The Simpsons: An Uncensored, Unauthorized History

by John Ortved

Book Overview

The Simpsons is one of the most successful shows to ever run on television. From its first moment on air, the series's rich characters, subversive themes, and layered humor resounded deeply with... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0865479887
• ISBN13: 9780865479883
• Release Date: October 2009
• Publisher: Faber & Faber
• Length: 332 Pages
• Weight: 1.28 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.5" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

An opinionated but fun read

This is an unauthorized biography of "The Simpsons". It's also unedited, un-impartial, and a really fun read. In style and tone this reminds me quite a bit of Live From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live, as Told By Its Stars, Writers and Guests, although not nearly as comprehensive. For one thing, where "The Simpsons" is concerned, author John Ortved is clearly a fanboy rather than an outside investigator. Nothing wrong with his being a fanboy, of course: the front cover of the book is a takeoff of the ever-rotating Bart Simpson chalkboard gag from the show's opening credits, so you know this book is kind of tongue-in-cheeck. Ortved does not pretend to be anything less than a fan, and as such (like Comic Book Guy), he's clearly giving us his own agenda rather than some Platonic truth. He defines his own personal "golden age" of the show, demarcates the moments when the show ceased to engage him (Season 8), and gets several of the show writers from that golden age to admit they neither watch nor like the show anymore. This is then a history of the early years only, winding up sometime in 1998. The earliest chapters, describing the show's genesis, are perhaps the most interesting: I don't think this material has all been assembled into a coherent narrative form before. Matt Groening is the subject of the first chapter, and Ortved gives him due deference as one of the show's fathers. However, Ortved also goes back and gives equal time to the other two who "created" the show: writer/producer/Hollywood mogul James L. Brooks, and veteran TV scribe & show-runner Sam Simon. The media spent a lot of time painting Groening as the front man (and sole creative vision), and Groening gets some heat for not sharing the credit. Similarly there's a brief history of the creation of the FOX Network in the late '80s, setting the stage for just how "The Simpsons" managed to become an upstart hit in an otherwise starchy TV landscape. While Ortved sprinkles the book liberally with opinions about which episodes of the show are praiseworthy, and why the show deserves such scorn today, he's also writing an oral history and as such does a good job assembling a lineup of behind-the-scene figures, "Simpsons" guest stars, and scholarly observers. There are interviews with people who were there during the pre-"Simpsons" years: Art Spiegelman sheds some light on Groening's early years as an underground cartoonist, and many early FOX TV executives describe what it was like to start up a network. We hear from a lot of the original show writers (including a lot of material from Conan O'Brien); observations from noteable guest voices like Steven Tyler and Stan Lee and Tom Wolfe; and analysis from others who have built on the success of "The Simpsons", such as Matt Stone of "South Park" and Seth MacFarlane of "Family Guy" (and every other Sunday night FOX animated program). There is sloppy copy-editing, and the transition between impartial his

Great insight to The Simpsons

I am a huge fan of The Simpsons, and I was very impressed with the book. Getting an in-depth look behind the scenes of the beginning of the show, the writing, all the great minds that were behind the show, and the eventual loss of some key people that greatly hurt the show. Now, there are some things that Simpsons fan will know (James Brooks and Sam Simon were a huge part of the show, Groening was a great merchandiser, not so much on the writing side, etc.), but there was still enough to keep a big fan like me interested, and into the book. Overall, a good read, and even for a big fan like myself, there is still enough info that I felt gave me a better idea about the show.

Fantastic!

For anyone who loved the Tom Shales book on SNL, this is a fantastic read.

A great inside look into a great show

If you have any affection for The Simpsons, I can't recommend more highly John Ortved's oral history of the show, The Simpsons: An Uncensored Unauthorized History. The book focuses on the creative process that led to the show's miraculous early run, and on the financial windfall that fell upon, and destroyed relationships among, the creators of the show. Ortved does an effective job of weaving a compelling narrative drawn from previously-published and first-hand interviews. By and large, the narrative remains fixed on the now-legendary writing team (including someone named Conan O'Brien) that was the true heart of the show. You get a real sense of what it must have been like in the writers' room, where this collection of talent, protected from network interference by powerful producer James L. Brooks, was set free to create multi-leveled, satirical, anti-authoritarian, classic television. I'll tell you what I learned from, or had confirmed by, Ortved's book: 1. Matt Groening's role on the series was quite different from what he, and Fox Television, would have you believe. The heart and soul of the show was, more accurately, its first showrunner, Sam Simon, and its most influential, long-time writer, George Meyer. Meyer's role, in particular, was made quite clear a number of years ago in a fascinating New Yorker profile, but it turns out that, if anything, the earlier magazine article may not have given Meyer his due. 2. Money ruins everything. OK, maybe not if you're the one getting the money. Then how about this - take a beautiful situation, throw a really big bag of money in the middle of the room, and watch everyone turn into animals. 3. The best creative work is made when creative people are left alone. It doesn't always lead to brilliance, but it's certainly more likely to occur. Everything that's best about The Simpsons - its unique voice, its literacy, its complete and utter disrespect for the institutions that we're told are the pillars of society - most times would have been diluted or killed in its sleep by network executives. It doesn't make execs evil; they're just after something - dependable, non-offensive, universally appealing - that's diametrically opposed to the elements that often lead to great art. Think about what's best in television - The Simpsons, The Wire, The Sopranos, Arrested Development, Mad Men, Curb Your Enthusiasm - all of it is unique, outside the box, fiercely idiosyncratic. It's a wonder stuff like this ever sees the light of day. (One of the parodoxes about The Simpsons is that a show this risky at its inception became a virtual money-printing machine.) I also realized, as I blasted through this book, that one of the things I love most in anything creative is work that is so good that I cannot ever imagine being talented enough to produce it. I understand that some people embrace art that looks and sounds like something they could do - hip hop, punk, and other great art forms are built on the premise of