The Sound of Bleeding Gums
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"The Sound of Bleeding Gums"
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Episode Information
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"The Sound of Bleeding Gums" is the seventeenth episode of broadcast season 33 of The Simpsons and the seven hundred twenty-third episode overall. It originally aired on April 10, 2022. The episode was written by Loni Steele Sosthand and directed by Chris Clements. It guest stars John Autry II as Monk Murphy and Kathy Buckley as the deaf girl.
Synopsis[edit]
- Lisa meets Monk Murphy, the son of the late musician Bleeding Gums Murphy, who has never heard his father's music as he was born deaf. She then attempts to improve Monk's life against his wishes.
Plot[edit]
Lisa listens to jazz music on her phone while Marge and Bart watch TV, when a commercial for the Springfield Lottery airs, featuring a reworked version of Bleeding Gums Murphy's song "Can't Face Tomorrow" with new lyrics. Lisa rants against the lottery, believing Murphy would not have approved, and shows her webpage dedicated to him and a bust of his embouchure. She then visits The Jazz Hole, passing through crowds singing the lottery jingle. There, she learns that all the musicians participated in the lottery, increasing her sense of hopelessness.
After asking Homer for advice—who tells her not to waste time on lost causes—Lisa appears on Channel 6's Smartline to debate against the lottery. Though she answers all the questions correctly, she is caught off guard by the revelation that Murphy had a son. She soon locates him, Monk Murphy, and discovers he was born deaf. He had once sought help from Dr. Hibbert, but the cost of the operation was too high, prompting Lisa to take on the lottery to help him.
She brings Monk to The Jazz Hole and learns that his father's publisher was Treasured Artists Publishing. They visit the Springfield Brill Building to investigate who is profiting from Murphy's music but discover that Bleeding Gums was scammed into a bad contract, with the rights sold to major companies. Disheartened, Monk asks Lisa to leave him alone. Saddened, Lisa sneaks out of the house and visits the Bleeding Gums Murphy Memorial Bridge, where his ghost appears and helps her understand the essence of the blues.
Lisa visits The Sky's the Limit center, where Monk works and is directing a production of Richard III, to apologize. Monk reveals he was able to get the implant thanks to winning lottery money. Back at the bridge, Lisa plays one of his father's records for him to hear for the first time, but the vinyl is scratched by Bart, so she plays "Monk's New Tune", performed by Bleeding Gums Murphy. In the end, she dreams of performing "Happy Talk" with the musicians at The Jazz Hole, joined by Bleeding Gums himself. When Bart protests about their seats, she makes him disappear.
Production[edit]
The title of the episode was changed after the table read, it was called "Bleeding Gums Murphy in the Sound of Music".[1]
For the first time the show stars deaf and hearing-impaired voiceover actors. The Monk character is played by actor John Autry II, who is hearing impaired. The episode features a total of six deaf voice actors, also including comedian Kathy Buckley and three kids from the No Limits organization: Kaylee Arellano, Ian Mayorga and Hazel Lopez.[2][3]
The episode is inspired by the family of episode writer Loni Steele Sosthand. She has a brother, Eli Steele, who was born deaf. When they were talking about Bleeding Gums Murphy character in writer's initial brainstorms, the staff thought, wouldn't it be cool if Lisa discovers this whole other side of his life. That led to him having a son, and then we based that character at least somewhat on Eli.[3]
Sosthand and her brother, Eli Steele, had previously developed a pilot based on their lives, featuring John Autry II. So when it came time to find someone to play Monk, Sosthand pitched Autry to exec producers James L. Brooks and Al Jean, who "very much got on board and saw what a gem he was". The character has little personal moments from Loni and Eli's childhood but is also very much influenced by John.[3]
Autry lauded "The Simpsons" for hiring a deaf actor to play the role. "It's so incredible," he said of the gig. "It's life-changing equality and participation. This can impact change for all of us. It's about hard of hearing and hearing characters coming together. It's a part of history."[3]
Sosthand also sought her brother's approval while writing the script, which includes a scene where Bleeding Gums discovers his son his deaf — patterned after how Sosthand's parents discovered Eli was hearing impaired. Eli also voices a part in the episode.[3]
Reception[edit]
"The Sound of Bleeding Gums" was nominated for a 2023 Writers Guild of America award in Animation, but it lost to "Rectify" from Undone.[4]
Gallery[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ Al Jean's Twitter - "The Sound of Bleeding Gums title change and director"
- ↑ 'The Simpsons' features first episode with deaf voice actors
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Variety - 'The Simpsons' Makes History With First Deaf Voice Actor and Use of American Sign Language (EXCLUSIVE)
- ↑ Writers Guild of America - IMDb - "Writers Guild of America, USA 2023 Awards"
Promo videos[edit]
""Every time I learn something new it pushes some old stuff out of my brain." Bookmark this tweet so you remember to watch the new Simpsons episode this Sunday!" on Twitter
Lisa Is Determined To Help at YouTube- Lisa Talks To Some Unhelpful People at YouTube
- Lisa Is Ready To Quit And Homer Is Proud Of Her at YouTube
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Wikisimpsons has a collection of images related to "The Sound of Bleeding Gums". |
