On the 19th of April 1987, a crude, hastily drawn animation of a dysfunctional family aired for three minutes on The Tracey Ullman Show, launching a cultural phenomenon that would outlast the show itself. Matt Groening had spent the night before the pitch meeting in the lobby of producer James L. Brooks's office, sketching a family that looked nothing like the polished characters of the era. He named the children after his own siblings, substituting his own name with Bart, an anagram of brat, and chose the surname Simpson because it sounded like simpleton. The animation was so rough that the studio simply traced Groening's original sketches without cleaning them up, resulting in the signature yellow skin and jagged lines that defined the show's aesthetic. This short-lived sketch became the foundation for a series that would eventually become the longest-running American scripted primetime television show, surpassing Gunsmoke in 2018 with 790 episodes and counting. The decision to air the shorts on a variety show was a gamble that paid off when the sketches were developed into a half-hour series, making Fox the first network to land a primetime animated show in the Top 30 ratings during the 1989 to 1990 season.
The Floating Timeline And The Family
The Simpson family exists in a state of perpetual youth, trapped in a floating timeline where Bart remains ten years old and Lisa stays eight despite the passage of decades. This narrative device allows the show to reference historical events from the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s while keeping the characters' ages static, creating a unique continuity where flashbacks often contradict one another. For instance, the 1991 episode The Way We Was depicted Homer and Marge as high schoolers in the 1970s, yet the 2008 episode That 90s Show showed them as a childless couple in the 1990s, and the 2021 episode Do Pizza Bots Dream of Electric Guitars portrayed Homer as an adolescent in the same period. The show's creator, Matt Groening, and executive producer Al Jean have acknowledged that these contradictions exist in an imaginary world, allowing the series to ignore the laws of physics and time. Homer works as a safety inspector at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, a job that highlights his careless nature, while Marge serves as the stereotypical American housewife who anchors the family. Their children include Bart, a ten-year-old troublemaker; Lisa, a precocious eight-year-old activist; and Maggie, the baby who rarely speaks but communicates through her pacifier. The family also owns a greyhound named Santa's Little Helper and a cat named Snowball II, with the latter being replaced by another cat of the same name in the fifteenth season. Extended family members like Abe Simpson, Marge's sisters Patty and Selma, and various town figures like Ned Flanders and Krusty the Clown populate a world that functions as a complete universe for social commentary.The Voice Behind The Yellow Faces
Six voice actors have provided the voices for the main cast since the show's inception, with Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, and Harry Shearer becoming synonymous with their characters. Castellaneta voices Homer, Grampa Simpson, Krusty the Clown, and Groundskeeper Willie, while Kavner voices Marge and her sisters Patty and Selma. Cartwright, who was originally hired to voice Lisa, was given the role of Bart after Groening heard her read the part and gave her the job on the spot. Smith, the voice of Lisa, is the only cast member who regularly voices only one character, though she occasionally plays other episodic roles. Azaria and Shearer do not voice members of the title family but play a majority of the male townspeople, with Azaria voicing recurring characters like Moe Szyslak and Chief Wiggum, and Shearer providing voices for Mr. Burns and Principal Skinner. Every main cast member has won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance, a testament to their versatility. The actors were initially paid $30,000 per episode until 1998, when they were involved in a pay dispute with Fox. The company threatened to replace them with new actors, but Groening supported the actors, and the issue was resolved with salaries rising to between $250,000 and $360,000 per episode. In 2008, production for the twentieth season was put on hold due to new contract negotiations, and the actors' salary was raised to $400,000 per episode. Three years later, with Fox threatening to cancel the series, the cast members accepted a 30 percent pay cut, down to just over $300,000 per episode. The show has also featured numerous guest stars, including Tony Bennett, who was the first guest star to appear as himself, and the series holds the world record for Most Guest Stars Featured in a Television Series.The Golden Age And The Great Decline
The Simpsons received widespread acclaim throughout its early seasons in the 1990s, which are generally considered its golden age, with Time naming it the 20th century's best television series. The show's humor turned on cultural references that covered a wide spectrum of society, allowing viewers from all generations to enjoy the show. However, in the late 1990s, around the airing of season nine, the tone and emphasis of the show began to change, with some critics calling the show tired and long-term fans becoming disillusioned with the shift from character-driven plots to zany antics. The show's writers often evince an appreciation for progressive leanings, but the show makes jokes across the political spectrum, portraying government and large corporations as evil entities that take advantage of the common worker. The series has also been criticized for a perceived decline in quality, with some arguing that the show has become too reliant on catchphrases and sight gags. Despite the criticism, The Simpsons is still widely regarded as one of the most influential animated series of all time, inspiring many other later adult-oriented popular animated sitcom television series. The show has won dozens of awards since it debuted as a series, including 37 Primetime Emmy Awards, 34 Annie Awards, and 2 Peabody Awards. On the 14th of January 2000, the Simpson family was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, cementing their place in history.The Prophecies And The Pop Culture
The Simpsons has gained notoriety for jokes that appeared to become reality, with the episode Bart to the Future mentioning billionaire Donald Trump having been president of the United States at one time and leaving the nation broke, which first aired in 2000, sixteen years before Trump was elected. Other examples purported as The Simpsons predicting the future include the introduction of the smartwatch, video chat services, Richard Branson's spaceflight, and Lady Gaga's acrobatic performance at the Super Bowl LI halftime show. Al Jean has commented on the show's purported ability to predict the future, explaining that they are really just educated guesses and stating that if you throw enough darts, you're going to get some bullseyes. The show has also influenced the development of other animated series, such as Beavis and Butt-Head, South Park, Family Guy, King of the Hill, Futurama, and The Critic. The Simpsons has had crossovers with four other shows, including The Critic, South Park, Futurama, and Family Guy. The show has also influenced live-action shows like Malcolm in the Middle, which featured the use of sight gags and did not use a laugh track unlike most sitcoms. The Simpsons has also been dubbed into several other languages, including Japanese, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian, and is one of the few programs dubbed in both standard French and Quebec French. The show has been broadcast in Arabic, but due to Islamic customs, numerous aspects of the show have been changed, such as Homer drinking soda instead of beer and eating Egyptian beef sausages instead of hot dogs.The Syndication And The Streaming Wars
In the United States, the cable television network FXX has exclusive cable and digital syndication rights for The Simpsons, with original contracts stating that syndication rights would not be sold to cable until the series conclusion. The series has been syndicated to local broadcast stations in nearly all markets throughout the United States since September 1994. FXX premiered The Simpsons on their network on the 21st of August 2014, by starting a twelve-day marathon which featured the first 552 episodes, including The Simpsons Movie, which FX Networks had already owned the rights to air. It was the longest continuous marathon in the history of television until VH1 Classic aired a 433-hour, nineteen-day, marathon of Saturday Night Live in 2015. On the 21st of October 2014, a digital service courtesy of the FXNOW app, called Simpsons World, launched with every episode of the series accessible to authenticated FX subscribers. Simpsons World was discontinued after the launch of Disney+ on the 12th of November 2019, where the series streams exclusively. Initially, the series was only available cropped to 16:9 without the option to view the original 4:3 versions, reigniting criticisms of cropping old episodes. In response, Disney announced that in early 2020, Disney+ would make the first 19 seasons of The Simpsons available in their original 4:3 aspect ratio. On the 28th of May 2020, Disney+ made the first 19 seasons, along with some episodes from season 20, of The Simpsons available in both 16:9 and the original 4:3 aspect ratio. Season 31 came to Disney+ on the 2nd of October 2020, with Hulu streaming the latest episodes of season 32 the next day. Season 32 came to Disney+ on the 29th of September 2021. The season 3 premiere Stark Raving Dad, which features Michael Jackson as the voice of Leon Kompowsky, was pulled out of rotation in 2019 by Matt Groening, James L. Brooks, and Al Jean after HBO aired the documentary Leaving Neverland. In July 2017, all episodes from seasons 4 to 19 were made available for purchase on the iTunes Store in Canada. On the 10th of August 2024, it was announced that four episodes of season 36 would air exclusively on Disney+.The Controversies And The Bans
Bart's rebellious, bad boy nature led some people to characterize him as a poor role model for children, with educators claiming that Bart was a threat to learning because of his underachiever and proud of it attitude. In a 1991 interview, Bill Cosby described Bart as a bad role model for children, calling him angry, confused, and frustrated. On the 27th of January 1992, then-President George H. W. Bush said, We are going to keep on trying to strengthen the American family, to make American families a lot more like the Waltons and a lot less like the Simpsons. The writers rushed out a tongue-in-cheek reply in the form of a short segment that aired three days later before a rerun of Stark Raving Dad in which Bart replied, Hey, we're just like the Waltons. We're praying for an end to the Depression, too. The show also received criticism from the nuclear power industry in its early years, with its portrayal of the evil boss Mr. Burns and bungling idiot employees with their lack of safety and security. Various episodes of the show have generated controversy, such as The Simpsons visit to Australia in Bart vs. Australia and Brazil in Blame It on Lisa, both of which generated controversy and negative reaction in the visited countries. The show has reportedly been taken off the air in several countries, with China banning it from prime-time television in August 2006, in an effort to protect China's struggling animation studios. In 2008, Venezuela barred the show from airing on morning television as it was deemed unsuitable for children. The same year, several Russian Pentecostal churches demanded that The Simpsons, South Park, and some other Western cartoons be removed from broadcast schedules for propaganda of various vices, but a court decision later dismissed this request. The episode The Principal and the Pauper is one of the most controversial episodes of The Simpsons, with many fans and critics reacting negatively to the revelation that Seymour Skinner was an impostor.The Future And The Legacy
On the 2nd of April 2025, the show was renewed for four additional seasons on Fox, with 15 episodes and two Disney+ specials each, bringing the episode total from 790 to 858. This renewal will take the show through the 2028 to 2029 television season, coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the show. Each season will consist of 15 episodes. The Simpsons has been renewed for seasons 31 and 32, running from 2019 to 2021, and in March 2021, the series was renewed again for seasons 33 and 34. On the 26th of January 2023, the series was renewed for its 35th and 36th seasons, taking the show through the 2024 to 2025 television season. The two seasons contain a combined total of 51 episodes. Seven of these episodes are season 34 holdovers, while the other 44 will be produced in the production cycle of the upcoming seasons, bringing the show's overall episode total up to 801. Season 35 premiered on the 1st of October 2023. Season 36 premiered on the 29th of September 2024. In December 2025, Disney announced that The Simpsons surpassed one billion hours streamed on Disney+ during 2025. The Simpsons has been ranked as the second-greatest TV show of all time by Rolling Stone in 2022 and the fourth-greatest TV show of all time by Variety in 2023. The show has also been named the greatest TV show of all time by Empire and the greatest American TV series of all time by TV critics Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz in their 2016 book TV. The Simpsons has also been named the 11th best written series in television history by the Writers Guild of America in 2013. The show has also been named the greatest TV cartoon of all time by TV Guide in 2013 and the tenth greatest show of all time by TV Guide in 2013. The Simpsons has also been named the 10th favorite show by a 2015 The Hollywood Reporter survey of 2,800 actors, producers, directors, and other industry people. The Simpsons has also been named one of the 10 best TV sitcoms of all time by British newspaper The Telegraph in 2015. The Simpsons has also been named the 20th century's best television series by Time in 1999. The Simpsons has also been named the greatest television show of the 1990s by Entertainment Weekly in 2000. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest Kids' TV shows by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest Cartoons by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2005. The Simpsons has also been named the 50 Greatest TV icons by Entertainment Weekly in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time by TV Guide in 2002. The Simpsons has also been named the 6th cult show by TV Guide in 2004. The Simpsons has also been named the 8th cult show by TV Guide in 2007. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Best TV Shows of All Time by Time in 2007. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest TV Characters by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 9th on Entertainment Weekly list of the 50 Greatest TV icons in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 10th greatest show of all time by TV Guide in 2013. The Simpsons has also been named the 10th favorite show by a 2015 The Hollywood Reporter survey of 2,800 actors, producers, directors, and other industry people in 2015. The Simpsons has also been named one of the 10 best TV sitcoms of all time by British newspaper The Telegraph in 2015. The Simpsons has also been named the 20th century's best television series by Time in 1999. The Simpsons has also been named the greatest television show of the 1990s by Entertainment Weekly in 2000. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest Kids' TV shows by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest Cartoons by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2005. The Simpsons has also been named the 50 Greatest TV icons by Entertainment Weekly in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time by TV Guide in 2002. The Simpsons has also been named the 6th cult show by TV Guide in 2004. The Simpsons has also been named the 8th cult show by TV Guide in 2007. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Best TV Shows of All Time by Time in 2007. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest TV Characters by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 9th on Entertainment Weekly list of the 50 Greatest TV icons in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 10th greatest show of all time by TV Guide in 2013. The Simpsons has also been named the 10th favorite show by a 2015 The Hollywood Reporter survey of 2,800 actors, producers, directors, and other industry people in 2015. The Simpsons has also been named one of the 10 best TV sitcoms of all time by British newspaper The Telegraph in 2015.On the 19th of April 1987, a crude, hastily drawn animation of a dysfunctional family aired for three minutes on The Tracey Ullman Show, launching a cultural phenomenon that would outlast the show itself. Matt Groening had spent the night before the pitch meeting in the lobby of producer James L. Brooks's office, sketching a family that looked nothing like the polished characters of the era. He named the children after his own siblings, substituting his own name with Bart, an anagram of brat, and chose the surname Simpson because it sounded like simpleton. The animation was so rough that the studio simply traced Groening's original sketches without cleaning them up, resulting in the signature yellow skin and jagged lines that defined the show's aesthetic. This short-lived sketch became the foundation for a series that would eventually become the longest-running American scripted primetime television show, surpassing Gunsmoke in 2018 with 790 episodes and counting. The decision to air the shorts on a variety show was a gamble that paid off when the sketches were developed into a half-hour series, making Fox the first network to land a primetime animated show in the Top 30 ratings during the 1989 to 1990 season.
The Floating Timeline And The Family
The Simpson family exists in a state of perpetual youth, trapped in a floating timeline where Bart remains ten years old and Lisa stays eight despite the passage of decades. This narrative device allows the show to reference historical events from the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s while keeping the characters' ages static, creating a unique continuity where flashbacks often contradict one another. For instance, the 1991 episode The Way We Was depicted Homer and Marge as high schoolers in the 1970s, yet the 2008 episode That 90s Show showed them as a childless couple in the 1990s, and the 2021 episode Do Pizza Bots Dream of Electric Guitars portrayed Homer as an adolescent in the same period. The show's creator, Matt Groening, and executive producer Al Jean have acknowledged that these contradictions exist in an imaginary world, allowing the series to ignore the laws of physics and time. Homer works as a safety inspector at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, a job that highlights his careless nature, while Marge serves as the stereotypical American housewife who anchors the family. Their children include Bart, a ten-year-old troublemaker; Lisa, a precocious eight-year-old activist; and Maggie, the baby who rarely speaks but communicates through her pacifier. The family also owns a greyhound named Santa's Little Helper and a cat named Snowball II, with the latter being replaced by another cat of the same name in the fifteenth season. Extended family members like Abe Simpson, Marge's sisters Patty and Selma, and various town figures like Ned Flanders and Krusty the Clown populate a world that functions as a complete universe for social commentary.
The Voice Behind The Yellow Faces
Six voice actors have provided the voices for the main cast since the show's inception, with Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, and Harry Shearer becoming synonymous with their characters. Castellaneta voices Homer, Grampa Simpson, Krusty the Clown, and Groundskeeper Willie, while Kavner voices Marge and her sisters Patty and Selma. Cartwright, who was originally hired to voice Lisa, was given the role of Bart after Groening heard her read the part and gave her the job on the spot. Smith, the voice of Lisa, is the only cast member who regularly voices only one character, though she occasionally plays other episodic roles. Azaria and Shearer do not voice members of the title family but play a majority of the male townspeople, with Azaria voicing recurring characters like Moe Szyslak and Chief Wiggum, and Shearer providing voices for Mr. Burns and Principal Skinner. Every main cast member has won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance, a testament to their versatility. The actors were initially paid $30,000 per episode until 1998, when they were involved in a pay dispute with Fox. The company threatened to replace them with new actors, but Groening supported the actors, and the issue was resolved with salaries rising to between $250,000 and $360,000 per episode. In 2008, production for the twentieth season was put on hold due to new contract negotiations, and the actors' salary was raised to $400,000 per episode. Three years later, with Fox threatening to cancel the series, the cast members accepted a 30 percent pay cut, down to just over $300,000 per episode. The show has also featured numerous guest stars, including Tony Bennett, who was the first guest star to appear as himself, and the series holds the world record for Most Guest Stars Featured in a Television Series.
The Golden Age And The Great Decline
The Simpsons received widespread acclaim throughout its early seasons in the 1990s, which are generally considered its golden age, with Time naming it the 20th century's best television series. The show's humor turned on cultural references that covered a wide spectrum of society, allowing viewers from all generations to enjoy the show. However, in the late 1990s, around the airing of season nine, the tone and emphasis of the show began to change, with some critics calling the show tired and long-term fans becoming disillusioned with the shift from character-driven plots to zany antics. The show's writers often evince an appreciation for progressive leanings, but the show makes jokes across the political spectrum, portraying government and large corporations as evil entities that take advantage of the common worker. The series has also been criticized for a perceived decline in quality, with some arguing that the show has become too reliant on catchphrases and sight gags. Despite the criticism, The Simpsons is still widely regarded as one of the most influential animated series of all time, inspiring many other later adult-oriented popular animated sitcom television series. The show has won dozens of awards since it debuted as a series, including 37 Primetime Emmy Awards, 34 Annie Awards, and 2 Peabody Awards. On the 14th of January 2000, the Simpson family was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, cementing their place in history.
The Prophecies And The Pop Culture
The Simpsons has gained notoriety for jokes that appeared to become reality, with the episode Bart to the Future mentioning billionaire Donald Trump having been president of the United States at one time and leaving the nation broke, which first aired in 2000, sixteen years before Trump was elected. Other examples purported as The Simpsons predicting the future include the introduction of the smartwatch, video chat services, Richard Branson's spaceflight, and Lady Gaga's acrobatic performance at the Super Bowl LI halftime show. Al Jean has commented on the show's purported ability to predict the future, explaining that they are really just educated guesses and stating that if you throw enough darts, you're going to get some bullseyes. The show has also influenced the development of other animated series, such as Beavis and Butt-Head, South Park, Family Guy, King of the Hill, Futurama, and The Critic. The Simpsons has had crossovers with four other shows, including The Critic, South Park, Futurama, and Family Guy. The show has also influenced live-action shows like Malcolm in the Middle, which featured the use of sight gags and did not use a laugh track unlike most sitcoms. The Simpsons has also been dubbed into several other languages, including Japanese, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian, and is one of the few programs dubbed in both standard French and Quebec French. The show has been broadcast in Arabic, but due to Islamic customs, numerous aspects of the show have been changed, such as Homer drinking soda instead of beer and eating Egyptian beef sausages instead of hot dogs.
The Syndication And The Streaming Wars
In the United States, the cable television network FXX has exclusive cable and digital syndication rights for The Simpsons, with original contracts stating that syndication rights would not be sold to cable until the series conclusion. The series has been syndicated to local broadcast stations in nearly all markets throughout the United States since September 1994. FXX premiered The Simpsons on their network on the 21st of August 2014, by starting a twelve-day marathon which featured the first 552 episodes, including The Simpsons Movie, which FX Networks had already owned the rights to air. It was the longest continuous marathon in the history of television until VH1 Classic aired a 433-hour, nineteen-day, marathon of Saturday Night Live in 2015. On the 21st of October 2014, a digital service courtesy of the FXNOW app, called Simpsons World, launched with every episode of the series accessible to authenticated FX subscribers. Simpsons World was discontinued after the launch of Disney+ on the 12th of November 2019, where the series streams exclusively. Initially, the series was only available cropped to 16:9 without the option to view the original 4:3 versions, reigniting criticisms of cropping old episodes. In response, Disney announced that in early 2020, Disney+ would make the first 19 seasons of The Simpsons available in their original 4:3 aspect ratio. On the 28th of May 2020, Disney+ made the first 19 seasons, along with some episodes from season 20, of The Simpsons available in both 16:9 and the original 4:3 aspect ratio. Season 31 came to Disney+ on the 2nd of October 2020, with Hulu streaming the latest episodes of season 32 the next day. Season 32 came to Disney+ on the 29th of September 2021. The season 3 premiere Stark Raving Dad, which features Michael Jackson as the voice of Leon Kompowsky, was pulled out of rotation in 2019 by Matt Groening, James L. Brooks, and Al Jean after HBO aired the documentary Leaving Neverland. In July 2017, all episodes from seasons 4 to 19 were made available for purchase on the iTunes Store in Canada. On the 10th of August 2024, it was announced that four episodes of season 36 would air exclusively on Disney+.
The Controversies And The Bans
Bart's rebellious, bad boy nature led some people to characterize him as a poor role model for children, with educators claiming that Bart was a threat to learning because of his underachiever and proud of it attitude. In a 1991 interview, Bill Cosby described Bart as a bad role model for children, calling him angry, confused, and frustrated. On the 27th of January 1992, then-President George H. W. Bush said, We are going to keep on trying to strengthen the American family, to make American families a lot more like the Waltons and a lot less like the Simpsons. The writers rushed out a tongue-in-cheek reply in the form of a short segment that aired three days later before a rerun of Stark Raving Dad in which Bart replied, Hey, we're just like the Waltons. We're praying for an end to the Depression, too. The show also received criticism from the nuclear power industry in its early years, with its portrayal of the evil boss Mr. Burns and bungling idiot employees with their lack of safety and security. Various episodes of the show have generated controversy, such as The Simpsons visit to Australia in Bart vs. Australia and Brazil in Blame It on Lisa, both of which generated controversy and negative reaction in the visited countries. The show has reportedly been taken off the air in several countries, with China banning it from prime-time television in August 2006, in an effort to protect China's struggling animation studios. In 2008, Venezuela barred the show from airing on morning television as it was deemed unsuitable for children. The same year, several Russian Pentecostal churches demanded that The Simpsons, South Park, and some other Western cartoons be removed from broadcast schedules for propaganda of various vices, but a court decision later dismissed this request. The episode The Principal and the Pauper is one of the most controversial episodes of The Simpsons, with many fans and critics reacting negatively to the revelation that Seymour Skinner was an impostor.
The Future And The Legacy
On the 2nd of April 2025, the show was renewed for four additional seasons on Fox, with 15 episodes and two Disney+ specials each, bringing the episode total from 790 to 858. This renewal will take the show through the 2028 to 2029 television season, coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the show. Each season will consist of 15 episodes. The Simpsons has been renewed for seasons 31 and 32, running from 2019 to 2021, and in March 2021, the series was renewed again for seasons 33 and 34. On the 26th of January 2023, the series was renewed for its 35th and 36th seasons, taking the show through the 2024 to 2025 television season. The two seasons contain a combined total of 51 episodes. Seven of these episodes are season 34 holdovers, while the other 44 will be produced in the production cycle of the upcoming seasons, bringing the show's overall episode total up to 801. Season 35 premiered on the 1st of October 2023. Season 36 premiered on the 29th of September 2024. In December 2025, Disney announced that The Simpsons surpassed one billion hours streamed on Disney+ during 2025. The Simpsons has been ranked as the second-greatest TV show of all time by Rolling Stone in 2022 and the fourth-greatest TV show of all time by Variety in 2023. The show has also been named the greatest TV show of all time by Empire and the greatest American TV series of all time by TV critics Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz in their 2016 book TV. The Simpsons has also been named the 11th best written series in television history by the Writers Guild of America in 2013. The show has also been named the greatest TV cartoon of all time by TV Guide in 2013 and the tenth greatest show of all time by TV Guide in 2013. The Simpsons has also been named the 10th favorite show by a 2015 The Hollywood Reporter survey of 2,800 actors, producers, directors, and other industry people. The Simpsons has also been named one of the 10 best TV sitcoms of all time by British newspaper The Telegraph in 2015. The Simpsons has also been named the 20th century's best television series by Time in 1999. The Simpsons has also been named the greatest television show of the 1990s by Entertainment Weekly in 2000. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest Kids' TV shows by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest Cartoons by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2005. The Simpsons has also been named the 50 Greatest TV icons by Entertainment Weekly in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time by TV Guide in 2002. The Simpsons has also been named the 6th cult show by TV Guide in 2004. The Simpsons has also been named the 8th cult show by TV Guide in 2007. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Best TV Shows of All Time by Time in 2007. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest TV Characters by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 9th on Entertainment Weekly list of the 50 Greatest TV icons in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 10th greatest show of all time by TV Guide in 2013. The Simpsons has also been named the 10th favorite show by a 2015 The Hollywood Reporter survey of 2,800 actors, producers, directors, and other industry people in 2015. The Simpsons has also been named one of the 10 best TV sitcoms of all time by British newspaper The Telegraph in 2015. The Simpsons has also been named the 20th century's best television series by Time in 1999. The Simpsons has also been named the greatest television show of the 1990s by Entertainment Weekly in 2000. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest Kids' TV shows by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest Cartoons by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2005. The Simpsons has also been named the 50 Greatest TV icons by Entertainment Weekly in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time by TV Guide in 2002. The Simpsons has also been named the 6th cult show by TV Guide in 2004. The Simpsons has also been named the 8th cult show by TV Guide in 2007. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Best TV Shows of All Time by Time in 2007. The Simpsons has also been named the 100 Greatest TV Characters by viewers of the UK television channel Channel 4 in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 9th on Entertainment Weekly list of the 50 Greatest TV icons in 2001. The Simpsons has also been named the 10th greatest show of all time by TV Guide in 2013. The Simpsons has also been named the 10th favorite show by a 2015 The Hollywood Reporter survey of 2,800 actors, producers, directors, and other industry people in 2015. The Simpsons has also been named one of the 10 best TV sitcoms of all time by British newspaper The Telegraph in 2015.