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126-597: The game follows the five Simpsons family members— Homer , Marge , Bart , Lisa and Maggie —who learn they are part of a video game and are given superpowers to resolve several situations. Eventually, they must save their 8-bit predecessors from Will Wright , and the creator of their video game character selves, Matt Groening . The Simpsons family travels to four scenarios in parodies of other games to collect key cards used to infiltrate their creator's mansion and ultimately to save their predecessors from destruction to reverse their generations old ban on video games. The game

252-541: A Channel 4 poll of the greatest television characters of all time. In 2007, Entertainment Weekly placed Homer ninth on their list of the "50 Greatest TV icons" and first on their 2010 list of the "Top 100 Characters of the Past Twenty Years". Homer was also the runaway winner in British polls that determined who viewers thought was the "greatest American" and which fictional character people would like to see become

378-457: A MasterCard Priceless commercial that aired during Super Bowl XXXVIII . In 2001, Kelloggs launched a brand of cereal called "Homer's Cinnamon Donut Cereal", which was available for a limited time. In June 2009, Dutch automotive navigation systems manufacturer TomTom announced that Homer would be added to its downloadable GPS voice lineup. Homer's voice, recorded by Dan Castellaneta, features several in-character comments such as "Take

504-410: A Young Artist Award for "Most Popular Mom & Dad in a TV Series". In 2005, Homer and Marge were nominated for a Teen Choice Award for "Choice TV Parental Units". Various episodes in which Homer is strongly featured have won Emmy Awards for Outstanding Animated Program , including " Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment " in 1991, " Lisa's Wedding " in 1995, " Homer's Phobia " in 1997, " Trash of

630-478: A candy-induced fantasy about a world of chocolate where he tries to catch and eat a white chocolate rabbit; upon waking up he is upset to find that it was all a dream. Meanwhile, Bart goes to the video game store and bribes the Squeaky-Voiced Teen to let him buy the new Grand Theft Scratchy game, only to have it confiscated by Marge; due to her personal stance against violent video games. While Bart mopes,

756-588: A deforestation project organised by Mr. Burns, and Marge uses her powers to influence crowds to stop the release of Grand Theft Scratchy in Springfield , although Lisa points out it is hypocritical that she used violence to stop a violent video game. During dinner, the family is euphoric with their new powers. However, it leads to an argument about what they should be doing with them. Aliens Kang and Kodos decide to strike Earth, and an alien invasion unfolds. Realizing none of their powers are strong enough to defeat

882-457: A jelly baby in some English-speaking countries. The candy is roughly 2 cm (0.8 in) long and shaped in the form of a bear . The gummy bear is one of many gummies , popular gelatin -based candies sold in a variety of shapes and colors by various brands such as Haribo . The gummy bear originated in Germany, where it is popular under the name Gummibär (gum or gummy bear), or in

1008-406: A time trial . The Simpsons Game ' s head-up display features health meters for both characters in each level, and an attack meter and special power meter for the character currently controlled by the player. The game features a two player co-op mode , which has a split screen and allows each player to control one of the two characters featured on that level. The DS version of the game

1134-408: A "pretty shallow" game that depended too much on repetitive jumping puzzles and a weak combat system. The game disappointed IGN because it did not include an online feature and it was deemed too short. The camera system was found to be problematic by both GameZone and GameSpy, who called it "a pain" and a "busted" feature; GameDaily also found it bothersome because it often got stuck. The DS version of

1260-570: A Clown ", and in 2009 for " Father Knows Worst ". However, in the case of "Today I Am a Clown", it was for voicing "various characters" and not solely for Homer. In 2010 , Castellaneta received a fifth Emmy nomination for voicing Homer and Grampa in the episode " Thursdays with Abie ". In 1993, Castellaneta was given a special Annie Award , "Outstanding Individual Achievement in the Field of Animation", for his work as Homer on The Simpsons . In 2004, Castellaneta and Julie Kavner (the voice of Marge) won

1386-599: A cartoon. ... Episodes that once would have ended with Homer and Marge bicycling into the sunset ... now end with Homer blowing a tranquilizer dart into Marge's neck ." Fans have dubbed this incarnation of the character "Jerkass Homer". At voice recording sessions, Castellaneta has rejected material written in the script that portrayed Homer as being too mean. He believes that Homer is "boorish and unthinking, but he'd never be mean on purpose." When editing The Simpsons Movie , several scenes were changed to make Homer more sympathetic. The writers have depicted Homer with

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1512-603: A chapter analyzing Homer's character from the perspective of Aristotelian virtue ethics . Raja Halwani writes that Homer's "love of life" is an admirable character trait, "for many people are tempted to see in Homer nothing but buffoonery and immorality. ... He is not politically correct , he is more than happy to judge others, and he certainly does not seem to be obsessed with his health. These qualities might not make Homer an admirable person , but they do make him admirable in some ways, and, more importantly, makes us crave him and

1638-419: A declining intelligence over the years; they explain this was not done intentionally, but it was necessary to top previous jokes. For example, in " When You Dish Upon a Star ", ( season 10 , 1998) the writers included a scene where Homer admits that he cannot read. The writers debated including this plot twist because it would contradict previous scenes in which Homer does read, but eventually they decided to keep

1764-424: A good father, but he never gives up trying, and in some basic and important sense that makes him a good father." The Sunday Times remarked "Homer is good because, above all, he is capable of great love. When the chips are down, he always does the right thing by his children—he is never unfaithful in spite of several opportunities." Homer Simpson is one of the most popular and influential television characters by

1890-450: A little bit. My father was an athletic, creative, intelligent filmmaker and writer, and the only thing he had in common with Homer was a love of donuts." Although Groening has stated in several interviews that Homer was named after his father, he also claimed in several 1990 interviews that a character called Homer Simpson in the 1939 Nathanael West novel The Day of the Locust as well as in

2016-628: A parody of Grand Theft Auto , was asked to be taken down by an employee of Rockstar Games , the company that develops the Grand Theft Auto series of video games. Several companies, however, embraced the game's parody of their video games, including developers from Harmonix , who were pleased with the game's "Sitar Hero", a parody of Harmonix's Guitar Hero video game. In addition to game parodies, The Simpsons Game also features several cameos with satirical spins, including Matt Groening as himself and Will Wright as an antagonist. The graphics for

2142-482: A particularly appealing game for diehard fans. Despite the few problems that the game had, GameSpy said that it was worth it to see the humorous parodies. Eurogamer 's Tom Bramwell, however, believed that the game's humor could only carry it so far, and suggested that those interested in The Simpsons humor should purchase a box set of one of the television series' seasons instead. Joe Juba of Game Informer called

2268-452: A pointless endeavor. Electronic Arts planned to develop a sequel to the game, entitled The Simpsons Game 2 , but was cancelled in 2011 because the studio decided to make room for other projects. Homer Simpson Homer Jay Simpson is the protagonist of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons . He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared, along with the rest of

2394-503: A poor relationship with his father Abraham "Grampa" Simpson , whom he placed in a nursing home as soon as he could while the Simpson family often do their best to avoid unnecessary contact with Grampa, Homer has shown feelings of love for his father from time to time. Homer is "a (happy) slave to his various appetites". He has an apparently vacuous mind, but occasionally exhibits a surprising depth of knowledge about various subjects, such as

2520-464: A range of sizes including bears that weigh several kilograms. In the United States, Haribo gummy bears are sold in five flavors: raspberry (red); orange (orange); strawberry (green); pineapple (colorless); and lemon (yellow). Trolli's bears are most often sold in five flavors in the United States, and in the same colors; however, Trolli's red bear is strawberry-flavored, while the green is lime and

2646-479: A resemblance to the cartoon character Adamsson , created by Swedish cartoonist Oscar Jacobsson in 1920. Homer's physical features are generally not used in other characters; for example, in the later seasons, no characters other than Homer, Grampa Simpson , Lenny Leonard , and Krusty the Clown have a similar beard line. When Groening originally designed Homer, he put his initials into the character's hairline and ear:

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2772-571: A softer texture and include fumaric acid or other acid ingredients to produce a sour flavor. Some manufacturers produce sour bears with a different texture based on starch instead of gelatin. Typically, starch produces a shorter (cleaner bite, less chewy) texture than does gelatin. Gummy bears ordinarily contain mostly empty calories , but recently gummy bears containing vitamin C , produced by manufacturers such as Sconza or Bear Essentials, have been marketed to parents of young children. Gummy supplements containing vitamins have also been produced in

2898-443: A specialized machine called a starch mogul . The image of the gummy bear is stamped into a tray filled with powdered starch. The hot, liquid mixture is poured into the indentations in the starch and allowed to cool overnight. Once the mixture has set, the candies can be removed from the mold and packaged. The molds are open on top, so only the bear's front is formed while the back remains flat. The original design for each type of candy

3024-626: A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame . Homer Jay Simpson is the bumbling husband of Marge, and father to Bart, Lisa and Maggie Simpson. He is the son of Mona and Abraham "Grampa" Simpson . Homer held over 188 different jobs in the first 400 episodes of The Simpsons . In most episodes, he works as the nuclear safety inspector at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant (in Sector 7-G), a position which he has held since " Homer's Odyssey ",

3150-635: A subtitle was because they felt it was a restart of "the 'Simpsons' gaming franchise [...] a big, new, fresh game that takes on video games and hilarious things of all time". The Simpsons Game was published by Electronic Arts and developed by its subsidiary, EA Redwood Shores ; the company had signed a contract for the video game rights to The Simpsons in 2005. The game's lead designer, Greg Rizzer, said that when he asked his bosses if they could parody some Electronic Arts games including Medal of Honor , they were enthusiastic about it. The Simpsons Game , which parodies video games from 30 years prior to 2007,

3276-430: A television series to receive this recognition while the show is still in production. The stamps, designed by Matt Groening, were made available for purchase on May 7, 2009. Homer has appeared, voiced by Castellaneta, in several other television shows, including the sixth season of American Idol where he opened the show; The Tonight Show with Jay Leno where he performed a special animated opening monologue for

3402-522: A third child, Maggie; while the episode " And Maggie Makes Three " suggests she is the chief reason Homer took and remains at his regular job ( season six , 1995). While Homer's thoughtless antics often upset his family, he on many occasions has also revealed himself to be a caring and loving father and husband: in " Lisa the Beauty Queen ", ( season four , 1992) he sold his cherished ride on the Duff blimp and used

3528-486: A variety of standards. USA Today cited the character as being one of the "top 25 most influential people of the past 25 years" in 2007, adding that Homer "epitomized the irony and irreverence at the core of American humor". Robert Thompson , director of Syracuse University 's Center for the Study of Popular Television, believes that "three centuries from now, English professors are going to be regarding Homer Simpson as one of

3654-519: A video game manual falls down from the sky in front of him. Reading through the manual, Bart discovers that he and the rest of his family have special powers. Bart uses his Bartman powers to stop the school bullies Jimbo , Kearney , and Dolph from robbing the Natural History Museum on the orders of Principal Skinner to use the museum exhibits for the science class, Homer uses his ability to win an eating contest , Lisa uses her powers to stop

3780-516: Is 6' (1.83 m), and his weight is between 239 and 260 lbs (108–120 kg). Naming the characters after members of his own family, Groening named Homer after his father , who himself had been named after the ancient Greek poet . Very little else of Homer's character was based on him, and to prove that the meaning behind Homer's name was not significant, Groening later named his own son Homer. According to Groening, "Homer originated with my goal to both amuse my real father, and just annoy him

3906-473: Is also accessible, called "Pet Homer", which allows players to feed, entertain, and save Homer from threats such as choking and heart attacks. The game has five playable characters: Homer, Bart, Lisa, Marge and Maggie. In the game manual, Maggie and Marge are counted as a single character, but they have different gameplay and controls. Homer is the first playable character available to the player in "The Land of Chocolate" level. His abilities involve turning into

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4032-740: Is carved into plaster by an artist, then duplicated by a machine and used to create the starch molds for the production line. Gummy bears made with bovine, porcine or piscine gelatin are not suitable for vegetarians and vegans . Those with porcine gelatin or from animals not slaughtered in either of the two contradictory ritualistic fashions do not conform to kashrut or halal dietary laws. In its factory in Turkey, Haribo produces halal bears and other sweets made with bovine gelatin. Also, some gummy bears are made with pectin or starch instead of gelatin, making them suitable for vegetarians. Large sour gummy bears are larger and flatter than regular ones, have

4158-600: Is easily enraged by Bart . Homer will often strangle Bart on impulse upon Bart angering him (and can also be seen saying one of his catchphrases, "Why you little—!") in a cartoonish manner. The first instance of Homer strangling Bart was in the short "Family Portrait". According to Groening, the rule was that Homer could only strangle Bart impulsively, never with premeditation, because doing so "seems sadistic. If we keep it that he's ruled by his impulses, then he can easily switch impulses. So, even though he impulsively wants to strangle Bart, he also gives up fairly easily." Another of

4284-464: Is fundamentally a good man and is staunchly protective of his family, especially when they need him the most. Despite the suburban blue-collar routine of his life, he has had several remarkable experiences, including going to space, climbing the tallest mountain in Springfield by himself, fighting former President George H. W. Bush , and winning a Grammy Award as a member of a barbershop quartet. In

4410-399: Is funnier. [...] Homer is launching himself headfirst into every single impulsive thought that occurs to him." Homer's behavior has changed a number of times through the run of the series. He was originally "very angry" and oppressive toward Bart, but these characteristics were toned down somewhat as his persona was further explored. In early seasons, Homer appeared concerned that his family

4536-510: Is instant gratification. And, you know, has good dog qualities, too. I think, loyalty, friendliness, and just kind of continuous optimism." Homer's influence on comedy and culture has been significant. In 2010, Entertainment Weekly named Homer "the greatest character of the last 20 years". He was placed second on TV Guide 's 2002 Top 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters, behind Bugs Bunny ; fifth on Bravo's 100 Greatest TV Characters, one of only four cartoon characters on that list; and first in

4662-430: Is kicking, and her power is the "Hand of Buddha". She can use it to flick, smash, freeze, or send lightning bolts to enemies, as well as lift certain items. Lisa's special power is playing her saxophone to attack and stun enemies. As the levels progress, Lisa can use her saxophone to turn enemies against each other. Marge is the least-playable character. Introduced in the fifth level, "Mob Rules", Marge learns her power

4788-594: Is never try", from " Burns' Heir " ( season five , 1994) as well as "Kids are the best, Apu. You can teach them to hate the things you hate. And they practically raise themselves, what with the Internet and all", from " Eight Misbehavin' " ( season 11 , 1999). Both quotes entered the dictionary in August 2007. Homer's inclusion in many Simpsons publications, toys, and other merchandise is evidence of his enduring popularity. The Homer Book , about Homer's personality and attributes,

4914-496: Is only creating new games for the money, and destroys the game engine. The Simpsons, along with several other characters from the games, escape to Springfield, where the aliens are still attacking. Lisa uses her power to create a stairway to heaven in order for the family to ask God for help. Along the way they have to defeat deceased historical figures William Shakespeare and Benjamin Franklin , and several other "recycled" enemies that

5040-523: Is overweight and bald, except for a fringe of hair around the back and sides of his head and two curling hairs on top, and his face always sports a growth of beard stubble that instantly regrows whenever he shaves. The entire Simpson family was designed so that they would be recognizable in silhouette. The family was crudely drawn because Groening had submitted basic sketches to the animators, assuming they would clean them up; instead, they just traced over his drawings. By coincidence or not, Homer's look bears

5166-450: Is overweight, and "is devoted to his stomach". His short attention span is evidenced by his impulsive decisions to engage in various hobbies and enterprises, only to "change ... his mind when things go badly". Homer often spends his evenings drinking Duff Beer at Moe's Tavern , and was shown in the episode " Duffless " ( season four , 1993) as a full-blown alcoholic . He is very envious of his neighbors, Ned Flanders and his family, and

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5292-514: Is performed by Dan Castellaneta , who voices numerous other characters, including Grampa Simpson , Krusty the Clown , Barney Gumble , Groundskeeper Willie , Mayor Quimby and Hans Moleman . Castellaneta had been part of the regular cast of The Tracey Ullman Show and had previously done some voice-over work in Chicago alongside his wife Deb Lacusta . Voices were needed for the Simpsons shorts , so

5418-457: Is provided by a member of The Dapper Dans . The Dapper Dans had recorded the singing parts for all four members of The Be Sharps. Their singing was intermixed with the normal voice actors' voices, often with a regular voice actor singing the melody and the Dapper Dans providing backup. Until 1998, Castellaneta was paid $ 30,000 per episode. During a pay dispute in 1998, Fox threatened to replace

5544-406: Is said to "let his I.Q. go". While in this state, he has ad-libbed several of Homer's least intelligent comments, such as the line "S-M-R-T; I mean, S-M-A-R-T!" from " Homer Goes to College " ( season five , 1993) which was a genuine mistake made by Castellaneta during recording. Castellaneta likes to stay in character during recording sessions, and he tries to visualize a scene so that he can give

5670-446: Is to enter areas that other characters cannot access, and she only has one attack (using her pacifier). Maggie can only be used in specific areas of the game, and turns into a friendly NPC connected to Marge out of those areas. Although they were both released during the same year and were both big names in their respective industries, The Simpsons Game has a different plot from The Simpsons Movie . The game begins with Homer having

5796-460: Is to make large crowds obey her. She can use her mob to break down obstacles, build objects, attack enemies, and repair objects. When using the "Cop Marge" power up, her strength is increased for a short period of time - but this feature is only available in the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions. Maggie is, in effect, an extension of Marge, briefly playable in air ducts and other small spaces. Her ability

5922-449: The 2007 Writers Guild of America Awards . As of January 31, 2008, four million copies of the game have been sold worldwide. Players of The Simpsons Game are able to control the Simpson family each with their own unique abilities. Two different family members are playable in each level, aside from the tutorial level, "The Land of Chocolate", in which only Homer is playable, in all of

6048-701: The Medal of Homer game. Lisa and Homer then travel to ancient Japan to defeat the evil Mr. Dirt as Milhouse and his "Sparklemon" in the Big Super Happy Fun Fun Game . Marge and Lisa then travel to Grand Theft Scratchy , eliminating all offensive material and replacing it with more family-friendly material. Once they have all four key cards, Bart and Homer infiltrate the creator's mansion. They are greeted by Matt Groening , who sends Futurama characters Bender and Dr. Zoidberg after them. The family manages to defeat them, however, Matt Groening admits that he

6174-565: The President of the United States . His relationship with Marge was included in TV Guide 's list of "The Best TV Couples of All Time". In 2022, Paste writers claimed that Homer is the second best cartoon character of all time. Dan Castellaneta has won several awards for voicing Homer, including four Primetime Emmy Awards for " Outstanding Voice-Over Performance " in 1992 for " Lisa's Pony ", 1993 for " Mr. Plow ", in 2004 for " Today I Am

6300-501: The diminutive form Gummibärchen ([little] gum or gummy bear). Gum arabic was the original base ingredient used to produce the gummy bears, hence the name gum or gummy . Hans Riegel Sr. , a confectioner from Bonn , started the Haribo company in 1920. In 1922, inspired by the trained bears seen at street festivities and markets in Europe through to the 19th century, he invented

6426-416: The fourth season , Homer increasingly became the focus. According to Matt Groening, this was because "With Homer, there's just a wider range of jokes you can do. And there are far more drastic consequences to Homer's stupidity. There's only so far you can go with a juvenile delinquent. We wanted Bart to do anything up to the point of him being tried in court as a dad. But Homer is a dad, and his boneheaded-ness

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6552-399: The season seven (1995) episode " Treehouse of Horror VI ", Homer was computer-animated into a three-dimensional character for the first time for the "Homer " segment of the episode. The computer animation directors at Pacific Data Images worked hard not to "reinvent the character". In the final minute of the segment, the 3D Homer ends up in a real world, live-action Los Angeles. The scene

6678-405: The "Homer ball" by eating food power-ups to let him roll and slam objects; turn into a Gummi Homer by eating small gummi Venus de Milos to shoot gummi grenades ; eat hot chili peppers to become Insanity Pepper Homer to use lava and fire bombs; and inhale helium to become a balloon to float in the air. Homer's special power is a giant burp, which can stun enemies. Bart first appears in

6804-571: The Bat ". Homer is an " everyman " and embodies several American stereotypes of working class blue-collar men: he is crude, overweight, incompetent, dim-witted, childish, clumsy and a borderline alcoholic. Matt Groening describes him as "completely ruled by his impulses". Dan Castellaneta calls him "a dog trapped in a man's body", adding, "He's incredibly loyal – not entirely clean – but you gotta love him." In his book Planet Simpson , author Chris Turner describes Homer as "the most American of

6930-518: The Dancing Bear ( Tanzbär ), a small, affordable, fruit-flavored gum candy treat for children and adults alike, which was much larger in form than its later successor, the Gold-Bear ( Goldbär ). Even during Weimar Germany's hyperinflation period that wreaked havoc on the country, Haribo's fruit-gum Dancing Bear treats remained affordably priced for a mere one pfennig per pair at kiosks. The success of

7056-427: The Dancing Bear's successor would later become Haribo's world-famous Gold-Bears candy product in 1967. The success of gummy bears has spawned the production of many other gummy candies made to resemble animals and other objects, such as rings, worms, frogs, snakes, hamburgers, cherries, sharks, penguins, hippos, lobsters, octopuses, apples, peaches, oranges, Ampelmännchen , Smurfs and spiders. Manufacturers offer

7182-468: The Homer Simpsons of this world." In 2008, Entertainment Weekly justified designating The Simpsons as a television classic by stating, "we all hail Simpson patriarch Homer because his joy is as palpable as his stupidity is stunning". In the season eight episode " Homer's Enemy " the writers decided to examine "what it would be like to actually work alongside Homer Simpson". The episode explores

7308-418: The Internet to discover more about the powers they have in the game, but are sent to the game engine when Homer accidentally spills beer over the keyboard. There, they discover Will Wright , who is destroying copies of an old 8-bit The Simpsons game and its characters. The family manages to save their 8-bit predecessors before they are destroyed by Wright, and discover that they will also become obsolete when

7434-548: The July 24, 2007, edition; and the 2008 fundraising television special Stand Up to Cancer where he was shown having a colonoscopy . On February 28, 1999, Homer Simpson was made an honorary member of the Junior Common Room of Worcester College, Oxford . Homer was granted the membership by the college's undergraduate body in the belief that ″he would benefit greatly from an Oxford education″. Homer has also been cited in

7560-573: The Simpson family sets out to stop the alien invasion. First, Bart and Lisa assist Captain McCallister in fighting back mind-controlled dolphins that are attacking the city's aquarium. Then, Bart and Homer defeat the Lard Lad statue which has come to life. Finally, they save the Springfield Mall and Cletus from an alien force led by Sideshow Bob . In order to find out the truth, the family turns to

7686-635: The Simpsons received their own series on Fox , which debuted on December 17, 1989. Homer is the patriarch of the Simpson family . He and his wife Marge have three children: Bart , Lisa and Maggie . As the family's provider, he works at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant as a safety inspector. Homer embodies many American working class stereotypes: he is obese, balding, immature, outspoken, aggressive, lazy, ignorant, unprofessional, and fond of beer, junk food, and television. However, he

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7812-551: The Simpsons" and believes that while the other Simpson family members could be changed to other nationalities, Homer is "pure American". In the book God in the Details: American Religion in Popular Culture , the authors comment that "Homer's progress (or lack thereof) reveals a character who can do the right thing, if accidentally or begrudgingly." The book The Simpsons and Philosophy: The D'oh! of Homer includes

7938-582: The Simpsons, in The Tracey Ullman Show short " Good Night " on April 19, 1987. Homer was created by the cartoonist Matt Groening while he was waiting in the lobby of producer James L. Brooks 's office. Groening had been called to pitch a series of shorts based on his comic strip Life in Hell but instead created a new set of characters. He named the character after his father, Homer Groening. After appearing for three seasons on The Tracey Ullman Show ,

8064-621: The Titans " in 1998, " HOMR " in 2001, " Three Gays of the Condo " in 2003 and " Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind " in 2008. In 2000, Homer and the rest of the Simpson family were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame located at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard. In 2017, Homer Simpson was celebrated by the National Baseball Hall of Fame, to honor the 25th anniversary of the episode " Homer at

8190-559: The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game. Praise focused on the game's visuals and writing, which lampooned the gaming industry and the show itself. The Simpsons Game won the award for Best Game Based on a Movie or TV Show at the Spike Video Game Awards 2007, and was nominated for the first-ever award for Best Video Game Writing at the Writers Guild of America Awards 2007 . As of January 31, 2008, four million copies of

8316-407: The alien attack, Bart and Lisa visit Professor Frink . They break into his house after noticing that he is not in. Inside, they discover a portal that sends them to a place called the game engine where all video games are made. After saving him from a giant gorilla , Frink gives them The Simpsons Game ' s player's guide to teach them how to better use their powers as well as gain new ones, and

8442-537: The annoyed grunt " D'oh! ", has been included in The New Oxford Dictionary of English since 1998 and the Oxford English Dictionary since 2001. Homer is one of the most influential characters in the history of television and is widely considered an American cultural icon . The British newspaper The Sunday Times described him as "the greatest comic creation of [modern] time". He was named

8568-432: The annoyed grunt "D'oh!", is typically uttered when he injures himself, realizes that he has done something stupid, or when something bad has happened or is about to happen to him. During the voice recording session for a Tracey Ullman Show short, Homer was required to utter what was written in the script as an "annoyed grunt". Dan Castellaneta rendered it as a drawn out "d'ooooooh". This was inspired by Jimmy Finlayson ,

8694-627: The colorless is grape. Many companies emulate either Haribo or Trolli flavor-color combinations. Health-oriented brands, which often use all-natural flavors, sometimes opt for more and different flavors. For example, the boxed bulk gummies sold by Sunflower/Newflower Markets include grape, pineapple-coconut and peach, among others. The traditional gummy bear is made from a mixture of sugar , glucose syrup , starch , flavoring , food coloring , citric acid and gelatin . However, recipes vary, such as organic candy, those suitable for vegetarians or those following religious dietary laws. Production uses

8820-457: The composition of the Supreme Court of the United States , Inca mythology , bankruptcy law, and cell biology . Homer's brief periods of intelligence are overshadowed, however, by much longer and consistent periods of ignorance, forgetfulness, and stupidity. Homer has a low IQ of 55, which would actually make him unable to speak or perform basic tasks, and has variously been attributed to

8946-452: The crayon reinserted. Homer often debates with his own mind, expressed in voiceover. His mind has a tendency to offer dubious advice, which occasionally helps him make the right decision, but often fails spectacularly. His mind has even become completely frustrated and, through sound effects, walked out on Homer. These exchanges were often introduced because they filled time and were easy for the animators to work on. They were phased out after

9072-516: The current year. Nevertheless, in several episodes, events in Homer's life have been linked to specific time periods. " Mother Simpson " ( season seven , 1995) depicts Homer's mother, Mona, as a radical who went into hiding in 1969 following a run-in with the law; " The Way We Was " ( season two , 1991) shows Homer falling in love with Marge Bouvier as a senior at Springfield High School in 1974; and " I Married Marge " ( season three , 1991) implies that Marge became pregnant with Bart in 1980. However,

9198-554: The episode " That '90s Show " ( season 19 , 2008) contradicted much of this backstory, portraying Homer and Marge as a twentysomething childless couple in the early 1990s. The episode " Do Pizza Bots Dream of Electric Guitars " ( season 32 , 2021) further contradicts this backstory, putting Homer's adolescence in the 1990s. Showrunner Matt Selman has explained that no version was the "official continuity." and that "they all kind of happened in their imaginary world, you know, and people can choose to love whichever version they love." Due to

9324-579: The eponymous 1975 movie, was the inspiration. In 2012 he clarified, "I took that name from a minor character in the novel The Day of the Locust ... Since Homer was my father's name, and I thought Simpson was a funny name in that it had the word "simp" in it, which is short for "simpleton"—I just went with it." Homer's middle initial "J", which stands for "Jay", is a "tribute" to animated characters such as Bullwinkle J. Moose and Rocket J. Squirrel from The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show , who got their middle initial from Jay Ward . Homer made his debut with

9450-477: The exception of the final level, in which enemies that have already been defeated are "recycled" with different colors . Several challenges are made available after all episodes are completed. These include finding all the collectibles for each character, finding all the video game clichés, and in the PlayStation 3 , Xbox 360 , and Nintendo DS versions, completing a certain task related to each episode's plot in

9576-409: The family had killed during previous levels of the game. After God is defeated in a game of Dance Dance Revolution , he reveals that the video game that they are in is a mini-game in another video game about Earth. He dropped the video game manual by accident, thus endowing the family with superpowers. Realizing his mistake, he promises to restore Springfield, let them keep their powers, and to improve

9702-417: The fans of the show, and was, in its own right, "a great new game". Matt Groening and the writers had continuous feedback on the game's content, from its "look and feel" to its puzzles and gameplay. The game's executive producer , Scot Amos, said it was an amazing partnership between the writers and the developers. Selman, the head writer, says the reason they decided to call it The Simpsons Game and not add

9828-401: The first half of the series, the writers developed an explanation about how he got fired from the plant and was then rehired in every episode. In later episodes, he often began a new job on impulse, without any mention of his regular employment. The Simpsons uses a floating timeline in which the characters never physically age, and, as such, the show is generally assumed to be always set in

9954-418: The floating timeline, Homer's age has changed occasionally as the series developed; he was 34 in the early episodes, 36 in season four , 38 and 39 in season eight , and 40 in the eighteenth season , although even in those seasons his age is inconsistent. In the fourth season episode " Duffless ", Homer's drivers license shows his birthdate of being May 12, 1956, which would have made him 36 years old at

10080-606: The form of gummy bears to motivate consumption by young, picky eaters. Gummy bears, and other gummy candy, stick to teeth and may cause tooth decay . However, gummy bears containing the cavity-fighting additive xylitol (wood sugar) are now being tested. Trolli has developed its "acti-line" of gummy candy that it claims will help the immune system and teeth. There has been concern that gelatin in most gummy bears may harbor prions , particularly those that cause bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in cattle and new-variant Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease in humans. Based on studies,

10206-413: The game an average experience. He elaborated that the game would appeal primarily to fans of the television series, but would not be worth playing for people unfamiliar with it. Eurogamer praised the involvement of people from The Simpsons television series with the game's development and GameZone enjoyed the two-character mechanics of the game and had fun collecting unlockable items. GameTrailers thought

10332-531: The game have been sold overall. Its PlayStation 2 and Nintendo DS releases each received a "Platinum" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA), indicating sales of at least 300,000 copies per version in the United Kingdom. ELSPA presented the game's Wii, Xbox 360 and PlayStation Portable versions with "Silver" certifications, for sales of 100,000 units or more each in

10458-482: The game's characters are cel-shaded , and an implemented technique helps flatten the character models from any angle that the camera views them from, in order to recreate the 2D, hand-drawn look seen in the show. The development team found it particularly difficult to render Lisa's spiky hair as 2D in the game's 3D environment. There is a different cover for the game on each console. The game received mixed reception, receiving an aggregated score of 71% on Metacritic for

10584-530: The game, which was significantly different from the other versions, received praise for its unique gameplay, but criticism for its short length. IGN lauded the DS version's unique gameplay experience and GameSpot proclaimed that it was satisfying from start to finish. GameSpot and GameZone, however, were both disappointed that the game was extremely brief. 1UP found that even though The Simpsons Game parodied numerous 2D platform game conventions, it used them anyway, making it

10710-414: The graphics and animations looked great and appreciated the hand-drawn appearances, even though they found it obvious that the characters were "never really meant to jump into the third dimension" because of their second-dimension roots. Criticism of the game focused on its short, uninspiring gameplay and troublesome camera system . GameSpot considered the gameplay "nothing special" while GameZone called it

10836-419: The greatest character of the last 20 years in 2010 by Entertainment Weekly and the second-greatest cartoon character by TV Guide (behind Bugs Bunny ), and was voted the greatest television character of all time by Channel 4 viewers. Castellaneta has won four Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance and a special-achievement Annie Award . In 2000, Homer and his family were awarded

10962-650: The greatest creations in human storytelling." Animation historian Jerry Beck described Homer as one of the best animated characters, saying, "you know someone like it, or you identify with (it). That's really the key to a classic character." Homer has been described by The Sunday Times as "the greatest comic creation of [modern] time". The article remarked, "every age needs its great, consoling failure, its lovable, pretension-free mediocrity. And we have ours in Homer Simpson." Despite Homer's partial embodiment of American culture, his influence has spread to other parts of

11088-419: The hairline resembled an 'M', and the right ear resembled a 'G'. Groening decided that this would be too distracting and redesigned the ear to look normal. However, he still draws the ear as a 'G' when he draws pictures of Homer for fans. The basic shape of Homer's head is described by director Mark Kirkland as a tube-shaped coffee can with a salad bowl on top. During the shorts, the animators experimented with

11214-452: The hereditary " Simpson Gene " (which eventually causes every male member of the family to become incredibly stupid), his alcohol problem, exposure to radioactive waste, repetitive cranial trauma , and a crayon lodged in the frontal lobe of his brain. In the 2001 episode " HOMR ", Homer has the crayon removed, boosting his IQ to 105; although he bonds with Lisa, his newfound capacity for understanding and reason makes him unhappy, and he has

11340-474: The joke because they found it humorous. The writers often debate how far to go in portraying Homer's stupidity; one suggested rule is that "he can never forget his own name". The comic efficacy of Homer's personality lies in his frequent bouts of bumbling stupidity, laziness and his explosive anger. He has a low intelligence level and is described by director David Silverman as "creatively brilliant in his stupidity". Homer also shows immense apathy towards work,

11466-541: The levels in which Marge appears, in which Maggie is also playable, and the final level, "Game Over", where all members of the family are playable. The game contains sixteen levels, called episodes, and each requires specific powers to complete. For example, in the fourth episode, "Lisa the Tree Hugger", the player is required to use Lisa 's "Hand of Buddha" power to move large objects, and Bart 's slingshot to shut down machines. Enemies unique to each episode are featured, with

11592-484: The money to enter Lisa in a beauty pageant so she could feel better about herself; in " Rosebud ", ( season five , 1993) he gave up his chance at wealth to allow Maggie to keep a cherished teddy bear; in " Radio Bart ", ( season three , 1992) he spearheads an attempt to dig Bart out after he had fallen down a well; in " A Milhouse Divided ", ( season eight , 1996) he arranges a surprise second wedding with Marge to make up for their unsatisfactory first ceremony; and despite

11718-542: The mustachioed Scottish actor who appeared in 33 Laurel and Hardy films. Finlayson had used the term as a minced oath to stand in for the word " Damn !" Matt Groening felt that it would better suit the timing of animation if it were spoken faster. Castellaneta then shortened it to a quickly uttered "D'oh!" The first intentional use of D'oh! occurred in the Ullman short "The Krusty the Clown Show" (1989), and its first usage in

11844-556: The next The Simpsons game is released. The only way to prevent this is to talk to the creator of the games and convince him not to destroy them. In order to access his mansion, the family needs to acquire four key cards from four upcoming Simpsons games. First, Homer and Marge defeat a two-headed dragon whose heads are those of Patty and Selma in the Neverquest game. Next, Homer and Bart travel to France during World War II to thwart Mr. Burns' plan to steal priceless French paintings, in

11970-427: The nine- to ten-hour-long recording sessions, and had to find something easier. During the second and third seasons of the half-hour show, Castellaneta "dropped the voice down" and developed it as more versatile and humorous, allowing Homer a fuller range of emotions. Castellaneta's normal speaking voice does not bear any resemblance to Homer's. To perform Homer's voice, Castellaneta lowers his chin to his chest and

12096-499: The original ideas entertained by Groening was that Homer would "always get his comeuppance or Bart had to strangle him back", but this was dropped. Homer shows no compunction about expressing his rage, and does not attempt to hide his actions from people outside the family. In " McMansion & Wife ", Homer stated that he no longer strangles Bart, as "times have changed." However, the series' executive producers later clarified that Homer Simpson still strangles Bart, writing "Homer Simpson

12222-541: The pack also adds an additional level based on the episode " The Mysterious Voyage of Homer ". Alongside the television series, Homer regularly appeared in issues of Simpsons Comics , which were published from November 29, 1993, until October 17, 2018. Homer also plays a role in The Simpsons Ride , launched in 2008 at Universal Studios Florida and Hollywood . Gummi bear Gummy bears (German: Gummibär ) are small, fruit gum candies , similar to

12348-422: The possibilities of a realistic character with a strong work ethic named Frank Grimes placed alongside Homer in a work environment. In the episode, Homer is portrayed as an everyman and the embodiment of the American spirit; however, in some scenes his negative characteristics and silliness are prominently highlighted. By the end of the episode, Grimes, a hard working and persevering "real American hero", has become

12474-462: The producers "used every possible permutation". Producer Mike Reiss said Homer was his favorite Simpsons character to write: "Homer's just a comedy writer's dream. He has everything wrong with him, every comedy trope. He's fat and bald and stupid and lazy and angry and an alcoholic. I'm pretty sure he embodies all seven deadly sins ." John Swartzwelder , who wrote 60 episodes, said he wrote Homer as if he were "a big talking dog ... One moment he's

12600-413: The producers decided to ask Castellaneta and fellow cast member Julie Kavner to voice Homer and Marge rather than hire more actors. In the shorts and first season of the half-hour show, Homer's voice is different from the majority of the series. The voice began as a loose impression of Walter Matthau , but Castellaneta could not "get enough power behind that voice", or sustain his Matthau impression for

12726-401: The proper voice to it. Despite Homer's fame, Castellaneta claims he is rarely recognized in public, "except, maybe, by a die-hard fan". " Homer's Barbershop Quartet " ( season five , 1993) is the only episode where Homer's voice was provided by someone other than Castellaneta. The episode features Homer forming a barbershop quartet called The Be Sharps; and, at some points, his singing voice

12852-497: The realization that things have turned out badly or not as planned, or that one has just said or done something foolish". In 2006, "D'oh!" was placed in sixth position on TV Land 's list of the 100 greatest television catchphrases. "D'oh!" is also included in The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations . The book includes several other quotations from Homer, including "Kids, you tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson

12978-505: The region. Peter Nowak of CBC News named it the third-best game of 2007 and described it as "easily the best game starring the wacky residents of Springfield". The game's use of The Simpsons -style humor received a mostly positive reception. Both GameSpot and GameTrailers said that the game delivered more than enough laughs to make it worth playing through at least once. It was considered enjoyable for both hardcore and casual The Simpsons fans by IGN and GameDaily , who also called it

13104-582: The rest of the Simpson family on April 19, 1987, in The Tracey Ullman Show short " Good Night ". In 1989, the shorts were adapted into The Simpsons , a half-hour series airing on the Fox Broadcasting Company . Homer and the Simpson family remained the main characters on this new show. As currently depicted in the series, Homer's everyday clothing consists of a white shirt with short sleeves and open collar, blue pants, and gray shoes. He

13230-413: The saddest man in the world, because he's just lost his job, or dropped his sandwich, or accidentally killed his family. Then, the next moment, he's the happiest man in the world, because he's just found a penny — maybe under one of his dead family members ... If you write him as a dog you'll never go wrong." Reiss felt this was insightful, saying: "Homer is just pure emotion, no long-term memory, everything

13356-457: The scientific literature, in relation to low intelligence or cognitive abilities. A 2010 study from Emory University showed that the RGS14 gene appeared to be impairing the development of cognitive abilities in mice (or, rather, that mice with a disabled RGS14 gene improved their cognitive abilities), prompting the authors to dub it the "Homer Simpson gene". Homer's main and most famous catchphrase,

13482-413: The second level of the game "Bartman Begins". He can turn into Bartman , allowing him to use zip-lines , climb certain walls, glide over long distances, and do other acrobatic feats. Bart's special power is releasing a flood of bats towards enemies. He can use his slingshot to defeat enemies and hit targets from afar. Lisa is introduced in the fourth level "Lisa the Tree Hugger". Her main attack style

13608-407: The series unless production costs were cut, Castellaneta and the other cast members accepted a 30 percent pay cut, down to just over $ 300,000 per episode. Executive producer Al Jean notes that in The Simpsons ' writing room, "everyone loves writing for Homer", and many of his adventures are based on experiences of the writers. In the early seasons of the show, Bart was the main focus. But, around

13734-411: The series was in the series premiere, " Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire ". "D'oh!" was first added to The New Oxford Dictionary of English in 1998. It is defined as an interjection "used to comment on an action perceived as foolish or stupid". In 2001, "D'oh!" was added to the Oxford English Dictionary , without the apostrophe ("Doh!"). The definition of the word is "expressing frustration at

13860-497: The shorts and earlier episodes, Castellaneta voiced Homer with a loose impression of Walter Matthau ; however, during the second and third seasons of the half-hour show, Homer's voice evolved to become more robust, to allow the expression of a fuller range of emotions. He has appeared in other media relating to The Simpsons —including video games, The Simpsons Movie , The Simpsons Ride , commercials, and comic books—and inspired an entire line of merchandise. His signature catchphrase,

13986-490: The six main voice actors with new actors, going as far as preparing for casting of new voices. However, the dispute was soon resolved and he received $ 125,000 per episode until 2004 when the voice actors demanded that they be paid $ 360,000 an episode. The issue was resolved a month later, and Castellaneta earned $ 250,000 per episode. After salary re-negotiations in 2008, the voice actors receive approximately $ 400,000 per episode. Three years later, with Fox threatening to cancel

14112-432: The third episode of the series, despite the fact that he is totally unsuitable for it. At the nuclear plant, Homer is often ignored and completely forgotten by his boss Mr. Burns , and he constantly falls asleep and neglects his duties. Matt Groening has stated that he decided to have Homer work at the power plant because of the potential for Homer to wreak severe havoc. Each of his other jobs has lasted only one episode. In

14238-497: The third right. We might find an ice cream truck! Mmm... ice cream." Homer has appeared in other media relating to The Simpsons . He has appeared in every one of The Simpsons video games , including the most recent, The Simpsons Game . Homer appears as a playable character in the toys-to-life video game Lego Dimensions , released via a "Level Pack" packaged with Homer's Car and "Taunt-o-Vision" accessories in September 2015;

14364-414: The time of the episode. During Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein 's period as showrunners, they found that as they aged, Homer seemed to become older too, so they increased his age to 38. According to The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family and Simpsons World: The Ultimate Episode Guide: Seasons 1–20 , books written by The Simpsons ' creator, Matt Groening , Homer is 36. Homer's height

14490-429: The villain; the viewer is intended to be pleased that Homer has emerged victorious. In Gilligan Unbound , author Paul Arthur Cantor states that he believes Homer's devotion to his family has added to the popularity of the character. He writes, "Homer is the distillation of pure fatherhood. ... This is why, for all his stupidity, bigotry and self-centered quality, we cannot hate Homer. He continually fails at being

14616-567: The way Homer would move his mouth when talking. At one point, his mouth would stretch out back "beyond his beardline"; but this was dropped when it got "out of control." In some early episodes, Homer's hair was rounded rather than sharply pointed because animation director Wes Archer felt it should look disheveled. Homer's hair evolved to be consistently pointed. During the first three seasons, Homer's design for some close-up shots included small lines which were meant to be eyebrows. Groening strongly disliked them and they were eventually dropped. In

14742-509: The working conditions of all video game characters. He also gives Homer three wishes. Lisa asks if God ever wonders if he himself is a character in a video game. As God nervously scoffs at this theory, it turns out that Ralph Wiggum is playing the entire game before he looks at the screen, wondering who is looking at him. The game's storyline was written by Tim Long , Matt Selman , and Matt Warburton , who are all regular writers on The Simpsons . They wanted to create something that appealed to

14868-412: The world. In 2003, Matt Groening revealed that his father, after whom Homer was named, was Canadian, and said that this made Homer himself a Canadian. The character was later made an honorary citizen of Winnipeg , Manitoba, Canada, because Homer Groening was believed to be from there, although sources say the senior Groening was actually born in the province of Saskatchewan . In 2007, an image of Homer

14994-495: Was developed separately from its console counterparts and is a side scrolling adventure. It also offers several features that are not available in the other versions. Several minigames are available to unlock and play, most which are updated versions of arcade games such as Frogger and Space Invaders , the latter which references the aliens Kang and Kodos from the Simpsons Treehouse of Horror episodes. A virtual pet

15120-451: Was directed by David Mirkin and was the first time a Simpsons character had been in the real world in the series. Because " Lisa's Wedding " ( season six , 1995) is set fifteen years in the future, Homer's design was altered to make him older in the episode. He is heavier; one of the hairs on top of his head was removed; and an extra line was placed under the eye. A similar design has been used in subsequent flashforwards . Homer's voice

15246-508: Was forced to have some of its content removed after several video game companies complained about it. Rizzer, however, was still pleased with the amount of parody in the game and considered The Simpsons the "perfect vehicle to poke fun at the games industry". At the 2007 Games Convention in Leipzig , Germany , a poster for "Grand Theft Scratchy", one of the levels in The Simpsons Game and

15372-441: Was going to make him look bad; however, in later episodes he was less anxious about how he was perceived by others. In the first several years, Homer was often portrayed as dumb yet well-meaning, but during Mike Scully 's tenure as executive producer ( seasons nine , 1997 to twelve , 2001), he became more of "a boorish, self-aggrandizing oaf". Chris Suellentrop of Slate wrote, "under Scully's tenure, The Simpsons became, well,

15498-470: Was met with mixed to positive reception from video game critics. They praised its visuals, writing, and faithfulness to the original material, while they criticized its short length and poor camera system , which did not always function properly. The Simpsons Game received the Best Game Based on a Movie or TV Show award at the 2007 Spike Video Game Awards and was nominated for Best Video Game Writing at

15624-593: Was painted next to the Cerne Abbas Giant in Dorset , England as part of a promotion for The Simpsons Movie . This caused outrage among local neopagans who performed " rain magic " to try to get it washed away. On April 9, 2009, the United States Postal Service unveiled a series of five 44-cent stamps featuring Homer and the four other members of the Simpson family. They are the first characters from

15750-671: Was released in 2004 and is commercially available. It has been described as "an entertaining little book for occasional reading" and was listed as one of "the most interesting books of 2004" by The Chattanoogan . Other merchandise includes dolls, posters, figurines, bobblehead dolls , mugs, alarm clocks, jigsaw puzzles, Chia Pets , and clothing such as slippers, T-shirts, baseball caps, and boxer shorts. Homer has appeared in commercials for Coke , 1-800-COLLECT , Burger King , Butterfinger , C.C. Lemon , Church's Chicken , Domino's Pizza , Intel , Kentucky Fried Chicken , Ramada Inn , Subway and T.G.I. Friday's . In 2004, Homer starred in

15876-565: Was unavailable for comment as he was busy strangling Bart". Homer has complex relationships with his family. As previously noted, he and Bart are the most at odds; but the two commonly share adventures and are sometimes allies, with some episodes (particularly in later seasons) showing that the pair have a strange respect for each other's cunning. Homer and Lisa have opposite personalities and he usually overlooks Lisa's talents, but when made aware of his neglect, does everything he can to help her. The show also occasionally implies Homer forgets he has

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