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Difference between revisions of "A Fish Called Selma"

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{{Tab}}
 
{{Tab}}
{{episode
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{{EpisodePrevNext|The Day the Violence Died|Bart on the Road}}
|image=bn.jpg
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{{Featured episode}}
|Episode Number=147
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{{quote|Troy said something interesting last night at the bar. Apparently he doesn't really love Selma and the marriage is just a sham to help his career.|[[Homer]]}}
|productionCode=3F15
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{{Episode
|originalAirdate=March 24 1996
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|image=A Fish Called Selma promo.jpg
|blackboardText=
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|number=147
|couchGag=The Simpsons walk to the couch as wind up toys and [[Bart]] and [[Homer]] malfunction before making it to the couch.
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|season=7
|specialGuestVoices=[[Phil Hartman]] as [[Troy McClure]] and [[Fat Tony]]<br/>[[wikipedia:Jeff_Goldblum|Jeff Goldblum]] as [[MacArthur Parker]]
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|snumber=19
|Written By=[[Jack Barth]]
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|prodcode=3F15
|Directed By=[[Mark Kirkland]]
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|airdate=March 24, [[1996]]
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|couchgag=The Simpsons walk to the couch as wind up toys and [[Bart]] and [[Homer]] malfunction before making it to the couch.
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|guests=[[Phil Hartman]] as [[Troy McClure]] and [[Fat Tony]]<br>[[Jeff Goldblum]] as [[MacArthur Parker]]
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|showrunner= [[Josh Weinstein]]<br>[[Bill Oakley]]
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|writer=[[Jack Barth]]
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|director=[[Mark Kirkland]]
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|DVD features=yes
 
}}
 
}}
  
"'''A Fish Called Selma'''" is the 19th episode of [[The Simpsons|the Simpsons']] Seventh season. It guest stars [[Jeff Goldblum]] as [[MacArthur Parker]], and [[Phil Hartman]] as [[Troy McClure]].
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"'''A Fish Called Selma'''" is the nineteenth episode of [[season 7]] of ''[[The Simpsons]]'' and the on-hundred and forty-seventh episode overall. It originally aired on March 24, [[1996]]. The episode was written by [[Jack Barth]] and directed by [[Mark Kirkland]]. It guest stars [[Phil Hartman]] as [[Troy McClure]] and [[Fat Tony]] and [[Jeff Goldblum]] as [[MacArthur Parker]].
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== Synopsis ==
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{{desc|[[Troy McClure]]'s sagging film career is given a boost when he is seen in public with a woman. And to stay in the public eye, Troy must do more than merely date this woman, who happens to be [[Selma Bouvier|Selma]].}}
  
 
== Plot ==
 
== Plot ==
Washed-up actor [[Troy McClure]] gets pulled for driving without wearing his corrective lenses. When Troy goes to the DMV to get his license changed so that he will not be required to wear glasses anymore, he offers to take [[Selma Bouvier]] to dinner if she will let him pass the eye test.
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[[File:Chimpan A to Chimpan Z.png|thumb|left|Troy McClure in ''[[Stop the Planet of the Apes I Want to Get Off]]'']]
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The [[Simpson family]] are watching ''[[The Muppets Go Medieval]]'' on television, which stars [[Troy McClure]]. Whilst watching it, the family discusses Troy McClure, with Homer bringing up a rumor about Troy and something happened at the aquarium. However, Marge tells Homer that's just an urban legend. In [[Springfield]], Troy McClure is driving his [[DeLorean]] through town, crashing into many cars along the way. He is pulled over by [[Chief Wiggum]] and whilst Troy tries to work his charm on the Chief, he fails. Troy is told to give Wiggum a bribe and to go to the [[DMV]] to get an eye test.
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Upon arriving at the DMV, [[Louie]] is surprised as he thought that McClure was dead. [[Fat Tony]] then told Louie that he sleeps with the fishes and starts to explain before Louie stops him. Troy then approaches [[Selma]], who loves that a movie star just showed up. Troy flirts with Selma and gets her to pass his eye test in return for a date with him. They go on their date at [[The Pimento Grove]] and it goes well. As they leave, the paparazzi spots them together and takes pictures, posting them to ''[[The Springfield Shopper]]''. This gets Troy media attention again. He is then called by his agent, [[MacArthur Parker]], who tells Troy to keep going out with Selma to get his career back on track. Troy then calls Selma up and asks her out on another date.
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They go to [[Ugli]] for dinner and during the meal, Selma pulls out a cigarette and starts smoking, which angers the other patrons. Selma, who is embarrassed, leaves the restaurant and continues smoking. Troy then joins her with a cigar and the two get closer. The next day, Selma tells Marge that she thinks that Troy might be the one for her. She then goes on another date with Troy, to the [[Route 18 Flea Market and Drive-In]] where they watch ''The Muppets Go Medieval''. During the film, Troy proposes to Selma and she accepts.
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As news of his engagement hits the news, Troy gains more publicity. Selma also moves into Troy's house, bringing [[Jub-Jub]] with her. Troy shows Selma to her room and reveals that he'll be sleeping in a separate room from her. Whilst Troy is in bed, he gets a call from MacArthur Parker offering him a role in ''[[Stop the Planet of the Apes I Want to Get Off]]'', which he accepts. Selma, [[Patty]] and the Simpson family then go to [[Capital City]] to see the show. After the show finishes, Troy credits Selma with the revival of his career and has her take a bow in front of the audience.
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The next day, the Simpsons go to Troy's house to get to know him more. Homer then takes Troy to [[Moe's Tavern]] where he asks Troy why he's with Selma. Troy decides to let Homer in on a secret, which shocks Homer. Eventually, Troy and Selma's marriage day arrives. They get married at the [[Springfield Botanical Gardens]] where Homer doesn't say anything during the ceremony. That night, Homer reveals to Marge what Troy told him, that the marriage was a sham to further his career. At the hotel that Troy and Selma were staying in, MacArthur Parker meets Troy to tell him that offers were starting to come in, including one for ''[[McBain IV: Fatal Discharge]]''.
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The next day, Marge and Patty talk to Selma about Troy, with Marge telling Selma what Homer told her, that it was a sham marriage. Upset and angry about this, Selma confronts Troy about it and Troy admits immediately. Troy convinces Selma to continue with the sham, as she has money, security and a big hot flat rock for Jub-Jub. That night, Troy gets another phone call from MacArthur Parker who tells Troy that all the big stars have families so he needs to have a baby with Selma. He tells Selma about this and she agrees to do it. However, when they attempt to have sex, neither of them can go through with it. Selma tells Troy that she can't bring a child into a loveless relationship and she leaves, taking Jub-Jub with her.
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After this, Troy got offered the role in ''McBain IV''. However, he turned it down in order to make his own film called ''[[The Contrabulous Fabtraption of Professor Horatio Hufnagel]]''.
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== Production ==
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The producers wanted to do a whole episode about Troy McClure, and it worked with the plot as Selma was always getting married to people.<ref name="Oakley">{{Com|Oakley, Bill|A Fish Called Selma|Seventh|(2005).}}</ref> [[Jeff Goldblum]] had to record all his lines twice because after the animatic was done, the producers decided they wanted a different voice for MacArtur Parker. The first time he recorded the lines, he was too slow, making the episode too long.<ref name="Silverman">{{Com|Silverman, David|A Fish Called Selma|Seventh|(2005).}}</ref> [[James L. Brooks]] came up with idea that Troy McClure had a sort of unsavory secret involving fish.<ref name="Oakley"/> The walls of the Pimento Grove were filled with photos of guest stars that ''The Simpsons'' had up to that point, along with some random ones. MacArthur Parker was made to resemble Jeff Goldblum, but not look exactly like him.<ref name="Silverman"/>
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[[David Silverman]] thinks that ''Stop the Planet of the Apes I Want to Get Off'' is the best musical moment in the history of ''The Simpsons''. The male news celebrity news reporter is based on {{W|John Tesh}}<ref name="Silverman"/> [[Ken Keeler]] came up with the name "MacArthur Parker", taking it from the song "[[MacArthur Park]]".<ref name="Weinstein">{{Com|Weinstein, Josh|A Fish Called Selma|Seventh|(2005).}}</ref> During the ''Planet of the Apes'' musical, one of the apes started breakdancing. There was a person in the animation office who could do that in real life, which helped with the animating of it.<ref name="Silverman"/> The whole routine came from [[George Meyer]].<ref name="Weinstein"/> [[David X. Cohen]] came up with the "[[Chimpan-A to Chimpan-Z]]" song.<ref name="Oakley"/>
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<gallery>
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File:3F15 Script.jpg
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</gallery>
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== Reception ==
 +
Gwen Ihnat of ''{{W|The A.V. Club}}'' said that "A Fish Called Selma" gets everything right, praising the "tightly scripted plot" and the little details of the episode. She also called ''Stop the Planet of the Apes I Want to Get Off'' the pinnacle of the episode.<ref>[https://tv.avclub.com/the-simpsons-classic-a-fish-called-selma-1798180642 The A.V. Club - "The Simpsons (Classic): “A Fish Called Selma”"]</ref>
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As of October [[2019]], the episode has a 8.2 rating on {{W|IMDb}}<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0701043/ IMDb - "A Fish Called Selma"]</ref> and a 8.5 rating on {{W|TV.com}}.<ref>[http://www.tv.com/shows/the-simpsons/a-fish-called-selma-1432/ TV.com - "A Fish Called Selma"]</ref>
  
After dinner at the "[[Pimento Grove]]" photographers notice Troy leaving with a human woman (rumors about a romantic abnormality initially destroyed Troy's career). The next day, Troy's agent calls and says that he can get work again if he continues seeing human women. Troy continues dating Selma to help his career. On his agent's advice, Troy asks Selma to marry him.
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== References ==
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{{Reflist}}
  
The night before the wedding, a drunk Troy tells a drunk [[Homer]] the reason for his marriage. After the wedding, Homer tells [[Marge]] offhand. Marge and [[Patty Bouvier|Patty]] try to explain Selma, who accuses them of coming down with "the green-eyed gazungas." She confronts Troy who eagerly admits that their marriage is a sham to help his career. Troy explains to Selma that even though their marriage is a sham, she has benefitted and Selma initially accepts the situation. Troy's agent thinks he can get Troy the part of [[McBain]]'s sidekick in the next McBain movie, but most parts go to actors with families.
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{{Images|ep=yes}}
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{{season 7}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Fish Called Selma, A}}
  
Troy and Selma try to conceive, but neither can get aroused. Selma decides that bringing a child into a loveless family is wrong and leaves Troy, with the words "I'll always remember you Troy, but not from your films." Troy turns down the role of McBain's sidekick to direct and star in his own film.
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[[Category:1996]]
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[[Category:Romance-themed episodes]]
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[[Category:Episodes written by one time writers]]
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[[Category:Episodes directed by Mark Kirkland]]
  
{{Season 7}}
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[[sv:A Fish Called Selma]]
[[Category:Season 7]]
 
[[Category:Episodes]]
 

Revision as of 09:18, June 7, 2020

Season 7 Episode
146 "The Day the Violence Died"
147
"A Fish Called Selma"
"Bart on the Road" 148
"Troy said something interesting last night at the bar. Apparently he doesn't really love Selma and the marriage is just a sham to help his career."
Homer
"A Fish Called Selma"
A Fish Called Selma promo.jpg
Episode Information
Episode number: 147
Season number: S7 E19
Production code: 3F15
Original airdate: March 24, 1996
Couch gag: The Simpsons walk to the couch as wind up toys and Bart and Homer malfunction before making it to the couch.
Guest star(s): Phil Hartman as Troy McClure and Fat Tony
Jeff Goldblum as MacArthur Parker
Showrunner(s): Josh Weinstein
Bill Oakley
Written by: Jack Barth
Directed by: Mark Kirkland
DVD features


"A Fish Called Selma" is the nineteenth episode of season 7 of The Simpsons and the on-hundred and forty-seventh episode overall. It originally aired on March 24, 1996. The episode was written by Jack Barth and directed by Mark Kirkland. It guest stars Phil Hartman as Troy McClure and Fat Tony and Jeff Goldblum as MacArthur Parker.

Synopsis

"Troy McClure's sagging film career is given a boost when he is seen in public with a woman. And to stay in the public eye, Troy must do more than merely date this woman, who happens to be Selma."


Plot

The Simpson family are watching The Muppets Go Medieval on television, which stars Troy McClure. Whilst watching it, the family discusses Troy McClure, with Homer bringing up a rumor about Troy and something happened at the aquarium. However, Marge tells Homer that's just an urban legend. In Springfield, Troy McClure is driving his DeLorean through town, crashing into many cars along the way. He is pulled over by Chief Wiggum and whilst Troy tries to work his charm on the Chief, he fails. Troy is told to give Wiggum a bribe and to go to the DMV to get an eye test.

Upon arriving at the DMV, Louie is surprised as he thought that McClure was dead. Fat Tony then told Louie that he sleeps with the fishes and starts to explain before Louie stops him. Troy then approaches Selma, who loves that a movie star just showed up. Troy flirts with Selma and gets her to pass his eye test in return for a date with him. They go on their date at The Pimento Grove and it goes well. As they leave, the paparazzi spots them together and takes pictures, posting them to The Springfield Shopper. This gets Troy media attention again. He is then called by his agent, MacArthur Parker, who tells Troy to keep going out with Selma to get his career back on track. Troy then calls Selma up and asks her out on another date.

They go to Ugli for dinner and during the meal, Selma pulls out a cigarette and starts smoking, which angers the other patrons. Selma, who is embarrassed, leaves the restaurant and continues smoking. Troy then joins her with a cigar and the two get closer. The next day, Selma tells Marge that she thinks that Troy might be the one for her. She then goes on another date with Troy, to the Route 18 Flea Market and Drive-In where they watch The Muppets Go Medieval. During the film, Troy proposes to Selma and she accepts.

As news of his engagement hits the news, Troy gains more publicity. Selma also moves into Troy's house, bringing Jub-Jub with her. Troy shows Selma to her room and reveals that he'll be sleeping in a separate room from her. Whilst Troy is in bed, he gets a call from MacArthur Parker offering him a role in Stop the Planet of the Apes I Want to Get Off, which he accepts. Selma, Patty and the Simpson family then go to Capital City to see the show. After the show finishes, Troy credits Selma with the revival of his career and has her take a bow in front of the audience.

The next day, the Simpsons go to Troy's house to get to know him more. Homer then takes Troy to Moe's Tavern where he asks Troy why he's with Selma. Troy decides to let Homer in on a secret, which shocks Homer. Eventually, Troy and Selma's marriage day arrives. They get married at the Springfield Botanical Gardens where Homer doesn't say anything during the ceremony. That night, Homer reveals to Marge what Troy told him, that the marriage was a sham to further his career. At the hotel that Troy and Selma were staying in, MacArthur Parker meets Troy to tell him that offers were starting to come in, including one for McBain IV: Fatal Discharge.

The next day, Marge and Patty talk to Selma about Troy, with Marge telling Selma what Homer told her, that it was a sham marriage. Upset and angry about this, Selma confronts Troy about it and Troy admits immediately. Troy convinces Selma to continue with the sham, as she has money, security and a big hot flat rock for Jub-Jub. That night, Troy gets another phone call from MacArthur Parker who tells Troy that all the big stars have families so he needs to have a baby with Selma. He tells Selma about this and she agrees to do it. However, when they attempt to have sex, neither of them can go through with it. Selma tells Troy that she can't bring a child into a loveless relationship and she leaves, taking Jub-Jub with her.

After this, Troy got offered the role in McBain IV. However, he turned it down in order to make his own film called The Contrabulous Fabtraption of Professor Horatio Hufnagel.

Production

The producers wanted to do a whole episode about Troy McClure, and it worked with the plot as Selma was always getting married to people.[1] Jeff Goldblum had to record all his lines twice because after the animatic was done, the producers decided they wanted a different voice for MacArtur Parker. The first time he recorded the lines, he was too slow, making the episode too long.[2] James L. Brooks came up with idea that Troy McClure had a sort of unsavory secret involving fish.[1] The walls of the Pimento Grove were filled with photos of guest stars that The Simpsons had up to that point, along with some random ones. MacArthur Parker was made to resemble Jeff Goldblum, but not look exactly like him.[2]

David Silverman thinks that Stop the Planet of the Apes I Want to Get Off is the best musical moment in the history of The Simpsons. The male news celebrity news reporter is based on John Tesh[2] Ken Keeler came up with the name "MacArthur Parker", taking it from the song "MacArthur Park".[3] During the Planet of the Apes musical, one of the apes started breakdancing. There was a person in the animation office who could do that in real life, which helped with the animating of it.[2] The whole routine came from George Meyer.[3] David X. Cohen came up with the "Chimpan-A to Chimpan-Z" song.[1]

Reception

Gwen Ihnat of The A.V. Club said that "A Fish Called Selma" gets everything right, praising the "tightly scripted plot" and the little details of the episode. She also called Stop the Planet of the Apes I Want to Get Off the pinnacle of the episode.[4]

As of October 2019, the episode has a 8.2 rating on IMDb[5] and a 8.5 rating on TV.com.[6]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Oakley, Bill (2005). Commentary for "A Fish Called Selma", in The Simpsons: The Complete Seventh Season.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Silverman, David (2005). Commentary for "A Fish Called Selma", in The Simpsons: The Complete Seventh Season.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Weinstein, Josh (2005). Commentary for "A Fish Called Selma", in The Simpsons: The Complete Seventh Season.
  4. The A.V. Club - "The Simpsons (Classic): “A Fish Called Selma”"
  5. IMDb - "A Fish Called Selma"
  6. TV.com - "A Fish Called Selma"


The Saga of Carl - title screen.png Wikisimpsons has a collection of images related to "A Fish Called Selma".
Season 7 Episodes
Who Shot Mr. Burns? (Part Two) Radioactive Man Home Sweet Homediddly-Dum-Doodily Bart Sells His Soul Lisa the Vegetarian Treehouse of Horror VI King-Size Homer Mother Simpson Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular Marge Be Not Proud Team Homer Two Bad Neighbors Scenes from the Class Struggle in Springfield Bart the Fink Lisa the Iconoclast Homer the Smithers The Day the Violence Died A Fish Called Selma Bart on the Road 22 Short Films About Springfield Raging Abe Simpson and His Grumbling Grandson in "The Curse of the Flying Hellfish" Much Apu About Nothing Homerpalooza Summer of 4 Ft. 2