To think that the iconic animated family ‘The Simpsons’ first aired on television back in April of 1987 is beyond insane. That’s 30 years for those math illiterates trying to keep track. It all began with a crudely drawn animated short, “Good Night,” and it was followed by 48 short filler segments on the sketch comedy program “The Tracey Ullman Show,” before the show got its own stand-alone series which begin in December, 1989.
Now some 615 episodes, 48 shorts, and one movie later, The Simpsons is still a pillar of modern television, whether you love that fact or not. And when you’re around the block for as long as these yellow guys have been for so long, you see your lion’s share of ‘firsts.’ Below are a short list of some of the more memorable firsts ever to happen on ‘The Simpsons.’ Enjoy!
The First Line Spoken By a Non-Simpson
Principal Skinner in “Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire” when he uttered “Wasn’t that wonderful? And now, the Santas of many lands, as presented by the entire second-grade class.”
The First Guest Star
Sam McMurray appeared as a worker at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. He would go on to lend his voice as a Duff Beer announcer in “Homer’s Odyssey.”
The First “Itchy & Scratchy”
Always one of my favorite segments in every Simpsons episode as a kid (not unlike Bart & Lisa) the first “Itchy & Scratchy” segment was in “Burning Love” from season one’s “Krusty Gets Busted.”
The First Simpsons Character to Die
Sadly, the first character to kick the bucket was Beatrice Simmons in season two’s “Old Money.” Even cartoon characters have a shelf-life it seems.
The First “The Simpsons Are Going to…” Episode
Most long-running TV shows have special episodes dedicated to the theme of having the entire cast travel to some random location for the entire show. This happened in season six’s “Bart Vs. Australia.”
The First Episode with the legendary Phil Hartman
In season two’s “Bart Gets Hit by a Car,” SNL pillar and comedic genius, Phil Hartman played Lionel Hutz. God bless him for all the great memories he supplied on The Simpsons and beyond over the years.
The First Episode to Win an Emmy
The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program was bestowed on the cast/crew for season one’s “Life on the Fast Lane.”
The First (Non-Parody) Original Song
The song “Happy Birthday, Lisa” from season three’s “Stark Raving Dad” was the first song, which you can hear in its entirety here.
The First Crossover With Another Fox Show
We got to see Jay Sherman from “The Critic” when he made a cameo in season six’s “A Star Is Burns.”
The First Hour-Long Simpsons Episode
Season 28’s “The Great Phatsby Parts 1 & 2” is actually the first, if you can believe it took that long. The “Who Shot Mr. Burns?” episode doesn’t count because the two parts aired months apart.
The First Future Episode
In season six’s “Lisa’s Wedding” audiences got a glimpse of things to come.
The First Flashback Episode
Going in the opposite direction, in season two’s “The Way We Was” we got a glimpse into the younger years when Homer had a full head of hair.
The First Episode Written by a Woman
In season one’s “Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire” Mimi Pond claimed the honor of the first woman to write an entire episode. We wouldn’t get another episode written by a female until Nell Scovell penned season two’s “One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish.”
The First Simpsons Episode That Was Supposed to Be a Movie
Season four’s “Kamp Krusty,” which according to screenwriter Al Jean, “If we make it into the movie, then we don’t have a premiere, and second, if we can’t make 18 minutes out of this episode, how are we supposed to make 80?” The Simpsons Movie eventually dropped in the year 2007.
The First “Worst. Episode. Ever.”
Season eight’s “The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show” was where we first heard “Worst. Episode. Ever.” uttered.
The First Episode with a 9.3 Rating on IMDb
After season eight’s “Homer’s Enemy” it experienced a record-high rating of 9.3, which is a series best.
The First Episode with a 4.4 Rating on IMDb
They can’t all be winners, and in season 23’s “Lisa Goes Gaga” the show had a series-worst IMDB rating.
The First Time The Simpsons Beat The Cosby Show In the Ratings
Whatever first pops into your mind when you hear “The Cosby Show’ these days, make no mistake about it, this show was a juggernaut in its prime. It was finally in season three’s “Homer at the Bat” that the Simpsons finally prevailed. An interesting note is that just the season before, Fox put “The Simpsons” against NBC’s “The Cosby Show” on Thursday nights. A bold move, Cotten, but it clearly paid off.
The First Simpsons Video Game
I still remember begging my parents to get this video game back when it was released in February (my birthday month) of 1991, which was called ‘The Simpsons: Bart vs. the Space Mutants.’
Facts via Uproxx
