Don’t have a cow, man.
The lazy, doughnut-eating, birthday-forgetting, beer-drinking Homer Simpson and his family are finally on the big screen.
The Simpsons Movie debuts nationwide in theaters today.
“I’m actually kind of excited,” said 19-year-old New Mexico native Beth Rascon at Cinemark Hollywood USA in McAllen, visiting her cousin Tori.
“I’ve been watching it for years since I was little. It looks funny.”
The movie centers on Homer, the Duff-bellied father of the Simpson family and “dumbest guy in town,” accidentally polluting the river with toxic waste and forcing the entire town of Springfield to evacuate.
Fans have highly anticipated the movie after nearly two decades of TV air time.
“It’s taken 18 years because we’re lazy,” said Simpsons creator Matt Groening in an MSN interview.
The Simpsons first came aired as a vignette on The Tracy Ullman Show in 1987.
After gaining popularity, the show spun off onto its own sitcom in late 1989.
It became the longest-running animated series in 1997, beating out the record of another American family favorite — The Flintstones.
Throughout its air time, the show has used its humor as a key ingredient to its popularity for a wide-ranging audience.
“As a cartoon, you could enjoy it at a different level,” said UTPA psychology professor Genaro Gonzalez. “There’s humor for children, but also humor adults could focus on.”
The characters also irreverently poke at politics and celebrities.
“There’s a deeper satire,” said South Texas College psychology professor Rodgers Truitt.
“You have to take it with a grain of salt. They make political commentaries, make fun of movie stars, singers. It’s affected the economy and how people communicate.”
Though many children watch the sitcom, some parents have never approved.
“I don’t think kids should watch it,” Truitt said. “It deals with a lot of adult situations, family violence. Bart choking Homer doesn’t set a good example for youth. It’s not a cartoon for kids, it’s for adults."
The Simpsons are a lower-middle class family in Springfield, a city in an unknown state.
As a result, Fox Movie Studios started a contest for all U.S. cities named Springfield.
Fourteen Springfields throughout the country submitted videos to convince online voters from which Springfield the Simpsons hailed, and consequently which Springfield should host the special “yellow-carpet” premiere and the movie’s filmmakers.
The winner was Springfield, Vt.
Homer, the father who frequently blows his nose in towels then puts them back, works at a nuclear power plant.
His blue beehive-haired wife, Marge, is a patient housewife with a scratchy voice. She cares for their youngest, Maggie, always glued to her pacifier.
Lisa, the other daughter, is the 8-year-old intellectual vegetarian and environmentalist.
Bart, the most famous of the children, is the “little devil” of the family. He seeks amusing ways to torment the family. As a baby, he lit Homer’s tie on fire, and at age 10, he spends most school time in detention.
His common phrases such as “Ay caramba” and “eat my shorts” have become vernacular over the years.
Fans seemed to find connections between the show’s characters and their own lives, unlike the idealistic families depicted in sitcoms like Full House or The Brady Bunch.
“They’re not rich or poor,” said Pedro Cantu, another South Texas College psychology professor. “Bart and Lisa still fight, Marge doesn’t want a divorce.
“You look at the family and regardless of all the problems they have, in the end, they’re still together.”
The Simpsons also relates to society on a larger scale, Cantu said.
“You’ve got the corrupt mayor in the show,” Cantu said. “You look at the Christian church they go to, the school problems, like bullying. That’s a problem.
“Opinions about our society are put in the show, and it’s funny because we can relate to them.”
Regardless of whether people approve or disprove of the show, The Simpsons is still a highlight in today’s pop culture.
“I think it keeps up with the times,” said Helgi Davis, owner of Myth Adventures, a comic book store in McAllen.
“It still relieves the pressures of everyday life.”
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Julian Cavazos covers general assignments for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4474.
