We Bet Only The Biggest Simpsons Fans Can Name All These Characters
- by Ioanna Micha
- – on
- in Movies and TV
The Simpsons premiered on 17 December 1989. This wasn't the first time that we saw them, however, since they had been included in brief TV spots before. The famous sitcom has been with us for 30 years, and somehow the characters are still able to make us laugh!
We love the Simpson family, but we also love pretty much everyone else too. Both child and adult characters have managed to make us think of them as people we know. People we want to continue watching for as many years as possible.
Is it the situations that the father of the family has created (and is creating to this day) that we can't get enough of? Is it the eldest daughter's views on life and her incredible talents? Is the silent baby that we love following around as she (tries) to walk through life? Perhaps it's the big heart of the mother which we feel loves us as well. Or maybe it is the cool attitude of the son!
The truth is that it doesn't matter why we keep watching, but the fact that we still want to watch even now!
So, let's see how many real The Simpsons fans are out there! Are all these names familiar or maybe not?
Let's start!
Name this character
Even though this character is male, he is voiced by a female actress, namely Nancy Cartwright. The character is introduced to us in the beginning of season 1 despite the fact that he isn’t part of the Simpsons family or a close friend. Best known for his laughter, (the infamous Ha-Ha) this character is one of the three kids in Springfield that tease everyone else at school. An interesting fact about this character is that even if he lives in Springfield, he is “part Eskimo” and “of German descent” (thanks Wikipedia!). Does the name of this particular character come to mind?
Name this character
Let’s go to one of the main characters! Voiced by Dan Castellaneta and a definite fan favorite, this character is one of the main cores of the show. He is definitely not the brightest, but he has a big heart (most of the times anyway!). Even if he’s not always the best role model, he definitely has a set of moral values (at least his own definition of what constitutes as moral!).Apart from his personality, this character has a simple, but great appearance. Fun fact: his “side burn and ear used to say M + G for Matt Groening. They decided to keep the "M", but Groening wanted [this character’s] ear to look like a real ear.” Remember his name?
Name this character
Yet another character introduced to us in season 1! This character is voiced by Hank Azaria, who according to Wikipedia, “loosely based it on Peter Sellers' character Hrundi V. Bakshi from the film The Party.” A character known by (almost) everyone with the famous catchphrase “Thank you, come again,” this character runs the Kwik-E-Mart. He began working there in order to get the money he needed to pay off his student loan for his graduate degree. After he realized he enjoyed working at the Kwik-E-Mart, he didn’t pursue a different career path. Remember this character’s name?
Name this character
We all love this character. We were introduced to him in season 2 and we instantly had fun with his portrayal by Harry Shearer. What if this character wasn’t exactly as we know him today? It turns out that, according to Wikipedia, this character “was originally going to be a woman” (didn’t see that one coming!). After all, what would we do without this character’s incredible laugh? We don’t know and since the character’s outlook changed we’ll never have to know! Overall, this funny doctor has made scenes relating to a hospital and illness in general bearable and we’re thankful for that! Remember this character’s name?
Name this character
And since we’re talking about how good Harry Shearer is at his job, we can’t forget about the Reverend! I mean his portrayal is without a doubt one of the best ones in the show as a whole! For this reason, every scene inside the church of Springfield is unforgettable! A very interesting fun fact about the Reverend is that his “first name means "Honored by God.” Well we can’t reveal the name of course, but we cannot deny that we learned something new today! Does the name of this particular character come to mind? Did our trivia help or maybe not?
Name this character
This character is introduced to us in the TV show’s premiere. He is the principal of Springfield High School and he fits the role perfectly. According to Wikipedia, “the first drawing of [this character] was done by Matt Groening, who based him on ‘all the principals of [his] youth, rolled into one bland lump.’” With that in mind, this character is very realistic because he is based on actual people that held his position as a headmaster. We love him and we love his relationship with his mother (it’s hilarious!). Does the name of this particular character come to mind?
Name this character
Yet another character that is introduced to us in season 1! He is one of our favorites because we can totally relate to his love of food (donuts, hamburgers etc.). This love is also demonstrated by this character’s appearance. His nose reminds us of a little piggy which also makes him snort! The whole portrayal is awesome and we have no one else to thank but Hank Azaria. According to Hank Azaria, as it is stated in Wikipedia, this character’s “voice was based on ‘a bad impression’ of actor Edward G. Robinson [and] this was even given brief nods in several episodes.” Remember this guy’s name?
Name this character
Talk about success! We all know and love this character. He is kind and he is loving. He will always return the other cheek and the fierce way in which he loves everyone can sometimes create hilarious situations! His catchphrase ‘Okilly Dokilly’ is so famous that it turns out a group of people decided to name their band after it! According to Wikipedia, “Okilly Dokilly is a metalcore band from Phoenix, Arizona” which has five members that perform dressed as [this character,] and the majority of the lyrics to their songs are quotes of his” (who knew?!). Remember the name of this lovable guy?
Name this character
Another favorite by Hank Azaria can be no other but the guy who works at the comic book store! We meet this character in an episode of season 2, when he tricks three kids into buying a very rare comic book and share it. When we see this character he always shares his opinions about certain interests. Most of the times, he talks about comic books with children! According to Wikipedia, this very aspect of this character is what Hank Azaria likes! Specifically, Azaria said that " he loves that the character is an adult who argues with kids as if they're his peers.” Remember the name of this character?
Name this character
We are introduced to this character in season 2 and we find him hilarious from the get-go. An angry janitor from Scotland who has a lot to say, but maybe people don’t pay as much attention as they should on him (unfortunately). This character is from Scotland and we love his accent because it fits with his general attitude. For this reason, we might be surprised to find out that when Dan Castellaneta was advised to play the character with an accent “he first tried a Spaniard's voice.” (Thanks Wikipedia). Interestingly enough, “he used the voice of an angry Scotsman” in his third attempt to find an appropriate voice (and the rest is history!). Remember this guy’s name?
Name this character
Let’s go back to the Simpson family! The third and last child of the Simpsons is a baby! She hasn’t learned how to speak, so there isn’t an actress to voice her character. The Simpson baby, however, always has a pacifier on (at least almost always) and she makes a sound. It turns out that, according to Wikipedia, “Matt Groening records and makes Maggie's sucking noise on her pacifier himself” (who would have thought right?!). Well, the baby might not speak, but she is definitely hilarious and adorable! She’s only spoken one word all these years and that is ‘daddy.’ Remember her name?
Name this character
Wait a second. Haven’t we already talked about this guy? Well, no! This character looks a lot like Nelson Muntz, or better yet an adult version of him! We don’t know if they’re related, but we see the possibility there. We know that this character is Homer’s best friend (their common denominator: their love for beer!) but perhaps what might come as a surprise is that “the writers originally wanted the character to be Homer Simpson's sidekick and next-door neighbor, but instead, while still portraying him as Homer's best friend, they decided to make him an alcoholic” (Thanks Wikipedia!). Remember the name of Homer’s best friend?
Name this character
Another male character voiced by the same female actress, Nancy Cartwright. This character is amongst the most famous characters from The Simpsons. We love his high pitched voice, and perhaps it might come as a surprise to find out that in his first appearances this character had “a voice similar to that of Nelson Muntz's” (thanks Wikipedia!). He is the same grade as Lisa Simpson and he is the son of Chief Wiggum! We love this little guy because he is absolutely adorable. His cuteness is based on the fact that he is somewhat slow. Remember this little fella’s name?
Name this character
We talked about Homer’s best friend, so let’s talk about another person in Homer’s life, his boss! This character is the owner of the plant that Homer is working, and (let’s be honest!) he isn’t the nicest guy! Don’t get us wrong, we love him! The way he speaks and especially his catchphrase “Excellent!” will remain with us till the end of time! Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean that he’s the best guy in terms of morals. According to Wikipedia, “Groening made [this character] the ‘embodiment of corporate greed’” and drew “further inspiration from oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller, David Rockefeller.” (that’s hilarious!). Remember the name of Homer’s boss?
Name this character
We are introduced to this character in season 3. According to Wikipedia, “the writers originally wanted Sheldon Leonard to voice [this character and] when they were unable to get him, they went with Joe Mantegna.” We can’t be sure about the job that Sheldon Leonard would have done, but we know that we love Joe Mantegna’s portrayal of the character! He is everything a mobster is supposed to be, so there’s nothing we want done differently! There’s only one thing that we can’t deny: we wish he was never taken from us in season 22. Does the name of this particular character come to mind?
Name this character
Let’s go back to Homer and his acquaintances! He is the owner of the bar that Homer and Barney spend almost every afternoon. He has a cat. He has a shotgun and he is not afraid to use it if need be. This guy doesn’t make a lot of sense to us, but we still laugh with the plots that are related to him. Yet another character voiced by Hank Azaria, who according to Wikipedia “was designed by animator Dan Haskett and his facial appearance was modeled after a gorilla” (well we can’t say that we haven’t noticed, right?!). Remember the name of this character?
Name the female character
Let’s go back to the neighbors of the Simpson family. We talked about Ned Flanders and the band he inspired, so let’s talk a bit about his wife. She first appeared on the 6th episode of the 2nd season, which according to Wikipedia aired on November 15 1990. We don’t know a lot of things about this particular character, but we know that she was a loving mother and wife until the end of her life. She has appeared on the show even after she lost her life as a ghost. Remember the name of this character?
Name this character
We are introduced to this character in season 1. He is the anchorman in the Simpson universe and he is voiced by Harry Shearer. A fun fact about this character is that, according to Wikipedia, he “was based on Los Angeles anchormen Hal Fishman and Jerry Dunphy” (didn’t see that one coming!). Besides the fact that he is the anchorman for Channel 6, we don’t know a lot about this character. He used to be a musician, but he didn’t manage to make a career out of it, and he likes math. Does the name of this particular character come to mind?
Name this character
Once again we’re going back to our favorite family. We’ve talked about the dad and the baby. The time has come to talk about the first born of the family: the son! First of all, according to Wikipedia, this character “was conceived as an extreme version of the typical misbehaving child character, merging all of the extreme traits of characters such as Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn into one person.” These behavioral traits were added to this character because initially he was the focus of the show. Later on, the focus became Homer and his adventures. Remember the name of the Simpsons’ son?
Name this character
The time has come to talk about the assistant of Mr. Burns! What can we say? We love him! We love him because of his relationship with Mr. Burns and how the latter never seems to understand that his assistant is in love with him (like 99% chance!). For example, Al Jean, one of the show’s writers, “thinks of [this character] as being a ‘Burns-sexual’,” (and so do we!) due to the character’s attraction to Mr. Burn alone. It’s this character’s dreams of a floating Mr. Burns ghost and of a Mr. Burns coming out of a huge birthday cake that we find hilarious! Remember this guy’s name?
Name this character
This character is voiced by Marcia Wallace and she is introduced to us in the second episode of the first season. She is Bart Simpson’s teacher, who doesn’t seem that excited with her job (at least in the present). She has had a relationship with several male characters from the show, but she’s never marries someone. A fun fact about her is that, according to Wikipedia, “her last name is a spin on the word ‘crab-apple’, as she was originally supposed to be a constantly crabby teacher. It is also reminiscent of Miss Crabtree, the crabby teacher in the ‘Little Rascals.’” Remember her first name?
Name this character
We meet Grandpa Simpson in season 2. He is cranky, he tells stories that make no sense and he is sleepy (what’s not to love?!). Perhaps we already know that Matt Groening named “the main characters after his own family members (except for Bart, an anagram of "brat", which he substituted for his own name)” (in case we didn’t, thanks Wikipedia!). What perhaps we didn’t know is that “Groening refused to name Grampa after his grandfather,” and decided that the writers should decide upon a name. When they did, they didn’t know that Groening's grandfather was actually named like that (what are the chances!). Remember which name that was?
Name this character
We are introduced to this character in the third episode of season 1. Yet another character who is voiced by Harry Shearer, whom we definitely love. This character is the school bus driver that takes all the kids to school. According to Wikipedia, he “was initially conceived by Shearer himself as a caricature of heavy metal music aficionados who mostly play guitar and do drugs while occupying a low-level labor job.” Each one of his appearances are priceless, and we can’t get enough even after all these years! Does the name of the school bus driver of Springfield elementary come to mind?
Name this character
Going back to one of the main characters! We meet this little girl and we are amazed at what she says and what she can do. She has many skills, and therefore many reasons to be admired. Although she is a little bit awkward, she might overcome this later on in life (or maybe not and who cares because she is adorable!). A fun fact about this character is that, “her voice actress Yeardley Smith is one of the only main actors on the show to only voice one character, the other one was Marcia Wallace who voiced Edna Krabappel” (thanks Wikipedia!). Remember this character’s name?
Name this character
This character is introduced to us in the very first episode of The Simpsons. He is Bart’s best friend and he is in love with Lisa. Although Bart sees him as his best friend too, we can’t say that Lisa is also in love this character (not now, but who knows about the future right?). He is another male character that is voiced by a woman, Pamela Hayden, although we never hear it in his voice! A fun fact about this character is that, according to Wikipedia, he “is a caricature of Paul from The Wonder Years” (WOW!). Remember this guys name?
Name this character
We are introduced to the mayor of Springfield in season 2. Even if his presence isn’t constant, we can’t help but love each scene that he is in. He is one of the characters voiced by Dan Castellaneta who, according to Wikipedia, “voices [this character] with Transatlantic and Boston accents” resulting in a hilariously awesome voice. Every speech the mayor makes in unforgettable because his voice will always be stuck in our heads. The hair, the suit and everything about him makes us laugh and this is why we hope to see more of him each coming year! Remember the mayor’s name?
Name this character
Another character voiced by Dan Castellaneta! Unlike the previous character, this character is introduced to us in season 1. A very unique portrayal (with a very famous laugh) this character is a fan favorite! Fun fact, “the character was partially inspired by TV clown ‘Rusty Nails’” (thanks Wikipedia). Far from perfect, and yet someone who people find very funny (and not because he is an actual clown!). Although Bart is a big fan of this character, he doesn’t have the same respect for his father. Considering that the basis of their character designs are similar (if not almost identical) Bart attitude is very interesting. Remember the clown’s name?
Name this character
This character is also introduced to us in season 1 (just a few episodes later!). He is voiced by Kelsey Grammer and he appears in the show as Krusty the clown’s silent sidekick. As the show continues to run, this character resigns from that position and he becomes obsessed with Bart Simpson. This obsession later on evolves into a need to take him out. At this point, according to Wikipedia, “the writers echoed the premise of Wile E. Coyote chasing the Road Runner from Looney Tunes cartoons by having [this character] unexpectedly insert himself into Bart's life and attempt to” assassinate him. Remember this character’s name?
Name this character
We meet Krusty the clown’s other sidekick in season 2. He wears a bone in his hair and a skirt made of leaves. Little is known about this character, unfortunately, but one thing we do know is how he ended up with a bone in his head. It turns out, according to Wikipedia, that this character “got the bone stuck in his hair by trying to dig gum out with it” (WOW! Didn’t see that one coming!). Lastly, considering that he replaced Sideshow Bob, it goes without saying that this character is humiliated by Krusty the clown as well. Remember the name of this character?
Name this character
We talked about Principal Skinner. We talked about Edna Krabappel. We even talked about Groundskeeper Willie and Otto Mann. Doesn’t it feel that we have forgotten to talk about a certain character that also relates to Springfield elementary? Well that’s the truth! There is one more adult character that we haven’t talked about and that is Principal’s Skinner’s boss! He is introduced to us in season 4, and he is voiced by Hank Azaria! We can’t reveal his name, but according to Wikipedia “Ralph Wiggum addresses him as Super Nintendo Chalmers” (a fact that we find hilarious!). Remember his actual name?
Name this character
There is another character voiced by Hank Azaria that we need to include in this quiz. Now we love Dr. Hibbert and his laugh, but he isn’t the only doctor in town! In season 2, we are introduced to another doctor (a doctor that works a bit differently from Dr. Hibbert to say the least!). According to Wikipedia, “the design of [this character] is modeled physically on Gábor Csupó, the co-founder of Klasky Csupo animation studios” and although the “animators mistakenly believed that Hank Azaria was impersonating Csupó,” he was actually “doing a bad impression of Ricky Ricardo from the TV series I Love Lucy” (who would have thought!). Remember the name of this character?
Name this character
Hank Azaria hasn’t voiced only one character connected to science that is a bit unconventional. We shouldn’t forget the mad scientist character in The Simpsons universe (that wouldn’t be fair!). Although brilliant and very smart, his creations most of the times create trouble instead of fixing the problem at hand. That doesn’t mean, of course, that the character isn’t a fan favorite. It turns out that Hank Azaria has stated in an interview, according to Wikipedia, that this character is his favorite (out of the ones he voices!). Well we can’t say that we blame him, the character is hilarious! Remember his name?
Name this character
Would The Simpsons universe really be complete without its own actor? Well, of course not! For this reason, in season 2 we are introduced to this character! The character was voiced by Phil Hartman until he lost his life and with him the character as well. We all love the actor in The Simpsons because everything about him makes us laugh! It turns out that the people behind the creation of the show thought so as well. According to Wikipedia, Al Jean has stated that “the writers often used [this character] as a ‘panic button’ and added the character when they felt an episode needed more humor.” Remember this character’s name?
Name this character
Let’s go back to the Simpsons family one last time. We love the mother of this family because she is incredibly caring to the point that it makes her strong. After all, loving and forgiving someone to such an extent requires a lot of strength. Besides her personality, this character will always be remembered for her hair. Interestingly enough, according to Wikipedia, this character’s “beehive hairstyle was inspired by the titular Bride in Bride of Frankenstein and the style that Margaret Groening,” that is to say Matt Groening’s mom, “wore during the 1960s, although her hair was never blue.” We love that hair, and we love that mom. Remember her name?
Name the captain
In season 4, we are introduced to a very special character, the town’s captain. Look at him! Does her remind us of anyone? Well it turns out that this character’s appearance and specifically, “the Sea Captain's squinty eye and pipe are based on Popeye!” (Thanks Wikipedia!). The character is voiced by Hank Azaria (yup him too!) and even if sometimes we have no idea what he’s talking about, we still love him! Beside his accent, the character’s appearance brings a lot of questions. He has stated, for instance, that he has two glass eyes (how does he see then?!). Well eyes or no eyes, we see him and we laugh. Remember the captain’s name?