Salary Dispute $ettled
By Jouni Paakkinen (jouni@snpp.com) - June 6, 2008
The cast of The Simpsons has reached a new contract with 20th Century Fox Television.
The agreement is for four years and the six actors will earn nearly $400,000 per episode.
This main cast includes Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Harry Shearer and
Hank Azaria.
The agreement means that the work on the 20th season may continue. It is expected to have 20 episodes
which is 2-4 less than usually. Note that the four-year deal does not automatically mean that the show
will continue to its 23rd season. For now, the current contract between Gracie Films and Fox only covers the upcoming
season. A recent Newsday
blog entry
suggested that the uncertainty of the show's future might be a result of increasing production costs and
decreasing ratings.
This was not the first time when the negotiations with the cast became heated. In 1998, Fox went
as far as threathening to replace the whole cast if they held on to their demands. Voice actors expressed their
concerns in the media and even fan newsgroups. It was rumored that the other voice actors refused to negotiate with
Fox out of respect for the work of the original cast. In the end, the cast settled for $50,000 per episode with
a yearly increase instead of the $150,000 they originally demanded. Negotiations in 2004 were also
difficult.
According to Variety, as part of the new deal, voice actor Dan Castellaneta also becomes a
consulting producer and writer. He has previously written four Simpsons episodes with his wife, Deb Lacusta.
Going to Krustyland
By Jouni Paakkinen (jouni@snpp.com) - April 16, 2008
Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida and Hollywood, California are almost ready to open their
long-awaited Simpsons Rides. Transforming the old "Back to the Future" rides
to the new Simpsons theme has reportedly cost a whopping $30 – 40 million in both attractions.
Universal Studios has released very little preliminary information about the ride, but according
to Los Angeles Times, it starts with a Krustyland carnival pre-show and then utilizes the old simulator ride concept
from the former ride – with some new twists, of course. It features new ride vehicles, new scissor lifts,
new motion platforms, new Sony digital projectors and new 90-foot-tall domed screens. There are also some special
effects, including air and water sprays.
The ride takes about six minutes and includes all-new animation and the original voices by the
show's acclaimed voice actors. However, due to his decision not to participate, Harry Shearer and his characters
including Mr Burns and Smithers are not present on the ride. Doc Brown from the previous ride is said to make an
animated appearance. With the help of two giant domes and multiple levels, the ride can take up to nearly 2,000
visitors per hour.
The Simpsons Ride opens in Universal Orlando on May 15-16 and in Hollywood on May 17. Celebrity
guests are expected to participate in the opening festivities. The official site of the ride is available at
simpsonsride.com.
Screwballs Have Spoken
By Solon Boomer-Jenks (solon@snpp.com) - March 31, 2008
Have you ever been offended by an episode of The Simpsons so much that you felt the need
to complain to a government agency? If so, you are apparently not alone. The website
governmentattic.org has obtained a compilation of all informal complaints
about The Simpsons made from 2003 through 2007 to the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC), the US agency responsible for regulation of television broadcasts.
It will likely not come as a surprise to anyone who has followed the controversies surrounding the
show since its inception that many of the complaints are related to language used by the show's characters and the
impact of the show on children. The early misconceptions that The Simpsons is a show targeted toward children seem to
live on in some of the complaints. One complainant demands that the FCC "at lest make sure no more smut and garbage
and indecent defaming programming is shown when babies are watching television at 7 pm." Some parents wrote to express
their concern that the show impacts the behavior of children. One wrote in a complaint about both The Simpsons and
Family Guy, "These programs show disrespect to parents from their children, so in turn, my child tries to disrespect me."
Another goes further in perceived impact asking the question "...who do we turn to when these kids get pregnant and
kill 14 kids in school?" This complaint concludes demanding action by stating "Do something - or get out of the job."
Also somewhat predictably, the episode "There's Something About Marrying", which involves the
subject of homosexual marriage, generated several complaints. In the run-up to the airing of the episode, the FCC
received some demands to preemptively stop the episode from airing. On the other side, following the episode, some
felt the need to complain about the FOX network's decision to precede the episode with a "viewer discretion" advisory
(the first time FOX had done this before an episode of The Simpsons) warning of the episode's subject.
A few complaints are slightly less predictable. A military recruiter wrote a complaint in
response to the episode "G.I.D'oh" alleging unfair portrayal of recruiters and suggesting the episode
will make his or her job more difficult. Advertising for the show is not immune from complaints. One radio
listener complained about an advertisement in which Homer is heard saying the word "ass". Another advertising
complaint alleges that the FOX network falsely advertised that it would show an advertisement for
The Simpsons Movie during an episode of The Simpsons. The complainant suggests that this was done as a
ploy to increase viewership of the episode and says that the FCC "MUST take action to stop companies from doing this."
Some of the complaints may appear unbelievable. One seems to allege that the FCC has censored
episodes of the children's educational program "Barney and Friends" while allowing explicit content to air
uncensored on The Simpsons. Another complains of an unidentified episode in which women wear swimsuits. "While there
were no nudity," the complainant writes, "this scene certainly was inappropriate because women should be dressed
conservatively and obey the wishes of their husbands." Is this a joke? You can judge for yourself. The compilation
of complaints is available as a 58-page PDF document.
