#OnThisDay #OTD #30YearsAgo January 14, 1993, "Marge vs. the Monorail" first aired on the Fox network. Dir: @_rich_moore. Wr: @ConanOBrien. EP: @AlJean & @MikeReissWriter. Guest-starring @TheRealNimoy as himself and Phil Hartman as Lyle Lanley. #TheSimpsons
@_rich_moore @ConanOBrien @AlJean @MikeReissWriter @TheRealNimoy Conan O'Brien (pictured here at the Simpsons writers' offices in 1992) conceived the idea when he saw a billboard in Los Angeles that just had the word "Monorail" on it, with no other details or explanation.
@_rich_moore @ConanOBrien @AlJean @MikeReissWriter @TheRealNimoy Writers did not think Leonard Nimoy would accept the role, because William Shatner had previously turned the show down. Instead, @GeorgeTakei was asked to guest star, as he had previously appeared as Akira in the second season episode "One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish".
@_rich_moore @ConanOBrien @AlJean @MikeReissWriter @TheRealNimoy @GeorgeTakei After requesting several script changes, Takei declined, saying he did not want to make fun of public transportation as he was a member of the board of directors of the Southern California Rapid Transit District. As a result, the staff went to Nimoy, who accepted.
@_rich_moore @ConanOBrien @AlJean @MikeReissWriter @TheRealNimoy @GeorgeTakei Writer @Interbang1Jeff stated "[Nimoy] was just very gracious and easy to work with." Here is Nimoy talking about the show later the same year he recorded his first appearance.
@_rich_moore @ConanOBrien @AlJean @MikeReissWriter @TheRealNimoy @GeorgeTakei @Interbang1Jeff Martin called Nimoy a “good sport”, recalling when he got to recording the “cosmic ballet” line, he said, “Okay, I know how to deliver this one,” meaning, “I can be pompous and windy, just like you want me to be.”
@_rich_moore @ConanOBrien @AlJean @MikeReissWriter @TheRealNimoy @GeorgeTakei @Interbang1Jeff Here is Nimoy congratulating The Simpsons on their 100th episode in 1994. He would go on to make one more appearance on the show in Season 8's "The Springfield Files."
@_rich_moore @ConanOBrien @AlJean @MikeReissWriter @TheRealNimoy @GeorgeTakei @Interbang1Jeff Although he only appeared twice, Nimoy's performances were so fondly remembered that a memoriam card was featured at the end of Season 26's "The Princess Guide" after his death.
@_rich_moore @ConanOBrien @AlJean @MikeReissWriter @TheRealNimoy @GeorgeTakei @Interbang1Jeff Homer's monorail conductor uniform is based on uniforms of the Imperial officers in Star Wars. (FYI, the imperial officer on the left in the second image was overdubbed by an uncredited @theharryshearer)
The episode features references to The Flintstones, The Silence of the Lambs and Batman, amongst others. (video: Onikorp)
Here's Conan talking with other #TheSimpsons writers (Jeff Martin, Al Jean, Mike Reiss and @JayKogen) in 2013 about "Marge vs. the Monorail" and writing "The Monorail Song."
The song, with lyrics by Conan and music by Jeff Martin, was inspired by the song "Ya Got Trouble" from the musical The Music Man, which the general plot of the episode also stemmed from.
Conan went on to perform The Monorail Song (featuring @HankAzaria) live at "The Simpsons Take The Bowl" in 2014. (video: YanisRei on YouTube)
@HankAzaria .@VICE published a great article titled An Oral History of 'Marge vs The Monorail' in 2020, featuring new interviews with the staff that worked on it. vice.com/en/article/akd…
Syndication promo for "Marge vs. the Monorail."

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with On This Day in Simpsons History 🇺🇦

On This Day in Simpsons History 🇺🇦 Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @dailysimpsons

Oct 7, 2023
#OnThisDay #OTD #30YearsAgo October 7, 1993, "Cape Feare" (S05E02) first aired on the Fox network. Dir: @_rich_moore. Wr: @jon_vitti. EP: @AlJean & @MikeReissWriter. Guest-starring @KelseyGrammer as Sideshow Bob. #TheSimpsons 🧵
Wally Wolodarsky had seen the 1991 version of Cape Fear and pitched the idea of spoofing the film. Instead of using the spoof as only a part of the episode, which could have contained a B-story, the entire episode was devoted to this parody. Image
There were difficulties getting this episode up to the minimum length of an episode. The repeated a long couch gag from "Lisa's First Word", an Itchy & Scratchy cartoon, and a few red herrings as to who was trying to kill Bart. Even with all these, the episode still ran short.
Read 15 tweets
Sep 25, 2023
#OnThisDay #OTD September 24, 1995, "Radioactive Man" (S07E02) first aired on the Fox network. Dir: Susie Dietter. Wr: @JJSwartzwelder. EP: @DaveMirkin. Guest-starring Mickey Rooney as himself and Phil Hartman as Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz. #TheSimpsons
@JJSwartzwelder @DaveMirkin "Radioactive Man" was the first episode to be digitally colored. The duties of that task went to USAnimation, who would later work on "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular". The show would not permanently be digitally colored until Season 14.
@JJSwartzwelder @DaveMirkin Mickey Rooney guest starred as himself. @nancycartwright recalled in her autobiography My Life as a 10-Year-Old Boy that Rooney recorded his lines with the other actors. Although he was late for the session, she noted that he was "so full of pep" and very enthusiastic.
Read 8 tweets
Apr 26, 2023
#OnThisDay #OTD April 25, 1999, "The Old Man and the 'C' Student" (S10E20) first aired on the Fox network. Dir: @markk1914. Wr: @ScullyThacker. EP: @scullymike. Guest-starring Jack LaLanne as himself. #TheSimpsons
@markk1914 @ScullyThacker @scullymike This was the first Simpsons episode Julie Thacker wrote. The plot was based on a "disastrous" school program, in which students had to participate in community service to advance to the next grade. The B-story, which involved Homer selling springs, was conceived by Mike Scully. Image
@markk1914 @ScullyThacker @scullymike In a scene in the episode, Lenny gets one of Homer's springs stuck in his eye. Lenny's eye injuries have since become a running gag, and "The Old Man and the 'C' Student" "started the trend", according to Thacker. ImageImageImageImage
Read 8 tweets
Apr 25, 2023
#OnThisDay #OTD April 25, 1991, "Lisa's Substitute" (S02E19) first aired on the Fox network. Dir: @_rich_moore. Wr: @jon_vitti. EP: @canyonjim, @simonsam & Matt Groening. Guest-starring Dustin Hoffman as Mr. Bergstrom. #TheSimpsons
@_rich_moore @jon_vitti @canyonjim @simonsam This was the first episode of the show to have the opening sequence start at the driveway scene.
Mr. Bergstrom was modeled on the physical appearance of longtime Simpsons writer and producer @MikeReissWriter. ImageImage
Read 15 tweets
Apr 23, 2023
#OnThisDay #OTD April 23, 1992, "The Otto Show" (S03E22) first aired on the Fox network. Dir: Wes Archer. Wr: @Interbang1Jeff. EP: @AlJean & @MikeReissWriter. Guest-starring @MJMcKean & Christopher Guest. #TheSimpsons
@Interbang1Jeff @AlJean @MikeReissWriter @MJMcKean Otto's full name is revealed for the first time in this episode and to feature the character in a prominent role. Writers @JayKogen and Wallace Wolodarsky had originally wanted to name him Otto Mechanic, but the animators gave him the last name Mann. (This shot looks like "Mang") Image
@Interbang1Jeff @AlJean @MikeReissWriter @MJMcKean @JayKogen Otto's statement that he would prefer to be sleeping in a Dumpster brand trash container over a "Trash Co. Waste Disposal Unit" alludes to the word's status as a registered trademark for a brand of large trash containers. (Yes, "Dumpster" is a brand name.)
Read 12 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(