There are no straight lines to getting a TV Show on the air. It would be so much simpler if someone simply had an idea, workshopped it, and then took it to the air. But often, the idea to make something for television comes from a surprising place, andThe Simpsonsis no exception. Just asSouth Parkwas based ona short film meant to be a Fox executive’s Christmas card, the origin ofThe Simpsonsis rooted in the legendary writer, director, and producerJames L. Brookstaking an interest in a young artist just trying to make a living. But it’s not that simple, either. It took a few key influences for Brooks to land onMatt Groening, not to mention thatThe Simpsonswasn’t even supposed to be a TV show!
‘The Simpsons’ Is Rooted in an Indie Comic
The infamous origin ofThe Simpsonswas recently documented in the bookStupid TV, Be More FunnybyThe Ringer’sAlan Siegel. After over a decade of success working on shows likeThe Mary Tyler Moore ShowandTaxi, James L. Brooks was given a carte blanche deal at the newly formed Fox Network, hoping for a second hit afterMarried… With Children.With room to experiment, Brooks developed a variety show around the British comedianTracey Ullman,and as a means to fill time between sketches, co-producerKen Estinpitched brief animated shorts based on a comic he liked:Life in Hell.The independent comic was the invention of Groening, who was publishing the strip in “alt-weeklies” throughout the 80s and building a cult following. Of course, Groening wanted to retain the rights toLife in Helland pitched the dysfunctional family that would becomeThe Simpsonsinstead, and the rest is history. But Brooks was interested in Estin’s pitch of bringing on Groening only because Brooks was already a fan ofLife in Hellthanks to the incomparablePolly Platt.
During the 80s, Brooks began to work with Polly Platt and brought her on as Vice President of his company Gracie Films (which fans may recognize from the logo that shushes after the credits of everySimpsonsepisode). Platt would be instrumental to Brooks’s career, going on to produce his second and third films,Broadcast NewsandI’ll Do Anything.Prior to either of those, Platt had gifted Brooks his connection toThe Simpsonswith theLife in Hellcomic “The Los Angeles Way of Death.“The simple nine-panel comic with various ways of Groening’s rabbit character Blinky meeting his end won Brooks over with its punchline: the last two ways to die in LA being failure and success, represented by repeating the exact same panel. OriginalSimpsonswriterJon Vittitold Siegel that while Platt and Brooks worked together,Platt observed that Brooks was at his happiest working onThe Simpsons.Whether conscious or not, Platt recognized something specific to Brooks’s humor in theLife in Hellcomic that led to one of his major works. But Platt was an influence on Brooks' career even before that.
Brooks Could Not Have Made ‘Terms of Endearment’ Without Platt
Brooks first came into contact with Polly Platt while working on his debut film,Terms of Endearment.The mother-daughter dramedy was not Brooks’ first foray into the world of movies; he had written the script for the Burt Reynolds-starringStarting Over, but it was his first time as a director. While the movie turned out to be a hit andwon Brooks three Oscars (Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Picture)as a producer, Polly Platt had been intertwined with the movie since before its early days as a novel. Working as a production designer onThe Last Picture Show(with her then-husbandPeter Bogdanovich), Platt began what would become a decades-long friendship with the author of the book and co-screenwriter ofThe Last Picture Show,Larry McMurtry.According to his biography, McMurtry was not interested and had low expectations for the adaptation of his novel (it was only greenlit because ofthe role forJack Nicholson, which was invented for the film), but Platt believed in it and had many phone calls with McMurtry about her experiences. And why not? The lead, Aurora Greenway (Shirley MacLaine), was heavily inspired by Platt herself!
Paramount went with Brooks despite Platt’s attempts to write, produce, and direct the film herself. Platt had clashed with Paramount, but Brooks understood she was a key asset to makingTerms of Endearmentwork. As detailed in the aforementioned biography about McMurtry, Platt’s cooperation with Brooks included not just her work as a production designer but also connecting Brooks to McMurtry as he was adapting the script. Platt was reportedly the only one able to handle the young starDebra Winger,who once threatened to end production because of a pimple on her face (allegedly). McMurtry himself was quoted sayingPlatt “worked so well with James Brooks [because] he had a difficult time making decisions. Polly was very decisive - a plus when in production on a film.“When Paramount fired Platt, Brooks took it upon himself to fight to get her back. Platt’s work as a production designer earned her an Oscar nomination, and Brooks made sure to thank her in one of his three Oscar speeches that night (the one for Best Director).
Predictions From ‘The Simpsons’ Can Actually Be Explained
There’s nothing particularly prognostic about the wacky events in Springfield.
Polly Platt is The Woman Behind Great Filmmakers
By the 1980s, Brooks was already a television legend and could have gone on to make more great television. But he would not have had the freedom that the Fox network was willing to give him if he hadn’t proven himself again withTerms of Endearment.He was able to take chances at Fox, like giving an indie comic artist a prime-time slot on television for his weird drawings of a family.Without being giftedLife in Hell,there’s noSimpsons,and that wouldn’t have happened if Polly Platt hadn’t helped James L. Brooks makeTerms of Endearmentthe massive success that it was.
But that’s only a fraction of Polly Platt’s influence. As documented inKarina Longworth’sYou Must Remember Thispodcast, Platt was a crucial figure behind Peter Bogdonavich’s early success withTargets,The Last Picture Show, andPaper Moon(with Platt being the fan of theLast Picture Shownovel and convincing Bogdonavich to do it), but also guided young filmmakersCameronCroweandWes Andersonon their first features (Say Anything…andBottle Rocket, respectively). Pop culture would be at a huge loss withoutThe Simpsons, so thank god Polly Platt was in a gift-giving mood afterTerms of Endearment.
The Simpsons
