‘The Simpsons’ to Air Its First-Ever One-Hour Episode in 2017
TCA 2016: Taraji P. Henson and Keegan-Michael Key will guest star on long-running Fox animated series
Joe Otterson | August 8, 2016 @ 10:58 AM
Last Updated: August 8, 2016 @ 2:28 PM
Fox
“The Simpsons” will air its first-ever one-hour episode during its upcoming 28th Season, Fox announced Monday at the Television Critics Association’s summer press tour.
In the one-hour show, titled “The Great Phatsby,” airing in January 2017 and featuring Taraji P. Henson and Keegan-Michael Key as guest voices, Mr. Burns (Harry Shearer) tries to relive his glory days and crosses paths with a mysterious music mogul.
After being conned and reduced to bankruptcy, Mr. Burns seeks revenge on the music producer with the help of Homer, Bart, rapper Jazzy James (Key) and the mogul’s ex-wife, Praline (Henson), in a spoof of Henson’s “Empire” role.
“I just pray it won’t be the last thing people see before a Trump inauguration,” executive producer Al Jean said.
Additionally, the series’ record-setting 600th episode will air on October 16 with a classic “Treehouse of Horror XXVII” episode. In it, Mr. Burns introduces a “Hunger Games”-style contest in which Springfield’s children must fight each other, and Lisa’s imaginary best friend becomes jealous of Lisa’s real best friends.
The series is a Gracie Films production in association with 20th Century Fox Television. James L. Brooks, Matt Groening and Al Jean are the executive producers. The series has won 32 Emmy Awards, 34 Annie Awards and a 2016 People’s Choice Award. It was the first animated series to win a Peabody Award, and it was nominated for an Academy Award in 2012 for the theatrical short “The Longest Daycare.”
“The Simpsons” Season 28 premieres on Sept. 25 at 8/7c on Fox.
11 Surprising 'Simpsons' Deaths That Rocked Springfield (Photos)
Jackie Mason won an Emmy for playing Rabbi Hyman Krustofski, aka Krusty the Clown's father, on the episode "Like Father, Like Clown."
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Maude Flanders died on a 2000 episode of the show, but still makes the occasional posthumous appearance.
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Lisa's sax-wielding mentor Bleeding Gums Murphy is one of the first recurring characters "The Simpsons" killed off.
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Jebediah Springfield died well over a hundred years before Homer Simpson was born, but he's the town's namesake and the star of several episodes.
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Poochie died on his way back to his home planet in 1997.
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The Gypsy appeared on several episodes of "The Simpsons," once turning Lisa into a Centaur, but died while reading Abe Simpson's fortune.
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Grimey died in an accident at the nuclear power plant while trying to prove Homer's idiocy.
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Mob boss "Fat Tony," voiced by Joe Mantegna and at one time Phil Hartman, had a heart attack and died while in Homer's arms.
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Dr. Marvin Monroe was pronounced dead on the show's 138th episode spectacular and even got a tombstone in Springfield Cemetery, but reappeared nearly 10 years later explaining he'd "been very sick."
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The submarine captain torpedoed himself into an enemy ship in "Simpson Tide" and is presumed dead
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Arnie Gumble was killed off on his one and only episode, "The Curse of the Flying Hellfish"; he served alongside Abe Simpson memorably.
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Rabbi Krustofski dies in the long-running Fox show’s Season 26 premiere, but he isn’t the first “Simpsons” character to unexpectedly get axed
Jackie Mason won an Emmy for playing Rabbi Hyman Krustofski, aka Krusty the Clown's father, on the episode "Like Father, Like Clown."