Gilbert and Sullivan

Gilbert and Sullivan were a duo consisting of librettist W. S. Gilbert (1836-1911) and composer Arthur Sullivan (1842-1900). They were renowned for their comic operas. Among the most famous are H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance, and The Mikado.

One of the staple references of The Simpsons is that Sideshow Bob is a huge fan of Gilbert and Sullivan. In the Simpsons universe, Gilbert and Sullivan and their works have been referred to several times.

References

Television episodes

Picture Season Episode number Episode name Reference 5 83 "Cape Feare" When the Simpsons leave for their safehouse provided by the Witness Relocation Program, in the car Lisa finds a set of audio tapes titled "The FBI Light Opera Society Sings the Complete Gilbert and Sullivan". During the drive, they sing "Three Little Maids from School" from The Mikado. When Sideshow Bob is about to kill Bart and asks if he has any last requests, Bart's request is for Bob to sing the entire score of H.M.S. Pinafore. 88 "Bart's Inner Child" When Homer finds the free trampoline ad in the Springfield Shopper, one of the other items being given away is a Gilbert and Sullivan manuscript, the original draft of H.M.S. Pinafore. It appears a few entries below the "FREE TRAMPOLINE" ad. 96 "Deep Space Homer" To demonstrate his fitness for astronaut duty, a newly sober Barney performs a series of handsprings while singing "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General" from The Pirates of Penzance, in order to show off his improved balance and diction. 21 463 "The Bob Next Door" When Bart believes his new neighbor Walt Warren to be Sideshow Bob in disguise, he and Milhouse, knowing of Bob's fondness for Gilbert and Sullivan, sing "Three Little Maids from School" in an attempt to draw him out. The attempt fails. However, "Walt" later gets Bart alone, reveals himself to be Sideshow Bob, and says, "And now I am free to sing all the Gilbert and Sullivan I damn well please!" 25 534 "YOLO" Homer acts in Springfield Dinner Theater's production of The Pirates of Penzance. 29 627 "Gone Boy" Sideshow Bob gets Milhouse to reveal Bart's location by singing "I Have a Song to Sing, O!" from The Yeomen of the Guard. 36 770 "The Yellow Lotus" Sideshow Bob sings "A Wand'ring Minstrel I", a song from The Mikado.

Comic stories

Picture Comic issue Story name Reference Simpsons Comics #6 Be-bop-a-Lisa An accidental mixing of Lisa's jazz sax solo and one of Otto's "speed metal" songs results in a new musical style, dubbed "spazz". Sideshow Bob hears it on the radio while he's getting a tattoo in Springfield Penitentiary, and says, "It certainly isn't Gilbert and Sullivan, but as offsourcings go, it's not too malodorous." When the tattoo artist looks confused, Bob sharply explains, "Yes, that means I like it!" Simpsons Comics #229 Itchy & Scratchy Live! At the beginning of the performance of Itchy & Scratchy Live, the actor portraying Scratchy (later revealed to be Sideshow Bob) culture-shames the audience: "You wouldn't come to see Gilbert and Sullivan, but you'll come to this! For shame!" Bart Simpson #38 Ralph Learns a Lesson One of the comics that Ralph sells to Comic Book Guy is Pirates Without Pants, a pun on The Pirates of Penzance.

Books

Picture Book Reference The Bart Book In his character profile of Sideshow Bob, under "Musical likes" Bart cites "The whimsical stylings of Gilbert & Sullivan."

Video games

Picture Game Reference The Simpsons: Tapped Out In the Level 40 content update, Mr. Largo appears immediately after the player builds Lotto 'N' Liquor. Lisa reminds him that he should be working on the band musical, along with Mr. Smithers. She adds that since Smithers writes the words and Largo writes the music, that makes them Springfield Elementary School's "Gilbert and Sullivan". During the Terwilligers content update, Comic Book Guy announces the organization of the Sideshow Bob clones into a Cosmic Wars storm trooper platoon. One of the clones then says, "Simpson... Gilbert and Sullivan... Face/Off..." and Comic Book Guy proclaims the successful formation of the platoon. The Terwilligers content update also includes the premium quest Sea Students, where Sideshow Bob (costumed as Captain Bob) buys a boat, only to find it needs extensive repairs. To fund the repairs, he offers educational cruises to the children of Springfield for $249 each, beginning by singing the score of H.M.S. Pinafore. When Bob gets no takers, he laments, "These Springfield children are unteachable." He then becomes angry and says, "How dare they scoff at the witty wordplay and century-old references of Gilbert and Sullivan?!"

External links

• Gilbert and Sullivan at Wikipedia

Cultural references

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