20/20 hindsight

The Simpsons Is Pulling Its Episode Starring Michael Jackson

Photo: 20th Century Fox

Well I guess it’s finally confirmed that Michael Jackson really did do a voice on The Simpsons. Simpsons executive producer James L. Brooks told The Wall Street Journal that the season 3 episode “Stark Raving Dad” will be pulled from circulation. Not only will it be removed from syndication, but the episode will be pulled from streaming services like Fox’s EverySimpsonEver and from all future DVD and Blu-Ray box sets. “The guys I work with — where we all spend our lives arguing over jokes — were of one mind on this,” Brooks said. “It feels clearly the only choice to make. Brooks said that the Simpsons higher-ups were overwhelmingly convinced by the HBO documentary Leaving Neverland, calling the behavior of Jackson “monstrous.” The episode depicts Homer being committed to a mental institution and meeting a man named Leon Kompowsky who is convinced he’s really Michael Jackson. Jackson voiced the character under the pseudonym John Jay Smith. “I’m against book burning of any kind,” said Brooks, “but this is our book and we’re allowed to take out a chapter.”

The Simpsons Is Pulling the Episode Starring Michael Jackson