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Difference between revisions of "A Star Is Torn"

Wikisimpsons - The Simpsons Wiki
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{{EpisodePrevNext|The Heartbroke Kid|Thank God It's Doomsday}}
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{{Episode
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|image= A Star Is Torn promo 1.png
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|number= 353
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|season=16
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|snumber=18
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|prodcode= GABF13
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|airdate= May 8, [[2005]]
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|couchgag= Homer walks through a bunch of doors, then into a telephone booth, which makes him land on the couch.
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|guests= [[Fantasia Barrino]] as [[Clarissa Wellington]]
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|showrunner1= Al Jean
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|writer= [[Carolyn Omine]]
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|director= [[Nancy Kruse]]
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}}
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"'''A Star is Torn'''" is the eighteenth episode of [[season 16]] of ''[[The Simpsons]]'' and the three-hundred and fifty-third episode overall. It originally aired on May 8, [[2005]]. The episode was written by [[Carolyn Omine]] and directed by [[Nancy Kruse]]. It guest stars [[Fantasia Barrino]] as [[Clarissa Wellington]].
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== Synopsis ==
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{{desc|After singing a song to her ill family, [[Lisa]] enters ''[[Krusty's Li'l Starmaker]]'' in the hopes of winning, with [[Homer]] as her songwriter. However, Homer's cutthroat attitude towards the competition puts a strain on their relationship.}}
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== Plot ==
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[[File:A Star Is Torn promo 2.png|thumb|left|Alternate promo image]]
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The [[Simpson family]] go shopping at the [[Kwik-E-Mart]], only to find it being robbed by [[Snake]]. They decide to go to the farm stand next door, run by [[Cletus]] and [[Brandine]] where they buy organic vegetables. Whilst eating dinner, the entire family, except Lisa, get ill from not being used to eating vegetables and being used to eating processed food. Lisa then looks after the rest of the family, bringing them tea and crackers. She then sings "{{ap|Hush, Little Baby|Lisa's version}}" to them to help them get to sleep. The next morning, Lisa finds the family all better and eating [[Shakespeare's Fried Chicken]]. They then see an advert on TV for ''Krusty's Li'l Starmaker'', a singing competition, with the winner getting animated into an episode of ''[[The Itchy & Scratchy Show]]''. [[Bart]] tells Lisa that she should enter because she has a great singing voice.
  
[[File:Picture_4.png|left|thumb|200px]]{{episode
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That night, the family then camps outside the [[Springfield Mall]], where the auditions will be held. Lisa has a dream where she appears on ''The Itchy & Scratchy Show'' and gives people advice on how to look after their pets. She then wakes up and the family enters the Mall, ready for the auditions. [[Ralph]] auditions first and gets a sarcastic applause from the audience. After Ralph, [[Clarissa Wellington]] auditions, singing "{{ap|Hush, Little Baby|Clarissa's version}}", the song that Lisa was going to sing. Clarissa impresses the audience and they all applaud and cheer her on. Homer then rushes off to write Lisa a new song and brings it to her just as her audition is about to start. Lisa sings "[[I'm Talkin' Springfield]]" and receives a huge applause from the audience, with the needle breaking off the [[Applause-O-Meter]]. Lisa is then put through into the next stage of the show.
|image=blank.png
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|productionCode=
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Lisa and Homer practice to get Lisa ready for the next stage. During the show, they watch [[Cameron]], who had a lot of young fans, sing a version of "[[Greensleeves]]", which gets him a great cheer and applause from the audience. Lisa then sings her next song, "[[My Kitty Died]]", which moves the audience to tears. [[Katie Anderson]] is then the first contestant to be eliminated from the show. The show continues, leaving only three contestants remaining; Lisa, Cameron and Clarissa. Clarissa is then the next contestant to be eliminating, leaving Lisa to face off against Cameron in the final.
|originalAirdate=5/8/05
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|blackboardText=
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Backstage, Lisa gets concerned with Homer's aggressiveness and cutthroat attitude when it comes to helping Lisa to win. She fires him as her songwriter, which causes problems between the two of them. Homer then joins Cameron as his songwriter and manager, changing his stage name of "Johnny Rainbow". Homer then trains Cameron, which upsets Lisa. When preparing on stage, Homer tells Lisa that she should look into the spotlight when she finishes as it makes her eyes twinkle, which makes Lisa happy as he's still helping her.
|couchGag=
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|specialGuestVoices=
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The final performances then go underway, with Lisa having written her own song, "[[Always My Dad]]". This moves the audience again and they cheer her on. Homer also cries at the song. When Lisa walks off the stage, she tells Homer that the best part of the whole show was that she spent time with her dad. Homer then told Lisa that Cameron was going to learn to not trust people in the music business. Cameron goes on stage and sings "[[Privileged Boy]]", which angers the audience and loses him his fans. Cameron runs off crying, leaving Lisa as the winner. Homer then tells Lisa that he'll always be there for him and not even death will stop him.
|Written By=
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|Directed By=
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During the credits, Homer and Lisa practice jazz hands together, with [[Maggie]] attempting to take part too, falling over constantly.
}}
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== Production ==
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[[Al Jean]] went to [[Carolyn Omine]] with the idea for the episode. He wanted to do an episode based on ''{{W|American Idol}}'' and wanted Homer to be good at something and wanted to go down a route similar to how {{W|Helen Kushnick}} was with [[Jay Leno]], where she went overboard as Leno's manager.<ref name="Omine">{{Com|Omine, Carolyn|A Star Is Torn|Sixteenth|(2013).}}</ref> The episode also came around as [[Yeardley Smith]] has a good singing voice. So, they wanted Lisa to sing in more episodes.<ref name="Jean">{{Com|Jean, Al|A Star Is Torn|Sixteenth|(2013).}}</ref> Yeardley Smith's Lisa voice makes it hard to sing, so Lisa can only sing in about four notes. Songs were pitched too high for her singing voice, which is a lower pitch. As a result of this, she flip-flops between Lisa's singing voice and her own singing voice as Lisa's singing is so limited.<ref name="Smith">{{Com|Smith, Yeardley|A Star Is Torn|Sixteenth|(2013).}}</ref>
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Clarissa was named after one of the daughters of writer and producer [[J. Stewart Burns]].<ref name="Omine"/> The [[Paul Simon]] joke was written as a joke about Paul Simon being small. [[Michael Price]] pitched the jazz hands segments in the show.<ref name="Jean"/>
  
This episode is the 18th episode of the 16th season.
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<gallery>
Aside from [[Lisa]], everyone in the family contracts food poisoning after eating organic produce from The Farmers’ Market. After nurturing the family back to health, Lisa agrees to participate in a [[Krusty the Clown|Krusty]] sponsored “Li’l Starmaker” competition, with the first prize winner being animated into an [[Itchy and Scratchy]] episode. Lisa panics during the competition when a Christina Aguilera type performs a better rendition of “Mocking Bird” and [[Homer]] saves the day by hammering out a manipulative tune about [[Springfield]] that leads Lisa to victory. With a win under his belt, Homer becomes a stereotypical star-crazed parent and manager who ultimately drives Lisa to fire him. A distraught Homer counters by taking Lisa’s rival, [[Cameron]], under his wing and grooming him for the finals. Lisa comes to realize that her relationship with Homer is more important than the competition and performs an apologetic song. Homer reunites with his daughter before Cameron performs an egotistical song Homer prepared to sabotage the young boy’s performance.
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File:GABF13 Script.jpg|Script for the Episode
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</gallery>
  
== Cultural reference ==
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== Reception ==
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The song "[[Always My Dad]]" was nominated for a {{W|Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics}} in the {{W|57th Primetime Emmy Awards}}. However, it lost to "Mary Jane/Mary Lane" from ''{{W|Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical}}''.<ref>[https://www.emmys.com/awards/nominees-winners/2005/outstanding-original-music-and-lyrics Television Academy - "Outstanding Music and Lyrics – 2005"]</ref>
  
*When Bart hits Lisa with a chicken bone, Bart says "Praise the Lord!",in a Martin Luther King style.
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As of February 2020, the episode has a 6.6 rating on {{W|IMDb}}.<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0701047/ IMDb - "A Star Is Torn"]</ref>
*''Li'l Starmaker'' is a parody of ''[[American Idol]]'' and this is even referenced in the episode ("Not affiliated with [[American Idol]]; we've never even heard of American Idol").
 
*This is the third episode with the title parodying the film ''[[A Star Is Born (1937 film)|A Star Is Born]]'', the other two being "[[A Star Is Burns]]" and "[[A Star Is Born-Again]]".
 
* This episode seems to draw heavily from [[Al Jolson]]'s ''[[The Jazz Singer (1927 film)|The Jazz Singer]]''.
 
*The city [[Sideshow Mel]] asks about during "I'm Talkin' Springfield" is Jacksonville.
 
*Homer's line "Everything I did, I did for you" is a reference to a song from ''[[Gypsy (musical)|Gypsy]]'', a musical about a vicious [[stage mother|stage parent]].
 
*Cameron's character could be seen as a parody of the American Idol contestant [[Clay Aiken]].<br /><br /><br />
 
  
== Trivia ==
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== In other languages ==
*When [[Milhouse]] sings his first line "When a man loves a woman", [[Lenny]] and [[Carl]] questions his sexuality, causing Milhouse to walk off.
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{{LanguageBox
*[[Homer]] once again shows his talents as a musician(he use to be a part of the [[BeSharps]]).
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|it=yes
*[[Lurleen Pumpkin|Lurleen Lumpkin]] can be seen standing in the mall audience.
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|itName=Nascerà una Stellina
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|itTrans=A Star Will Be Born}}
  
== Guest Stars ==
 
*Fantasia Barrino
 
  
{{stub}}
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== References ==
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{{Reflist}}
  
{{Season 16}}
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{{Images|ep=yes}}
[[Category:Episodes]]
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{{season 16}}
[[Category:Season 16]]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Star Is Torn, A}}
[[Category:Episode Stubs]]
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[[sv:A Star is Torn]]
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[[Category:2005]]
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[[Category:Lisa episodes]]
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[[Category:Homer episodes]]
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[[Category:Musical episodes]]
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[[Category:Primetime Emmy Award nominated episodes]]
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[[Category:Episodes written by Carolyn Omine]]
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[[Category:Episodes directed by Nancy Kruse]]

Latest revision as of 16:38, August 30, 2024

Season 16 Episode
352 "The Heartbroke Kid"
353
"A Star Is Torn"
"Thank God It's Doomsday" 354
"A Star Is Torn"
A Star Is Torn promo 1.png
Episode Information
Episode number: 353
Season number: S16 E18
Production code: GABF13
Original airdate: May 8, 2005
Couch gag: Homer walks through a bunch of doors, then into a telephone booth, which makes him land on the couch.
Guest star(s): Fantasia Barrino as Clarissa Wellington
Showrunner: Al Jean
Written by: Carolyn Omine
Directed by: Nancy Kruse


"A Star is Torn" is the eighteenth episode of season 16 of The Simpsons and the three-hundred and fifty-third episode overall. It originally aired on May 8, 2005. The episode was written by Carolyn Omine and directed by Nancy Kruse. It guest stars Fantasia Barrino as Clarissa Wellington.

Synopsis[edit]

"After singing a song to her ill family, Lisa enters Krusty's Li'l Starmaker in the hopes of winning, with Homer as her songwriter. However, Homer's cutthroat attitude towards the competition puts a strain on their relationship."


Plot[edit]

Alternate promo image

The Simpson family go shopping at the Kwik-E-Mart, only to find it being robbed by Snake. They decide to go to the farm stand next door, run by Cletus and Brandine where they buy organic vegetables. Whilst eating dinner, the entire family, except Lisa, get ill from not being used to eating vegetables and being used to eating processed food. Lisa then looks after the rest of the family, bringing them tea and crackers. She then sings "Hush, Little Baby" to them to help them get to sleep. The next morning, Lisa finds the family all better and eating Shakespeare's Fried Chicken. They then see an advert on TV for Krusty's Li'l Starmaker, a singing competition, with the winner getting animated into an episode of The Itchy & Scratchy Show. Bart tells Lisa that she should enter because she has a great singing voice.

That night, the family then camps outside the Springfield Mall, where the auditions will be held. Lisa has a dream where she appears on The Itchy & Scratchy Show and gives people advice on how to look after their pets. She then wakes up and the family enters the Mall, ready for the auditions. Ralph auditions first and gets a sarcastic applause from the audience. After Ralph, Clarissa Wellington auditions, singing "Hush, Little Baby", the song that Lisa was going to sing. Clarissa impresses the audience and they all applaud and cheer her on. Homer then rushes off to write Lisa a new song and brings it to her just as her audition is about to start. Lisa sings "I'm Talkin' Springfield" and receives a huge applause from the audience, with the needle breaking off the Applause-O-Meter. Lisa is then put through into the next stage of the show.

Lisa and Homer practice to get Lisa ready for the next stage. During the show, they watch Cameron, who had a lot of young fans, sing a version of "Greensleeves", which gets him a great cheer and applause from the audience. Lisa then sings her next song, "My Kitty Died", which moves the audience to tears. Katie Anderson is then the first contestant to be eliminated from the show. The show continues, leaving only three contestants remaining; Lisa, Cameron and Clarissa. Clarissa is then the next contestant to be eliminating, leaving Lisa to face off against Cameron in the final.

Backstage, Lisa gets concerned with Homer's aggressiveness and cutthroat attitude when it comes to helping Lisa to win. She fires him as her songwriter, which causes problems between the two of them. Homer then joins Cameron as his songwriter and manager, changing his stage name of "Johnny Rainbow". Homer then trains Cameron, which upsets Lisa. When preparing on stage, Homer tells Lisa that she should look into the spotlight when she finishes as it makes her eyes twinkle, which makes Lisa happy as he's still helping her.

The final performances then go underway, with Lisa having written her own song, "Always My Dad". This moves the audience again and they cheer her on. Homer also cries at the song. When Lisa walks off the stage, she tells Homer that the best part of the whole show was that she spent time with her dad. Homer then told Lisa that Cameron was going to learn to not trust people in the music business. Cameron goes on stage and sings "Privileged Boy", which angers the audience and loses him his fans. Cameron runs off crying, leaving Lisa as the winner. Homer then tells Lisa that he'll always be there for him and not even death will stop him.

During the credits, Homer and Lisa practice jazz hands together, with Maggie attempting to take part too, falling over constantly.

Production[edit]

Al Jean went to Carolyn Omine with the idea for the episode. He wanted to do an episode based on American Idol and wanted Homer to be good at something and wanted to go down a route similar to how Helen Kushnick was with Jay Leno, where she went overboard as Leno's manager.[1] The episode also came around as Yeardley Smith has a good singing voice. So, they wanted Lisa to sing in more episodes.[2] Yeardley Smith's Lisa voice makes it hard to sing, so Lisa can only sing in about four notes. Songs were pitched too high for her singing voice, which is a lower pitch. As a result of this, she flip-flops between Lisa's singing voice and her own singing voice as Lisa's singing is so limited.[3]

Clarissa was named after one of the daughters of writer and producer J. Stewart Burns.[1] The Paul Simon joke was written as a joke about Paul Simon being small. Michael Price pitched the jazz hands segments in the show.[2]

Reception[edit]

The song "Always My Dad" was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics in the 57th Primetime Emmy Awards. However, it lost to "Mary Jane/Mary Lane" from Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical.[4]

As of February 2020, the episode has a 6.6 rating on IMDb.[5]

In other languages[edit]

Language Name Translation
Italy Flag.png Italiano "Nascerà una Stellina" A Star Will Be Born


References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Omine, Carolyn (2013). Commentary for "A Star Is Torn", in The Simpsons: The Complete Sixteenth Season.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Jean, Al (2013). Commentary for "A Star Is Torn", in The Simpsons: The Complete Sixteenth Season.
  3. Smith, Yeardley (2013). Commentary for "A Star Is Torn", in The Simpsons: The Complete Sixteenth Season.
  4. Television Academy - "Outstanding Music and Lyrics – 2005"
  5. IMDb - "A Star Is Torn"


The Saga of Carl - title screen.png Wikisimpsons has a collection of images related to "A Star Is Torn".
Season 16 Episodes
Treehouse of Horror XV All's Fair in Oven War Sleeping with the Enemy She Used to Be My Girl Fat Man and Little Boy Midnight Rx Mommie Beerest Homer and Ned's Hail Mary Pass Pranksta Rap There's Something About Marrying On a Clear Day I Can't See My Sister Goo Goo Gai Pan Mobile Homer The Seven-Beer Snitch Future-Drama Don't Fear the Roofer The Heartbroke Kid A Star Is Torn Thank God It's Doomsday Home Away from Homer The Father, the Son and the Holy Guest Star