Once Upon a Time in Springfield/References

General

References/Trivia

Appearances

Gags

Credits

Quotes

	Season 21 Episode References
← 450 "Thursdays with Abie"	451 "Once Upon a Time in Springfield"	"Million Dollar Maybe" 452 →

Cultural references

• The title of this episode is a pun on Once Upon a Time in America, the 1984 epic crime film. The film features Jewish-American characters, much as Krusty.
• The episode's billboard gag makes a reference to the Fox Network.
• The episode's chalkboard gag is "The world may end in 2012 but this show won't". This is a reference to the 2009 disaster film 2012, which aired one year before this episode and is based on the 2012 phenomenon.

A girl returns a $25 savings bond which is based on the real $50 Series EE savings bond featuring George Washington and the Independence Hall

• When Krusty's show is over, he orders the kids to give back the toys and saving bonds he had previously given. A girl returns a $25 savings bond which is based on the real $50 Series EE savings bond featuring George Washington and the Independence Hall.
• Krusty has a painting that parodies the Shot Marilyns by Andy Warhol.
• The name of the reality show America's Next Krusty is a pun on America's Next Top Model, while the logo is a parody of that of American Idol.
• Mr. Burns removed the daily doughnuts from Springfield Nuclear Power Plant "until Mr. Roosevelt's New Deal starts working". The New Deal was a series of programs enacted by President Roosevelt in the US between 1933 and 1938 to rescue the country from the Great Depression.
• Lenny's name on his fake ID badge is "Osama Bin Sleepin'", a pun on Osama bin Laden.
• Lisa is reading Angelica Button and the Infinite Armoire by T. R. Francis, a parody of the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling.
• According to Milhouse, girls ruined Sex and the City, the famous series that follows the lives of four women.
• Krusty is worried that the female audience will not buy cigars, and he mentions how the American brand of cigars Dutch Masters is going to drop the show.
• According to Bart, girls ruined the United States Army, the Fantastic Four from Marvel and the reality show American Idol. He also thinks that American Idol would be awesome with just Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson.
• Krusty was one of Look magazine's 100 most-promising clowns of 1958. This American magazine was published from 1937 to 1971.
• American cartoonist Gary Larson works at Capital City Nuclear and draws a cartoon for Homer, Lenny and Carl. By Homer's commentary, the cartoon is likely to be from The Far Side, the surreal single-panel comic created by Larson.
• While on the phone, Princess Penelope mentions Nassau and Suffolk, two neighbouring counties in New York. Princess Penelope talks with a New York accent. Actress Anne Hathaway, who provides Princess Penelope's voice, was born in New York City.
  • Penelope was born in Mineola, Long Island.
• The song "This Old Clown" is set to the tune of the traditional children's song "This Old Man".

Ralph considers himself "a Star Wars", and is dressed as Princess Leia

• Lisa makes a speech about Princess Anne and mentions that the princess has participated in equestrian events during the 1976 Summer Olympics and spent summers at Holyrood Palace, the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland.
  • The other girls from the class investigated about Diana, Princess of Wales and Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway.
  • Ralph investigated about Princess Leia from Star Wars. Ralph can be seen dressing as her, and he mentions that he is "a Star Wars".
• Homer, Lenny and Carl stay at the Four Seasons, Capital City, part of the famous luxury hotel chain Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts.
• Krusty asks Princess Penelope to be his "princess bride", a reference to the 1987 fantasy film The Princess Bride.
  • The "Bridal Chorus" by Richard Wagner is heard after Princess Penelope accepts. The song is heard again during Krusty and Penelope's wedding.
• To avoid losing their employees, Mr. Burns offers them special doughnuts made with Cuban sugar from pre-Batista plantations. He is referring to Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista, who was President of Cuba from 1940 to 1944 and military dictator from 1952 to 1958.
  • The "Flower Duet" by Léo Delibes is heard when Homer, Lenny and Carl are eating the doughnuts.
• Kent Brockman mentions the supercouple "Brangelina", composed by actors Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. The second couple he mentions is "Queen Latifarod", which was not a real relationship but is a pun on rapper Queen Latifah and professional baseballer Alex Rodriguez, aka "A-Rod".
• The photo of the supercouple "Krustelope" was taken at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards.
• Princess Penelope's full name is "Penelope Mountbatten Hapsburg Hohenzollern Mulan-Pocahontas". Her surname is a reference to:
  • The German-British noble family of Mountbatten.
  • The Houses of Hapsburg and Hohenzollern, two important royal dynasties from Europe.
  • Mulan and Pocahontas, the folk heroines from the Disney's films of the same name.
• "Spring" from The Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi is heard during Krusty's wedding at the Springfield Country Club.
• Holly Hippie said that Krusty did not let her watch the first Moon landing in 1969. Krusty responded that he was jealous of astronaut Neil Armstrong.
• Eartha Kitt, who was also married to Krusty, references her Catwoman character in the 1966 TV series Batman.
• Princess Penelope's phrase "We'll always have Sideshow Mel's dressing room" is a parody of the iconic line "We'll Always Have Paris" from the 1942 romantic drama Casablanca. This line said by Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) is among the most famous ones in the history of American cinema.
• In Paris, Princess Penelope sings "Moon River", which is a real song originally performed by Audrey Hepburn in the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany's.
• The Belgian graphic novel characters Tintin and Captain Haddock from The Adventures of Tintin can be seen watching Penelope perform.
• Penelope calls Krusty "my Borscht Belt baby", referring to Borscht Belt, the colloquial term for the mostly defunct summer resorts of the Catskill Mountains in parts of Sullivan and Ulster counties in New York

Trivia

• This episode aired during the closing celebrations of the Simpsons 20th Anniversary with The Simpsons 20th Anniversary Special in 3-D on Ice.
• The closing caption originally read "The Best is Yet to Come," but was changed when it first aired to "Now stay tuned for three Seth MacFarlane shows," and again in the rerun to "Think of all the things you could be doing instead of wasting your time with this show."

Continuity

• The last time someone was dressed up as a Star Wars character and said "I'm a Star Wars" was in "Bart Has Two Mommies".
• Gunter from "Mom and Pop Art" is seen in Paris.

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Homer the Whopper • Bart Gets a "Z" • The Great Wife Hope • Treehouse of Horror XX • The Devil Wears Nada • Pranks and Greens • Rednecks and Broomsticks • Oh Brother, Where Bart Thou? • Thursdays with Abie • Once Upon a Time in Springfield • Million Dollar Maybe • Boy Meets Curl • The Color Yellow • Postcards from the Wedge • Stealing First Base • The Greatest Story Ever D'ohed • American History X-cellent • Chief of Hearts • The Squirt and the Whale • To Surveil with Love • Moe Letter Blues • The Bob Next Door • Judge Me Tender