Grift of the Magi/References
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Cultural references
- This episode's title is a pun on O. Henry's short story The Gift of the Magi.
- Milhouse sings "Sisters are doin' it for themselves!", a song by Aretha Franklin and the Eurythmics and covered on The Yellow Album by Lisa, Ann and Nancy Wilson and Patty and Selma.
- The toy, Funzo, is a parody of the popular Furby dolls (although the Furby dolls were mentioned in the story line as an example of a popular toy).
- Gary Coleman once worked as a security guard in real life. Coleman spoofed Arnold's (Coleman's character in Diff'rent Strokes) catchphrase, "Wha'choo talkin' 'bout, Willis?", three times.
- At the end, the narrator says Mr. Burns was visited by three ghosts in the night which showed him the error of his ways, a homage to A Christmas Carol.
- The narrator also says that Moe, in his annual suicide attempt, was shown what the world would be like without him after sticking his head in his oven. This is a reference to the 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life.
- Funzo's metallic frame maybe a reference to the endoskeleton of a T800 Terminator from the Terminator films.
- When Lisa mentions that the Funzo was likely configured by its creators to eliminate its competition, Bart mentions Microsoft as an example of an enterprise which employs similar tactics. This is actually a business strategy called Embrace, extend and extinguish which was employed by Microsoft and revealed in the Halloween documents.
- Chief Wiggum does an impression of Ed Sullivan.
Goofs
- Even though Bart said he wouldn't bring a toy to school, he is shown with a Krusty doll. He could have been joking
- Principal Skinner states that the wheelchair stairs will prepare for the new millennium, which he refers to being the year 2000, even though the new millennium technically didn't begin until 2001.
- At the hospital, Maggie is seen with a red bow in one scene, instead of her usual blue. In the next scene a few seconds later, it is blue again.
- The color of the lenses in Martin's father's glasses changes in the scene at the hospital.
