Can life get any better
for Homer J. Simpson? He juggles the roles of husband,
father, safety inspector at the Springfield Nuclear Power
Plant, bowler, beer drinker, astronaut, small business
owner and dreamer, and makes it all look easy. But it
wasn't always so easy for Homer J. Raised by his father,
Abe, who tried to compensate for the absence of Homer's
radical hippie mother, Homer graduated at the bottom of
his high school class and managed to earn the distinction
of being the longest-term entry-level employee at the
plant. Together with his high school sweetheart, Marge
Bouvier, Homer settled down in Evergreen Terrace, the
nicest upper-lower-middle class section of Springfield,
to raise his three precious children. Homer is fond of
Duff Beer, donuts, Marge's pork chops and watching the
Bee Guy on the Spanish channel. His dislikes include his
boss, Mr. Burns, yard work and his neighbor, Ned Flanders.
Bart Simpson is misunderstood. Wrongly pegged as an underachiever
and troublemaker, Bart would like to remind the world
of some of his decent qualities: He looks out for his
sister, Lisa; he's befriended outcasts and misfits like
Milhouse Van Houten and Ralph Wiggum; he's injected romance
into the life of his teacher, Edna Krabappel; and he brought
down an illegal French winery during his brief semester
abroad. So what if he's also befouled the Springfield
Community Church with phony hymns or prank-called Moe's
Tavern several times a day for the last few years? It
all balances out, right? At age 10, Bart has managed to
live out a number of dreams: He has starred in his own
short-lived TV series (with his idol, Krusty the Clown),
spotted and named a deadly comet that nearly destroyed
his town, and almost snagged the role of Fallout Boy in
the Radioactive Man movie. He couldn't have done any of
those things without the help and support of his best
friend, Santa's Little Helper.
Lisa Simpson can't wait for college. She's only 8 and
already reads at a 14th grade level, and has written a
number of application-quality essays, one of which won
her family a free trip to Washington, D.C. Her favorite
activities include playing her saxophone, attending school
and reading Non-Threatening Boys Magazine. A fan of Malibu
Stacy, Lisa tried unsuccessfully to create her own talking
doll, Lisa Lionheart. Unfortunately, no one wanted to
buy a talking doll that was as judgmental as Lisa. Lisa
wants everyone to know that she is a vegetarian and that
if she could have one thing (besides world peace), it
would be a pony.
Matt Groening changed television forever when he brought
animation back to primetime with this immortal nuclear
family. He is also creator and executive producer of the
FOX animated series Futurama. Originally brought to life
in 1987 for FOX's Emmy Award-winning series The Tracey
Ullman Show, The Simpsons was Groening's introduction
into the animation world. Previously, he was best known
for his "Life in Hell" cartoon strip, an irreverent
portrayal of broken life that debuted in 1977 and currently
appears in more than 250 newspapers worldwide. In 1993
he formed Bongo Comic Group, whereby he serves as publisher
over the following: "Simpsons Comics," Itchy
& Scratchy Comics, Bartman, Radioactive Man, Lisa
Comics and Krusty Comics. In 1995 he founded and published
"Zongo Comics," which included Jimbo and Fleener.
In addition to producing his weekly strip, keeping on
top of the ongoing production demands of the weekly television
series, and meeting regularly with the Bongo team, Groening
oversees all aspects of the licensing and merchandising
of The Simpsons. In addition to the recent best-seller
The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family,
Groening's books, based on "Life in Hell" and
The Simpsons include Love Is Hell, Work is Hell, School
is Hell, The Big Book of Hell, Akbar & Jeff's Guide
to Life, Love is Hell 10th Anniversary Edition, Binky's
Guide to Love, The Simpsons Xmas Book, The Simpsons Rainy
Day Fun Book, Making Faces With the Simpsons, Bart Simpson's
Guide To Life, The Simpsons' Uncensored Family Album,
Cartooning With The Simpsons, Simpsons Illustrated magazine,
Simpson Comics & Stories comic book, Simpsons Comics
Extravaganza, Simpsons Comics Spectacular, Bartman: The
Best of The Best, and Simpsons Comics Simps-O-Rama. Groening,
a native of Portland, Oregon, resides in Los Angeles.
