Toy OTD: Playmates Toys Simpsons Figure (Celebrity Series 2, 2002): Brad Goodman (autographed)

Here's one character from my rather large Simpsons action figure collection! I was lucky enough to get it signed by Albert Brooks while Finding Nemo was in production. He's one of my favorite recurring guest voices!

This is a typical Playmates Simpsons toy, with the usual strengths and weaknesses. Of course, I love how many ancillary characters were included in the overall line, and Brad is a great character than many other toy companies might have overlooked. Big props to Playmates for including him!

The sculpt itself is a bit of a mixed bag - the face is nicely done, but the overall proportions are rather top-heavy and the pose is somewhat symmetrical and stiff. The paint work is simple but nice, and I always like it when colored plastic is used to broaden the palette (I think there's at least three different colors being used here).

You can also plug Brad into a variety of the playsets, which allows him to say some phrases from the show. While I'm a big Brooks booster, I don't really need my action figures to talk, and most of the playsets were little more than glorified bases. Personally, I would've preferred that the money had been put into making the figures themselves better, or enabling Playmates the likeness rights to even more of the guest stars.

Brad came with his coffee mug, book, motivational video, a sign, and a can of fortified wine. These were fine accessories, but in general, unless it's really critical to the character (Captain America's shield, Thor's hammer, etc), I mainly feel that it's just more stuff to lose, and it drives the price point up. Still, big props for the accessories coming right from the episode, and being dead-on model to boot!

Even though this figure is six years old, you can still get one very easily. Toyrocket.com has them marked down to $3.99 + shipping.

New Fox Show From Simpsons Alumni

"'The Simpsons' vets Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein have been named exec producers on Fox's animated laffer 'Sit Down, Shut Up.'

(The show) is based on a live-action sitcom from Australia. The animated U.S. version revolves around the lives of seven staff members at a dysfunctional high school in a small northeastern fishing town. Action centers on faculty members, as their egos and personal agendas trump the students' needs."

To read more of Michael Schneider's Variety article, click here.

Toy OTD: Mattel Simpsons Figure: Nelson (1990)

Mattel released a substantial line of Simpsons toys soon after the show hit it big, but we were in the middle of the first Gulf War that Christmas, and the toys didn't sell very well. Unfortunately, that set the stage for a decades-long drought of Simpsons action figures in the U.S.

It's a shame, because I think they were good toys. The sculpts were a little inconsistent, but that's been true of the Playmates figures as well. This Nelson Muntz figure is one of my favorites of the Mattel toys, and even this one is pretty off-model - the facial proportions are off, and the colors are really inaccurate.

But I still like it - it reminds me of older Mattel toys for some reason. It's well built, and has simple shapes and punchy colors. It's not over-articulated, either (which can be a problem with modern toys). The hip joints are especially well-designed, and don't interfere much with the shape of the character. The gimmick with this line is a small hole in the top of each figure's head. A plastic dialogue balloon could be inserted, decorated with a variety of interchangeable phrases. Unlike other gimmicks, this feature can be easily ignored (if the kid/collector isn't interested in it), and it doesn't interfere with the overall look.

You can still buy this figure (as well as the Lisa Simpson figure from this line) for $39.99 + shipping at toyrocket.com. eBay also has Nelson for sale for $29.97 + shipping.

Simpsons Movie Premieres in Springfield, VT

BURLINGTON FREE PRESS: First family of Springfield
Published: Sunday, July 22, 2007 - By Brent Hallenbeck

SPRINGFIELD — It was easy to find the festivities for the world premiere of “The Simpsons Movie” Saturday in downtown Springfield. All you had to do was follow the people with the sky-high blue hair.

Diane Bilotta was wearing a beehive wig mimicking the famous blue hairdo of Marge Simpson, the long-suffering wife of Homer, her fellow yellow-skinned cartoon character.

“It puts Springfield on the map,” the Grantham, N.H., woman said, clutching a Homer Simpson doll as she stood outside the Springfield Theater where the film would debut in about two hours. “It’s a lovely town, and Marge and Homer wouldn’t live anywhere else.”

It’s only been a couple of weeks since the world learned that the Springfield that Homer, Marge and their children Bart, Lisa and Maggie call home is Springfield, Vt., a well-worn town of 9,300 in a pretty spot among hills buffeting the Connecticut River that defines the Vermont/New Hampshire border.

The southern Vermont town was the smallest among the 14 Springfields in the country taking part in a contest through USA Today. By registering 15,367 votes among more than 100,000 cast, Springfield, Vt. — on the strength of a “Simpsons”-inspired online video produced by Vermont filmmakers — won the movie premiere and bragging rights as the hometown of “The Simpsons.”

Police estimated Saturday afternoon that the celebration drew a shade below the 5,000-10,000 fans organizers expected. Those who gathered for a chance to win some of the 800-plus tickets to the premiere and to hear from the filmmakers were excited enough to make up the difference.

Matt Groening, who created the satirical cartoon for television two decades ago and attended the feature film’s celebration, was stunned by the outpouring from fans.

“We knew that wherever the real Springfield was there would be a lot of enthusiasm. This is unbelievable,” Groening said in an interview along the yellow carpet — a red carpet just wouldn’t suit this jaundiced, dysfunctional family — that stretched toward the Springfield Theater.

“Rabid, zealous, fanatic, and yet they’re all smiling,” Groening said of the crowd. “Usually in Springfield on the show, any time a large crowd gathers it turns into a mob.”

Fans who gathered in a spacious parking lot next to the Springfield Theater heard short speeches from Groening and others who worked on the film, which opens nationwide Friday. Springfield officials presented Groening with a key to the town; Groening gave the town a plaque depicting “Simpsons” character Krusty the Clown placing his hands in cement outside the Springfield Theater while an oblivious hot-dog-munching Homer strolls through the ceremony and the cement.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, the first-term Vermont independent, said the contest win demonstrated that Springfield is a “can-do community” despite the obstacles the town has faced.

“Fortunes go up and down,” Sanders said. “This town, like ‘The Simpsons’ family, occasionally has its problems.” Springfield rose on the back of the machine-tool industry and slid into hard times once that business declined. Residents of the former industrial town are glad Springfield is animated again.
Betsy Eldredge was one of those residents happy to see her town so lively. “Springfield has been quite a depressed area for some time,” she said.

Springfield pride and “Simpsons” mania merged in front of the theater where a huge yellow hand hoisting a pink-frosted doughnut — Homer’s famously favorite food — rose like a beacon. A banner stretched across Main Street, also festooned with images of doughnuts, read “Welcome to Springfield, Vermont – Home of the Simpsons.” Big yellow lettering in the window of the Springfield Copy Center proclaimed “We Won!” in front of a backdrop showing Homer’s and Bart’s faces and, of course, more doughnuts.

There were also real doughnuts to be had from Vermont vendors near the theater. The Woodstock Water Buffalo Co. offered special “yo-nuts” filled with maple-flavored yogurt made from water-buffalo milk. The Magic Hat Brewing Co. crafted a “Springfield VT Premiere” ale that was more golden than yellow. Ben & Jerry’s combined Homer’s two favorite flavors for the one-day-only “Duff & D’oh-Nuts” ice cream with a heavy chocolate-doughnut flavor and a hint of stout beer.

Along with Vermont’s most famous ice-cream maker, the celebration featured two members of Phish, the band that, before the Simpsons were discovered to live in Springfield, was Vermont’s best-known group of celebrities.

“Thank you very much, Springfield, this is a huge honor for us,” said keyboard player Page McConnell, who preceded the ceremony with a set from his band. They were joined by ex-Phish bass player Mike Gordon who, like McConnell, appeared in flesh tones rather than the yellow hue the four members of Phish had in a 2002 episode of “The Simpsons.”

Several of the filmmakers remarked about the beautiful, idyllic setting of Springfield.

“It’s just amazing. I feel like we journeyed through America,” Emmy- and Oscar-winning producer James L Brooks said in an interview after the pre-premiere ceremony. “I feel like I’m going to bump into Frank Capra.”

The film’s director, David Silverman, also mentioned Capra, the classic movie maker known for setting his films in bucolic burgs.

“It’s wonderful. What a picturesque American town it is,” Silverman said.

Some people were there not to celebrate but to make a point. Eldredge was passing out fliers in her hometown opposing renewal of the Vermont Yankee nuclear-power plant’s license when it expires in 2012. The plant — perhaps the one Homer works in on the show — is about 45 minutes south of Springfield.

A shutdown of the plant might put Homer out of work. Eldredge has a suggestion for the head of the Simpsons family — he could work on a wind farm.

Nancy Schaefer was making a different sort of statement on Main Street, where the Bellows Falls woman and a handful of youths were gyrating inside Hula Hoops. Schaefer wore a T-shirt bearing the slogan “Drop the Donut.”

Schaefer and her fellow exercisers were recommending 30 minutes of exercise a day and five servings of fruit and vegetables. “Homer represents too many doughnuts and beer,” she said.

With her yard-high blue wig made of foam insulation, Schaefer suggested she might not be Marge but instead an obscure member of “The Simpsons” clan. “I could be her unknown sister, the one we don’t talk about, Nancy Simpson,” Schaefer said. “The crunchy-granola unknown sister.”

Stephanie and Matthew Strangwood were in Springfield to celebrate “The Simpsons Movie.” They drove 15 hours from Romeoville, Ill., to be there, and that’s not even the biggest sign of their “Simpsons” devotion: They met in 2000 through a “Simpsons” trivia online chat room, became friends, and Matthew, 26, moved to Illinois from his native England to be with Stephanie, now 23. They’ve been married almost four years. “The Simpsons” is the tie that binds.

“It’s brilliant,” Stephanie, wearing a Homer Simpson backpack, said of the show.

“It’s witty, it’s great satire,” said Matthew, who wore a Krusty the Clown backpack.

They wouldn’t have missed the Springfield celebration for anything.

“It’s the biggest event of all time,” Matthew Strangwood said.

In “Simpsons” history or world history?

He paused for a moment. “World history,” he said.

Contact Brent Hallenbeck at bhallenb@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com.

Vermont Town Chosen For Something

ASSOCIATED PRESS: Vt. Town Named `Simpsons' Official Home
Tuesday July 10, 4:48 pm ET - By John Curran, Associated Press Writer
Oh, Maaan: Vermont's Springfield Proclaimed Simpsons' Hometown, Will Host Movie Premiere

SPRINGFIELD, Vt. (AP) -- Maybe it was the pink doughnut. Maybe it was the clever homemade video, or small-town charm.

Maybe Homer just figured it was time to go green.

Whatever the reason, this much is true: Tiny Springfield, Vt., beat out 13 other like-named cities Tuesday for the right to host the premiere of "The Simpsons Movie," winning an online poll it wasn't even invited to participate in.

On July 21, the town's 100-seat movie theater will play host to the movie, which opens July 27.

"Vermont wins," read the purple lettering beside the doughnut-chomping patriarch of America's favorite dysfunctional family on "The Simpsons Movie Springfield Challenge" Web site.

"Ninety-three hundred people, and we won," said an exultant Town Manager Bob Forguites. "I think it's pretty neat, myself."

Springfields in Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, Ohio, Oregon and Tennessee also made bids, submitting videos meant to show how much their cities are like the fictional Springfield in "The Simpsons."

Competition was fierce: Massachusetts got U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy -- the inspiration behind the voice of Mayor Quimby on "The Simpsons," to appear in its entry.

"Just think," Kennedy said. "You'll even be able to enjoy some real chowdah."

Vermont's Springfield -- which has a bowling alley, a pub, a prison and a nuclear power plant just down the road -- wasn't initially part of the contest, but a local Chamber of Commerce executive appealed to movie producer 20th Century Fox and the race was on.

The town submitted a video shot by a 17-year-old volunteer cameraman showing buildings with "Springfield" in them and featuring Homer -- played by a Burlington talk-show host -- running through town chasing a big, pink, rolling doughnut.

Eventually, a mob chases him into a movie theater.

The video was posted on the contest Web site along with the other entries. By midnight Monday, the deadline, 109,582 votes were cast.

Vermont got 15,367, edging out Springfield, Ill., which drew 14,634.

Florida's Springfield got the lowest vote total, 1,386.

"We're so excited," says Patricia Chaffee, vice president of the Springfield Regional Chamber of Commerce. "We came in at the last minute, and for us to win, we feel like the underdogs, which makes this so big and so great for us."

Gov. Jim Douglas congratulated the town.

"This is an exciting, exhilarating moment for Vermonters," he said. "Perhaps more importantly, it proves there's really nothing a giant doughnut can't do. To all the other Springfields, I say 'Don't have a cow, man.'"

The mayor of Springfield, Illinois, the state's capital city, took the loss like a man, not a cow.

"We knew all along that it would be a tough battle against the other cities who claim a relationship with the television program," said Timothy Davlin. "We in Springfield, Illinois, have enjoyed the notoriety from this exercise and hope that it translates into more people visiting Springfield looking for the Abraham Lincoln sites and the Simpsons."

Springfield, Ore., hoped it had an in because "Simpsons" creator Matt Groening is from Portland, the state's largest city, and many of the show's landmarks are named after streets in Portland. It noted in its video that "the only Springfield Groening passed through on his way to Hollywood was in Oregon."

According to USA Today, which ran the vote on its Web site, the 13 other Springfields that participated will be given small screenings of their own the night before the movie opens nationwide July 27.

AP writers John O'Connor in Chicago and Aaron Clark in Portland, Ore., contributed to this report. (This version CORRECTS date of premiere to July 21; RECASTS throughout, ADDS quotes, byline.)

No Real News On The Simpsons Movie

LA TIMES: SNEAKS 2007 - Yellow but not mellow
Pretty much all we know about 'The Simpsons Movie' is: It'll be funny.
By Michael Ordoña, Special to The Times

NOT even threats of visits by Sideshow Bob or Fat Tony and the boys could wheedle many details of the upcoming "The Simpsons Movie" out of the series' powers that be. Fans can only speculate on what kind of treatment it will get — there's the bloated, inflated episode route (think "Star Trek: The Motion Picture") or the movie as extension of the series option ("The X-Files").

Specifics remain as closely guarded as the identity of the state in which Springfield is located. (Geography enthusiasts: the city has a gorge, an ocean port, a volcano and a desert.) "I can't really tell you much," said director David Silverman, "other than the Simpsons will be in it. Springfield will be in it; it's not being shot in Vancouver. Very few animals were hurt in the shooting of this film … a couple."

Speaking from their sanctum sanctorum (an unremarkable writers' room with a poster of dozens of the show's characters on the wall) on the 20th Century Fox lot, executive producers James L. Brooks, Matt Groening and Al Jean vacillated between stoking expectations and throwing them in with the kindling.

"We're doing things we never could have done on the series," said Brooks, who won his 19th Emmy last year. "Obviously, there's that much more manpower brought into it, and hopefully we're telling a story that requires this length."

"Pixar movies are so good," said Jean, "we want to live up to that too."

"No, we're not going to look as good," Brooks hastily added with a laugh. "Don't go away thinking that!"

Although all three stressed the importance of a strong emotional component, they made clear that their intentions were still sufficiently low-falutin.

"We want to make people laugh," said "Simpsons" creator Groening. "Not that it's a role model in content, but the 'South Park' movie was proof that you could do a movie that didn't have the greatest animation but was really funny from beginning to end."

The notion of a big-screen version of America's longest-running sitcom has been around since at least its third season. But because of the talent drain caused by Hollywood's animation boom and the insistence of the show's brain trust on complete control, it wasn't until a couple of years ago that the idea gained any real traction. The show has generated billions of dollars in revenue and has become culturally iconic, to the horror of some — former President George H.W. Bush once said, "We're going to keep trying to strengthen the American family, to make them more like 'The Waltons' and less like 'The Simpsons.' "

The film's release, scheduled for summer, will roughly coincide with the TV show's 400th episode and the 20th anniversary of America's favorite insanely dysfunctional family's debut on "The Tracey Ullman Show." (The show's run "is beyond my wildest dreams. And I have really wild dreams," Groening says.)

The honor and burden of directing the highly anticipated film version falls to Silverman, whose credits include some of the "Ullman" shorts and the series' first episodes as well Pixar's "Monsters, Inc."

Since Silverman was one of the only experienced animators at the show's inception, Groening said he "invented a lot of the rules on how to draw the characters. Like Bart has, I don't even know, 13 spikes or 11 spikes? And Marge's hairdo is nine eyeballs tall."

From the movie's production hub at Film Roman in Burbank, the wild-eyed, enthusiastic Silverman lacked only a lab coat and soda-bottle glasses to complete the mad-scientist persona.

"I thought it should be basically Panavision as opposed to American widescreen," he said. "If you're going to go from roughly a square format to a feature, let's really go for it, let's go for it as wide as possible."

The director also highlighted that, although the look would still be identifiably Simpsons, small additions like tone shadows would provide new dimension for these "big yellow characters."

It may just be compression madness from the upcoming deadline — culminating a year of physical production as opposed to six months for a single TV episode — but they seem almost giddy at the challenge of meeting fan expectations.

"People have had a lot of dreams of what this might be, over 18 years," said Jean in an unconvincing deadpan, "and I think it will match or exceed all of them."

"I'm not sure we can live up to our secrecy," said Brooks.

"I think it'll be a cultural experience somewhere between 'Sgt. Pepper's,' the record, and 'Sgt. Pepper's,' the movie," said Jean.

*************************************************************************************

Now that's a funny sound bite! It's cool that David got to sign his own name to his drawing, too.

Anime Simpsons Style, Vice Versa

Here's a cute Totoro drawing in the Simpsons style by spacecoyote. She's also done drawings of Groening TV shows in an anime style!

McFarlane's Simpsons Figures - Series 1

Here's pictures of the upcoming Simpsons figures from McFarlane Toys, courtesty of spawn.com. These are a big step up from the recent Hanna-Barbera figures - the staging is clear, the poses and attitudes are strong, and true to the characters. Three out of the five are iconic scenes from the show. The dissect-able Scratchy is a great touch!

My only complaint is that it's primarily the main characters over and over again. Anyone who's a veteran of the Playmates line may not want more Homers, Marges and Barts. Gentle Giant's Bust-Ups! have done a better job of serving up more obscure cast members, or picking really striking variations of the main characters. Still, there's a good amount of homework being done here, and toy-less fans of the series should love these when they hit stores in March.