Hungry, Hungry Homer
Encyclopedia
"Hungry, Hungry Homer" is the fifteenth episode of the twelfth season
of The Simpsons
and it aired on March 4, 2001. In the episode, Homer Simpson
becomes a Good Samaritan after discovering the simple joys of helping people in need—which is put to the test when he goes on a hunger strike after the owner of the Springfield Isotopes attempts to discredit him when Homer stumbles on his plot to discreetly move the team to Albuquerque, New Mexico
.
The episode was written by John Swartzwelder
and directed by Nancy Kruse
and guest starred Stacy Keach
as Howard K. Duff VIII.
which is completely made of blocks. Lisa
is ripped off when her Eiffel Tower
kit has a missing Blocko piece. In response, Homer "sticks up for the little guy", and he gets Lisa the piece she needs. He also stands up for the little guy by helping Bart
get a girlfriend for an upcoming school dance and helps Marge
get two free hair streaks (along with helping the beauty salon increase its profit margin to accommodate Marge's streaks). When he tries to help Lenny by getting him a refund on his tickets for the Springfield Isotopes, Homer encounters the Isotopes' owner Howard K. Duff
VIII. The owner refuses to give Homer a refund, but in his haste to leave Homer accidentally enters a room and discovers evidence that the Isotopes are moving to Albuquerque
. Duff insists that they are not moving and he has Duffman drug Homer to cover up the truth.
Homer is shocked and attempts to alert the media to the plan, but when Homer comes back with the press Duff had removed all traces of the evidence Homer found in the room. The journalists dismiss Homer's story and call him a liar. In response, Homer stages a hunger strike
in which he chains himself to a pole near Duff Stadium in order to force the owners of the team to admit they are moving to Albuquerque. He attracts a great deal of attention, so during the night the team decides to move him into the ballpark and exploit his popularity using the name "Hungry, Hungry Homer."
Eventually Homer becomes so thin and sickly that the team decides to get rid of him, replacing him with a super-fan who chugs cans of paint. In a public ceremony, the team's owner unchains Homer and offers him a free hot dog. Homer realizes the hot dog is topped with Southwestern ingredients, proving the team is really moving to Albuquerque. The crowd then takes notice that the hot dogs are even wrapped with "Albuquerque Isotopes" paper and are enraged. Howard tries to continue his denials but even Duffman turns against him. Homer's hunger strike is over as he celebrates under a shower of food thrown by the cheering fans, praising him as a hero.
As a result of Homer exposing the scheme, the mayor of Albuquerque decides to abandon his plan to steal the Isotopes and instead plans to purchase the Dallas Cowboys
and force them to play baseball because, as he menacingly proclaims at the end of the episode, "For I am the Mayor of Albuquerque!"
and directed by Nancy Kruse
. The episode was originally pitched by Al Jean
from his daughter, although it is not certain. The original of the episode is that Mike Scully in season 8
pitched that Homer got a motorcycle and loved it and the town passed a helmet law that you have to wear the helmet and Homer was furious and went on hunger strike and ended up passing out. The writers shelved the idea of Homer having a motorcycle (though it would be used for the season 11 episode "Take My Wife, Sleaze
"), but held on to Homer having a hunger strike until Al Jean pitched this episode. Another inspiration was that a team was moving to another city. Dan Castellaneta
adlibbed the lyrics to Homer's "Dancing Away My Hunger Pangs" song. The ending scene with the mayor announcing his plans to take over the Dallas Cowboys has been edited from all U.S. syndicated reruns, but has been seen on overseas syndicated reruns and on the season 12 DVD set.
's destruction of Emperor Palpatine in the film Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
(1983).
Colin Jacobson of DVD Movie guide gave the episode a mixed review writing "Though it has something of a rehashed feel – an impression that we’ve seen this episode before – “Hungry” still manages to be fairly effective. Chock full of laughs? No, but the show has its moments. Or maybe I just like it because it’s the origin of the word “hungy”, which I used for many years. I forgot I stole it from this episode!" Judge Mac McEntire of DVD Verdict said of the episode that the best moment was pretty much any scene with Duffman.
minor-league baseball team.
This episode has also been credited for introducing a new word to the English Language according to the Collins English Dictionary: meh
(used here as an interjection expressing boredom or indifference, but can also be an adjective describing something boring or mediocre). The word 'meh' can in fact be heard uttered by Simpsons characters, such as Krusty the Clown, in as early as Season 6.
The Simpsons (season 12)
The Simpsons 12th season began on Wednesday, November 1, 2000 with "Treehouse of Horror XI".The season contains four hold over episodes from the season 11 production line. The show runner for the twelfth production was Mike Scully. The season features three episodes that were produced for the...
of The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
and it aired on March 4, 2001. In the episode, Homer Simpson
Homer Simpson
Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the patriarch of the eponymous family. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared on television, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
becomes a Good Samaritan after discovering the simple joys of helping people in need—which is put to the test when he goes on a hunger strike after the owner of the Springfield Isotopes attempts to discredit him when Homer stumbles on his plot to discreetly move the team to Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
.
The episode was written by John Swartzwelder
John Swartzwelder
John Swartzwelder is an American comedy writer and novelist, best known for his work on the animated television series The Simpsons, as well as a number of novels. He is credited with writing the largest number of Simpsons episodes by a large margin...
and directed by Nancy Kruse
Nancy Kruse
Nancy Kruse is a former animation director on The Simpsons. She started working on the show during the first season as a background clean-up artist. After that she did background layout and character layout for several years on the show before becoming an assistant director...
and guest starred Stacy Keach
Stacy Keach
Stacy Keach is an American actor and narrator. He is most famous for his dramatic roles; however, he has done narration work in educational programming on PBS and the Discovery Channel, as well as some comedy and musical...
as Howard K. Duff VIII.
Plot
The Simpson family visits Blockoland, a theme park similar to LegolandLegoland
Legoland is a chain of Lego-themed theme parks. They are not fully owned by Lego Group itself; rather they are owned and operated by the British theme park company Merlin Entertainment.The chain currently consists of:* Legoland Billund...
which is completely made of blocks. Lisa
Lisa Simpson
Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening...
is ripped off when her Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world...
kit has a missing Blocko piece. In response, Homer "sticks up for the little guy", and he gets Lisa the piece she needs. He also stands up for the little guy by helping Bart
Bart Simpson
Bartholomew JoJo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by actress Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
get a girlfriend for an upcoming school dance and helps Marge
Marge Simpson
Marjorie "Marge" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the eponymous family. She is voiced by actress Julie Kavner and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
get two free hair streaks (along with helping the beauty salon increase its profit margin to accommodate Marge's streaks). When he tries to help Lenny by getting him a refund on his tickets for the Springfield Isotopes, Homer encounters the Isotopes' owner Howard K. Duff
Duff Beer
Daleside is an independent brewery founded in 1988 in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England.-Products:Daleside produce a wide range of beers, including Morocco Ale, a traditional spiced beer based on an Elizabethan recipe; Old Legover, a low abv Old Ale ; Monkey Wrench, a stronger Old Ale; Ripon...
VIII. The owner refuses to give Homer a refund, but in his haste to leave Homer accidentally enters a room and discovers evidence that the Isotopes are moving to Albuquerque
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
. Duff insists that they are not moving and he has Duffman drug Homer to cover up the truth.
Homer is shocked and attempts to alert the media to the plan, but when Homer comes back with the press Duff had removed all traces of the evidence Homer found in the room. The journalists dismiss Homer's story and call him a liar. In response, Homer stages a hunger strike
Hunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke feelings of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most hunger strikers will take liquids but not...
in which he chains himself to a pole near Duff Stadium in order to force the owners of the team to admit they are moving to Albuquerque. He attracts a great deal of attention, so during the night the team decides to move him into the ballpark and exploit his popularity using the name "Hungry, Hungry Homer."
Eventually Homer becomes so thin and sickly that the team decides to get rid of him, replacing him with a super-fan who chugs cans of paint. In a public ceremony, the team's owner unchains Homer and offers him a free hot dog. Homer realizes the hot dog is topped with Southwestern ingredients, proving the team is really moving to Albuquerque. The crowd then takes notice that the hot dogs are even wrapped with "Albuquerque Isotopes" paper and are enraged. Howard tries to continue his denials but even Duffman turns against him. Homer's hunger strike is over as he celebrates under a shower of food thrown by the cheering fans, praising him as a hero.
As a result of Homer exposing the scheme, the mayor of Albuquerque decides to abandon his plan to steal the Isotopes and instead plans to purchase the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
and force them to play baseball because, as he menacingly proclaims at the end of the episode, "For I am the Mayor of Albuquerque!"
Production
The episode was written by John SwartzwelderJohn Swartzwelder
John Swartzwelder is an American comedy writer and novelist, best known for his work on the animated television series The Simpsons, as well as a number of novels. He is credited with writing the largest number of Simpsons episodes by a large margin...
and directed by Nancy Kruse
Nancy Kruse
Nancy Kruse is a former animation director on The Simpsons. She started working on the show during the first season as a background clean-up artist. After that she did background layout and character layout for several years on the show before becoming an assistant director...
. The episode was originally pitched by Al Jean
Al Jean
Al Jean is an award-winning American screenwriter and producer, best known for his work on The Simpsons. He was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan and graduated from Harvard University in 1981. Jean began his writing career in the 1980s with fellow Harvard alum Mike Reiss...
from his daughter, although it is not certain. The original of the episode is that Mike Scully in season 8
The Simpsons (season 8)
The Simpsons eighth season originally aired between October 27, 1996 and May 18, 1997, beginning with "Treehouse of Horror VII". The show runners for the eighth production season were Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein. The aired season contained two episodes which were hold-over episodes from season...
pitched that Homer got a motorcycle and loved it and the town passed a helmet law that you have to wear the helmet and Homer was furious and went on hunger strike and ended up passing out. The writers shelved the idea of Homer having a motorcycle (though it would be used for the season 11 episode "Take My Wife, Sleaze
Take My Wife, Sleaze
"Take My Wife, Sleaze" is the eighth episode of the eleventh season of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 28, 1999. In the episode, Homer wins a Harley-Davidson motorcycle and starts his own biker gang, naming it...
"), but held on to Homer having a hunger strike until Al Jean pitched this episode. Another inspiration was that a team was moving to another city. Dan Castellaneta
Dan Castellaneta
Daniel Louis "Dan" Castellaneta is an American actor, voice actor, comedian, singer and screenwriter. Noted for his long-running role as Homer Simpson on the animated television series The Simpsons, he voices many other characters on The Simpsons, including Abraham "Grampa" Simpson, Barney Gumble,...
adlibbed the lyrics to Homer's "Dancing Away My Hunger Pangs" song. The ending scene with the mayor announcing his plans to take over the Dallas Cowboys has been edited from all U.S. syndicated reruns, but has been seen on overseas syndicated reruns and on the season 12 DVD set.
Cultural references
Duffman turning against Howard K. Duff and throwing him over a fence is a reference to Darth VaderDarth Vader
Darth Vader is a central character in the Star Wars saga, appearing as one of the main antagonists in the original trilogy and as the main protagonist in the prequel trilogy....
's destruction of Emperor Palpatine in the film Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi is a 1983 American epic space opera film directed by Richard Marquand and written by George Lucas and Lawrence Kasdan. It is the third film released in the Star Wars saga, and the sixth in terms of the series' internal chronology...
(1983).
Reception
In its original American broadcast, "Hungry, Hungry Homer" was viewed by an estimated 10.0156 million households and received a 9.8 rating/15 share Nielsen Rating making it into the top twenty.Colin Jacobson of DVD Movie guide gave the episode a mixed review writing "Though it has something of a rehashed feel – an impression that we’ve seen this episode before – “Hungry” still manages to be fairly effective. Chock full of laughs? No, but the show has its moments. Or maybe I just like it because it’s the origin of the word “hungy”, which I used for many years. I forgot I stole it from this episode!" Judge Mac McEntire of DVD Verdict said of the episode that the best moment was pretty much any scene with Duffman.
Legacy
This episode inspired the name of the real-life Albuquerque IsotopesAlbuquerque Isotopes
The Albuquerque Isotopes are a minor league baseball team based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The team, which plays in the Pacific Coast League, is the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers...
minor-league baseball team.
This episode has also been credited for introducing a new word to the English Language according to the Collins English Dictionary: meh
Meh
"Meh" is an interjection, often used as an expression of indifference or boredom. However, it can also be used to indicate agreement or disagreement. It can also be as a verb, and an adjective, meaning mediocre or boring.-Popularization:The word gained popularity as a result of its use on The...
(used here as an interjection expressing boredom or indifference, but can also be an adjective describing something boring or mediocre). The word 'meh' can in fact be heard uttered by Simpsons characters, such as Krusty the Clown, in as early as Season 6.
External links
- "Hungry, Hungry Homer" at The Simpsons.com
- 'Meh': new word for indifference enters English dictionary (http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gizEbtOYkof1zKbnOxI961sG1Tlw)