoia sempervirens - coast redwood**** Albino redwood*** Sequoiadendron giganteum - giant sequoia*** Metasequoia glyptostroboides - dawn redwood* Family Pinaceae...
s and spotted owl
Spotted Owl
The Spotted Owl, Strix occidentalis, is a species of true owl. It is a resident species of forests in western North America, where it nests in tree holes, old bird of prey nests, or rock crevices. Nests can be between 13 and 66 yards high and usually contain two eggs...
s.
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...
describes the episode as "one of the more challenging ones" to direct.
Guest stars The Ramones were "gigantic obsessive Simpsons fans" and their characters were designed by 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...
. Marky Ramone
Marky Ramone
Marky Ramone is an American musician. He is best known for being the drummer for the Ramones, but has also played in other notable bands like Dust, Wayne County and the Backstreet Boys, Richard Hell & The Voidoids, and the Misfits.Although he is not the original drummer , Marky is the only living...
later called their appearance "a career highlight".
Cultural references
The episode is largely a parody of the 19411941 in film
The year 1941 in film involved some significant events.-Events:Citizen Kane, consistently rated as one of the greatest films of all time, was released in 1941.-Top grossing films :-Academy Awards:...
Orson Welles
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
film Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film, directed by and starring Orson Welles. Many critics consider it the greatest American film of all time, especially for its innovative cinematography, music and narrative structure. Citizen Kane was Welles' first feature film...
. The title is a reference to Charles Foster Kane
Charles Foster Kane
Charles Foster Kane is a fictional character and the subject of Orson Welles' 1941 film Citizen Kane. Welles played Kane , with Buddy Swan playing Kane as a child...
's dying word "Rosebud", a sled that Kane had as a child; the teddy bear Bobo is a substitute for Rosebud in this episode, even down to the fact that Burns discards it in the snow when offered a new life of riches and power. The scene where he drops a snow globe
Snow globe
A snow globe is a transparent sphere, usually made of glass, enclosing a miniaturized scene of some sort, often together with a model of a landscape. The sphere also encloses the water in the globe; the water serves as the medium through which the "snow" falls. To activate the snow, the globe is...
, while whispering the name of his lost toy, also parodies Kane's death scene at the start of the film. The guards outside Mr. Burns's manor chant and march similarly to the Wicked Witch of the West
Wicked Witch of the West
The Wicked Witch of the West is a fictional character and the most significant antagonist in L. Frank Baum's children's book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz...
's guards from the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
. The last scene where Mr. Burns's robotic body runs off with Bobo is a reference to the film Planet of the Apes
Planet of the Apes (1968 film)
Planet of the Apes is a 1968 American science fiction film directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, based on the 1963 French novel La Planète des singes by Pierre Boulle. The film stars Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans, James Whitmore, James Daly and Linda Harrison...
in which herds of human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
s are enslaved by humanoid apes. Burns and Smithers' attempt to steal Bobo from the Simpsons mirrors Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible is an American television series which was created and initially produced by Bruce Geller. It chronicled the missions of a team of secret American government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force . The leader of the team was Jim Phelps, played by Peter Graves, except in...
, and their sitcom is similar to The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners is an American situation comedy television show, based on a recurring 1951–'55 sketch of the same name. It originally aired on the DuMont network's Cavalcade of Stars and subsequently on the CBS network's The Jackie Gleason Show hosted by Jackie Gleason, and filmed before a live...
. Both Mr. Burns and Homer make references to the cancellation of the TV series The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo
The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo
The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo is an American action/adventure sitcom that ran on NBC from 1979 to 1981. For its second season the show was renamed Lobo. The program aired Tuesday nights, at 8 p.m. Eastern time. The lead character, Sheriff Elroy P. Lobo, played by Claude Akins, was a spin-off...
. Mr Burns' brother is revealed to be comedian George Burns
George Burns
George Burns , born Nathan Birnbaum, was an American comedian, actor, and writer.He was one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, film, radio, television and movies, with and without his wife, Gracie Allen. His arched eyebrow and cigar smoke punctuation became...
, and both Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
and Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
were once in possession of Bobo.
Reception
In its original American broadcast, "Rosebud" finished 33rd in the ratings for the week of October 18–24, 1993. It acquired 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 11.9. The episode was the second highest-rated show on the Fox network that week after 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 2003, Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
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...
ranked The Ramones's performance as the fifteenth best guest appearance in the show's history. 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 it the best episode of the show, calling it, "A perfect episode. Mr. Burns's lamentations for his childhood bear, Bobo, lead to a show-long parody of Citizen Kane. At once a satire and a tribute, the episode manages to both humanize Mr. Burns and delve deep into Homer's love for his oft-forgotten second daughter, Maggie."
In his book Planet Simpson, author Chris Turner
Chris Turner (author)
Chris Turner is a Canadian author. He is the author of Planet Simpson: How a Cartoon Masterpiece Documented an Era and Defined a Generation, published in 2004...
listed "Rosebud" as one of his five favorite episodes of The Simpsons, calling the episode "genius." He added that the Ramones gave "possibly the finest guest musical performances ever." 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 Matt Groening
Matt Groening
Matthew Abram "Matt" Groening is an American cartoonist, screenwriter, and producer. He is the creator of the comic strip Life in Hell as well as two successful television series, The Simpsons and Futurama....
describe the sequence where Homer eats 64 slices of American cheese
American cheese
American cheese is a processed cheese. It is orange, yellow, or white in color and mild in flavor, with a medium-firm consistency, and melts easily. American cheese was originally only white, but is usually now modified to yellow. In the past it was made from a blend of cheeses, most often Colby...
as "one of the most hilarious segments ever done". The episode's reference to Rosebud was named the 14th 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
- "Rosebud" at The Simpsons.com