'Round Springfield
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"'Round Springfield" is the twenty-second episode of the sixth season of The Simpsons, and the 125th episode overall. It originally aired on April 30, 1995. It was written by Joshua Sternin and Jeffrey Ventimilia based on a story idea by Al Jean and Mike Reiss and was directed by Steven Dean Moore.[2] The episode saw Steve Allen and Ron Taylor guest star, each in their second appearance on the show. It marked the first time in which a recurring character was killed off in the show, as well as being the second episode to feature death as its prominent theme. (The death of Gladys Bouvier in "Selma's Choice" was the first.) The title is a play on both the jazz standard 'Round Midnight by Thelonious Monk and the similarly named film about an unappreciated jazz musician.[2]
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[edit] Synopsis
On the day of a major history test, Bart gets a stomachache after accidentally eating a jagged metal Krusty-O with his breakfast cereal. Lisa is the only one who believes him, as Homer and Marge send him to school. There, Mrs. Krabappel tells Bart, after he has said that he cannot take the test due to his stomachache, that "No teacher will be held accountable if Bart Simpson dies".
Bart struggles through the test, and after finally convincing Mrs. Krabappel that he is actually ill, she lets him go and see the nurse, who turns out to just be Lunchlady Doris. She explains that she is there due to "budget cuts", and that all she can offer him are chewable Prozac for kids, with the options being Manic-Depressive Mouse and the Bluebird of Unhappiness. Bart collapses on the medical room floor, inconveniently for Principal Skinner, right in front of Superintendent Chalmers. Bart is taken to Springfield General Hospital and undergoes surgery from Dr. Hibbert and Dr. Nick, as it emerges he has appendicitis.
Later while visiting Bart in the hospital, Lisa meets her hero, jazzman Bleeding Gums Murphy, in a bed in another ward. They bond and jam to Carole King's song "Jazzman". Bleeding Gums tells Lisa of his past, and of his musical career. It is then strongly suggested that Bleeding Gums Murphy and Dr. Hibbert are brothers.[2][3]
Later, he lends Lisa his saxophone for her school recital. It starts off terribly, as there are now only three members of the Springfield Elementary school orchestra, as the rest are having their appendixes removed, but with Bleeding Gums' sax, Lisa gets up and performs a solo routine, becoming the star of the show. However, when she returns to the hospital, she is saddened to learn that her beloved mentor Bleeding Gums has died.
Lisa is the only person who attends Bleeding Gums' funeral and after Reverend Lovejoy gets his name wrong, Lisa vows to make sure that everyone in Springfield knows the name of Bleeding Gums Murphy. Bart, meanwhile, sues Krusty the Clown for $100,000 and wins, however after Bart's attorney Lionel Hutz takes his "legal fees", he is left with only $500, although Bart is still pleased.
Still stricken with grief, Lisa decides that the best way to honour Bleeding Gums' memory is by having his album, "Sax on the Beach", played at the local jazz station, KJAZZ. Lisa spots it in the Android's Dungeon store for $250, but after hearing that Bleeding Gums is dead, Comic Book Guy doubles the price to $500. As Lisa leaves, she sees the money she needs on the ground, but it is tied to a string which is pulled away by Mr. Burns as she approaches, leaving her without the money. Bart then walks in with his $500 and, after remembering that Lisa was the only one who believed him about his stomach ache, he decides to buy the album with his money, ahead of the "Steve Allen ultimate pog". Lisa thanks Bart for buying the album, but when she points out Bart may never see that kind of money again, he happily shows Lisa a new box of Krusty-O Cereal -- "With Flesh Eating Bacteria in Every Box!"
When the station plays one of Bleeding Gums' songs, Lisa is disappointed because the station's tiny range still prevents anyone from hearing it. Lightning then strikes the antenna, giving it extra power and projecting it into every radio in Springfield. Lisa is finally satisfied. After proclaiming "that was for you Bleeding Gums" she turns to leave, but not before Bleeding Gums appears from the heavens to tell Lisa that she had made "an old jazz man happy". After saying a final goodbye, Lisa and Bleeding Gums jam to "Jazzman" one last time.
[edit] Bleeding Gums' past
The episode sees Bleeding Gums Murphy tell Lisa all about his past, and the beginnings of his jazz career, including mentioning that he lost touch with a little brother who used to laugh at inappropriate times and grew up to become a doctor. He says that he learned "at the feet of "Blind Willie" Witherspoon", from whom he received what Witherspoon thought was a saxophone, though it was actually an umbrella. His big break came with an appearance on Steve Allen's Tonight Show, after which he recorded his only album, Sax on the Beach. Unfortunately for him he then spent all of his money on his $15,000 a day Fabergé egg habit. A lull in his career was only interrupted by a guest shot on The Cosby Show as one of The Huxtable children's many great jazz musician grandfathers.
In the DVD audio commentary Al Jean, stated that "he didn't realize just how expensive Fabergé eggs were." In the episode, they were priced at $1500, when in truth they can go for multiple millions when sold. [4]
[edit] Production
This episode marked the first time in which a recurring character was killed off in the show. The writers and production team felt that it would be a great storyline, with a lot of emotions, primarily for Lisa.[5] They knew that it couldn't be one of the main characters, Al Jean states in the episode's DVD audio commentary, "we wouldn't want it to be someone like Mr. Burns, that we'd obviously want to see in the show again".[6] Eventually they decided on Bleeding Gums Murphy, although Mike Reiss stated "I had been polling for years to kill Marge's mom but this was a better idea".[7]
The main story of the episode's first act sees Bart get appendicitis from eating a jagged metal Krusty O'. Mike Reiss's father, being a doctor, was the medical consultant on this episode. He stated that you "just can't get" appendicitis from eating a piece of metal.[7] This was one of two episodes that was created with the help of the staff of The Critic, with the previous being "A Star is Burns".[7]
[edit] Reception
Mike Reiss and Al Jean thought that the episode would "get a ton of awards",[7] this was why they received a story credit,[7] although ultimately it didn't win any. The Simpsons Archive review scores varied from an A- to a C, with most concluding that the episode had everything going for it, but failed to deliver.[8] TV.com lists it with a score of 8.3 out of 103 votes,[9] with the Internet Movie Database listing it as 6.9/10 out of 49 votes.[10]
[edit] Legacy
Bleeding Gums dying is one of the few times The Simpsons went against its own status quo by permanently removing a character, in this case due to death. Despite this, Bleeding Gums still appears in the complete version of the opening credits,[11] and even appeared in the live-action format, in The Simpsons Sky One commercial, that was also used for the episode "Homer Simpson, This Is Your Wife". His grave stone is seen, along with those of the other dead characters at Maude Flanders' funeral in "Alone Again, Natura-Diddily".
[edit] Cheese-eating surrender monkeys
Groundskeeper Willie's description of the French as "cheese-eatin' surrender monkeys"[12] has become widely used, particularly in the run-up to the war in Iraq.[13] The New York Post used the phrase "Surrender Monkeys" as the headline for its December 7, 2006 front page, referring to the Iraq Study Group and its recommendation that U.S. soldiers be withdrawn from Iraq by early 2008.[14] The line was "most likely" written by Ken Keeler.[5]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Richmond, Ray; Antonia Coffman (1997). The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to our Favorite Family. Harper Collins Publishers, p. 173. ISBN 0-00063-8898-1.
- ^ a b c d e f Round Springfield BBC.co.uk. Retrieved on February 8, 2007
- ^ Bleeding Gums: "I don't really have a family, all I had was a little brother who grew up to become a doctor. He used to laugh at the most inappropriate times."
Hibbert: (Hibbert laugh) "Hey I've got an older brother that I'll never see. He's a jazz musician or some such. Oh well, bye, bye." - ^ Goldarths Review: Don't Count Your Eggs. Retrieved on 2007-03-27.
- ^ a b Mentioned in the episode's audio commentary on The Simpsons - The Complete Sixth Season DVD.
- ^ Stated by Al Jean at the beginning of the episode's audio commentary on the The Simpsons - The Complete Sixth Season DVD.
- ^ a b c d e Stated by Mike Reiss in the episode's audio commentary on the The Simpsons - The Complete Sixth Season DVD.
- ^ 'Round Springfield SNPP. Retrieved on January 10, 2007
- ^ 'Round Springfield TV.com. Retrieved on February 7, 2007
- ^ 'Round Springfield Internet Movie Database. Retrieved on February 7, 2007
- ^ Opening Sequence SNPP. Retrieved on January 1, 2007
- ^ Sound recording of Groundskeeper Willie's line About: Political humour. Retrieved on December 27, 2006
- ^ Wimps, weasels and monkeys - the US media view of 'perfidious France' The Guardian. Retrieved on December 27, 2006
- ^ Lathem, Niles. "Iraq 'Appease' Squeeze on W.", New York Post, December 7, 2006.
[edit] External links
- "'Round Springfield" episode page at The Simpsons.com
- "'Round Springfield" episode capsule at The Simpsons Archive
- "'Round Springfield" at TV.com
- "'Round Springfield" at the Internet Movie Database
