List of recurring The Simpsons characters
The American animated television series The Simpsons contains a wide range of minor and supporting characters like co-workers, teachers, students, family friends, extended relatives, townspeople, local celebrities, and even animals. The writers intended many of these characters as one-time jokes or for fulfilling needed functions in the town of Springfield, where the series primarily takes place. A number of these characters have gained expanded roles and have subsequently starred in their own episodes. According to the creator of The Simpsons, Matt Groening, the show adopted the concept of a large supporting cast from the Canadian sketch comedy series Second City Television.[1]
This article features the recurring characters from the series outside of the five main characters (Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie Simpson). Each of them are listed in order by their first name.
A[edit]
Agnes Skinner[edit]
Agnes Skinner (voiced by Tress MacNeille)[2] is the mother of Principal Skinner and first appears in the first-season episode "The Crepes of Wrath" as an old woman who embarrassingly addresses her son as "Spanky". However, as episodes progress, her character turns bitter.[3] She is very controlling of her son and often treats him as if he is a child, insulting and ridiculing him every chance she gets. She hates Edna Krabappel due to her son's feelings for the other woman.[4] Agnes has been married four times[5] and once dated Comic Book Guy. Many Springfield residents, including the Simpsons, are afraid of her.[6] When "the real Seymour Skinner" arrives in Springfield in "The Principal and the Pauper", Agnes ends up rejecting him, in part because he stands up to her but also because, unlike Skinner/Tamzarian, her biological son is independent and does not need her anymore, while Skinner immediately reverts to a good-for-nothing without her.
Agnes's first name was revealed in the seventh-season episode "Bart the Fink".[7] Before that, the character was known as "Mrs. Skinner".[8] In the beginning of the series, the writers make several references to Agnes and Seymour's unhealthily close relationship as similar to that of Norman Bates and his mother.[9] In "Boy Meets Curl", it is revealed that Agnes's resentment toward Seymour may have begun even before her son was born – during the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Agnes competed in the pole vaulting event while nine months pregnant. When Seymour makes his first kick, he hits the bar, thus making Agnes lose and crushing her dreams[10] (contradicting the earlier episode in which Seymour is not her birth son). In "Grade School Confidential", it is revealed that Agnes enjoys collecting pictures of cakes that she cuts out of magazines, a hobby she began in 1941. However, she does not care for the dessert itself, finding it "too sweet". In the 26th-season episode "Sky Police", she mentions that she has a brother named Stevie.
Akira Kurosawa[edit]
Akira Kurosawa[11] (voiced by George Takei in "One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Bluefish" and "What Animated Women Want", Hank Azaria voice-matching the latter in "When Flanders Failed") works as a waiter at The Happy Sumo, a Japanese restaurant in Springfield. He first appears in the second season episode "One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish".
Actor George Takei originally voiced Akira in "One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish". Since Akira's speaking role in "When Flanders Failed" where the character is depicted as a karate teacher, Hank Azaria has voiced the character, doing an impression of Takei for the voice.[12] Takei returned to voice Akira in season 24's "What Animated Women Want". The character's name is a reference to the Japanese director Akira Kurosawa.
Allison Taylor[edit]
Allison Taylor (voiced by Winona Ryder in "Lisa's Rival", Maggie Roswell in "Lard of the Dance", and Pamela Hayden in later episodes) is in Lisa's class but skipped a grade and has a lot in common with Lisa. She first appeared in "Lisa's Rival", in which Lisa feels threatened by Allison's talents and abilities. During a school competition, Lisa has Bart sabotage Allison's Tell-Tale Heart diorama with a cow's heart in a box and hide the original diorama beneath a floorboard. Wracked with guilt, Lisa returns Allison's real diorama. Lisa and Allison both lose to Ralph Wiggum and his Star Wars figurines. Afterwards, Lisa apologizes, and the two make amends. Allison has had a few speaking roles since and has been friends with Lisa, Janey, Sherri, and Terri at school.
B[edit]
Baby Gerald[edit]
Gerald Samson, better known as Baby Gerald, also known as "the one-eyebrowed baby", is Maggie Simpson's mean-spirited archenemy, known for his large unibrow. He makes his first appearance in "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song", where Lisa refers to Baby Gerald as Maggie's rival. On a few occasions, Gerald has been shown being pushed in a stroller by his mother outside the Simpson house as in "Lady Bouvier's Lover", as the two toddlers glare at each other. He was also featured in the Simpsons theatrical short, "The Longest Daycare." The character's name was revealed in the episode "The Canine Mutiny".[15] In "The Blue and the Gray" and "Papa Don't Leech", a possible romantic attraction between Maggie and Gerald is hinted at. In the non-canonical future of "Days of Future Future", Gerald and Maggie are married. It is implied in "Holidays of Future Passed" that he is the father of Maggie Jr. and of whom her family knows except Abe. Baby Gerald appears in the show's current title sequence (as of 2014).
C[edit]
C.H.U.M.[edit]
C.H.U.M. (voiced by Dan Castellaneta), short for Childlike Humanoid Urban Muchacho, is a robot that Martin Prince built in "Fat Man and Little Boy" for a science fair at Springfield Elementary School. In "Future-Drama" Martin dances with it at the prom in the future and the robot activates the self-destruction mechanism. In "Gorgeous Grampa", Bart hit C.H.U.M. over the head with a folding chair and then proceeded to climb to the blackboard ledge and jump on the robot, breaking it. In "Looking for Mr. Goodbart" appears catching a Rattle Snitch on Peekimon Get on Frank Grimes' grave.
Capital City Goofball[edit]
The Capital City Goofball (voiced by Tom Poston) is the mascot for Capital City. His appearance seems to have been inspired by the mascot of the Philadelphia Phillies baseball team, the Phillie Phanatic. The costume is a creature with a baseball body, with a blue Capital City T-shirt, yellow arms and legs, a long flat-ended nose, tufts of fur at the side, a red hat with two springs, two costume eyes that look in either direction, and two more eyes that peek outside the mouth. The Capital City Goofball first appeared in the episode "Dancin' Homer" and shared the stage with Homer. He also appears in Radio Bart as one of many celebrities recording a charity single. After that, he is absent until "Homer to the Max", where he walks past the Simpsons window alongside Mr Largo when Lisa talks about TV shows rewriting or dropping characters that appear early on. In "Bart vs. Lisa vs. the Third Grade", the Capital City Goofball represents Capital City in the state legislature; he spent $80 million out of his own pocket to win the seat, and now is leading an effort to change the state's embarrassing flag, a Confederate battle flag set between the ocean and the rays of the sun (especially as the state was in the North).
After Tom Poston's death in 2007, the character was reduced to making minor background appearances and usual honking sounds, and has not spoken since "Bart and Lisa vs. the Third Grade".
Captain Lance Murdock[edit]
Captain Lance Murdock (voiced by Dan Castellaneta) is a professional stunt devil who appeared more in the early days of the show rather than the newer episodes. He first appeared in "Bart the Daredevil" which featured him in more scenes than other episodes. He later appeared in "I Married Marge", "Selma's Choice", and "Viva Ned Flanders". He was most recently featured when Krusty was flicking channels on his TV in "Today I Am a Clown". He also appears in Lisa's lecture about Lake Springfield in The Simpsons Movie sitting in the audience. His stunts often end in disaster, such as in "Viva Ned Flanders", and "Bart the Daredevil", where he states that he has broken every bone in his body after a failed stunt (he did have one unbroken bone, his thumb, but broke it when trying to give Bart a thumbs-up). His signature bike is the Suicycle and he has his own action figure complete with an ambulance.
D[edit]
Database[edit]
Database (alternatively voiced by Nancy Cartwright, Tress MacNeille, and Pamela Hayden; real name Kyle according to "Yellow Subterfuge") is a nerdy student who attends Springfield Elementary School. He first appeared in the episode "Bart's Comet" as a member of "the Super Friends". He has since had speaking parts in several episodes. He is usually seen with his fellow nerd Martin Prince. Database is a common target for Nelson, Dolph, Jimbo and Kearney. Database is part of the group of boys who invade Shelbyville in "Lemon of Troy". He is one of the Pre-Teen Braves in the episode "The Bart of War". He is a member of the school band, as seen in "The PTA Disbands". Database is known for his annoying, nerdy voice which is supplied by Nancy Cartwright. Database's father is shown in "Lemon of Troy", although he utters no dialogue and is only in the background.[83] Matt Groening has stated that Database is his least favorite character in the show.[84]
Dave Shutton[edit]
Dave Shutton (voiced by Harry Shearer[2]) is a reporter for The Springfield Shopper. Writer John Swartzwelder named Shutton after a friend of his.[85] His first appearance was in "Two Cars in Every Garage and Three Eyes on Every Fish".
Since then, his roles have become less relevant and have been reduced to short appearances. According to "Who Shot Mr. Burns? (Part Two)", Kent Brockman does not like Dave Shutton and thinks he is unprofessional.[86][87][88]
Declan Desmond[edit]
Declan Desmond (voiced by Eric Idle) is an odd and skeptical English documentary filmmaker who has directed several films, including Do You Want Lies with That?, American Boneheads: A Day In The Life Of Springfield Elementary, Growing Up Springfield, Ain't No Mountain: A Blind Man Climbs Everest, and The Spy Who Learned Me. Growing Up Springfield is his most notable documentary. It follows the lives of the inhabitants of Springfield, starting when they were in third grade and continuing every eight years. Desmond appeared in the episodes "'Scuse Me While I Miss the Sky" and "Fat Man and Little Boy" and his Growing Up Springfield series were featured in the episode "Springfield Up". A documentary directed by him appeared in "The Spy Who Learned Me".
The character appears to be loosely based on British director Michael Apted, who is known for his Up Series of documentaries following groups of individuals as they age.
Dewey Largo[edit]
Dewey Largo (voiced by Harry Shearer) is the music teacher, whom Lisa credited with proving that any piece of music could have the soul sucked out of it. Like most of the staff of Springfield Elementary, Largo has long since lost all passion for his job as conductor, and cares little for creativity or music anymore. He is always seen in the opening sequence, teaching his class and throwing Lisa out of his band class when she plays a tune on her saxophone. His last name, Largo, is also an Italian word for a slow, broad, musical tempo,[89] likely a reference to the fact that he can make any piece of music uninteresting. He is a lover of the music of John Philip Sousa, and is incredulous when Lisa suggests the school band plays something different. However, he does seem to have some appreciation for Lisa's musical talent, as shown when he advises his replacement to "just teach the one with the starfish head, and you'll be okay".
He has not played a large role in the series, but was originally intended to be an uptight foil for Lisa and her non-conformist ways. After the first few seasons, Mr. Largo was rarely seen. However, he has since resurfaced as a recurring character in the seventeenth season, making appearances in several episodes after. In the episode "Homer's Paternity Coot", it is revealed that Largo was accepted to the Juilliard School, but never got the letter as it was frozen atop Mount Springfield. He ended up at Springfield Elementary instead. In season 22's "Elementary School Musical", after attending a performing arts camp, Lisa is warned by Mr Largo that he also attended one as a child, and that they just "fill your head with sugarcandy dreams that can't come true." A recurring gag since the 17th-season episode "See Homer Run", are allusions that Largo is gay. The 22nd-season episode "Flaming Moe" confirmed that Largo is gay and in a relationship with an older man, also named Dewey. In "Eeny Teeny Maya Moe", Dr. Nick mistakenly makes Mr Largo shorter, instead of Moe. It is implied Dr. Nick was about to give Moe the sex-change operation that was originally meant for Largo, as he is heard to cry: "I look nothing like Julie Newmar!". The 30th-season episode "Girl's in the Band" depicts him with a partner named Geoffrey, who appears alongside him in subsequent episodes. "My Fair Laddy" reveals that he is considered the second least important employee of the school after Willie, as he is demoted to groundskeeper after Willie leaves.
Disco Stu[edit]
Disco Stu, real name Stuart Discothèque[90] (voiced by Hank Azaria), is a man who is mentally stuck in the disco era.[91] He is normally featured wearing a rhinestone-encrusted leisure suit. Stu was introduced as the punchline to a joke in "Two Bad Neighbors". In a rummage sale, Homer attempts to sell a jacket on which he had once tried to write "Disco Stud" in rhinestones, but having made the letters too big he did not have room for the final "d". After Marge remarks that nobody would ever want to buy a jacket that read "Disco Stu", another customer recommends it to Stu, but Stu replies, "Disco Stu does not advertise."[91]
Stu's speech pattern is similar to that of Duffman, also voiced by Hank Azaria; he speaks in the third person, often referring to himself as "Disco Stu" (emphasizing "Stu" and then pausing before saying anything else; whatever follows usually rhymes with "Stu"). According to "How I Spent My Strummer Vacation", Stu actually is aware disco is dead, does not like disco music at all, and worries that his personality may make him a "one-note guy". His brief marriage to Selma Bouvier was annulled by Pope John Paul II.[92][93] In "How I Wet Your Mother", Professor Frink creates a device that allows people to enter the dreams of others. He stated he had already used the device "To cure another Springfielder of his particular obsession" at which point Stu walks into the frame in khakis and a collared shirt saying, "Normal Stu likes normal things." In "Homer Scissorhands", Stu is seen attending a ball alone, saying his girlfriend is not feeling well. She is then seen arriving arm-in-arm with Krusty the Clown. In the episode "Springfield Up", it is revealed that in his younger years, he had a budding career as a sea captain, going by the name of "Nautical Stu", and only finds the joy of disco music when Marge puts some on while taking his picture for his captain's license.
Show runner Bill Oakley described the original Disco Stu as "an old, wrinkly John Travolta". Stu was originally to be voiced by repeat guest star Phil Hartman. However, when the animators remodeled the character, Hartman was not available to dub the voice and so Hank Azaria took over the role.[94] Out of 25, IGN named Stu the 24th top peripheral character in The Simpsons.[95]
Doctor Colossus[edit]
Doctor Hector von Colossus (voiced by Hank Azaria) is a supervillain and mad scientist who resides in Springfield. He has light blue skin and wears a white laboratory coat, gloves and goggles. Doctor Colossus is a minor character and usually only appears in the background.
The character first appeared in the episode "Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy" as one of Stacy Lovell's ex-husbands.
In Simpsons Comics, Doctor Colossus is the archenemy of Professor Frink. His full name was revealed in the Bart Simpson comic series.
Dolph Shapiro[edit]
Dolph Shapiro, formerly known as Dolph Starbeam (voiced by Tress MacNeille in most appearances, Pamela Hayden in "The Telltale Head") is a bully and student at Springfield Elementary School who is one of Jimbo Jones' friends. Dolph is recognized by his asymmetrical haircut which covers one eye; he wears cutoff shorts and basketball shoes. He made his first appearance in the episode "The Telltale Head".[96] In a later episode, it is revealed that he is Jewish and goes to Hebrew School after elementary school, wherein he is preparing for his bar mitzvah, an event held for Jewish boys upon turning 13, although it had been previously established he is 14 years old.[97]
Drederick Tatum[edit]
Drederick Tatum (voiced by Hank Azaria from season 2 to 31; Jay Pharoah since season 33) has appeared in several episodes. He is a professional boxer and the reigning world heavyweight boxing champion. He features prominently in the episode "The Homer They Fall", in which Homer takes up boxing and is lined up as an opponent for Tatum, soon to be released from prison. The fight proves one-sided, and Homer is rescued by Moe just as he is about to be knocked unconscious by Tatum. Tatum grew up in Springfield, but in "Flaming Moe's" he calls the city "a dump" and says "if you ever see me back there, you know I really [bleeped expletive] up bad."
The 1984 Olympic gold medalist, he first became world champion after defeating Watson in the heavily promoted "Bout to Knock the Other Guy Out", a fight Homer and his friends watched on his illegal cable hookup. He was so feared inside prison, he could stop riots just by telling the rioters to "shut up". Tatum also appears in "Bye Bye Nerdie", in which Lisa swabs him with nerd sweat, which forces Nelson Muntz to involuntarily get up and start punching Tatum and give him a wedgie, to little effect. A sobbing Nelson tries to apologize but Tatum rolls up his sleeves and declares "you leave me little recourse".
Tatum is a parody of Mike Tyson, with a high-pitched lisping voice, a menacing demeanor, a criminal record, financial problems, and a tendency to make pseudo-intellectual comments like "I insist that you desist" and "your behavior is unconscionable”, and in one episode, "Highway to Well", he has a tattoo on his face resembling that of Tyson. He also has an unscrupulous manager named Lucius Sweet who closely resembles Tyson's promoter and manager Don King. Indeed, in "The Homer They Fall", Homer notes that Sweet "is as rich and famous as Don King, and looks just like him". King and Tyson were asked to appear in the episode, but declined. Paul Winfield, who played King in a 1995 Tyson biopic, took the role instead. Another episode shows him in the role of a shoe company endorser who is extremely candid when he describes the shoes as "butt-ugly" and follows up stating "My forthrightness is my undoing".
E[edit]
Eddie[edit]
Edward "Eddie" (voiced by Harry Shearer[2]) is one of the Springfield police officers. He first appeared in the first season episode "There's No Disgrace Like Home".[98] Like Lou, he does not have a surname.
In "Bart vs. Thanksgiving", Eddie was animated to Lou's voice and Lou was animated to Eddie's.[99]
F[edit]
Fallout Boy[edit]
In the series, Fallout Boy (alternatively voiced by Dan Castellaneta and Harry Shearer) first appears in a 1950s Radioactive Man serial film shown at a comic book convention in the episode "Three Men and a Comic Book". However, unlike many Simpsons characters, he has only made a handful of appearances since. While Radioactive Man is a broad parody of many superheroes, most obviously containing elements of Batman and Superman (and the comic incorporates an origin story similar to Marvel's Hulk), among others, Fallout Boy is mainly a parody of Robin (with his costume, references as being the 'young ward' of Radioactive Man, and his younger age and sidekick status) with elements of Spider-Man (his fictional comic book origin, for example). His catchphrase is "Jiminy Jillickers!"
Fallout Boy also appears in a real-life comic book titled Radioactive Man, published by Bongo Comics (a comic created in part by Matt Groening, the creator of The Simpsons). In these comic books, Fallout Boy's real name is Rod Runtledge, he has a brother named Dodd. They live in Zenith City. Rod is a high school nerd living with his aunt, Aunt June. Fallout Boy was an average book worm, until one day, he was at a Radioactive demonstration, where he met up with Claude Kane. A tall piece of machinery fell towards them. Claude grabbed Rod and jumped over the rail, Claude holding onto the machine. The machine came to life, and as the ray passed through Claude, who became Radioactive Man, it hit Rod. Rod then got a pint-sized version of Radioactive Man's powers and became Fallout Boy.
In the episode "Radioactive Man", Milhouse was chosen over Bart to play Fallout Boy in the Radioactive Man movie to be filmed in Springfield.
The rock band Fall Out Boy took their name from this character.[100]
G[edit]
Gil Gunderson[edit]
Gil Gunderson, a.k.a. Ol' Gil (voiced by Dan Castellaneta[34]), first appeared in the ninth season episode "Realty Bites" as a real estate agent with Lionel Hutz's Red Blazer Realty.[103] He is a spoof of actor Jack Lemmon's portrayal of Shelley Levene in the 1992 film adaptation of the play Glengarry Glen Ross.[103] (Lemmon himself voiced a character similar to Levene in the eighth season episode "The Twisted World of Marge Simpson".)[104] Show runner Mike Scully said that the writers thought that Gil would be "a one-shot thing".[105] "Castellaneta was so funny at the table read doing the character [that] we kept making up excuses in subsequent episodes to put him in", Scully said.[103] Writer Dan Greaney said it was a great take-off on Levene to make Gil more desperate than he was. Even so, the writers like to write Gil with "a little bit of the old sparkle" left in him.[106]
Since the retirement of the character Lionel Hutz (after voice actor Phil Hartman's death), Gil has been working as the Simpsons' lawyer in later episodes, though he has appeared in that role much less frequently than Lionel did (most scenes where one of the Simpsons is in court have either made their attorney an anonymous figure or simply ignored him or her). Gil's work history includes many unsuccessful sales jobs, a position where he committed theft and was busted by the IRS for it, another job where he lost the entire company payroll at a Las Vegas casino, and a 2009 stint when he was hired by the Springfield Police Department after he was able to free Chief Wiggum after he handcuffed himself to his desk. He always gets fired, often for just being incompetent but sometimes out of bad luck (he lost his job as Santa at Costington's when he refused to take back a Malibu Stacey doll, he gave to Lisa so that the CEO's granddaughter could have it, and Marge fires him from her Mother Hubbard's Sandwich Shop for no real reason). His way of selling is disastrous, as he is usually very unconfident, naturally bumbling, and tends to come off as needy, especially as he almost always refers to himself in the third person, as "Ol' Gil". The only time he has been fired for something illegal or on purpose was revealed in the episode "Do Pizza Bots Dream of Electric Guitars", being arrested (and fired) for drug trafficking cocaine. In "Natural Born Kissers" it was mentioned that Gil lives in a balloon, and he is seen in "Rise of the Guardians" noting that he resides in the city's sewer system. In 2006, "Kill Gil, Volumes I & II", the only episode to center on Gil, won a Writers Guild of America Award in the animation category.[107] It is also revealed in The Simpsons episodes that he is a grandfather now, and is seen with his granddaughter at daycare. In the Season 34 premiere "Habeas Tortoise", Gil and Miss Hoover fall in love and get married.
Gino Terwilliger[edit]
Gino Terwilliger (voiced by Tress MacNeille) is Sideshow Bob and his wife Francesca's toddler son. He has the same bizarre hair as his father and his paternal grandmother, as well as the same hatred for Bart Simpson. He first appears in the episode "The Italian Bob", when Sideshow Bob moved to Italy to start a new life, without anyone knowing, not even his own family, about his murderous history. That is, until Lisa became drunk at a feast and told the whole town everything, even though the Simpson family had promised not to mention anything since Bob fixed their car. The Simpsons flee the town, with Gino and his parents in hot pursuit. When they finally corner the Simpsons at the Colosseum, Gino is seen to be extremely agile and adept with a knife, as well as having a taste for violence; so much so, in fact, that Bob is heard to whisper to Francesca: "I don't want to brag, but he's evil at an eighth-grade level." Unfortunately, for him, they were saved by Krusty, who needed some people to help him smuggle antiquities. Gino makes his second appearance in the episode "Funeral for a Fiend", where it is mentioned that after leaving Italy, he and his parents toured around London for a while before sneaking into America on a train. He, and all of the other members of Bob's family played a part in a complicated plan to finish off Bart for good. However, they were foiled by Lisa Simpson and were arrested by Chief Wiggum.
Gloria[edit]
Gloria Dickson (voiced by Julia Louis-Dreyfus) is Snake's girlfriend. She is a meter maid. She first appears in "A Hunka Hunka Burns in Love", dating Mr. Burns. She ends up leaving him to return to her ex-boyfriend Snake. Gloria visits Snake in prison in "I Don't Wanna Know Why the Caged Bird Sings", and refuses to do whatever he asks of her.
She appears once again in "Sex, Pies and Idiot Scrapes", where she is now pregnant. However, in "Homer and Lisa Exchange Cross Words", she and Snake have broken up. Then, in "Wedding For Disaster", Gloria and Snake got back together and apparently got married.
God[edit]
God (voiced by Harry Shearer) has had many appearances in the series, including "My Way or the Highway to Heaven", "Homer the Heretic", "Thank God, It's Doomsday", and "Pray Anything". He also appears in the opening sequence. He is portrayed in the traditional depiction of the Abrahamic god: a gray-haired man in a white robe with a booming voice. In most episodes, only his beard is seen. One of God's distinctive features is that he and Jesus are the only two The Simpsons characters drawn with five fingers on each hand and five toes on each foot. According to showrunner Al Jean, "The Simpsons is one of the few shows on TV where God is not only very real, but he's a kind of vengeful Old Testament God."
Grady[edit]
Grady Little (voiced by Scott Thompson) is Julio's lover. In "Three Gays of the Condo", Marge finds a note that says she wanted to dump Homer before they get married. This upsets Homer and he finds a new place to live. Julio and Grady needed a third person in the apartment. He agrees to stay with them. Later, Homer loves Marge again; he moves out. Before Homer moved out, it is revealed Grady loves Homer. Homer runs away saying "I will only hurt you!"
Grady and Julio make small appearances in several other episodes.
H[edit]
Handsome Pete[edit]
Handsome Pete is a one-time character that looks like a miniature Krusty the Clown, and dances for nickels at the pier while playing the concertina. If paid a quarter, he'll play for hours - to Captain McCallister's dismay. He was featured in season 7 episode 15: Bart the Fink.
Hank Scorpio[edit]
Hank Scorpio (voiced by Albert Brooks) is a one-time character. He is a supervillain who used to be Homer's boss when they moved to Cypress Creek in the second episode of season 8, "You Only Move Twice". He is the owner of Globex Corporation and his office is in a volcano. When Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie wanted to go back to Springfield, Homer had to quit while Hank was fighting off the government. Since Homer was a big help, Hank gave him the Denver Broncos in return.
Hans Moleman[edit]
Hans Moleman (voiced by Dan Castellaneta) is the retconned name of an earlier character named "Ralph Melish". A character similar in appearance is seen briefly in the episode "Homer's Odyssey". He was renamed when a writer noticed he looked like a mole man.[89]
A seemingly elderly man, Moleman is sometimes portrayed as a resident of the Springfield Retirement Castle, although in a deleted scene from the episode "Brother from Another Series" he is shown to live in a house under a dam. He has cataracts and is almost entirely blind,[108] which has severely impaired his reading ability and has led to repeated revokings of his driver's license. He carries a cane to walk with. Although he appears to be elderly, in fact, Hans Moleman claims to be 31 years old, and that "drinking has ruined [his] life". He is also the host of a radio program, "Moleman in the Morning", on Springfield radio station KJAZZ.
In episode 13 of season 26, "Walking Big & Tall", Hans is revealed to be the former mayor of Springfield, who was briefly banished from Springfield, riding a horse, by the angry townsfolk when Moe Szyslak discovered that a song Moleman had made Springfield's city anthem 30 years before was in fact a rip-off of another town's anthem and used by other towns.
His character is based on a character created by Tex Avery, Droopy.
Like many recurring characters, Hans Moleman has had a wide variety of careers over the course of the series. Hans Moleman's appearances usually come in the form of a running gag where he is killed by various accidents, yet inexplicably returns unharmed in subsequent episodes.[109] He has been driven off a cliff while hauling Edgar Allan Poe's house, torched by a solar ray, drilled in the head by Mr. Burns, executed via the electric chair, thrown out of a window, eaten by alligators, sucked up by roombas, buried alive, smothered by a Rover, killed by the Grim Reaper's touch of death, drowned to death after driving his truck off a broken bridge, has had his car explode after bumping into a tree, and has been crushed by various different objects on several occasions. In The Simpsons Movie, Homer's car runs him over. He has also suffered many non-fatal accidents such as getting hit in the groin by a football during his indie film and crashing his car into the Planet Hype restaurant. In The Simpsons: Road Rage opening cutscene, he gets horrifically irradiated by the Burns Atomic Mega-bus.
The Happy Little Elves[edit]
The Happy Little Elves are a parody of The Smurfs, who appeared more often in the show's earlier episodes, e.g. watched on videocassette in "Some Enchanted Evening". They are a favorite of Lisa and Maggie Simpson. Bart, however, hates them; he mainly refers to them as either "those stupid elves", "The Crappy Little Elves", or "The Little Green Idiots". Their movies include Return of The Happy Little Elves, an unnamed Christmas movie as seen in "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", The Happy Little Elves Meet The Curious Bear Cubs ("Some Enchanted Evening"), The Happy Little Elves in Tinkly Winkly Town, and The Happy Little Elves meet Fuzzy Snuggleduck (which was listed as an R-rated movie along with Thelma & Louise and The Erotic Awakening of S on Rancho Relaxo's cable system). They were first mentioned in a short on The Tracey Ullman Show entitled "Scary Movie". The most recent appearance they had was in "Homer's Adventures Through the Windshield Glass" in 2023. In more current episodes, they appear as wall decorations in Maggie's and Lisa's rooms. They were also seen in The Simpsons Ride.
J[edit]
Dr. J. Loren Pryor[edit]
Dr. J. Loren Pryor (voiced by Harry Shearer) is the school psychologist. He is based on an early design for Seymour Skinner and first appears in "Bart the Genius" where he decides to send Bart to a school for gifted children after Bart cheats on a test. Bart later approaches him to request returning to Springfield Elementary.
In "Bart Gets an 'F'", he tells him that if Bart does not shape up, he may have to repeat the fourth grade.
He appears again, discussing Bart's problems at school and Lisa's special gift in a flashback sequence of "Lisa's Sax". In this episode he also inadvertently reveals that Milhouse Van Houten possesses "flamboyantly homosexual" tendencies. Pryor does not appear again for several years until the episode "See Homer Run", in which he tells Lisa that she is going through a developmental condition. Jon Vitti named the character for his prying into the children's lives.[89]
Jack Marley[edit]
Jack Marley (voiced by Dan Castellaneta with a voice resembling Droopy Dog) is a former worker at the Nuclear Plant who was forced to retire with a lavish retirement party. He tries to get out of it by saying his job was all he had, since he never married and his dog died, but Mr. Burns' hired goons threw him out anyway. He is seen in "Marge in Chains" at the court as the foreman of Marge's trial.
Jack is later seen in "Simpson Tide" mopping the floor and informs Homer he is off the hook when all the Naval Judges leave, having been indicted in various scandals. He possibly lives in the Retirement Castle and is rarely seen in the series.
Jamshed Nahasapeemapetilon[edit]
Jamshed "Jay" Nahasapeemapetilon (voiced by Nancy Cartwright as a child, Utkarsh Ambudkar as a young adult) is Apu's nephew and Sanjay's son. His first appearance is in "Homer the Heretic", when he is left in charge of the Kwik-E-Mart alone, he pulls out a gun, scaring Jimbo, Kearney and Dolph.
In "Much Apu About Something", he is a young adult and is now called "Jay". After Sanjay retires, he gives his share of the store to Jay and turns the Kwik-E-Mart into a healthy food market called Quick & Fresh.
Janey Powell[edit]
Janey Powell (voiced by Pamela Hayden from 1990 to 2022, Tress MacNeille in "The Burns Cage", Kimberly Brooks since 2022) is a classmate and friend of Lisa Simpson. Janey first appeared in "Moaning Lisa" and is Lisa's closest friend. She has been at Lisa's sleepovers, and Lisa is seen watching cartoons at her house on numerous occasions. Her description on The Simpsons POG set described her as "Lisa's fair-weather friend". Though she is sometimes seen spending time with Lisa, other times she teases her along with the other children. She is not portrayed as being nearly as intelligent or nerdy as Lisa. Janey may have had a crush on Milhouse Van Houten, who has a crush on Lisa. She enjoys reading, babysitting, books, and she hates ice cream.
Jasper Beardly[edit]
Jasper Beardly (voiced by Harry Shearer[2]) is one of the older residents of Springfield, often portrayed as Abraham Simpson's best friend. They have been friends since their youth, as seen in "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)". His most distinguishing features are his ultra-low, gravelly voice and very long and hard beard. Jasper made his first appearance in "Homer's Odyssey". He is a veteran of World War II, but (according to the episode "Marge and Homer Turn a Couple Play") he attempted to avoid the draft by disguising himself as a woman. He stayed in Springfield to play in the local women's baseball league, along with his friend Abe, who was also avoiding the war but was exposed during a game. In a deleted scene, it was shown that Jasper was the town pastor, prior to Reverend Lovejoy. He briefly served as substitute teacher of Lisa's class during which time he confiscated everything made of tin, got his beard caught in a pencil sharpener and threatened paddling for minor infractions such as looking out the window, talking out of turn or staring at his sandals.
In the subplot of the season nine episode, "Lisa the Simpson", Jasper put himself in crude "suspended animation" in the Kwik-E-Mart's freezer, and under advice from Dr. Nick, Apu kept him frozen. When Jasper's frozen form became popular with customers, Apu started exploiting the spectacle, and transformed the Kwik-E-Mart into a special interest store dealing with weird items, or perfectly ordinary ones which had been made out to be abnormal, called the Freak-E-Mart. Jasper was accidentally unfrozen, and stepped out into what he thought was a future world, just as Apu was considering selling him to the Rich Texan. In the episode "I Don't Wanna Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" Jasper mentions he is a diabetic (which would explain why he has a wooden leg, as seen in part two of the "Who Shot Mr. Burns" two-parter, though past episodes, such as "Boy Scoutz 'n the Hood", "A Streetcar Named Marge", and "The PTA Disbands" all show that Jasper's legs are real).
In The Simpsons Super Spectacular #13, published by Bongo Comics, it is revealed that in the '60s, Jasper was part of a group called 'the League of Superheroes', under the name Super Jasper. He fought crime alongside the Komedian (Krusty the Clown), Betty Firecrocker (Jacqueline Bouvier), and the original Pie Man (Abraham Simpson).
Jay Sherman[edit]
Jay Sherman (voiced by Jon Lovitz) is a film critic who was the main character of The Critic. In "A Star is Burns", he came to Springfield to be a judge during the film festival. In "Hurricane Neddy", he was a patient at the Calmwood Mental Hospital. He also apparently became a regular patron to Moe's Tavern as is seen in "The Ziff Who Came to Dinner".
Sherman was originally the main character on The Critic, which was created by Al Jean and Mike Reiss.
His appearance in "A Star is Burns" was a crossover to promote The Critic which made its FOX debut after the episode following its time on ABC. The Critic was later canceled.
Jebediah Springfield[edit]
Jebediah Obadiah Zachariah Jedediah Springfield[96] (a.k.a. Hans Sprungfeld; voiced by Harry Shearer[2]) is the founder of the town of Springfield. According to legend, Jebediah Springfield and his partner Shelbyville Manhattan led a band that left Maryland in search of "New Sodom" due to a misinterpretation of the Bible, but they parted ways over political differences: though both men are devoted to chastity and abstinence, Manhattan wanted to let people be free to marry their cousins if they wish, which Springfield strongly opposed. It was then that Manhattan went on to found the rival town of Shelbyville, taking half of the settlers with him.
Springfield had many famous quotations, such as "A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man". He also wears a coonskin cap. The Springfield Marathon commemorates an occasion on which he ran across six states to avoid his creditors. In "The Telltale Head", Bart beheaded the statue, thinking that this would make him more popular. In reality, the town became depressed and angry, leaving Bart to endure "The Tell-Tale Heart"-style guilt before putting it back on. This episode is referenced in multiple Simpsons video games such as The Simpsons: Bart vs. the Space Mutants, where the statue's head serves as a power-up item, or The Simpsons: Road Rage and The Simpsons: Hit & Run, where characters can kick or ram Jebediah's head off the statue.
Many Jebediah legends have been debunked during the run of the series. For instance, "The Telltale Head" repeatedly refers to Jebediah killing a bear with his bare hands, but on the news, Kent Brockman reveals that recent historical evidence suggests the bear actually killed Jebediah. On a field trip to Springfield's historic "Olde Springfield Towne", Bart uncovers other inconsistencies in the Jebediah legend, such as that he fought at Fort Ticonderoga the same day as the first Whacking Day; it turned out that Whacking Day only began in 1924 as an excuse to beat up the Irish.
Most of Springfield's biography is revealed in the 1996 episode "Lisa the Iconoclast", wherein Lisa Simpson discovers Jebediah Springfield's biggest secret: he was formerly a bloodthirsty pirate named Hans Sprungfeld, who once brawled with George Washington and lost after Washington crushed Sprungfeld's genitals in one of his sets of iron false teeth. Sprungfeld fled and changed his name in 1795 to hide his identity. He was well known for his "silver tongue" (literally; a metal prosthetic tongue, his original tongue having been bitten off by a Turkish pirate in a grog house fight). Before he died of diphtheria, he wrote his confession on a scrap of canvas that he hid in a fife. The canvas scrap formed the "missing piece" of the famously incomplete 1796 Gilbert Stuart portrait of George Washington; Sprungfeld picked it up during a fight against Washington which occurred while the latter was having his portrait painted. Lisa decides not to reveal this secret to the people of Springfield, seeing that the myth of Jebediah has brought out the good in everyone and that the true story will cause them to lose hope and morale within themselves.
Jimbo Jones[edit]
Corky James "Jimbo" Jones (voiced by Tress MacNeille in his first appearance in the first season episode "The Telltale Head",[113] Pamela Hayden in later episodes[2]) is a bully at Springfield Elementary who wears a purple knit cap and a black T-shirt emblazoned with a menacing skull. He is a sixth-grader and is often seen hanging out with Dolph, Kearney, and sometimes Nelson. He made his first appearance in the episode "The Telltale Head".[96] He is acknowledged as the leader of the gang of bullies in Nelson's absence. He enjoys intimidating his schoolmates and shoplifting. It is hinted that he comes from a well-off family, most notably in season six's "The PTA Disbands" when—with the school closed for a teacher's strike—he and his mother watch soap operas and sip tea together in a well-furnished living room. In season four's "New Kid on the Block", he briefly dates Laura Powers until she leaves him for crying in front of Moe after Bart exposed his true personality by prank-calling him.
In season seven's "Bart the Fink", Bart discovers that Jimbo's real name is Corky.
In one episode, it is revealed that he is bald on top, with hair around it. Jimbo's other known aliases are Jamesbo, Dr. J and Hector Gutierrez. In season eighteen's "24 Minutes" it is revealed that his mother's name is Carol. Jimbo is a portmanteau nickname for executive producer James L. Brooks.[113][89] Jimbo runs for mayor in the Season 17 episode "See Homer Run", with a campaign slogan of "Tough on Nerds. Tougher on Dorks".
Johnny Tightlips[edit]
Jonathan "Johnny Tightlips" Schmallippe (voiced by Hank Azaria[114]) born Giovanni Silencio,[115] is a Springfield Mafia gangster who is the second-in-command of Fat Tony. He usually says very little, for fear of being accused of being a "squealer," but his reticence is so extreme it backfires, becoming unhelpful to everyone, including Fat Tony and himself. However, in recent episodes, he does, sometimes, elaborate whenever he feels like it, just as long he as he doesn't say too much.
In his debut episode "Insane Clown Poppy," there is a shootout in Fat Tony's mansion and Johnny was shot by accident. When the shootout ended, Louie, one of Fat Tony's capos, then asked in concern to Johnny on where he is injured, resulting Johnny to say, "I ain't sayin' nuthin'!", and when Louie asked in concern on what he, himself, will tell the doctor, Johnny, again in his usual reticent nature, says, "Tell him to suck a lemon."[116] Afterwards, he then officially became a supporting minor character working for Fat Tony and the Mafia in the series, starting in the Season 13 episode, "Poppa's Got a Brand New Badge."
Jub-Jub[edit]
Jub-Jub is Selma Bouvier's pet iguana and was originally owned by Aunt Gladys. He was first seen in "Selma's Choice". Gladys gives Jub-Jub to Jacqueline Bouvier, who is highly unattached to him. As a result, she later passes him on to Selma. Selma once said that Jub-Jub will eat her remains after she dies. The name Jub-Jub was coined by then-writer Conan O'Brien.[117] He often said nonsensical things around the office for no apparent reason, one of which was "Jub-Jub" (There is, however, a Jubjub bird in "The Hunting of the Snark").
Fans of Sports Radio 1310 in Dallas voted that Jub-Jub be the new nickname of morning radio host George Dunham. O'Brien, on October 17, 2007, mentioned his creation of Jub Jub and asked Joe Buck, the play-by-play commentator of the MLB World Series on FOX, to say it during his broadcast. O'Brien promised $1,000 to the charity of the announcer's choice. On October 24, 2007, during Game 1 of the 2007 World Series, Buck called field level reporter, Chris Myers, "our own little Jub-Jub". Jub-Jub was used as the first Twitter hash tag for O'Brien's "Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television Tour" in 2010.
Judge Constance Harm[edit]
Judge Constance Harm (voiced by Jane Kaczmarek) is a harsh, unforgiving judge and disciplinarian.[118] She enjoys creating cruel punishments for criminals in her court and frightening them with a miniature guillotine on the bench. Her name is a play on "constant harm". In "The Parent Rap", she says "When I was a little boy," revealing that she is transgender. The character is a parody of Judge Judy Sheindlin.
In "On a Clear Day I Can't See My Sister", she reveals she has a husband. Although Judge Snyder resolves court cases, Judge Harm has mainly been used for handing down negative verdicts such as sentencing a family member to prison. She also appears in "Brawl in the Family", "Barting Over", "The Wandering Juvie", "Brake My Wife, Please", "Chief of Hearts", and "One Angry Lisa".[119]
Judge Snyder[edit]
Judge Roy Snyder (voiced by Harry Shearer from season 2 to 31, Kevin Michael Richardson since season 32)[20] is a Springfield judge known for his lenient punishments and somewhat unorthodox rulings (as in the episode "Sweets and Sour Marge" when he bans sugar from Springfield).
Lionel Hutz once described his problem with Judge Snyder in the episode "Marge in Chains":
L[edit]
Legs and Louie[edit]
Legs (voiced by Hank Azaria from 1991 to 1995, Harry Shearer since 1995, Karl Wiedergott in "Chief of Hearts") and Louie (voiced by Dan Castellaneta in most episodes, Harry Shearer in "Chief of Hearts") are two gangsters and members of the Springfield Mafia who accompany Fat Tony at all times. The two lack any real definitive characteristic and are almost always seen together. Legs has a dark blonde short haircut and raspy voice. Louie has a slight black afro and a more high-pitched, even squeaky tone. Castellaneta based the voice on actor Joe Pesci, one of the several references to Goodfellas used in the episode "Bart the Murderer".[126] Louie says that tear gas is "[his] one weakness", though this is likely an embellishment. Dan Castellaneta was nominated for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance in 2011 for the voice of Louie, Homer Simpson, Barney Gumble, and Krusty the Clown thanks to the episode "Donnie Fatso".[127]
Lenny Leonard[edit]
Lenford "Lenny" Leonard[128][129] (voiced by Harry Shearer) is friends with Carl Carlson, Homer Simpson, Moe Szyslak, and Barney Gumble. Although he works at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant and possesses a master's degree in nuclear physics, he is often portrayed as a blue-collar working man.
Lenny appears to be well liked by the Simpson family; on one occasion, Marge and the kids build a prayer shrine for him when thinking he was hospitalized in "Hello Gutter, Hello Fadder." In "Sleeping with the Enemy", the Simpson family has a cake inscribed "Happy Labor Day Lenny".[130] In "Pranksta Rap", it is revealed Marge has a picture of Lenny in her hair.[131]
Lenny's full name has not been treated with consistency. After years of being identified only as "Lenny", Homer addressed him as "Lenford" in the season 13 episode "The Frying Game", and Lisa addressed him as "Mr. Leonard" in the season 15 episode "The Ziff Who Came To Dinner". This would appear to make his full name "Lenford Leonard"—but Bart addresses him as "Lenny Lenford" in the season 23 episode "At Long Last Leave".
Lenny and Carl are best friends, as they are rarely seen apart; their other friends are Homer, and regulars at Moe's including Barney Gumble and Moe Szyslak.[57] Homer repeatedly confuses Lenny and Carl, and is shocked to learn on one occasion that Lenny is white, and Carl is black. To guide himself, Homer has "Lenny = White, Carl = Black" on his hand. He once muttered to himself, "Is that right?" while reading it.[58] In "Helter Shelter", Homer exclaims, "That's Lenny? I wanted the black one!" When Mr. Burns appears on a radio show in an attempt to boost his popularity in "Monty Can't Buy Me Love", Homer tells him that he has a list of jokes explaining the differences between white and black people; Homer later states, "White guys have names like Lenny, whereas black guys have names like Carl."
Lenny and Carl work at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant alongside Homer Simpson.[59] Despite his steady job, Lenny has been featured with several other jobs. On one occasion, he is promoted to head of the power plant when Mr. Burns goes bankrupt; which Smithers later describes to Homer Simpson as a "reign of terror". Homer considers Lenny to be the second richest man he knows.[132] However, Lenny is once shown living in a dilapidated house, and asks Marge not to tell anyone how he lives.[133] In one episode, he also works at a call center for the power company in Springfield. In another episode, he is shown living in a fancy, well-furnished modern apartment that happens to share a wall with a Jai-alai court. In a "future episode", it is shown Lenny is once again in charge of the power plant.[134] On one occasion, it is implied he is an undercover agent whose target is Homer.[135] At the Adult Education Annex, Lenny teaches a class on "How To Chew Tobacco".[136] In one of Homer's daydreams, it is shown that Lenny is the President of the United States.[137]
Lenny and Carl together rank sixth on IGN's Top 25 Simpsons Peripheral Characters.[60]
Leopold[edit]
Leopold John (voiced by Dan Castellaneta) is Superintendent Chalmers' personal assistant. He is a large, surly, snarling man who frequently speaks through clenched teeth, and is one of the few characters on The Simpsons to have eyebrows. When Principal Skinner has to be temporarily replaced in the episode "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song", Leopold stomps in, issues several threats, and terrifies the children by making them think he is the replacement, and then suddenly politely introduces the actual substitute, Ned Flanders. The children then collectively sigh with relief. The gag was repeated when Marge Simpson becomes a substitute teacher in the episode "The PTA Disbands". Leopold often refers to the children of Springfield Elementary as "little freaks".[138][139]
Lewis[edit]
Lewis Clark (voiced by Jo Ann Harris in 4 episodes, Nancy Cartwright in "Yellow Subterfuge", Pamela Hayden in "Bart the Murderer", Russi Taylor in "Lisa's Substitute", Tress MacNeille in "Das Bus", Kevin Michael Richardson in "Marge the Lumberjill", Kimberly Brooks since 2022) is an African-American character and one of Bart's friends and classmates at Springfield Elementary School. He can be seen playing the bassoon in the opening sequence of the show. He is usually seen with his best friend Richard. Although one of the most minor characters in the show, Lewis was shown in earlier seasons as part of Bart's main circle of friends, although his time lessened as the series progressed. Despite this, Lewis still appears frequently in scenes involving the Springfield children, and occasionally speaks. While Lewis has never had significant dialogue, he has been voiced by various characters throughout the series. Lewis's seeming insignificance to the show is underscored in the episode "Das Bus", in which Bart mistakenly calls him "Wendell". When corrected, Bart replies, "Just tell Wendell I said bye."
Lindsey Naegle[edit]
Lindsey Naegle (voiced by Tress MacNeille[20]) first appeared in the eighth season episode "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show".[140] In that episode, she had no name and was known only as "The Generic Female TV Executive".[17] She appeared again in "Girly Edition", also as a generic female TV executive (only her hair and facial features differed from her first appearance).[141]
In "They Saved Lisa's Brain", she was introduced as "Lindsey Naegle", a member of the Springfield Chapter of Mensa, and has since become a recurring character.[140] The writers modeled Naegle on a number of network executives that they have encountered while working on the show.[142]
The character's surname comes from Hollywood talent agent Sue Naegle, president of HBO Entertainment and wife of Simpsons writer Dana Gould.[143][144] Writer Matt Selman chose the first name "Lindsey" because he thought it sounded like the name of an annoyingly talkative woman.[143] Naegle-like characters have appeared throughout the series, such as the OmniTouch Rep from "Make Room for Lisa" and Laramie executive Mindy from "E-I-E-I-(Annoyed Grunt)".[145] In "Blame It on Lisa", she readily explains that she frequently changes jobs because she is a sexual predator. Chris Turner, author of the book Planet Simpson, called Naegle "an excellent allegory for the modern corporate age: you don't see through her because there's nothing else to see."[146] Her political allegiances are not concrete: In "You Kent Always Say What You Want", she is shown at the Republican Party headquarters; in "E Pluribus Wiggum", she is conversely depicted as a Democrat. In "Marge vs. Singles, Seniors, Childless Couples and Teens and Gays", she is seen to lead SSCCATAGAPP's anti-youth campaign, declaring, "Children are the future, today belongs to me!"
M[edit]
Dr. Marvin Monroe[edit]
Dr. Marvin Monroe (voiced by Harry Shearer) is a psychotherapist who first appeared in the first-season episode "There's No Disgrace Like Home". Homer pawns the family television to afford a session with Monroe for him and his dysfunctional family. The failed attempt at therapy culminates with the Simpsons electroshocking each other endlessly, to the point of causing a chaotic brownout. Unable to help the Simpsons, Monroe refunds double what the Simpsons paid, and the Simpsons buy a new TV.
Monroe appears in "Some Enchanted Evening" in which 70% of that episode's original animation had to be redone, although the scenes involving Monroe were mostly untouched, said co-director David Silverman.[160] The script of "Some Enchanted Evening" describes Monroe as "a heavy, chain-smoking, compulsive eater."[161] The original idea behind the character, said Matt Groening, was that he was born Marilyn Monroe and was "very caught up over that", which is why he became a therapist.[162] Monroe's voice is based on psychiatrist David Viscott's.[163] Among Monroe's works is Dr. Marvin Monroe's Guide to Etiquette, which Bart receives as a birthday gift in "Radio Bart".
Since the seventh season, the character Monroe has been retired, as voicing the character strained Shearer's throat.[164][165] The character's retirement was marked by the broadcast of a Dr. Marvin Monroe Memorial Hospital over Lou's walkie-talkie in "Who Shot Mr. Burns? (Part Two)".[166] Since then, several references to Monroe being dead have been made: a glimpse of his gravestone in "Alone Again, Natura-Diddily", a Dr. Marvin Monroe Memorial Gymnasium seen in "Bye Bye Nerdie", and a trivia interstitial in the "138th Episode Spectacular" regarding which popular characters had recently died. However, Monroe is seen alive in the fifteenth season in "Diatribe of a Mad Housewife" purchasing a copy of Marge's novel, The Harpooned Heart, stating simply that he had "...been very sick" when asked about his long absence by Marge. He is later seen "stuck in limbo" but seemingly lacking full ghost abilities in "Treehouse of Horror XXV", and again in "Flanders' Ladder" as part of a dream Lisa conjures for Bart.
Manjula Nahasapeemapetilon[edit]
Manjula Nahasapeemapetilon[167] (voiced by Jan Hooks from season 9 to 14,[168] Tress MacNeille since season 13) is married to Apu Nahasapeemapetilon and the mother of their octuplets. She first appeared as a little girl in Apu's flashback in the seventh season episode "Much Apu About Nothing", in which Apu tells her that he is sorry that their arranged marriage will not happen, before getting on a plane departing for the U.S. to pursue the American Dream. Her first adult appearance is in the ninth season episode "The Two Mrs. Nahasapeemapetilons".[169] She claims Fried Green Tomatoes is her favorite book, movie, and food. She has excellent culinary skills, demonstrated by her ability to make a wide variety of dishes using only chickpeas, lentils, and sometimes rice. Apu is seen to be very romantically awkward, as well as quite distant from Manjula, and he previously told her that it was customary in America to work long hours, seven days a week, and to never see your wife. In another episode he dons a blonde wig, intending to ditch his family and return to India under the name Steve Barnes.
In "Eight Misbehavin'", Manjula gives birth to octuplets after using a fertility drug. In "The Sweetest Apu", Apu has an affair with the Squishee lady. After Homer discovers this, he and Marge confront Apu, who caves under the guilt and vows to apologize to Manjula, who sets him a number of grueling tasks in penance.[169]
Writer Richard Appel had pitched the idea of Apu marrying years before he wrote "The Two Mrs. Nahasapeemapetilons" for season nine.[170] For that episode, it took several attempts by the character designers to model Manjula because making women look appealing in Matt Groening's drawing style is hard for the animators to do.[171][172] Writer David Cohen named Manjula after a friend of much of the staff.[169]
Manjula appeared in the season 26 episode "Covercraft" but did not speak.
Martha Prince[edit]
Martha "Gloria" Prince (voiced by Jo Ann Harris from season 1 to 2, Russi Taylor from season 3 to 27) is married to Martin Prince Sr. and mother of Martin Prince. Martha attempted to sell Martin's valuable Star Wars merchandise to Comic Book Guy for almost nothing, despite a warning not to do so by Bart and Milhouse. According to Martin she shoplifts "stuff she doesn't even need". She was responsible for all of the guests, even her own son getting sick at his birthday party, by serving diseased oysters instead of cake, with the exception of Bart (who fed his oysters to Martin's pet cat), Lisa (who feigned sick to get out of the boring party) and Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel (who were having a romantic encounter in Martin's kid-sized pink playhouse).
Martha Quimby[edit]
Martha Quimby (voiced by Maggie Roswell) is married to the Mayor of Springfield: Joseph Quimby. She wears a pink outfit and a pillbox hat similar to the outfit worn by Jackie Kennedy on the day of the Kennedy assassination. According to Mayor Quimby, the couple met while Martha was working at the "Maison Derrière", a local burlesque house. She first appeared in "Bart Gets Famous",[173] when she walks in on Mayor Quimby in bed with another woman, an event she laughs off when he defends himself with "I didn't do it." She is humiliated when Marge accidentally uncovers her husband's lothario ways in "The Last of the Red Hat Mamas" and kicks Marge and her friends out before they can have tea.
Martin Prince[edit]
Martin Prince Jr.[174] (voiced by Russi Taylor from season 1 to 30, Grey DeLisle since season 31,[175] Jo Ann Harris in "Homer’s Night Out", Michael Jackson in "Do the Bartman", Nancy Cartwright in "Principal Charming" and "Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment", Pamela Hayden in "Cape Feare" and "Rosebud", Dan Castellaneta in "Lisa's Wedding") is a fourth grade student at Springfield Elementary School, is Bart Simpson's classmate (and a temporary tutor on "Bart Gets an 'F'"), Lisa Simpson's intellectual rival, and Nelson Muntz's favorite target for bullying. He is academically brilliant, a teacher's pet, and is portrayed as a stereotypical nerd, enthusiastic about topics like science fiction and role-playing games. In line with the stereotype, he also has poor fashion sense.[174] It is sometimes implied that Martin is gay but closeted.[176]
He is the son of Martin Sr. and Martha.[174] He has an IQ of 216 (which was thought to be Bart's IQ). As the class nerd, he becomes the perfect target for ruthless bullying at Springfield Elementary School. He is a member of the Springfield band, and is often seen with a French horn. Martin's most famous catchphrases are "Behold!" and "Excelsior!" In The Simpsons Movie, Martin gets revenge for all the years of bullying by hitting Jimbo, Dolph and Kearney with a plank of wood. In "Dial 'N' for Nerder", Bart's prank causes Martin to fall off a cliff, which he survives (although Bart and Lisa think he is dead and try a cover-up). In "Girls Just Shauna Have Fun", it is revealed that he has an older brother in high school.
Martin Prince Sr.[edit]
Martin "Gareth" Prince Sr. (voiced by Dan Castellaneta) is the father of Martin Prince, and husband of Martha Prince. He is a stockbroker in Springfield and was shown bringing his son to work on "Go To Work With Your Parents Day", where Martin made over $1 million trading soy futures (and subsequently lost all but $600). He appears to be a nerd much like his son, and has a slight lisp. Martin Sr. was also one of the fathers who traveled in Ned Flanders's RV to locate their sons in Shelbyville.
Mary Bailey[edit]
Mary Bailey (voiced by Maggie Roswell[2]) is the Democratic governor of Springfield's state. She ran against Mr. Burns in "Two Cars in Every Garage and Three Eyes on Every Fish", winning in a landslide after Mr. Burns spit out a piece of baked Three eyed Fish during a photo-op at the Simpsons' home. Mary Bailey would later appear briefly in the episode "Bart vs. Lisa vs. the Third Grade" when Bart and Lisa's class visit Capital City. They show Bailey their class projects (designing a new state flag). Mary Bailey wails in disgust after unfurling Lisa's flag: Bart had redesigned it to look like a butt, with "Learn to Fart" underneath. She appears in "The Seven-Beer Snitch" where a prison is built out of a defunct concert hall. She decides to release all the abused prisoners to a garbage barge where they would "bare-knuckle box until one of you emerges as king of your floating hell".
Mary Spuckler[edit]
Mary Wrestlemania Spuckler (voiced by Zooey Deschanel) is one of Cletus and Brandine's many children. She first appeared in "Apocalypse Cow", in which she befriends Bart when he joins the 4-H club. Later in the episode, after Bart frees his cow, Lou, from the slaughterhouse, he brings him to Mary's home, where he discovers that she is Cletus' daughter. However, after Mary agrees to take Lou, much to her and Bart's dismay, Cletus informs Bart that to them, a cow is a token of marriage. After some convincing from Lisa, Bart agrees to go along with the wedding to prevent Lou from being sent back to the slaughterhouse. However, before Bart and Mary can be wed, Marge crashes the wedding, and on her influence, Bart calls it off.
Mary later reappeared in the twenty fourth season episode, "Moonshine River". In it, she is deemed as Bart's last hope in his quest to find true love (in the form of one of his many former dates). When Bart arrives at the Spuckler house, Cletus informs him that she ran away after he scheduled her for marriage again. Her brother, Dubya, tells Bart that Mary ran away to New York City and gives him her address. After Bart and the rest of his family travel to The Big Apple, he eventually finds her at her address, and discovers that she has matured, becoming slightly taller and slimmer, and also learns that she now works as a writer and has a performance option on Saturday Night Live. Mary and several citizens of New York sing a song for Bart, and the two realize that they truly love one another.
Before they can kiss, Cletus arrives, having somehow found out where Mary is, and asks her to return home. Mary accepts, but while at the train station, she and Bart take advantage of Cletus's distraction to flee to another departing train. Mary tells Bart that there will be more Mary Spucklers out there, and gives him their first kiss before she leaves. The family and Cletus arrive, with Cletus demanding where Mary is heading for, but Bart, not wanting to ruin his last chance at true love, refuses, and Cletus then accepts the fact that he must let his daughter go. Mary reappeared again in the season, in the episode "Love is a Many-Splintered Thing".
Maude Flanders[edit]
Maude Flanders, (voiced by Maggie Roswell, understudied by Marcia Mitzman Gaven between 1999 and 2000) is the first wife of Ned Flanders, and the mother of Rod and Todd. While she was not employed outside the home, Maude was a busy homemaker and advocate for children, whose innocence was often sullied by cartoon violence, liberal education, and the insidious influences of popular culture. Although she spent much of her free time in prayer, reading the Bible, and helping out her husband at the Leftorium, she let her hair down for the occasional dinner parties at the home of her neighbors, the Simpsons. Homer often made statements insinuating his attraction to Maude. In the season 2 episode "The War of the Simpsons", Homer ogled Maude's cleavage at a dinner party, which resulted in him and Marge going to marriage camp.
In the season 11 episode "Alone Again, Natura-Diddily", Maude was killed by a T-shirt cannon at the Springfield Speedway when Homer ducked at the last second to pick up a bobby pin on the ground.[177] She was knocked off the grandstand and her timely rescue was delayed because Homer had parked in the ambulance zone. Ned was devastated by her death. One of the most controversial moments in the show among fans, this kill-off was met with strong criticism but was decided by the show's producers to open new story lines for the series. The character was voiced by Marcia Mitzman Gaven at that time.[178][179][180][181]
Roswell returned to The Simpsons in 2002[182] after reaching a deal with producers to allow her to record her lines from her home in Denver.[183] Since returning, she has voiced Maude in flashbacks and as a ghost.[182][184]
Maude's ghost appears in the opening sequence for "Treehouse of Horror XIII", and during the credits of "Bart Has Two Mommies" she is seen in heaven with Bob Hope and God. She appears through flashbacks in "Dangerous Curves", "Take My Life, Please", "Postcards from the Wedge" and "Fland Canyon". She had a small role in "Treehouse of Horror XXII", and she appeared as a ghost in the couch gag for season 23 episode "Them, Robot". Maude once again appears in Bart's dream-state in "Flanders' Ladder" where she plays a more pivotal role, and is almost successful in her desire for revenge against Homer. She also appears in season 31 episode 9 "Todd, Todd, Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me?", as well as in season 32 episode 16 "Manger Things".
O[edit]
Old Barber[edit]
Jake the Barber[196] (voiced by Dan Castellaneta in most episodes, Harry Shearer in "Lisa the Tree Hugger"[197]) is a barber who originated in one of the Tracey Ullman shorts, "Bart's Haircut".[198] In the short, he cuts Bart's hair not to his liking and Bart tries several ways to hide it. Dan Castellaneta based the voice on comedian Bob Elliott.[199]
The Old Barber made his last appearance in the twelfth season episode "Lisa the Tree Hugger". David Silverman had to create a model sheet of the Old Barber for Jim Reardon, who directed "22 Short Films about Springfield". Before then, there was no model sheet for the character.[200]
Old Jewish Man[edit]
Asa Hassan, a.k.a. Old Jewish Man, or Crazy Old Man (according to "Krusty Gets Kancelled"; voiced by Hank Azaria) is Abraham Simpson and Jasper Beardly's friend. Mayor Quimby once referred to him as "Old Jewish Man"; also, a list of heart recipients in "Homer's Paternity Coot" listed him as "Old Jewish Man". He speaks with a stereotypical Yiddish accent and curses in Yiddish in one episode. He is apparently friendly with Krusty the Clown and Krusty's father, according to "Simpsons Christmas Stories". He is often seen yelling at people, and as seen in "Attack of the 50-Foot Eyesores", owns a store called Zip Boys, a parody of Pep Boys. He once had a brief period of stardom after his act of dancing on a street corner singing "The Old Gray Mare" with his pants down became a hit on television. In "Natural Born Kissers", it was revealed that he worked as a studio executive during the making of Casablanca and suppressed an alternate ending to the film (and also suppressed an alternate ending to It's A Wonderful Life that would have included a killing spree). He observes that the quality of studio management has changed over the years. In "Love Is a Many Strangled Thing" he dies from overexerting himself while dancing (though this does not stop his ghost from dancing), but in "Replaceable You", he is alive.
Opal[edit]
Opal (voiced by Tress MacNeille from 2006 to 2007, Dawnn Lewis since 2023) is a talk show host. This celebrity is based on Oprah Winfrey and her eponymous television show. She first appears in "Ice Cream of Margie (with the Light Blue Hair)" where her segment on successful women depresses Marge, who feels her life of chores and child-raising has left her without any purpose. She later appeared in the back-to-back nineteenth season episodes "Husbands and Knives" and "Funeral for a Fiend". Marge is a fan and was interviewed by Opal after achieving success through her chain of Shapes gyms for women. She also appeared in the episode "Fan-ily Feud", in which she uses Homer Simpson against her rival, Ashlee Starling. She was voiced by Jade Novah, who also did Starling's voice.
Otto Mann[edit]
Otto Mann[201] (voiced by Harry Shearer)[202] is the school bus driver for Springfield Elementary School. He is notable for his bad driving (which got him temporarily fired on the season three episode "The Otto Show"), his drug use (mostly marijuana and hallucinogenics, as mentioned on season seven's "Homerpalooza"), and his love of heavy metal music. His father is an admiral with the US Navy who does not like that his son wasted his youth and never amounted to anything. He was modelled upon early Simpsons writer Wallace Wolodarsky, who at the time wore long black hair, shorts and a baseball cap.[203]
P[edit]
The Parson[edit]
The Parson (voiced by Hank Azaria) is a charismatic major leader of the Presbylutheran faith practiced in Springfield. He is a former college roommate and close friend to Reverend Lovejoy. His world spiritual headquarters is in Michigan City, Indiana. His appearance and mannerisms are similar to those of Bing Crosby.
Patches and Poor Violet[edit]
Patches and Poor Violet (voiced by Pamela Hayden and Tress MacNeille) are two of Springfield's orphans. Introduced in "Miracle on Evergreen Terrace", Patches gives the dollar they were saving to Bart, which was their vitamin money. They have since had appearances in "I'm Goin' to Praiseland" and "Simple Simpson", but are seen in many other episodes. Poor Violet often has a cough, while Patches seems to vaguely resemble Tiny Tim from Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Their skin color is not the "healthy" yellow of the Simpson family, but rather a more sallow, sickly tone.
Radioactive Man
In The Simpsons: "The Telltale Head" (however, a comic book featuring an early prototype of the character appears in "Bart the Genius")
In Bongo Comics: Radioactive Man #1, 1994
Claude Kane III
Superior Squad
Radio Man, Radiation Man
Superhuman strength, speed, flight, invulnerability, and beams of "clean nuclear heat" he can fire from his eyes
R[edit]
Rabbi Hyman Krustofsky[edit]
Hyman Krustofsky (voiced by Jackie Mason, understudied by Dan Castellaneta) was a rabbi and the father of Krusty the Clown. Rabbi Krustofsky first appeared in the third season episode "Like Father, Like Clown".[207]
In "Like Father, Like Clown", Rabbi Krustofsky had been estranged from his son for 25 years, having kicked Krusty out when the young man chose to become a clown rather than follow the family tradition of becoming a rabbi. Years later, after much exchanging of Talmud passages with Bart, a quote Bart provides from Sammy Davis Jr. admiring the Jews finally convinced Rabbi Krustofsky to accept his son for his career in entertainment. He and Krusty reunited on air during Krusty's show. The episode "Like Father Like Clown" is a parody of the film The Jazz Singer. The parody was writer Jay Kogen's idea.[208] He thought it would be a funny parallel—and a chance to do a lot of easy jokes—if it were a clown instead of a singer who gets rejected by his father.[209] The character's casting was fitting in that the real-life Mason, like Krusty, also came from a family of rabbis but instead became a comedian.
Rabbi Krustofsky later conducted Krusty's Bar Mitzvah in "Today I Am a Clown", admitting that he had not previously, out of fear that the young Krusty would just make fun of the whole thing. In "Clown in the Dumps", Krusty comes to him for advice, and he dies when telling Krusty that his jokes were "Eh".
Jackie Mason won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance for his performance as Krustofsky in "Like Father, Like Clown" in 1992.[210] The Phoenix named Mason one of the show's 20 best guest stars.[211]
Rachel Jordan[edit]
Rachel Jordan (voiced by Shawn Colvin) is the lead singer of Kovenant, a fictional Christian rock band. She is first seen in "Alone Again, Natura-Diddily", when she befriends the widower Ned Flanders. She appears towards the end of the episode singing the song "He's the Man" while the organist at the church was on a much needed vacation. The song was featured on The Simpsons: Testify. She returns in "I'm Goin' to Praiseland". She stays at the Flanders' house with Ned, and leaves horrified after Ned attempted to mold her in the image of his deceased wife Maude. At the end of the episode, she returns and has a date with Ned, wearing a wig to cover up the Maude haircut and helping him move on from Maude's death. She has not made an appearance since.
S[edit]
Sam and Larry[edit]
Sam and Lawrence "Larry" Dalrymple (voiced by Hank Azaria and Harry Shearer), also known as "Barfly #1" and "Barfly #2", are two regular patrons of Moe's Tavern. Their first appearance is in "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire". Virtually nothing is known about them, except that Sam, whose design is based on co-creator Sam Simon, always wears a cap and glasses and Larry has an orange jacket and a balding head and either looks extremely drunk or very depressed. Sam has spoken only a few times throughout the series; on the season three episode "Lisa the Greek", Sam asks Homer what he bet on outcome of the Super Bowl, and in "Radioactive Man" he simultaneously says "That makes sense" to Moe, along with others at the bar, when Moe tells the barflies that the child actor who played Alfalfa that Moe killed was an orphan who was owned by the studio. In "Worst Episode Ever" Sam is shot in the back by Moe, for trying to pay in Sacagawea dollars. Larry also rarely speaks, except simultaneously with Sam, Barney Gumble and Homer Simpson in "Radioactive Man" and in fantasy sequences (in "Marge Be Not Proud", Larry utters a garbled, "Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year" after Bart receives a soiled wig during Bart's image of spending Christmas in juvenile hall and in "Simpson Tide", Larry grumbles, "This stupid machine took my money!" when Apu was thinking of his loved one—in this case, his Kwik-E-Mart cigarette machine that steals money and does not dispense cigarettes).
Larry dies while drinking at the bar in "Cremains of the Day".[226] After his death, it is revealed that he had been smuggling sapphires for Fat Tony. He apparently considered the other regulars at Moe's to be his best friends even though they knew very little about him. It's also revealed that Larry's home address was 652 8th Avenue, enjoyed fishing and Larry told his mother, Iris Dalrymple, about the regulars being his best friends.[227]
Sanjay Nahasapeemapetilon[edit]
Sanjay Nahasapeemapetilon (voiced by Harry Shearer)[20] is Apu Nahasapeemapetilon's younger brother and uncle of Apu's eight children.[228] He has a daughter named Pahusacheta (who performed in a beauty pageant) and a son named Jamshed (who, despite his young age, can wield a shotgun and run The Kwik-E-Mart when Apu is not there to do so). Sanjay has a wife, as he asked Apu to promise not to sleep with her if he dies (Apu's response to this request was a cheery "I promise nothing!"). Sanjay was shown as Apu's business partner at the Kwik-E-Mart in the earlier episodes. "I'm with Cupid" was his final speaking appearance until "Covercraft".
However, he has appeared as a background character in "Moe Letter Blues", "Homer at the Bat" (as pitcher for Fort Springfield), and The Simpsons Movie. Sanjay can also be seen in the season nine episode "Dumbbell Indemnity" on a sign outside "Stu's Disco" that reads, "You Must Be This Swarthy To Enter".
T[edit]
Todd Flanders[edit]
Todd Homer Flanders[248] (voiced by Nancy Cartwright) is Ned Flanders' eight-year-old son, who according to the episode "Manger Things" was born six years ago. His middle name is Homer because Homer helped deliver him when Ned could not get there on time. His voice is based on Sherman's from Peabody and Sherman.[14] Todd is the most impressionable member of the Flanders family. When exposed to profanity, he himself starts to curse ("Hell, no" and "I said I don't want any damn vegetables"). When Moe Szyslak loses his temper at Uncle Moe's Family Feedbag, Todd responds with "Ow, my freaking ears!" prompting the Flanders to leave, after Ned comments that Moe's foul language is more at home at Denny's (in most international versions, "Denny's" is replaced with "McDonald's"). Whether due to immaturity or a means to break away from his parents' (his father's especially) relentless sheltering, whenever Todd comes into contact with anything outside his family and their pious ways, such as the time he was tricked into eating a Pixy Stix by Bart Simpson, he turns aggressive. Todd can play the violin quite well, and is a part of the Springfield Elementary School band (despite that later episodes do not show Rod or Todd Flanders as Springfield Elementary School students, before it was revealed that they attended a Christian school before their new step-mother Edna Krabappel enrolled them in Springfield Elementary[249]). "Dead Putting Society" reveals that Todd is good at mini-golf and capable (presumably unlike his brother) to defy his father. However, he is much less willing than Bart.
U[edit]
Üter Zörker[edit]
Üter Zörker (voiced by Russi Taylor) is an overweight German foreign exchange student with a sweet tooth, and strange habits such as offering his already-licked lollipops to others as a sign of friendship, and eating marzipan candies (called Joy Joy) fortified with iodine. He was left behind on the Civil War field trip, according to the season six episode "The PTA Disbands", but was back in school, playing in the band in the season eight episode "Lisa's Date with Density". His subsequent disappearance from the show for a significant period of time has become a running joke. In "Guess Who's Coming to Criticize Dinner?" his biological parents from Germany asked Skinner where their missing son was, and in "24 Minutes" he is seen stuck in a cobweb in the school air vents. It is revealed in the episode "Jazzy and the Pussycats" that he can play the trumpet quite well. He even makes a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory diorama, but eats it before it can be graded in "Lisa's Rival". During the school science fair in the season 23 episode "Replaceable You" Kearney has a human skull on display with a sign on it that reads, "Is This Üter?" In the German dub of the show, Üter is an exchange student from Switzerland.
V[edit]
The Vanderbilts[edit]
The Vanderbilts (voiced by Hank Azaria and Tress MacNeille) are an elderly rich couple who are frequently shocked by Homer Simpson's antics. They first appear in "Saddlesore Galactica" where Mr. Vanderbilt breaks his monocle after being shocked. This gag is reused in "A Tale of Two Springfields". In "Homer vs. Dignity", Mrs. Vanderbilt is shocked by Homer's antics twice. In "The Frying Game", Mrs. Vanderbilt is shown as friends with Mrs. Bellamy, Mrs. Glick, and Agnes Skinner. They are a parody of the actual Vanderbilt family.