400+ episodes, numerous awards, and a feature-length film later, The Simpsons is, incredibly enough, still on the air. And while I consider myself a die-hard fan, I stand firm in my belief that the venerable series is sadly now well past its sell-by date; Homer Simpson and his brood hit their zenith in the mid-90's--from Seasons 3 to 8--and it's been rather painful to watch how far the show has since fallen.
Still, The Simpsons is far and away my favorite TV show of all time.
I started watching the series semi-secretly in '92, against my parents' wishes, of course (funny, I can't think of anyone growing up in the 90's whose parents allowed them to watch the show--seems there was a near-universal parental bias against it). Even at a young age, I was drawn in by the humor, intelligence, and endearing nature of the show. I got it.
And it's true: I can honestly say that watching the show in my formative years helped shape my life. Consider:
1. I learned a great deal about American culture from the show, thanks to its satirical social commentary and constant barrage of references to pop culture and history. I'm sure The Simpsons was never meant to be educational, but I probably learned--and retained--more from watching the show (and subsequently consulting the über-geek websites that dissect the references) than from the various history classes I've taken over the years.
2. A great deal of my sense of humor--and a good bit of my personal lexicon--is derived from The Simpsons. Apart from impacting the way I find and express humor in a particular situation or conversation (which is something I couldn't even begin to explain), the show is, for me, a common point of reference in conversation. The frequent phrase, "That reminds me of this one episode of The Simpsons..." has made more than one friend of mine roll their eyes in tolerant bemusement.
That, and the Simpsonian expressions of "No foolin'?," "Mercy!," "tom-foolery," "scrum-diddly-umptious," "Me fail English? That's unpossible," "Que lastima!," and the distinct sing-song of Nelson Muntz's "Ha ha!" have all permeated my vocabulary over the years.
3. This is where The Simpsons' influence in my life gets downright ridiculous: watching the show, it's safe to say, has led me to where/who I am today.
You see, when I first started watching, I was mesmerized by the sound of Lisa's saxophone in the show opening. So when the time came for me to choose an instrument to learn for 6th grade band, it was a no-brainer.
I played the saxophone throughout middle and high school, which in turn led me to decide to attend USC so that I could play in the vaunted Trojan Marching Band (the idea that I could be a part of this sort of grand spectacle sold me on going to USC). While in the TMB, I met a girl who would introduce me to New York City. I fell in love with NYC, and returned to spend a summer there, which is how I met my future mentor and pastor Doug. Doug offered me the opportunity to come live with his family and work at his church; I took him up on the offer, moving out to the Big Apple immediately after graduating from USC.
Reading one of Doug's magazines one day, I stumbled across an opportunity to go teach at a Christian school in Northern Iraq. So after two years in NYC, I made the move to Iraq. While in Northern Iraq, I started communicating with a girl back in the States via e-mail. When I returned to the U.S. six months later, I decided to pursue a relationship with the young woman, and wound up moving back to LA to be closer to her.
And in preparing to move back to LA, I decided to buy a VW Bus on eBay, a decision which has since resulted in a documentary film project that I and several friends have been working on for the last several years.
So, the way I see it, my entire life's trajectory basically traces back to me sneaking episodes of The Simpsons in the family den back in the 5th grade.
Not to mention the hours upon hours of entertainment I would've had to find elsewhere.
2 comments:
Ah, I see I was misinformed via Livejournal about the number of years. At least they got the date right.
Yeah, I was doing the math in my head and realized that it had to be 19 years. Still, I wouldn't have been aware of the date itself if you hadn't mentioned it.
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