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WAYLON SMITHERS Troy McClure : Ambassador Henry Mwabwetumba of the Ivory Coast writes, "What is the real deal with Mr. Burns' assistant Smithers? You know what I'm talking about." Ha ha ha, of course we do.....the real deal with Waylon Smithers is that he's Mr. Burns' assistant. He's in his early 40s, is unmarried, and currently resides in Springfield. While it had not been originally intended, the writers of the series began to slip in numerous homosexual references and subtext to the character, to the point where Smithers became a Smithers is also seen briefly, having what seems to be a lover's quarrel with John, an openly gay character. KARL The first gay character in the ''Simpsons'' series was introduced early on in the second season episode titled "Simpson And Delilah" (1990 - 7F02). In the episode, Homer quickly advances in the Nuclear Power plant hierarchy after getting hair, and openly gay actor Harvey Fierstein played Homer's male secretary named Karl (not to be confused with Homer's co-worker, Carl Carlson) who is critical in giving Homer the confidence to succeed. Karl's Sexual Orientation is implied near the end of the episode where he kisses Homer on the mouth, before walking away, saying "because my mother taught me never to kiss a fool". Years later Fierstein was scheduled to reprise the role of Karl in an episode titled " Three Gays Of The Condo ", but Fierstein publicly stated that he felt that the episode was Homophobic , and refused to reprise the role. Instead a character that looks like Karl (but named "Grady") is played by a different actor and we are introduced to his boyfriend, Julio. Julio is seen in a later episode marrying a new boyfriend. JOHN In the 1997 episode titled "Homer's Phobia" the Simpson family befriends "John" ( John Waters ) who owns a kitsch antique store in the Springfield mall. When Homer learns that the flamboyant John is gay, he has an initial homophobic reaction, and tries various outlandish stunts in order to prevent Bart from becoming gay. Eventually, Homer considers John to be a friend, after John saves the lives of Homer, Bart, Moe and Barney from a group of violent reindeer. PATTY BOUVIER As was the case with Smithers, Patty's sexual orientation was hinted at throughout the series, such as in a Halloween episode and another time when it was discovered that she visited a local burlesque house. When Homer once ran naked through the kitchen, she was so disgusted that she said "There goes the last lingering thread of my heterosexuality". However, she did not formally come out until the 2005 episode titled "There's Something About Marrying" in which Springfield legalizes Same-sex Marriages to attract the tourist dollars of gay people, and Homer opens up a marriage chapel in the garage as a money-making scheme. Patty arrives with "Veronica" whom she met at the PGA Women's Golf Tournament, and arranges for Homer to marry them, causing Marge to face her own homophobia. She initially does, but then discovers that the Veronica is really a man who dressed up as a woman in order to enter the tournament. In a 2006 episode, she becomes romantically involved with a Yale University professor. ELTON JOHN The openly gay musician guest starred in the 1999 episode "I'm With Cupid" as a Valentine to Apu 's wife. AKBAR AND JEFF Two gay characters from '' Life In Hell '' appear as artwork in the 1999 episode "Mom And Pop Art" . They sometimes appear as toy dolls in the background of Bart and Lisa's rooms. IAN MCKELLEN The openly gay actor briefly appeared in the 2003 Simpsons episode "The Regina Monologues" in which the family travel to England . JULIO & GRADY Homer's openly gay roommates in Three Gays Of The Condo POSSIBLE LGBT CHARACTERS Several characters in the series have had innuendos and jokes about their possible sexual orientation, which has never been confirmed or is eventually denied.
:'' Marge : Homer, you married every gay couple in town. :'' Homer : Hey, what can I say? I love love. :'' Bart : I guess now you have to wait for some other guys to turn. :'' and Carl ? :'' Marge : Homer, don't you push them! They have to work it out for themselves. Also in a previous episode where Lenny and Homer worked briefly on a oil field, Lenny once implied that he and Carl did something together on once on a mountain, that they have agreed never to talk about. In several episodes, Lenny and Carl have quibbled in a manner stereotypical to old married couples. LGBT ESTABLISHMENTS AND EVENTS
CONTROVERSY Social conservatives have often protested the references to homosexuality and the existence of LGBT characters in the series. The episode titled " being stereotypical of the elderly or Comic Book Guy being stereotypical of "nerds"). REFERENCES The Simpsons Archives: Homosexuality 1991 Interview With Matt Groening Is Mr. Smithers Gay? 2001 |
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