Who Stole Bart's Bar?

A promotional image for the contest.

Butterfingers with limited-edition packaging.

Who Stole Bart's Bar? was a Butterfinger contest held between July 15, 2013 (11:59pm ET) to November 10, 2013 (11:59pm ET). This marks a re-union between The Simpsons characters and Butterfinger; Butterfinger terminated a contract, for The Simpsons to promote Butterfinger using their characters, in 2001.

Contest details

The contest was held between July 15, 2013 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time ("ET") to November 10, 2013 at 11:59 p.m. ET for residents of the fifty (50) US states (including District of Columbia) and at least eighteen (18) years old at the time of entry.

To enter the contest and to participate, the competitor-to-be must obtain a promotion code. To obtain one, the competitor-to-be must acquire a specially marked Butterfinger product, or through the live Who Laid a Finger on Bart's Butterfinger? instant win game and sweepstakes on the Facebook Butterfinger page.

Over 100,000 competitors will win prizes. The first prize is a trip for four to Los Angeles, California and will have a portrait illustrated in the The Simpsons style. Other prizes are a Homer model snowboard ($366.95 retail value), a Bart model cruzer skateboard ($135.95 retail value), a Kidrobot Zombie Bart ($50 retail value) or a digital download of "Treehouse of Horror II" ($1.99 retail value).

Premise

"After school one day, Bart went to [the] Kwik-E-Mart to buy his favorite candy bar, a BUTTERFINGER®. At the counter, Apu told Bart he didn't have enough to pay for it – he was five cents short. Bart reached for the "leave a penny, take a penny" tray but Apu stopped him. "The tray only speaks of pennies. You are in 'nickel' territory." Bart left the store unhappy, but determined to get the nickel he needed to afford the BUTTERFINGER®. At home, Bart looked everywhere for a nickel but couldn't find one. He tried to borrow it from Lisa but was rejected after she ran his credit. He tried using good manners around Marge, hoping that would trigger some reverse payments from the "swear jar" but Marge told him that wasn't how it worked. Bart then went to the only place he was sure he would find some money – inside the couch cushions. Unfortunately, to search there, he had to wait for Homer to stop watching TV and get off the couch. Bart waited as Homer watched episodes of "Gravy Swimmers," "CSI: Luxembourg," "Spelling Bee Bloopers" then finally fell asleep watching WNBA highlights. As Homer slept, Bart was able to roll him off the couch using fireplace tools. Bart then dug into the cushions, finding not only the nickel he needed, but also three potato chips and a note reading "Nobody touch my potato chips - Homer". Nickel in hand, Bart ran back to the Kwik-E-Mart and bought the BUTTERFINGER®. Wanting to savor the candy bar, he hid it in his tree house, planning to eat it the next day. All day at school, Bart could think of nothing but his BUTTERFINGER® (which was certainly much better than thinking about math). When the school bell rang, he rushed home and straight to the tree house only to find the BUTTERFINGER® was missing. It had been stolen! Now, Bart's on a quest to find the thief! Can you follow the clues and figure it out?"

Suspects

Homer Simpson

"I've never stolen anything in my life, except people's breath away when they see me in short shorts."

―Homer

• Height: 72 inches
• Waist: 53 inches (more on Thanksgiving)
• Reason for Suspicion: Homer eats anything shaped even close to a candy bar. That's how Lisa's flashlight went missing.
• Alibi: He was where he always was whenever anything important happened in his children's lives - Moe's Tavern.

Marge Simpson

• Height: 5 foot 2 (6 foot 1 including hair)
• Special skills: Can change a diaper in 5 seconds flat (but please don't tell Grampa)
• Reason for Suspicion: Hiding a BUTTERFINGER® is nothing. She can hide an entire ham inside her hair.
• Alibi: She's so honest she wouldn't even take a nap unless it was given to her.

Grampa

• Past offense: Verbal confrontation with a man he said was stealing his face (turned out to be his reflection in a window)
• Common complaints: "It's too cold!", "Water's too wet these days!", "I can't feel anything below my lips!"
• Reason for Suspicion: He was seen in the Retirement Castle home smiling. Anyone that's smiling in that place has done something wrong.
• Alibi: He's an old man, he doesn't accomplish things.

Maggie Simpson

• Top speed: 3 mph (crawling)
• Smells like: baby powder and sour milk
• Reason for Suspicion: Nearby were some toy blocks spelling "CAT". The only people who play with blocks in the Simpson house are Maggie and Homer – and Homer can't spell "cat".
• Alibi: The words that have proved the innocence of suspects through the ages – it was her "nap time."

Lisa Simpson

"I could never take the only good thing Bart's got going for himself."

―Lisa

• Height: 50 inches (127 cm for her metric-speaking friends)
• Hobbies: Saxophone, Grade-grubbing, Being a favorite child
• Reason for Suspicion: One of the logs in Lisa's diorama of Abe Lincoln's boyhood home looks suspiciously like chocolate.
• Alibi: Buddhism frowns upon stealing. Especially BUTTERFINGERS®.

Milhouse Van Houten

"Taking the BUTTERFINGER® would ruin my friendship with Bart... and ruin my chances with Lisa."

―Milhouse

• Identifying feaures: Glasses, Eyebrows, Desperation
• Posture: Weak
• Reason for Suspicion: There's an odd look on his face - it could be guilt, envy or indigestion.
• Alibi: He's not allowed to climb into a kitchen chair let alone a treehouse.

Sideshow Bob

"If I'm going to do something to Bart, it will be a lot worse than stealing his BUTTERFINGER®."

―Sideshow Bob

• Criminal record: Yes. For the complete file, see storage lockers 7 through 28.
• Last known address: Cell block D, the one at the end with opera playing inside.
• Reason for Suspicion: You get hungry being Bart's mortal enemy.
• Alibi: "Between prison, rehab, and trying to get my acting career back on track, when do I have time to steal BUTTERFINGERS® ?"

C. Montgomery Burns

• Age: Old
• Pastimes: Long walks on the beach to dump nuclear waste, Exacting revenge, Union busting
• Reason for Suspicion: He has a long, proud history of doing horrible things.
• Alibi: He can't lift a candy bar. He needs helium balloons to even raise his arms.

Apu Nahasapeemapetilon

• Country or origin: Not this one. Thank you for bringing it up
• Hobbies: Work, more work, & hiding from his eight children.
• Reason for Suspicion: Stealing back the same bar he sold to Bart would be nothing. He's been known to take half-empty Squishees from the parking lot and pour them back into the machine.
• Alibi: "As a convenience store owner, I make it a policy to never handle anything fresh or delicious."

Krusty the Clown

• Identifying traits: Big laugh, Wild hair, Bad jokes, Flop sweat
• Known Associates: A half naked sidekick, a chimpanzee and many ex-wives and their lawyers.
• Reason for Suspicion: There were no fingerprints and Krusty is the only one that wears gloves all the time. He's either a thief or constantly going into surgery.
• Alibi: He has a warehouse full of his own candy bars – Krusty Krunches, and is ready to unload them on the public as soon as people forget the second ingredient is sawdust.

Nelson Muntz

• Height: Normal for a kid doing his third tour of the 4th grade
• Caution: Bare-armed and known to administer purple nurples
• Reason for Suspicion: He has a sweet tooth (which he knocked out from Martin Prince and put in his own mouth).
• Alibi: A stolen BUTTERFINGER® would be his third strike.

Comic Book Guy

• Weight: 152 lbs (on Mars)
• Profession: "My name is 'Comic Book Guy' - what do you think?"
• Reason for Suspicion: He enjoy "treats" so much, he calls them "mandatories".
• Alibi: Due to some poor planning, he can't get out of the door of his apartment – hence, the perfect alibi, also the reason he gets groceries delivered and has no suntan.

Clues

Milhouse stole Bart's Butterfinger!

Week 1: Bart's listed every person in Springfield who might have a grudge against him but that list is too long to be useful. So, he's narrowed it down to these suspects...

Week 2: Fact: Bart bought the bar at Kwik-E-Mart but it was stolen from his treehouse. Reading that sentence you've already done more than the Springfield Police.

Week 3: Since the bar was taken from Bart's treehouse, the culprit must be able to climb a tree, or really good at training squirrels, or has hired and studied under very qualified squirrel instructors.

Week 4: Chief Wiggum joins the search for the missing BUTTERFINGER®. He quickly loses interest when he hears about "The Case of the Found Donut".

Week 5: Suspect says stealing Bart's BUTTERFINGER® would "hurt future presidential bid." It's true - and Bart crosses suspect off the list.

Week 6: Bart learns the tree house didn't get vacuumed Monday - the vacuum was in the shop after mistakenly sucking up a cat.

Week 7: Bart crosses off this suspect after finding out he spent the last four days standing in line to meet the actor that was the Riddler's stunt double in a touring production of "Batman."

Week 8: Bart discovers that his mortal enemy has been locked away in Springfield Prison's solitary confinement the past week for scratching "DEATH TO BART" in the workout yard's exercise equipment.

Week 9: Under questioning, this suspect said nothing and then played with Bart's nose...seems innocent enough.

Week 10: Bart has eliminated this drunk and bloated suspect because he can barely make it up the stairs, let alone shinny up a tree.

Week 11: One of the remaining suspects is seen drinking the syrup from a hummingbird feeder. Smithers confirms it's the only sweet the suspect can eat.

Week 12: Bart rules out another suspect - since he was discovered by nurses in another treehouse in Shelbyville, dazed and confused.

Week 13: Kwik-E-Mart security footage shows one of the suspects working, sleeping and being robbed behind the counter for the last forty-eight hours. He's innocent.

Week 14: "What's a BUTTERFINGER® and if it's good, give me one!" says one of the remaining suspects (while giving Bart a wedgie). Must not be him...¹

Week 15: Bart has confirmation - this suspect only steals jokes - not chocolate bars.

Week 16: Bart fins crumbs of chocolatey crispity-crunch... mixed with drool and inhaler spray. He knows who's guilty, do you?

Week 17: Milhouse stole Bart's BUTTERFINGER®! Congratulations to all who followed the clues and found the culprit! Having tried everything else to earn Lisa's affection, Milhouse thought she may go for a bad boy. After proving allergic to a rub-on tattoo, stealing a BUTTERFINGER® from his best friend's treehouse was his last hope.

Notes

^{1 link} The person who says this is most probably Nelson, because he is wedgieing Bart, and that he's the only bully on the suspect list. There is an error here - in the quote Nelson clearly states he does not know what a Butterfinger is, but in the 1991 Butterfinger advertisement, "The Bully", he clearly does, as he asks Bart for his lunch money and snatches his Butterfinger in the process; the latter being quickly retrieved by Bart. Either the writer of these clues has not seen the short, or knew anything about it, or that Nelson has forgotten what a Butterfinger is since he hasn't bullied one off someone for quite a while.

External links

• Official website