Evolution of Pop Culture References in Cartoons
Cartoons frequently incorporate pop culture and current events, thinly disguised as characters, events, and plot lines. In Rocky and Bullwinkle, for example, the characters Boris and Natasha represented Soviet spies, a.k.a, the bad guys during the Cold War. (Goldstein, 2017) Cold War Villain The main characters of The Flintstones cartoons were animated versions of the main characters of the television show The Honeymooners that starred Jackie Gleason and Art Carney.
Two modern cartoons, in particular, exemplify the use of multiple pop culture and current events references, The Boondocks, and The Simpsons. The Boondocks, for example, has used Samuel L. Jackson, one of the stars of the film Pulp Fiction, as the voice for a character named Gin Rummy, an ex-soldier whose last name was the real-life President George W. Bush’s nickname for his Chief of Staff, Donald Rumsfeld. (Krueger, p. 323). The show has included many references to Pulp Fiction in its scripts. One instance occurs in “A Date with a Health Inspector (2005),” where Rummy’s argument in the car with another character, Riley, is a cultural reference to Jackson’s character’s “Say ‘what’ again!” speech in Pulp Fiction.
With a 30-year history, The Simpsons has employed a huge variety of cultural references in its scripts. Two of my favorites are “Marge vs. the Monorail (1993),” a brilliant takeoff on the 1962 movie The Music Man, and “Das Bus (1998),” a parody of author William Golding’s 1954 classic novel Lord of the Flies. The monorail episode combines hilarious rhymes, song lyrics (it’s a musical), and spot-on parody of The Music Man. Adam Frucci, in Vulture, calls this the best episode of The Simpsons. (Frucci, 2012) Marge vs. the Monorail
This image from the monorail episode says everything the viewer needs to know about the character, Lyle Lanley, the huckster trying to sell the Simpsons’ town of Springfield on the idea of building a monorail. First, he’s wearing a straw boater hat, a bow tie, a vest, and a jacket. He looks like he’s trying to sell the good people of Springfield something they don’t need.
Now compare this to the image from the original movie of The Music Man. The main character, Henry Hill, played by Robert Preston, is clearly the role model for the animated Lyle Lanley character. Henry Hill is shown with the same straw boater hat and bow tie, with a checkered suit. Again, he’s clearly a salesman, preying on the townspeople of River City.
“Critics note the show’s satirical edge in order to legitimate the adult pleasures of the text, even if kids (or other adults) miss them.” (Mittell, pp. 24-25) Whether adults or kids watch these cartoons, and many others like it, they can enjoy the shows without knowing the cultural references appearing in the episodes. But viewers who “get” the cultural references come away from watching such episodes with a much richer level of enjoyment and understanding of the show, and a deeper connection with the show.
Works Cited: Collection, J. S. (n.d.). Robert Preston in costume from his most famous role as Harold Hill in... Retrieved from https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/news-photo/robert-preston-in-costume-from-his-most-famous-role-as-news-photo/526886444
Lyle Lanley. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://simpsonswiki.com/wiki/Lyle_Lanley
Lyle Lanley, The Simpsons
Henry Hill, The Music Man