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Season 3

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Season 3
Simpsons s3.png
Season Information
Original run: September 19, 1991 – August 27, 1992
No. of episodes: 24
Previous season: 2
Next season: 4
DVD boxset: The Complete Third Season

The Simpsons' third season began on September 19, 1991 with the first episode, "Stark Raving Dad" and ended on August 27,1992 with "Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?" Al Jean and Mike Reiss were the show runners and produced most of the episodes in the season. Season 3 won one Emmy award. Six voice actors shared the Emmy for "Outstanding Voice-Over Performance".

Season 3 is also noteworthy for the guest voice appearance of Michael Jackson (credited at the time as "John Jay Smith") in "Stark Raving Dad." Jackson voiced his character's speaking parts while sound-a-like Kipp Lennon performed all of the singing. Jackson also wrote the song "Lisa, It's Your Birthday." After this episode was produced, the show instituted a policy that celebrities wishing to guest-star on the show had to be willing to be credited under their real names rather than using pseudonyms.

All 24 episodes of Season 3 were released as a DVD boxset on 26th August 2003 in Region 1, 6th October 2003 in Region 2, and 22nd October 2003 in Region 4.

Episodes

#

Title

Original airdate Directed by Written by Prod. code
Summary
36 - 1

"Stark Raving Dad"

September 19, 1991 Rich Moore Al Jean & Mike Reiss 7F24

Through a series of misunderstandings, Homer is put into a mental hospital and his roommate is a man who talks and sings like Michael Jackson. Everything is cleared up and Homer is released. However, in all the confusion, everyone has forgotten about Lisa's birthday -- including Bart, who didn't even remember to buy a present. To make it up to her, Bart and Michael write and perform a song for Lisa. She enjoys the song and says it's the best present she ever got.

37 - 2 "Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" September 26, 1991 Wes Archer George Meyer 8F01

Lisa wins the local competition of an essay contest, earning the family a trip to Washington, D.C. for the finals. Lisa sees Bob Arnold (her own representative) taking a bribe. Disgusted, she changes her previous uplifting essay into a cynical one denouncing corruption in government in general and Bob Arnold in particular. Her faith in the system is restored when Arnold is arrested and expelled from Congress.

38 - 3

"When Flanders Failed"

October 3, 1991 Jim Reardon Jon Vitti 7F23

Ned Flanders opens the Leftorium, a store specializing in merchandise for left-handed people. Homer thinks it's a stupid idea and secretly wishes for the store to fail and Ned to be humiliated. Homer's wish comes true when business is very slow, and Ned is facing financial ruin and the loss of his house. Homer goes through a change of heart, tells Ned to open the store one more time, and calls every left-handed person he knows to tell them about the Leftorium. They all come to the store the next morning and buy all kinds of left-handed items, and Ned's store is saved.

39- 4

"Bart the Murderer"

October 10, 1991 Rich Moore John Swartzwelder 8F03

Bart is hired to work in a Mafia bar run by Fat Tony (making his first appearance). Bart is late for work due to having been put in detention by Principal Skinner. Fat Tony announces that he and his men will "meet and greet" Skinner, and shortly after that, Skinner disappears. Both Bart and Fat Tony are accused of Skinner's murder, and at trial Fat Tony tries to pin the murder (and all of his other illegal activities) on Bart. Skinner then re-appears, telling the court that he had an accident at home and was trapped under a pile of newspapers for a week. The case is dismissed and Bart quits his job at Fat Tony's bar.

40 - 5 "Homer Defined" October 17, 1991 Mark Kirkland Howard Gewirtz 8F04

At the nuclear power plant, Homer prevents a meltdown through sheer luck. He is hailed as a hero, but fears being found out as being only lucky rather than brave or clever. When the truth comes out, the phrase "to pull a Homer" becomes a widely used term meaning "to succeed despite idiocy," and Homer's picture ends up in the dictionary, illustrating the definition. Meanwhile, Bart's and Milhouse's friendship is strained when Mihouse's mother considers Bart to be a bad influence and orders Milhouse to stay away from him.

41 - 6 "Like Father, Like Clown" October 24, 1991 Jeffrey Lynch with Brad Bird Jay Kogen & Wallace Wolodarsky 8F05

Krusty the Clown has dinner with the Simpsons, and reveals that he is Jewish, his real name is Herschel Krustofski, and he is estranged from his rabbi father. They parted ways over Krusty's becoming a clown instead of following his father and becoming a rabbi. Bart and Lisa see Krusty becoming depressed, and they take it upon themselves to reunite him with his father. They find Rabbi Krustofski, and after several attempts convince him to meet Krusty on the set of his show, where they reconcile their differences. Krusty introduces his father to the audience, and together they sing a song.

42 - 7 "Treehouse of Horror II" October 31, 1991 Jim Rondo Reardon Atrocious Al Jean & Morbid Mike Reiss, Jittery Jeff Martin, Gasping George Meyer, Silthering Sam Simon, Spooky John Swartzelder 8F02

Opening: Marge warns viewers again that the following episode will be even scarier than last years for young viewers. Aware that she will be ignored like the previous Halloween special, she resigns herself.

Prologue: Lisa, Bart, and Homer eat an excessive amount of candy, which Marge warns them that they will get nightmares if they do so. While they ignore her warning, each of the three begin to have them.

Lisa's Nightmare: The Simpsons buys a severed monkey paw from Morocco, which can grant a limited amount of wishes for a particular set of users depending on the amount of fingers out. Maggie, Bart, Lisa and Homer make a wish from it, which most result in unexpected circumstances.

Bart's Nightmare: Bart has an ability to manipulate things by his mind. Everyone is compelled to carry his orders, opinions etc to prevent his potent ability on them.

Homer's Nightmare: In an effort to create the ultimate worker, Mr. Burns transplants Homer's brain into a robot.

43 - 8 "Lisa's Pony" November 7, 1991 Carlos Baeza Al Jean & Mike Reiss 8F06

Homer loses much of Lisa's appreciation for him after he was unable to give her a required saxophone reed for her role in a talent show on time. After seeing that he had ignored her greatly when she was younger, presuming that had caused her lack of pride in him, she purchases a pony to change her opinion on him and that she likes the type of animal. While she loves Homer as a result and happily keeps the pony named "Princess", he is required to carry another job, a Kwik-E-Mart cashier at graveyard shifts, to pay for Princess's expensive housing. He becomes more and more tired when doing his secondary job, gaining lack of sufficent to no sleep, which prompts Lisa to decide to keep the pony or have her father exhausted.

44 - 9 "Saturdays of Thunder" November 14,1991 Jim Reardon Ken Levine & David Isaacs 8F07

Trying to be a better father, Homer helps Bart build a soapbox racer. Bart's racer is a flop, but Martin Prince's is the fastest and wins the race. When Martin is hurt, he asks Bart to fill in as driver so that at least one of them can beat Nelson Muntz in the race. This angers Homer, as Bart won't be driving the racer that they built. Homer, however, does some thinking and realizes the experience has brought him closer to Bart and made him a better father, and Bart needs his support regardless of what racer he's driving. Homer goes to the race, wishes Bart luck, and he wins. Bart and Homer then celebrate the victory.

45 - 10 "Flaming Moe's" November 21,1991 Rich Moore & Alan Smart Robert Cohen 8F08
Moe steals the recipe for a beverage created by Homer, which is made from several liquids including cough syrup and that fire improves its taste, for the fledging Moe's Tavern to gain more profits. Initially called "Flaming Homer" by Homer, Moe renames it "Flaming Moe" under his control of it. stating that he created it without Homer and subsequently sells it. Although the drink is a success and has elevated Moe's Tavern by business and patronage, Homer is angered by Moe for not mentioning his association to the drink and vows revenge.
46 - 11

"Burns Verkaufen der Kraftwerk"

"Burns Sells the Power Plant"*

December 5,1991 Mark Kirkland Jon Vitti 8F09

Rumours of a takeover of a successor to take over the power plant as Mr.Burns wishes to resign to pursue other interests. All but Homer each have received $5,200 for the rise of stocks. Homer, however, sold his stocking for 25¢ and earns $25 dollars, spending it on a beer which he was unaware of the skyrocketed stock. The takeover then unfolds as German Businessmen had paid Burns $100,000,000 for the plant, which worries employees to possibly being fired by Germany's stricter and hard working ethic.

  • - An English translation of the original German title.
47 - 12

"I Married Marge"

December 26, 1991 Jeffrey Lynch

Jeff Martin

8F10
Marge worries that she may be again pregnant. While she is going to contact Dr.Hibbert, Homer tells Bart, Lisa and Maggie how he and Marge got married and the conception and birth of Bart as well as Homer applying for a job at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant.
48 - 13

"Radio Bart"

January 9, 1992 Carlos Baeza Jon Vitti 8F11
Bart has a disapointing birthday and presents although later, he then appreciates Homer's present to him, a microphone able to have a user's voice from the microphone to a nearby radio. He uses it for mainly pranks, which he sets up a particular one where he impersonates a fictitious boy named Timmy O'Toole trapped in a local well, gaining public attention, as he put a radio in the well.
49 - 14 "Lisa the Greek" January 23, 1992 Rich Moore Jay Kogen & Wallace Wolodarsky 8F12
Homer and Lisa begin to bond as they watch American football which Lisa can accurately predict which team will win. An ability that Homer wagers on people for matches which Lisa thinks Homer is using her as a tool for this and loses much appeciation for him.
50 - 15 "Homer Alone" February 6, 1992 Mark Kirkland David M. Stern 8F14
Marge decides to take a vacation to calm down. Homer take cares of Maggie while Lisa and Bart are under Patty and Selma's responsibility. While Marge is enjoying the spa in her vacation, the family are struggling without her and misfortune ensures.
51 - 16 "Bart the Lover" February 13, 1992 Carlos Baeza Jon Vitti 8F16
Bart writes love letters to Mrs.Krabappel under a pseudonym of a fictionous man named Woodrow Wilson, named after the 28th US president. Meanwhile, Ned Flanders convinces Homer to control his swearing as his son, Todd, learns profanity by Homer.
52 - 17 "Homer at the Bat" February 20, 1992 Jim Reardon John Swartzwelder 8F13
Springfield Nuclear Power Plant employees, including Homer, sign up for softball and are a runaway success with Homer's homemade yet efficent Wonderbat. Mr. Burns, however, seeks for professional baseball players to replace the team members.
53 - 18 "Separate Vocations" February 27, 1992 Jeffrey Lynch George Meyer 8F15
Students of Springfield Elementary are assigned to take an aptitude exam to see what career would suit them. Bart is noted as a policeman and Lisa a homemaker. After they had experience the jobs, Bart's performance and discipline in school has him a hall monitor while Lisa then develops a poorer attitude.
54 - 19 "Dog of Death" March 12, 1992 Jim Reardon John Swartzwelder 8F17
Santa's Little Helper becomes severely ill, which as the Simpsons subsequently notice, they are forced to make budget cuts to afford his expensive operation to cure him. While the operation was a success, the family then resent the sacrifices they had to make to save Santa's Little Helper's life which they required, prompting him to run away before being owned and changed by Mr. Burns.
55 - 20 "Colonel Homer" March 26, 1992 Mark Kirkland Matt Groening 8F19
Homer meets a barmaid named Lurleen Lumpkin, who possess a talent for singing. He tries to make her famous by being her manager on her way to be a singer. He does not seem to know most of the time that Lurleen has fallen in love in Homer, which prompts him to consider the importance of his marriage with an upset Marge, who thinks that he is having an affair on her than his wife.

56 - 21

"Black Widower"

April 9, 1992 David Silverman Jon Vitti,Thomas Chastain and Sam Simon 8F20
Sideshow Bob is released from prison and has a relationship with Selma. Bart is suspicious about this so called renewal of him, with Bob's history deeming him sinister after an attempt to frame Krusty the Klown. Bart discovers that he is planning to kill her by a gas explosion with her cigarette. He proceeds to prevent this, saving Selma's life and having Bob arrested again.
57 - 22 "The Otto Show" April 23, 1992 Wes Archer Jeff Martin 8F21
Otto finds out that he had never had an official license after damaging a school bus, resulting in being fired by authorities. He is also evicted from his home and moves in with the Simpsons, while teaching Bart how to play a guitar
58 - 23 "Bart's Friend Falls in Love" May 7, 1992 Jim Reardon Jay Kogen & Wallace Wolodarsky 8F22
Milhouse has fallen for a new student in Springfield Elementary called Samantha Stankey. Their relationship with each other affects his friendship with Bart by spending less time with him, much to his irritation by them. Bart treis to break the young couple up, succeeding in contacting Samantha's father and having her away from Milhouse, being depressed without her and angered at Bart which he later learns that he caused the two to be split up, culminating in a fight with the two. Meanwhile, Homer orders a cassette tape to help him lose weight although receives one to increase vocabulary which the weight loss tapes have ran out.

59 - 24

"Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?" August 27, 1992 Rich Moore John Swartzwelder 8F23
Homer is rewarded $2,000 after declared infertile in work. Soon, his half brother, Herb Powell, returns to the Simpsons to their household, after being poor from bankruptcy of his company. He is pleased to see them except Homer which he still is bitter at as he developed a highly expensive yet poorly received car which caused Herb's company, Powell Motors, to be defunct from bankruptcy due to the high production cost of the vehicle. He attempts to regain money by developing a baby translator which he requests the $2,000 from Homer to develop a prototype. Homer does so and the prototype works well enough for mass production, being a runaway success and regaining Herb's fortunes. He then gives gifts to the family and forgiveness for Homer as well and leaves them with gratitude.

DVD Release

Season 3 was released on DVD in its entirety as The Complete Third Season Boxset on August 26, 2003 in region 1, October 6, 2003 in Region 2 and October 22, 2003 in Region by 20th Century Fox. While primarily containing the original 24 episodes, the boxset also consists on bonus features such as storyboards.

The Complete Third Season Boxset
Set Details Special Features
  • 24 episodes
  • 4-disc set
  • 1.33:1 aspect ratio
  • Languages:
    • English (Dolby Digital 5.1, with subtitles)
    • French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
    • Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround,with subtitles)
  • Trivia tracks for "Colonel Homer"
  • Storyboards
  • Commercials
  • Easter egg audio outtakes
  • Multi Language Featurette
  • Clip from the 1991 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade featuring a balloon of Bart
  • Jukebox Feature (11 songs)
  • Previously unseen promo footage of Colonel Homer
Release Dates
Region 1 Region 2 Region 4
26th August 2003 6th October 2003 22nd October 2003

Awards

Season 3 won one Emmy award. Six voice actors shared the Emmy for "Outstanding Voice-Over Performance":

The show received one other Emmy nomination for Season 3: "Outstanding Animated Program" for "Radio Bart."

Michael Jackson and Kipp Lennon had guested starred in "Stark Raving Dad.". Jackson was under a pseudonym of John Jay Smith, which he voiced his character's speaking parts while Lennon performed all of the singing. Jackson also wrote the song "Lisa, It's Your Birthday." After the episode was produced, the show instituted a policy that celebrities wishing to guest-star on the show had to be willing to be credited under their real names rather than using pseudonyms.


The Simpsons (Seasons)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
Season 3 | 1991 - 1992 | 24 episodes | 7Fxx - 8Fxx
Previous - Season 2 Next - Season 4