Bart Carny
Encyclopedia
"Bart Carny" is the twelfth episode of The Simpsons
' ninth season
and originally aired on the Fox
network on January 11, 1998. Homer and Bart start working at a carnival and befriend a father and son duo named Cooder and Spud. It was written by John Swartzwelder
, directed by Mark Kirkland
and guest stars Jim Varney
as Cooder the carny
.
unsuccessfully tries to get the kids to clean up the backyard, Homer
runs into the house to exclaim to the family that the carnival
is in town. After trying some rides, Bart
gets himself into trouble by crashing a display of Hitler's
limousine
into a tree. Trying to repay the loss, Bart and Homer
become carnies.
They meet up with carnies Cooder and his son, Spud. Cooder asks Homer to run his fixed game, but Homer fails to bribe Chief Wiggum (mainly because he was not deciphering Chief Wiggum's obvious hints at wanting a bribe), and Cooder's game is shut down. Feeling guilty, Homer invites Cooder and Spud to stay at the Simpson residence
, much to Marge's
dismay.
To express their gratitude, the Cooders give the Simpsons tickets on a glass-bottom boat ride. When the Simpsons return, they find that the locks have been changed, the windows are all boarded up and the Simpsons' name is crossed off the mailbox and replaced by "The Cooders". The Cooders have tricked them and taken their house. After Chief Wiggum ignores Homer's pleas for help, the family is forced to take up residence in Bart's treehouse
.
Homer proposes to Cooder, that if he can throw a hula hoop
onto the chimney
, they get their house back. If he misses, he will sign the deed over to Cooder. Cooder agrees and steps onto the lawn to watch Homer's attempt. Homer stretches and warms up, as if about to throw, but instead he and his family suddenly rush into the house, leaving Cooder and Spud dumbfounded in the street. Homer has outwitted the Cooders and the Simpsons have their house back. However, Homer begins to feel sorry again, until Marge reminds him that the carnies ruined the ass groove in his couch which Homer immediately sets about remedying.
, the showrunner of seasons five
and six
and co-writer and the executive producer of two episodes in the ninth season
. Spud's head shape is modeled after Bart's head. The "fisheye effect
", when Cooder is looking through the peep hole was drawn by hand, not optically by assistant director Matthew Nastuk
. Matt Groening said they had several endings worked out, including one where Homer made the hula hoop
over the chimney.
. When Homer and Bart talk through their teeth, while holding the chickens, it is a reference to Bob Hope
and Bing Crosby
movies. Some of the prizes for the ring toss game are a Def Leppard
mirror, a Rubik's Cube
and a Magic 8-Ball
. The song being played, at the end when Homer fixes his "ass groove" is "Groove Me
" by King Floyd
.
of 11.9, equivalent to approximately 11.7 million viewing households. It was tied with King of the Hill
as the second highest-rated show on the Fox network that week, following The X-Files
.
The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, called it "one of the most dismally unfunny episodes ever, lifted only by the brief appearance of a talking camel and Homer's clever way of getting Cooder and Spud out of his home. Whereas most of the series' politically incorrect moments are funny and well-observed, this episode seems to be saying that fairground folk and travelers really are deeply unpleasant criminals who are both irredeemable and unworthy of help. Nasty-taste-in-the-mouth time." Despite the negative review from I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Isaac Mitchell-Frey of the Herald Sun
described the episode as "brilliant", and highlighted it along with episodes "The Trouble with Trillions
" and "The Joy of Sect
" and it has been described by the other Simpsons writers in the DVD audio commentary as "criminally underrated".
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 9)
The Simpsons ninth season originally aired between September 1997 and May 1998, beginning on Sunday, September 21, 1997 with "The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson". The show runner for the ninth production season was Mike Scully...
and originally aired on the Fox
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...
network on January 11, 1998. Homer and Bart start working at a carnival and befriend a father and son duo named Cooder and Spud. It was written by John Swartzwelder
John Swartzwelder
John Swartzwelder is an American comedy writer and novelist, best known for his work on the animated television series The Simpsons, as well as a number of novels. He is credited with writing the largest number of Simpsons episodes by a large margin...
, directed by Mark Kirkland
Mark Kirkland
Mark Kirkland is an American director. He has directed 69 episodes, from 1990-present, of The Simpsons, more than any other person.-Career:...
and guest stars Jim Varney
Jim Varney
James Albert "Jim" Varney, Jr. was an American stand-up comedian, actor, musician, writer, voice artist, and comedian, best known for his role as Ernest P...
as Cooder the carny
Carny
Carny or carnie is a slang term used in North America and, along with showie, in Australia for a carnival employee, as well as the language they employ...
.
Plot
When MargeMarge Simpson
Marjorie "Marge" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the eponymous family. She is voiced by actress Julie Kavner and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
unsuccessfully tries to get the kids to clean up the backyard, 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...
runs into the house to exclaim to the family that the carnival
Carnival
Carnaval is a festive season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February. Carnaval typically involves a public celebration or parade combining some elements of a circus, mask and public street party...
is in town. After trying some rides, 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...
gets himself into trouble by crashing a display of Hitler's
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...
limousine
Limousine
A limousine is a luxury sedan or saloon car, especially one with a lengthened wheelbase or driven by a chauffeur. The chassis of a limousine may have been extended by the manufacturer or by an independent coachbuilder. These are called "stretch" limousines and are traditionally black or white....
into a tree. Trying to repay the loss, Bart 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...
become carnies.
They meet up with carnies Cooder and his son, Spud. Cooder asks Homer to run his fixed game, but Homer fails to bribe Chief Wiggum (mainly because he was not deciphering Chief Wiggum's obvious hints at wanting a bribe), and Cooder's game is shut down. Feeling guilty, Homer invites Cooder and Spud to stay at the Simpson residence
742 Evergreen Terrace
742 Evergreen Terrace is the fictional street address in Springfield of the Simpson family home in the animated television series, The Simpsons and in the feature film The Simpsons Movie. In the series the house is currently owned by Homer Simpson...
, much to Marge's
Marge Simpson
Marjorie "Marge" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the eponymous family. She is voiced by actress Julie Kavner and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
dismay.
To express their gratitude, the Cooders give the Simpsons tickets on a glass-bottom boat ride. When the Simpsons return, they find that the locks have been changed, the windows are all boarded up and the Simpsons' name is crossed off the mailbox and replaced by "The Cooders". The Cooders have tricked them and taken their house. After Chief Wiggum ignores Homer's pleas for help, the family is forced to take up residence in Bart's treehouse
Treehouse
A treehouse, tree house, or treefort is a habitable structure built in trees. "Treehouse" may also refer to:*Tree House, Crawley, a listed 14th-century building in Crawley, West Sussex, United Kingdom; originally the manor house....
.
Homer proposes to Cooder, that if he can throw a hula hoop
Hula hoop
A hula hoop is a toy hoop that is twirled around the waist, limbs or neck.Although the exact origins of hula hoops are unknown, children and adults around the world have played with hoops, twirling, rolling and throwing them throughout history...
onto the chimney
Chimney
A chimney is a structure for venting hot flue gases or smoke from a boiler, stove, furnace or fireplace to the outside atmosphere. Chimneys are typically vertical, or as near as possible to vertical, to ensure that the gases flow smoothly, drawing air into the combustion in what is known as the...
, they get their house back. If he misses, he will sign the deed over to Cooder. Cooder agrees and steps onto the lawn to watch Homer's attempt. Homer stretches and warms up, as if about to throw, but instead he and his family suddenly rush into the house, leaving Cooder and Spud dumbfounded in the street. Homer has outwitted the Cooders and the Simpsons have their house back. However, Homer begins to feel sorry again, until Marge reminds him that the carnies ruined the ass groove in his couch which Homer immediately sets about remedying.
Production
The carnival in this episode is based on the The Eastern States Exposition (currently known as The Big E) fair. As a child, Mike Scully went to the fair, and had hoped one day to be a carny. He thought carnies were the coolest people. This is the only episode that Mark Kirkland did not tell his parents to watch. This is due to Bart's line "Out of my way, I'm Hitler". Kirkland's stepfather was a lieutenant in World War II and was injured while in combat. Cooder was modeled after David MirkinDavid 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...
, the showrunner of seasons five
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...
and six
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...
and co-writer and the executive producer of two episodes in the ninth season
The Simpsons (season 9)
The Simpsons ninth season originally aired between September 1997 and May 1998, beginning on Sunday, September 21, 1997 with "The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson". The show runner for the ninth production season was Mike Scully...
. Spud's head shape is modeled after Bart's head. The "fisheye effect
Fisheye lens
In photography, a fisheye lens is a wide-angle lens that takes in a broad, panoramic and hemispherical image. Originally developed for use in meteorology to study cloud formation and called "whole-sky lenses", fisheye lenses quickly became popular in general photography for their unique, distorted...
", when Cooder is looking through the peep hole was drawn by hand, not optically by assistant director Matthew Nastuk
Matthew Nastuk
Matthew Nastuk is an animation director on The Simpsons. He started directing during the tenth season, and has since directed over a dozen episodes and continues to direct today.-Season Ten:...
. Matt Groening said they had several endings worked out, including one where Homer made the hula hoop
Hula hoop
A hula hoop is a toy hoop that is twirled around the waist, limbs or neck.Although the exact origins of hula hoops are unknown, children and adults around the world have played with hoops, twirling, rolling and throwing them throughout history...
over the chimney.
Cultural references
The title of the episode is a reference to actor Art CarneyArt Carney
Arthur William Matthew “Art” Carney was an American actor in film, stage, television and radio. He is best known for playing Ed Norton, opposite Jackie Gleason's Ralph Kramden in the situation comedy The Honeymooners....
. When Homer and Bart talk through their teeth, while holding the chickens, it is a reference to Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
and Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
movies. Some of the prizes for the ring toss game are a Def Leppard
Def Leppard
Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1977 in Sheffield as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. Since 1992, the band have consisted of Joe Elliott , Rick Savage , Rick Allen , Phil Collen , and Vivian Campbell...
mirror, a Rubik's Cube
Rubik's Cube
Rubik's Cube is a 3-D mechanical puzzle invented in 1974 by Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture Ernő Rubik.Originally called the "Magic Cube", the puzzle was licensed by Rubik to be sold by Ideal Toy Corp. in 1980 and won the German Game of the Year special award for Best Puzzle that...
and a Magic 8-Ball
Magic 8-ball
The Magic 8 Ball is a toy used for fortune-telling or seeking advice, manufactured by Mattel.-Origin:While Magic 8-Ball did not exist in its current form until 1950, the functional component was invented by Albert C. Carter, who was inspired by a "spirit writing" device used by his mother, Mary, a...
. The song being played, at the end when Homer fixes his "ass groove" is "Groove Me
Groove Me
"Groove Me" is a song recorded by R&B singer King Floyd. Released from his eponymous album in late 1970, it was a crossover hit, spending four non-consecutive weeks at number-one on Billboard soul chart and peaking at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100....
" by King Floyd
King Floyd
King Floyd was a New Orleans soul singer and songwriter, best known for his Top 10 hit from 1970, "Groove Me".-Early career:...
.
Reception
In its original broadcast, "Bart Carny" finished 13th in ratings for the week of January 5-11, 1998, with a Nielsen ratingNielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
of 11.9, equivalent to approximately 11.7 million viewing households. It was tied with King of the Hill
King of the Hill
King of the Hill is an American animated dramedy series created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels, that ran from January 12, 1997, to May 6, 2010, on Fox network. It centers on the Hills, a working-class Methodist family in the fictional small town of Arlen, Texas...
as the second highest-rated show on the Fox network that week, following The X-Files
The X-Files
The X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...
.
The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, called it "one of the most dismally unfunny episodes ever, lifted only by the brief appearance of a talking camel and Homer's clever way of getting Cooder and Spud out of his home. Whereas most of the series' politically incorrect moments are funny and well-observed, this episode seems to be saying that fairground folk and travelers really are deeply unpleasant criminals who are both irredeemable and unworthy of help. Nasty-taste-in-the-mouth time." Despite the negative review from I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Isaac Mitchell-Frey of 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...
described the episode as "brilliant", and highlighted it along with episodes "The Trouble with Trillions
The Trouble with Trillions
"The Trouble with Trillions" is the twentieth episode of the ninth season of the animated television series The Simpsons, which originally aired April 5, 1998. It was written by Ian Maxtone-Graham and directed by Swinton O. Scott III...
" and "The Joy of Sect
The Joy of Sect
"The Joy of Sect" is the thirteenth episode of The Simpsons ninth season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 8, 1998. In the episode, a cult called the "Movementarians" takes over Springfield, and Homer and the rest of the Simpson family become members...
" and it has been described by the other Simpsons writers in the DVD audio commentary as "criminally underrated".
External links
- "Bart Carny" at The Simpsons.com