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Springfield is the Fictional City in which the Animated American Sitcom '' The Simpsons '' is set. Springfield is a large city in an Unspecified State near a large body of water. The geography of Springfield and its surroundings are flexible, changing to address whatever an episode’s plot calls for. In the Simpson's universe, '' Time '' magazine is said to have done a cover story on Springfield entitled "America's Worst City"; '' Newsweek '' is said to have characterized the city as "America's Crud Bucket".1 There are no geographical coordinates or consistent references to U.S. State s that might identify in which part of the country Springfield is located. The show's producers are intentionally deceptive in regard to Springfield's location, having hinted at and ruled out nearly every American state as the basis for the town's location. CREATION The name Springfield was chosen by retrieved July 21 2007 The town was partly inspired by Melonville, the town in '' Second City Television '', which featured a large cast of recurring characters. Groening liked the idea of a town that was its own mini-universe and partially based ''The Simpsons'' on it.2 The uncertain location of Springfield is a Running Gag in the series. There are 34 states in the United States that have at least one community with that name.3 Episodes frequently make fun of the fact that Springfield's state has never been revealed, by adding further conflicting descriptions, obscuring onscreen map representations, and interrupting conversational references. There has been much speculation on the location of the state. A web page discussing Springfield's location states that, due to the many contradictory clues, it is impossible for Springfield to exist in any set location.4 David Silverman , a director for the Simpsons, has claimed that Springfield is in the fictional state of "North Tacoma" (or "North Takoma"). This is substantiated by the state abbreviations NT and TA used within the show. However, this has never been officially confirmed in any Canonical episode of ''The Simpsons'' or by other Simpsons producers. In '' The Simpsons Movie '', the idea that Springfield cannot exist for real is further emphasized when Ned Flanders identifies the four bordering states as Ohio , Nevada , Maine and Kentucky , all of which are vastly separated.5 To promote the movie, various towns and cities across the United States called Springfield competed to hold the Premiere of the movie in their town. Springfields from many different states entered the competition.6 The town of Springfield, Vermont was elected to host the movie's premiere.78 HISTORY Colonial era Springfield was founded in 1796 by Maryland settlers trying to find a course to "New Sodom " after misinterpreting a passage in the Bible . In its early days, the city was the target of many Native American raids, and to this day, many forts and trading posts remain including Fort Springfield and Fort Sensible. It was also the site of two battles during the American Civil War . Of which, the first battle of Springfield was fought between the North, the South and the East to keep Springfield in, out of and next to the Union respectively. The founder of Springfield was the pioneer Jebediah Springfield , whose deeds are immortalized with a bronze statue that mounts in the center of the city square in front of the Springfield Town Hall building. The town motto, "A Noble Spirit Embiggens the Smallest Man", is attributed to Jebediah. Present day Events The town's name was changed temporarily to "Liberty-Ville" after Bart Simpson accidentally mooned the United States flag. As a result, Bart and his family appeared on a talk show where the host made it appear that the Simpsons , and Springfield, hate America by twisting the words of Bart's mother, Marge . When the rest of the U.S. reciprocated this affront, Mayor Joe Quimby changed the name of Springfield to "Liberty-Ville". An enormous patriotic craze ensued, wherein all items were priced at $17.76, including pizza "By the Slice" and houses.9 For a brief period, Springfield divided itself into two cities because of an area code dispute. Homer Simpson , upset that he had to memorize a new area code, 939, while the rich side of town retained the familiar 636 area code, riled up the lower class citizens of Springfield to rebel and establish their side of Springfield as a separate town, to be called New Springfield. They erected a wall made of Refuse dividing the two area codes and elected Homer as their new mayor. Mayor Joe Quimby maintained control of the rich side, which came to be called Olde Springfield. The two towns reunited when the band The Who , while in Springfield for a concert, suggested speed dial to solve the town's problem and agreed to play if the wall was torn down, a reference to that of the Berlin Wall .10 GEOGRAPHY Physical geography Springfield's geography includes forests, meadows, a mountain range, a desert, beaches, canyons, swamps, waterholes and waterways. Springfield is located on the coast of a large body of water, although some skyline shots of the city show no signs of a coast. It has been stated that "West Springfield" is three times the size of Texas and looks exactly like Texas in shape.Half-Decent Proposal Major physical features include Springfield Gorge, Springfield National Forest, Mt. Springfield, the Springfield Badlands (also known as the Alkali Flats)Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming, the Murderhorn, Springfield Glacier, Springfield Mesa and Mt. Carlmore. Springfield wildlife includes Grizzly Bear s in the Springfield Forest, Wolves , some of which prowl into the urban areas of Springfield, Vulture s in the Alkali Flats, and Manatee s south of Springfield in the waters. Cityscape ''.]] The city is divided into many neighborhoods, including: Bum Town, Chinatown, Crackton, East Springfield, Greek Town, Junkieville, Little Bangkok, Little Italy, Little Newark, Ethnictown, Lower Eastside, Pressboard Estates, Recluse Ranch Estates, Skid Row, Springfield Harbor, Springfield Heights, Springshire, Tibet Town, West Springfield, a flammable district, a gay district and a Russian district. In many episodes, the cityscape is changed. Skyline shots of the city vary from episode to episode and buildings change location. Pollution At one point, Homer Simpson was elected Sanitation Commissioner. After Homer spent the entire yearly budget in his first month of office, he was forced to take in the garbage of other cities in order to make enough money to pay the city's trash collectors. Eventually the mines that were storing the collected trash erupted and littered the entire city, prompting the entire city, population and structures, to literally move five miles down the road to establish a “new” Springfield away from the massive dump that “old” Springfield had become.11 Visitors to Springfield are advised to wear radiation suits and carry Geiger Counter s, since the city is perhaps the most radioactive in the United States . This is because the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant was built during an incredibly lax period for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the plant's nuclear core was surrounded not by several layers of protective concrete, lead and graphite but by ordinary plaster and a horseshoe hanging from a nail.''Are We There Yet? Guide to Springfield'' by ''The Simpsons'' creator Matt Groening Springfield is home to the state's largest self-sustaining tire fire which has been burning continuously since 1966 or 1989 " Homer's Paternity Coot " GOVERNMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE Elected officials The current mayor of Springfield is Joe Quimby (D). A Republican , is Springfield’s congressional representative in the United States House Of Representatives . Krusty is still a representative as of the episode " The Ziff Who Came To Dinner ", though he seems to also retain his hosting duties for his eponymously named children's show. Mayor Joe Quimby is manifestly incompetent and immoral as well as being a conspicuously corrupt and fraudulent politician. Quimby is a sleazy Womanizer and has had multiple affairs on his wife, First Lady Martha Quimby . Quimby vacationed to Jamaica during a flu Epidemic in Springfield and used the town treasury to fund the murder of his victims and for his acquittal when he later confessed to the crime. The citizens of Springfield are normally accepting of this conduct, except on certain issues, such as in episode “ See Homer Run ” when the citizens blamed Quimby for traffic jam caused by Bart Simpson - the largest in the history of the town. “Diamond” Joe, as he is called, has been the mayor of Springfield since the beginning of ''The Simpsons'' — so long that he’s gotten tired of having to be reelected — and has only during brief times not been mayor. The Springfield Police Department , led by Police Chief Clancy Wiggum , is also corrupt and incompetent, although it manages to foil many crimes with the help of citizens. Laws Upon reading the town charter (in " Homer Vs. The Eighteenth Amendment "), Prohibition was discovered to have been a standing law that hadn't been enforced for 200 years ("Spirituous beverages are hereby prohibited in Springfield under penalty of catapult."). After a brief period of reinforcement, it was ended after further reading of the charter found that the law was repealed one year after its inception. Gambling (since season five's " (Or, How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love Legalized Gambling) ") and Same-sex Marriage (since season 16's " There's Something About Marrying ") are legal in Springfield. Crime Most of the organized crime in Springfield is run by mob boss Fat Tony and his henchmen, Louie , Legs and Johnny Tightlips . They have paid off the civil servants of Springfield such as in episode " Homer Vs. The Eighteenth Amendment " when they paid a bribe to police officers Eddie And Lou to smuggle alcohol into the city during the reinstating of prohibition. Springfield is located in a state that retains the death penalty by both an Electric Chair and a Gas Chamber . Penitentiaries located in Springfield are The Charles Montgomery Burns State Penitentiary , Springfield City Jail, Springfield Correctional Institute, Springfield Juvenile Correctional Facility, Springfield Juvenile Hall, Springfield Penitentiary, Springfield Prison, Springwood Minimum Security Prison, Springfield State Penitentiary, Springfield State Prison, Springfield Women's Prison and the re-opened (after being condemned for 30 years) Morningwood Penitentiary (despite it being completely run-down). Education See Also: Education in The Simpsons Superintendent Gary Chalmers is the current superintendent of Springfield’s school district. Public educational institutions in Springfield are Springfield Elementary School run by Principal Seymour Skinner , West Springfield Elementary, Springfield High School, a junior high school, the Enriched Learning Center for Gifted Children, Springfield Magnet School for the Gifted and Troublesome and Rommelwood Military Academy. Public college institutions are Springfield Community College Extension Center, Springfield U, Springfield A & M and Springfield Heights Institute of Technology (SHIT). Private institutions are Springfield Christian School, Ayn Rand School for Tots (run by Ms. Sinclair ), Saint Sebastian's School for Wicked Girls, Miss Tillingham's School for Snotty Girls and Mama's Boys, Eastside Ruff-Form School, Springfield Preparatory School, and Springfield Extension School. PEOPLE AND CULTURE Arts and entertainment Springfield boasts an opera house, an outdoor Amphitheatre , an Arboretum , a vibrant Jazz scene and was once mentioned as the entertainment capital of its state. There is also an unusually high number of museums, including Springfield Museum (which features the world's largest Cubic Zirconia ), Springfield Knowledgeum, Springfield Museum of Natural History, The Museum of Swordfish, Springsonian Museum, and a Stamp museum. It was also once home to a concert hall designed by Frank Gehry which promptly became a prison. Media See Also: Media in The Simpsons KBBL Broadcasting Inc. serves as the major media outlet, owning at least two radio stations and one television station:
Channel Ocho is a Spanish-language television station whose most notable personality, Bumblebee Man , stars in a slapstick soap-opera. The city paper is '' The Springfield Shopper ''. Sports Springfield is home to at least three sports teams. Sports venues include the Springfield Speedway, Springfield Downs, a bull-fighting arena, horse racing track, and a dog track. There is also an Association of Springfield Semi-Pro Boxers. Springfield Isotopes The Springfield Isotopes are a " episode revolves around Homer Simpson 's attempts to thwart a planned move by the team to Albuquerque . Rivalry with Shelbyville There is a strong rivalry between Springfield and its closest neighboring town, Shelbyville , starting with the rivalry that existed between Jebediah Springfield and Shelbyville Manhattan, the founder of Shelbyville. Manhattan wanted to found a city where men were free to marry their cousins, but Springfield refused to allow it. This caused Manhattan to break away with his supporters and found the town of Shelbyville. The rivalry extends to the present day through American Football and even a Lemon tree near the two towns' borders. Plays have been written which depict the rivalry of the two cities; in this case Springfield was on the receiving end of some rather obnoxious 'hooting'. REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS
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