simpsons Over many seasons, usually through the books Lisa was reading or guest appearances (e.g. Michael Chabon & Jonathan Franzen, maya angelou and amy tan). and references Edgar Allan Poe in both titles (“Telltale Head” from the first season) and incidentally (in 1994’s “Lisa’s Rival” the title character is built) diorama Based on the same Poe story. )
But for the first “Treehouse of Horror” in 1990, a recurring Halloween episode of The Simpsons, they adapted it. Poe’s “The Raven” It is depicted more faithfully than any other episode. The poem, read by James Earl Jones, remains more or less intact, with Dan Castellaneta’s Homer Simpson providing the voice of the unnamed narrator. Marge appears as the long-lost Lenore. Its hair is so tall that it requires an additional canvas to fit in a portrait. Maggie and Lisa are seraphs wielding incense burners, and Bart is an annoying crow that drives Homer crazy.
Castellaneta does a great job of conveying Poe’s poems with conviction and humor while keeping the characters true to both Homer and Poe. It’s a balancing act that’s more difficult than it sounds.
This foray into Poe includes several teacher’s guides ( This is from new york times) Suggest using videos in class. (If you’re a teacher or student who’s had an experience like this, I’d love to hear about it.) And it’s the first and only time Poe received a co-writing credit on a film. simpsons episode.
Note: An earlier version of this post appeared on our site in 2016.
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Thomas Pynchon’s edited line from The Simpsons: “Homer was my role model and I can’t say anything bad about him.”
Ted Mills is a freelance writer in the arts.
Source: Open Culture – www.openculture.com
