Gabbo
Gabbo
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Character Information
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- "I'm a bad widdle boy!"
- ―Gabbo's catchphrase
Gabbo is a ventriloquist's dummy who was a short-lived, although enormously successful, children's TV personality in Springfield. He was used by Arthur Crandall. Before he was ever seen, several advertisements were posted on TV and the streets. Everyone was exited to know who was Gabbo.
A colorful, vivacious (even by the standards of Springfield) puppet, he was offset by his more rigid and refined puppeteer, Arthur Crandall. They were so successful, in fact, that they overtook the popularity of Krusty the Clown for a brief time, forcing their competitor into cancellation before making a rather large gaffe, unaware he was still on air.
In an effort to bail out his idol, Bart Simpson snuck into the studio where Gabbo's show was being filmed. During a commercial break, where Gabbo took the time to badmouth his fan base, the children of Springfield, despite Arthur Crandall's urgings for him to relent, Bart switched the camera back on, revealing Gabbo uttering the words, "All the kids in Springfield are S.O.B.s."
Following Gabbo's gaffe, Krusty (with the aid of Bart and Lisa Simpson) launched a spectacular comeback special, re-establishing the clown's stranglehold on the hearts of the children of Springfield.[1]
Arthur Crandall and Gabbo were hired as part of an act for the Native American Casino. Gabbo, when not in use, is simply a dummy and has deteriorated with the time. This can imply that his remarks about the children being "S.O.B's" are Arthur Crandall's own, and that Crandall has dissociative identity disorder, expressing one personality through Gabbo.[2]
Trivia
- His hinges are visible.
Behind the Scenes
Gabbo gets his name from the title character (a ventriloquist who operates a dummy named Otto) of the 1929 film "The Great Gabbo". Gabbo's face looks just like the famous dummy Howdy Doody (red hair, freckles), who hosted an afternoon children's program from 1947-1960.
Appearances
- Episode – "Krusty Gets Kancelled"
- Episode – "Bart to the Future"
- Episode – "Homerazzi"
- Episode – "All About Lisa"
- – The Simpsons Movie
References