Difference between revisions of "The Boy Who Knew Too Much/References"

Revision as of 13:11, January 14, 2024

Trivia

• Matt Groening is the court-appointed artist.
• When Bart is running away from Principal Skinner, one of the scenes is of Bart running down a hill, which was reused from the Season 4 premiere "Kamp Krusty".
• This is the first episode to feature Bart's "Li'l Bastard" prank kit. Here he uses the "Li'l Bastard Clock-Tampering Kit".
• There is "El Barto" graffiti outside the courthouse.
• The sign outside Quimby's house reads: "Thursday Is Ladies' Night"
• The lawyer who represents Freddy is similar to the Blue-haired lawyer.

Cultural references

• The title is a reference to the Alfred Hitchcock film The Man Who Knew Too Much.
  • The film title was also punned in the episodes "The Girl Who Slept Too Little", "The Dad Who Knew Too Little" and "The Man Who Grew Too Much".
• Bart telling Mayor Quimby he is his nephew Bart-Bart is a reference to John F. Kennedy, Jr. who was known to the public by the nickname John-John.
• More similarities between Rainier Wolfcastle and the man on which he is based, Arnold Schwarzenegger, are revealed in this episode, including:
  • Both have wives named Maria. Arnold Schwarzenegger's then wife Maria Shriver was a member of the Kennedy family which were the real life basis for the Quimby family.
  • Both drive a Humvee.
  • Bart also tell Wolfcastle his last movie "sucked," he himself lamenting, "I know. There were script problems from Day One," while Chief Wiggum admonished him, "magic ticket, my ass," a reference to Schwarzenegger's then recently released critically panned and box-office flop Last Action Hero where a "magic ticket" was a major element of the plot.
• The portrait on the wall behind Mayor Quimby in the dining room is based off of George Plunkitt (1842 – 1924) who became well-known for Plunkitt of Tammany Hall, recording of a series of talks he delivered on his success in machine politics.
• The scene featuring Principal Skinner chasing Bart (both the music and animation) is based on the Gunslinger's chase of Peter Martin from the film Westworld.
• When the Quimby trial becomes a topic of conversion at the breakfast table, Bart tries to change the subject by opening the newspaper to the funnies and reading from Peanuts.
• The plot, especially Bart's fantasy, a based on Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn. His fantasy also features Abraham Lincoln.
• Skinner picking up the cigar butt in the hotel room with an umbrella references the opening credits of The Odd Couple.
• In the court, Homer sings the jingle for Meow Mix cat food in his head.
• Homer watches the "director's cut" of Free Willy, which features Willy the whale crushing Jesse to death.
• The accident-prone waiter is a parody of Inspector Clouseau, despite his claims to the contrary.
• Bart hides from Skinner under a green blanket in a corvertible, a reference to Back to the Future Part II.

Goofs

• When Bart looks out the classroom window, the sun and a rainbow are both in the sky. But in order to see a rainbow, the sun has to be behind the viewer.
• In the first shot of Bart's classroom, Bart's eyes briefly disappear and Lewis' legs are yellow.
• In the first shot of the dining room inside the Quimby Compound, Freddy Quimby is shown seated in-between the escort he brought as his date on his left and another woman on his right. In the next shot Freddy is now seated in-between his cousin Maria Quimby on his left and a man on his right.