by Judd Apatow
First published 2019
Mike Reiss opens the door to America's most famous animated series after working on The Simpsons since its first episode in 1989. The four-time Emmy winner takes readers behind the scenes of the Fox show that became a television landmark. Reiss explains the creative process behind each episode and shares insider stories about the writers, animators, voice actors, and celebrity guests who brought Springfield to life. He answers fan questions and recalls the making of beloved episodes while dishing on what happens when funny writers spend sixty hours a week together in cramped quarters. The book reveals why Matt Groening made all characters yellow, discloses Springfield's actual location, and chronicles Reiss's travels to seventy-one countries where people watch The Simpsons despite lacking electricity. Through interviews with comedy legends like Judd Apatow, Conan O'Brien, Al Jean, Nancy Cartwright, and Dan Castellaneta, Reiss delivers an irreverent personal account of his lifetime inside television's most iconic animated family.
Genres: american-fiction, media-tie-in, biography-memoir, comedy, 21st-century
Vibes: intimate, irreverent, thought-provoking
Tropes: behind-the-scenes, celebrity, insider-perspective
Setting: Springfield
Period: 1989, 21st-century
320 pages · Paperback · Dey Street Books