A Silver Lining In A Dark Cloud

hi folks and welcome to another Simpsons Sunday poast. On the birthday front, actor and comedian Bob Newhart turned 90 years old on Thursday, also my mother’s birthday. I have mentioned this in the past but I think it is worth repeating, just because I love mentioning it. There is a connection with my family with his birth date and his birth year in that, he was born in 1929 which was the same year my dad came into this world and as I have said, on my mom’s birthday on September 5. My dad was born on February 9th 1929 and had passed away on September 6th 2003, aged 74. Is it a coincidence that Bob Newhart was born on my mom’s birthday and in my dad’s birth year? Probably but when I found this out some time in the 80s, it certainly made me think of both of my parents, my mom is still with us and dad has been gone for 16 years.

Also, the voice of Marge Simpson herself, Julie Kavner turned another year older yesterday. If you want to know more about her work both inside and outside The Simsons, just use our friend Miss, Mr. and Mrs. Google. You can also find her voice on Youtube and no, she isn’t exactly using her real voice, when she does Marge. It is given extra… something and the same is true with her twin sisters Patty and Selma too. However, her voice is normal and calm, when she voiced Gloria in the episode The War Of The Simpsons, in which Homer and Marge went to a marriage retreat for counseling, along with Ned and Maude Flanders, with their own bible related marriage issues. Anyway, one of the couples at the retreat (on Catfish Lake) is an angry english man (named John) who is married to Gloria, who never cooks or cleans or does anything and this makes him angry. Gloria has an even tone of voice and never raises it, despite her husband’s yelling. In case you didn’t notice, John was also voiced by Dan Castellaneta, like Homer is but of course, with a completely different sound and demeanour then Marge’s bumbling oafish husband. I could go on about the episode but that is not the focus of this weeks post.

This week I simply want to whine about summer’s circling of the drain for 2019 in this hemisphere, to warm the other hemisphere on this planet, as well as talk about where my head was at 6 years ago, before Season 25. First, I will boohoo about the coming colder weather. I do not like the colder weather and prefer hot humid days, where I can ware less clothing and not have to dawn a jacket.

Now I feel better, even though my words can’t change the ever-moving weather patterns or the march of time. On the other side of this is the coming season of The Simpsons and I am looking forward to what this next one will bring. It’s not a continuation of last weeks post but I thought I would talk about what it is like as a fan, who does a blog like this, grasping for things to talk about during the summer, to give you a peak into where I was at 6 years ago and the past 3 years of this blog.

I’ve said this before and I will say it again, for those who are reading this blog for the first time. Sometimes, I recycle posts from another blog where I used to post my Simpsons Sunday entries and I expand them, to make them posts in this blog in their own rights. I am essentially taking from my own work and putting it here, so people reading this can see it. I don’t want to waste the good stuff which I enjoyed writing at the time so, why not? I love what I wrote back then and simply want to share it.

Now, I can talk about where my head was at in 2013, before I had joined Facebook, was on Twitter for less than a month and had no idea that I could use an app, as a platform for a blog. I was simply trying to catch up with what I had missed over the years, first with albums and eventually, with episodes. I was very lucky to get both Songs In The Key Of Springfield and Go Simpsonic With The Simpsons on CD, as they were discontinued and so far, not available on Digital or streaming services as yet… probably due to licensing. You know, it would make sense to release both albums this year, as it is the 20th anniversary of one of them. If you want to know which one, do a Google search. Anyway,I had purchased the latest album Testify, which came out in 2007 back in August 2013. I liked it but it didn’t have any of the songs from the classic period, except the opening theme. Now, I am able to listen to it as a whole with the rest of the albums with actual music from the show. Oh yeah, I can’t forget that I would purchase The Simpsons Sing The Blues and The Yellow Album on CD before Christmas that year. Later on, I would eventually purchase all 3 currently available albums from iTunes and I am still holding out hope that those 2 albums from the late 90s will be rereleased on Digital and streaming platforms, so I can enjoy Mr. Plow’s TV commercial and other classic songs from the first 9 seasons, outside the episodes they appeared in.

As for Season 25, I didn’t even try iTunes until 2014 so, I had no idea what I was missing, besides the sound affects because of a website with episode scripts, which still exists. However, I don’t wish to put a link to it here, unless there is a large demand for it from people.

Otherwise, I was on Twitter and reading Yeardley Smith’s blog at the time and tweeting when I could and when I had something I wanted to say. Is it me??? or when you have more followers on Twitter who are friends who work at an important job, you become apprehensive about being opinionated? At least, that’s the way I feel I have become on Twitter but, not on Facebook and certain magazines I have liked over the past couple of weeks. I had accumulated Twitter followers who work at important jobs such as radio stations and I felt I had to tone down my comments. Also, I didn’t like the 140 characters at the time and I don’t even like the restrictions on characters on that social media platform, which exist now either. So, Facebook has been my outlet for me to express myself, to Friends and like-minded people, depending on the topic and in the case of The Simpsons, I post all blog posts on FB and on Twitter too. However, don’t ask me about Instagram because, that’s completely foreign to me, as I cannot take good photos. Yes, there’s a photo on my Facebook profile but, it was not done by me. I am the guy in the red jacket and the black hat and other than that, I forget what else was going on, except that I was at a flea market. Anyway, I digress.

Anyway, when Season 25 rolled around I did keep up with it and of course, I had found out about and have told the story of how I found out about Marcia Wallace’s death on October 25th that year, the morning after as I woke from a nap. If you wish to know more about that, just look through the archives and you will find something I had posted in October of 2017, 4 years after she had died. She would have been 77 years old on November 1st this year and should still be with us, voicing Mrs. Krabappel and she should still be married to Ned Flanders. Hmmm!!! I wonder if the reason why Ned is Bart’s new teacher is to somehow keep both Marcia and Mrs. K’s memories alive and alive in the writers room. Anyway, The Simpsons followed me on Twitter and of course, I followed them first and had made some flattering comments about the show and its status as the greatest TV show of our time. By the way, I was followed on the night of Season 25’s Installment of Treehouse of Horror and had watched the episode some time in 2016, during my Simpsons binge that year, which was disturbed by life and priority.

Anyway, those of you who are on Twitter are reading this post there and those of you on Facebook are reading it on that platform and those of you who who aren’t, but found this blog by chance are probably reading it anyway and commenting when something comes up. That’s how I had the idea for the post about that song which is sung by Barry White, in a couple of episodes. Either way, thanks for reading and I intend to continue posting, whether they are new or recycled entries. I will finish by saying how much I am not looking forward to the fall and winter and having to layer up. Sure, Christmas is coming and that’s the only silver lining in this dark cloud for me. I guess I have to throw The Simpsons in there too so, I will add it to my silver linings list for the coming months, before the weather is nice and we can ware shorts again.

Mr. Plow: 25 Years Later

Hi folks and welcome to another Simpsons Sunday post. We unfortunately have another death in rock to mention and that is guitarist Malcolm Young of AC/DC, aged 64. Yes, his brother Angus rocked but Malcolm had the rhythm and great guitar riffs such as: Highway To Hell and Back In Black and, many other classic songs the brothers wrote for AC/DC, with both Bon Scott and Brian Johnson on lead vocals. Speaking of Highway To Hell, that song was used at the end of the season 10 episode Simpsons Bible Stories in which the family fall asleep in church and wake up alone in church. apocalypse has come and the Simpsons disended to hel, while the Flanders family ascend to heaven. There is more to it but if you have watched the episode, you know what happens visually. RIP Malcolm and thanks for the riffs.This weeks post is about the classic season 4 episode Mr. Plow, which aired exactly 25 years ago tonight. I actually first watched it about 11 years late but I’m glad I did and now have it in my iTunes collection. Anyway, let’s talk about the episode. Shall we?

A blizzard hits Springfield, so Marge calls Homer at Moe’s Tavern and tells him to come home right away. Homer drives through the snowstorm and manages to wreck both of the family cars when he rear-ends Marge’s car in the driveway. Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie are in the front door waiting for him and are shocked at what happened. Homer then lies to an insurance claims adjuster, about his whereabouts before the accident in order to cover the fact that he was coming home from a bar.

The insurance company pays the claim, and Homer goes to a car show to get a new car. A salesman talks Homer into getting a snowplough because he can afford the higher payments by doing plowing jobs on the side. Homer buys the snowplough after the salesman scares Homer into buying it by making a whipping noise with his mouth, after Homer points out that he wishes to discuss it with Marge. Homer then starts his snowplough business, thanks to a late night TV commercial it becomes an instant success. Here is the commercial in which The Simpson family participated, along with Grandpa Simpson.

(Marge) “Our driveway’s snowed in.” (Bart and Lisa) “Old Man Winter!” (Grandpa Simpson as old man winter) “That’s right. I fill your driveways with ice and snow. What are you going to do about it? Nothin’. That’s what. (Homer as Mr. Plow) “Stop!” (Bart, Lisa and Marge) “Mr. Plow!” (Homer) “Get out, you lousy season.” (Grandpa Simpson) “All right. I’m going. My head hurts. I have to lie down for a while.”

(Bart and Lisa) “Yea!” (Homer Simpson as Mr. Plow) Hello, I’m Mr. Plow. Are you tired of having your hands cut off by snow blowers and the inevitable heart attacks that come with shoveling snow?” (Bart and Lisa) “Uh-huh.” – (Mr. Plow) “Then call Klondike 5-3226. Call now and receive a free T-shirt. He could still surprise ya.”

(Lisa) “But I’m a real tightwad. Can I afford this remarkable system?” (Mr. Plow) “Absolutely. My prices are so low; you’ll think I’ve suffered brain damage.” (Bart Simpson) “You are fully bonded and licensed by the city, aren’t you, Mr. Plow?” (Mr. Plow) “Shut up, boy.”

So, remember–call Mr. Plow, that’s my name. That name again is Mr. Plow.”

In recognition of the achievement, Mayor Quimby gives Homer a key to the city. Mr. Plow, for making it possible for people to get where they’re going without resorting to public transportation or carpooling I give you the key to the city.”

Barney, who has been working at a succession of dead-end jobs, asks Homer how he can be a success, so Homer tells him to go out and be the best Barney he can be. The next day Barney has bought a bigger plow, and goes into business for himself as “The Plow King”. With Linda Ronstadt’s help, Barney creates his own ad (denouncing Mr. Plow as an alcoholic loser) and steals all of Homer’s customers. Mayor Quimby then takes back the key to the city from Homer and gives it to Barney. To get revenge, Homer tricks Barney into going on a fake plow job at the top of a mountain called Widow’s Peak.While Barney is gone up the mountain, Homer begins to plow driveways again. However, the news later reports there have been an avalanche on Widow’s Peak. Homer, feeling guilty, sets out to rescue Barney, and in the end they agree to become partners. Their claim that not even God could stop them brings about a response from God “oh no? and the melting of the snow.Later on the news Kent Brockman says the following:

“Could this record-breaking heat wave be the result of the dreaded greenhouse effect? Well, if70 degree days in the middle of winter are the price of car pollution you’ll forgive me if I keep my old Pontiac.”

With no more business, and no way to make the payments, Homer’s plow is repossessed at the end of the episode, but that doesn’t stop Marge from enjoying Homer wearing his Mr. Plow jacket to bed and Homer singing her a rendition of his Mr. Plow song, with a forecast of gettin’ it on.

For me, this episode is one of my favourites because it discusses a topic which I have always had an interest in, which is Weather. Although, I enjoy the weather because of Weather Radio and not just because of weather itself. I follow it more than most people because of my interest in it and as I said, because of the WX Radio networks in both Canada and the US.

Obviously, with the death of Adam West this past June, his dialogue in this episode he had when meeting the Simpson family, was played on the radio and tweeted and posted on social media outlets by people, including myself, Al Jean and others. This is certainly a classic episode and thankfully we can now enjoy it digitally as a part of the season 4 collection, as well as being on another iTunes collection.. sadly, Linda Ronstadt can no longer sing anymore because she has Parkinson’s disease but thankfully, we can enjoy her singing on this episode two. There have been similar episodes but this is one of the best weather related episodes I have come to love.

On the birthday front, there are 4 birthdays to talk about, for two supporting cast members and two guest stars: Joe Mantegna, Danny DeVito, Kirk Hammet and Maggie Roswell. Joe and Maggie voice reoccurring characters on The Simpsons and have their own careers outside the series.

Joe Mantegna of course, voices the mob boss in the Springfield mafia Fat Toney and or Fit Fat Toney. Fat Toney first appeared in the Season 3 episode Bart The Murderer and last appeared in the Season 22 episode Donnie Fatso, where he was killed off and replaced by his cousin Fit Toney, now known as Fit Fat Toney. Some people have said that Fat Toney may have inspired the character Tony Soprano from the TV show The Sopranos, portrayed by James Gandolfini. I think maybe that’s true in a sense but it could also be a coincidence because The two characters sound so much alike, if you pay attension to the voices. All though, Tony soprano’s voice was a bit deeper because James Gandolfini’s voice is a bit lower then Joe Mantegna’s voice. Otherwise, they sound almost alike.

Joe turned 70 on November 13th and besides The Simpsons he has a starring roll as FBI Special Agent David Rossi on the CBS show criminal minds. I used to watch it as much as I could and my favourite episode was from Season 4. It is about a serial killer portrayed by Alex O’Loughlin as Vincent, who would kill people with a knife. This includes his 24-year-old friend, which promps him to ask for help in stopping his homicidal tendencies via video tape. For the record, the episode is called the big wheel. The exception to his killing spree was a blind boy named Stanley he became close with, after murdering the boy’s Mother. She is not the first victim in the episode, though, someone else who is a realtor is. She is at work and she mistakingly refers to him as Robert.

For more about Joe Mantegna check out his website. http://joemantegna.com/ and you can also follow him on Twitter @JoeMantegna. I think there is a lot to learn about him, through both his Twitter page and other internet sources. Keep up all the great work on The Simpsons and with other TV shows and movies you are involved in and thanks for all the years of continued entertainment.

Maggie Roswell turned another year older November 14th and for her part, she voices a few recurring characters on The Simpsons. They include: Luann Van Houten, Mary Bailey, Helen Lovejoy, Elizabeth Hoover, Shary Bobbins and Maude Flanders to name a few. Of course, the last two I mentioned are deceased characters. Although Maude has reappeared in flashbacks and as her own ghost. I actually liked Maude because Maggie was able to make her sound the most normal and sweet out of all the characters she voices on The Simpsons. I guess that’s why she was chosen to be one of the supporting cast members, along with Pamela Hayden.

Let us not forget that she is also able to voice such a character as Helen Lovejoy, who is actually one of my least favorite characters of all on the show. This is because of her rather annoying way of saying the following phrase, which is her catch phrase “won’t someone please think of the children. “If you hear it once you’ll understand why I cannot stand that character. However, I don’t hold it against anybody for her existence. Like it or not, she’s important to the show and its cast of characters, as they all are to each other in Springfield.

Back to Maude flanders for a moment… I think if she was still alive she would have probably become one of the most loved characters, along with her husband at the time, Ned. I like her because she called him Nedy when other characters called him Ned. Once again, I don’t hold it against any of the Simpsons staff for killing off Maude when they did. Really, the only one who could have voiced Maude and given her her signature sound is Maggie, along with all her characters she voices.

Something else about Maude I have read and found to be untrue is that she never showed any emotion such as anger. Well, maybe she never got angry but she did show worry about Ned when he was missing in the episode In Marge We Trust. A list on the internet of the Top 15 most annoying characters, made her a part of the list along with Helen Lovejoy. The former, I can understand but the latter, no. This list also included Lisa Simpson and I disagree with that too. Unfortunately the link to the list is no longer up but I can assure you that what I just told you is true. Also, if you take out the fact that Maude was Ned Flanders’s wife she would be just a nice lady next door but that wouldn’t have been as funny. She would have just been this nice lady who Marge would get along with and Homer would longingly lust after, even in front of Marge. Maybe she would have babysat Bart Lisa and Maggie. I’m just saying it could have been a possibility too but the character has turned out fine the way she has been.

Check out Maggie’s website http://www.maggieroswell.com/. I took a brief look and I had no idea what she did outside The Simpsons and outside of her other work as an actress, before finding it on her Twitter page @MaggieRoswell. She is also a great singer and of course, she has show’n this talent off on The Simpsons especially during the first few seasons. Remember Shary Bobbins? You know? it was the episode where Homer and the kids were being especially lazy and Marge lost her hair? Okay, if that doesn’t ring a bell, it was the episode in which she shows up as the new nanny and encourages Bart and Lisa that household chores can be fun. She also changes the other citizens of Springfield to be less fat lazy and stupid, thanks to her gental nature. Albeit, but briefly.. It would be nice if she wasn’t killed at the end too and her and Groundskeeper Willie kissed and made up!

Thanks for all the work you do, inside and outside The Simpsons and keep singing. That is also one of my favourite things to do too, as most of my Twitter followers and Facebook friends know. I also like voices and imitating different Voice timbers and dialects. I wish there was a way that I could tweet out my voice on Twitter using the iPhone or any iOS device! Maybe there is but I haven’t found it yet. I’d be tweeting out my impressions of varius Simpsons characters to many people, for fun and so I could show off my own voice talents.

Also, veteran actor and director producer Danny DeVito celebrated his 72nd birthday on Friday and of course, guested as Homer’s half brother Herb Powell on Season 2’s Oh Brother, Where Are Thow? and Season 3’s Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes? Also, a brief cameo in the episode The Changing Of The Guardian

When I looked him up on Wikipedia I learned how old he is and I’m shocked. He sounds about 10 or 20 years younger than his age to me. Actually, he reminds me of a weather guy on The Weather Channel in the US. I don’t know why but he does.

Also, guitarist Kirk Hammett of metallica celebrated a birthday yesterday. The entire current lineup of Metallica guest starred in the premiere of season 18: The Mook, The Chef, The Wife And Her Homer! It really was not surprising that the band did this because they are funny and sarcastic and they don’t mind poking fun at themselves once in a while. They are touring and playing well, considering the music they play and that the guys are in their ’50s.

As usual to end each Simpsons Sunday post, I recommend checking out Chris Ladesma’s blog. He is the Music Editor for The Simpsons and has been since day 1.

Finally, Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett turned another year older yesterday. The entire current lineup of Metallica guest starred in the premiere of season 18: The Mook, The Chef, The Wife And Her Homer! It really was not surprising that the band did this because they are funny and sarcastic and they don’t mind poking fun at themselves once in a while. They are touring and playing well, considering the music they play and that the guys are in their ’50s.Well, that’s about it for this weeks Post. In the mean time, I recommend checking out my other blog, which has older posts relating to The Simpsons, along with a lot more interesting stuff about my favourite bands and other things. http://blindgordieblog.wordpress.com

Also, check out Chris Ladesma’s blog. He is the Music Editor for The Simpsons and has been since day 1.

http://simpsonsmusic500.wordpress.com/author/simpsonsmusic500/

Also, check out Yeardley Smith’s blog at http://gobbingoff.tumblr.com

Don’t forget about Marchez Vous, which is her women’s shoe designer company, which she started earlier in the decade. You can check out their website at

http://www.marchesvous.com

Additionally, for more news on The Simpsons, you can go to http://news.simpsonswiki.com/

You can also comment here or you can email me at blindgordie@gmail.com and I will reply as soon as I can to all messages I receive. If you follow me on Twitter or are my friend on Facebook you can comment directly to me that way too.

You can follow Simpsons Executive Producer Al Jean on Twitter and his Twitter handle is @AlJean.

He has ran the show since Season 13 and has ran it during Seasons 3 and 4.

Anyway,  I’ll talk to you again next Sunday.