Conan O'Brien Looks Back On His Days As A 'Simpsons' Writer - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Brian Damage · 02-08-2012, 11:45 PM

Conan O'Brien
writer, 1991-93

"I was 27 when I started as a writer on the show. I thought, "I'm going to bring the edgiest ideas, push the envelope." When I got there, they told me, first and foremost, "The Simpsons characters are a family who love each other. They need to exist in that reality. Bart can't take out a gun and shoot Homer in the face; it's not the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote." So when I heard that, I gotta admit I kind of rolled my eyes, like "Whatevs, man." But the point is, those relationships really do ground the show. And in any good show, the characters do care about each other.

My arm shot up when they asked for volunteers to record Bob Hope's voice at his home in Toluca Lake. We were alone in his study when Mr. Hope came in. He was quite hearing-impaired at the time, and his daughter was trying to get him to say the line. He kept saying, "Huh? What is it?" Then one of his people came in and said, "Mr. Hope, I'm sorry. We just got bad news from the vet about one of your dogs." And Bob said, "Well, you better let me tell him!" And he went whistling up the stairs.

I was also there when Johnny Carson came by after he retired from The Tonight Show. He was in a room full of writers who revered him. When Johnny was leaving -- in a white Corvette -- I was outside of the recording stage and he asked, "How do I get out of here?" I kind of panicked. I said, "You go down here and you take a right." And he went, "OK, thank you." And just as his car pulled away. I thought, "****! It's a left!" And I kept watching. And sure enough about 45 seconds later, it comes back the other way. And I could just imagine him going, "Stupid kid." I was that stupid kid.

The Simpsons came from the old world of television: Fox was an upstart, it was just the big three networks, and The Cosby Show was still dominant. And now, 23 years later, we're living in this world of 650,000 channels and literally nine cake shows. And yet The Simpsons is still with us. It's probably the only real bridge from the old world of media into the new world of media. When I walk around, sometimes people want to talk trivia about one of the episodes I worked on 20 years ago! They want to know every detail. And I just say, "All I remember is that the muffins were stale."

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/new...roening-287864

AKA · 02-08-2012, 11:57 PM

Conan wrote two of my favorite episodes: "Homer Goes to College" and "Marge vs. the Monorail."

02-08-2012, 11:45 PM	#1
Brian Damage I'm Rich Bitch Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 03, 2002 Location: What Ain't No Country I Ever Heard Of...They Speak English in What? Posts: 63,108	Conan O'Brien Looks Back On His Days As A 'Simpsons' Writer Conan O'Brien writer, 1991-93 "I was 27 when I started as a writer on the show. I thought, "I'm going to bring the edgiest ideas, push the envelope." When I got there, they told me, first and foremost, "The Simpsons characters are a family who love each other. They need to exist in that reality. Bart can't take out a gun and shoot Homer in the face; it's not the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote." So when I heard that, I gotta admit I kind of rolled my eyes, like "Whatevs, man." But the point is, those relationships really do ground the show. And in any good show, the characters do care about each other. My arm shot up when they asked for volunteers to record Bob Hope's voice at his home in Toluca Lake. We were alone in his study when Mr. Hope came in. He was quite hearing-impaired at the time, and his daughter was trying to get him to say the line. He kept saying, "Huh? What is it?" Then one of his people came in and said, "Mr. Hope, I'm sorry. We just got bad news from the vet about one of your dogs." And Bob said, "Well, you better let me tell him!" And he went whistling up the stairs. I was also there when Johnny Carson came by after he retired from The Tonight Show. He was in a room full of writers who revered him. When Johnny was leaving -- in a white Corvette -- I was outside of the recording stage and he asked, "How do I get out of here?" I kind of panicked. I said, "You go down here and you take a right." And he went, "OK, thank you." And just as his car pulled away. I thought, "****! It's a left!" And I kept watching. And sure enough about 45 seconds later, it comes back the other way. And I could just imagine him going, "Stupid kid." I was that stupid kid. The Simpsons came from the old world of television: Fox was an upstart, it was just the big three networks, and The Cosby Show was still dominant. And now, 23 years later, we're living in this world of 650,000 channels and literally nine cake shows. And yet The Simpsons is still with us. It's probably the only real bridge from the old world of media into the new world of media. When I walk around, sometimes people want to talk trivia about one of the episodes I worked on 20 years ago! They want to know every detail. And I just say, "All I remember is that the muffins were stale." http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/new...roening-287864
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02-08-2012, 11:57 PM	#2
AKA Heck on Wheels Forum Star Join Date: Dec 17, 2001 Location: Southern California Posts: 16,890	Conan wrote two of my favorite episodes: "Homer Goes to College" and "Marge vs. the Monorail."