Homer Simpson or Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character in the American animated sitcom The Simpsons. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared on April 19, 1987, alongside the rest of his family in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night". While waiting in the lobby of producer James L. Brooks' office, cartoonist Matt Groening created and designed Homer. Groening was approached to pitch a series of short films based on his comic strip Life in Hell but instead chose to create a new cast of characters. Homer Simpson is widely regarded as an American cultural icon and one of the most influential characters in television history.

Homer and his wife Marge have three children: Bart, Lisa, and Maggie, and he is the nominal foreman of the paternally eponymous family. As the family's breadwinner, he works as a safety inspector at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. Homer embodies many stereotypes of the American working class: he is obese, immature, outspoken, aggressive, balding, lazy, ignorant, unprofessional, and addicted to beer, junk food, and television. He is, however, fundamentally a good man who is fiercely protective of his family, especially when they are in need. Despite the suburban blue-collar routine of his life, he has had a number of remarkable experiences, including going to space, climbing the tallest mountain in Springfield by himself, fighting former President George H. W. Bush, and winning a Grammy Award as a member of a barbershop quartet.

First appearance: Good Night (1987)

Schicklgruber, Charles Montgomery Plantagenet "Monty" Burns, also known as Mr. Burns, Monty, or C. Montgomery Burns, is a recurring character and antagonist in The Simpsons, originally voiced by Christopher Collins and now by Harry Shearer. He is the evil, cunning, greedy, and wealthy owner of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, and thus Homer Simpson's boss. Smithers, his loyal and sycophantic aide, adviser, confidant, and secret admirer, is by his side almost at all times.

In his insatiable desire to increase his own wealth and power, inability to remember his employees' names, and lack of concern for their safety and well-being, he epitomizes corporate America. Mr. Burns, reflecting on his advanced age, is prone to expressing dated humor, referencing Jazz Age popular culture, and aspiring to apply obsolete technology to everyday life. Mr. Burns' trademark expression is the word "Excellent...”, muttered slowly in a low, sinister voice while steepling his fingertips. He occasionally directs Smithers to "release the hound", allowing his vicious guard dogs to attack intruders, enemies, or even invited guests. Mr. Burns is the wealthiest and most powerful citizen in Springfield. He uses his power and wealth to do whatever he wants, usually without regard for consequences and without interference from the authorities.

First appearance: Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire (1989)

Sir Herschel Shmoikel Pinchas Yerucham Krustofsky, also known by his stage name Krusty the Clown, is a recurring character on The Simpsons. Dan Castellaneta provides his voice. He has long been the clown host of Bart and Lisa's favorite TV show, a mix of kiddie variety shows and cartoons such as The Itchy & Scratchy Show. Krusty is frequently portrayed as a cynical, burnt-out, addiction-ridden smoker who is made miserable by show business but perseveres. He has become one of the most frequently appearing characters outside of the main Simpson family, and he has been the subject of several episodes, many of which also feature Sideshow Bob.

Krusty was created by Matt Groening and was inspired in part by Rusty Nails, a television clown from Groening's hometown of Portland, Oregon. He was created to resemble Homer Simpson with clown makeup, with the original concept being that Bart worships a television clown who is actually his own father in disguise. His voice is based on Bob Bell, who played Bozo the Clown on WGN-TV. Krusty is a multimillionaire who made his fortune primarily by licensing his name and image to a variety of low-quality products and services, ranging from Krusty alarm clocks to Krusty crowd control barriers. Many of these products are potentially hazardous, such as Krusty's cereal brand, Krusty-O's, which boasts a jagged metal Krusty-O in each box in one episode. Krusty wastes money almost as fast as he earns it: lighting his cigarettes with hundred-dollar bills, eating condor-egg omelets, spending huge sums on pornographic magazines and call girls, and losing a fortune gambling on everything from horse races to operas and betting against the Harlem Globetrotters. Krusty is a hard-living entertainment veteran, sometimes depicted as a jaded, burned-out has-been, who has been down and out several times and remains addicted to gambling, cigarettes, alcohol, Percodan, Pepto-Bismol, and Xanax.

First appearance: The Krusty the Clown Show (1989)

Milhouse Van Houten is a recurring character in the Fox animated television series The Simpsons, created by Matt Groening and voiced by Pamela Hayden. Milhouse became one of the series' most prominent recurring characters when The Simpsons were renewed for a full season by Fox. Groening chose the name Milhouse, which is also President Richard Nixon's middle name because it was the most "unfortunate name he could think of for a kid". Milhouse is of Italian, Greek, Danish, and Dutch descent, according to comments and characters in the series. He has the same physical characteristics as both of his parents, as well as his father's primary personality traits (which include disappointment, insecurity, and a generally depressed demeanor). He has none of his mother's confidence, except when specific storylines demand it. Milhouse and family are among the few Springfield residents with visible eyebrows, which are rather thick.

In Mrs. Krabappel's fourth grade class at Springfield Elementary School, Milhouse is Bart Simpson's best friend. He is an insecure, gullible, and less popular child than Bart, and he is frequently led into trouble by Bart, who exploits his friend's naiveté. Milhouse is frequently targeted by Nelson Muntz and his friends Jimbo Jones, Dolph Starbeam, and Kearney Zzyzwicz at school. Milhouse has a crush on Bart's sister, Lisa, which is a recurring plot element. Milhouse is frequently the punchline to various jokes. He speaks Italian fluently because he visits his maternal grandmother in Tuscany for two weeks every year. Milhouse's personality shifts dramatically when he speaks Italian, becoming a suave, confident ladies' man popular with Springfield's Italian community.

First appearance: The Butterfinger Group (1988)

Principal Seymour Skinner is a fictional character who appears on The Simpsons and is voiced by Harry Shearer. He is the principal of Springfield Elementary School, which he struggles to control, and is constantly at odds with its inadequate resources, apathetic and bitter teachers, and frequently rowdy and unenthusiastic students, with Bart Simpson serving as a standout example. Skinner attempts to impose discipline at the school, despite his uptight, militaristic attitude, which stems from his years as a Green Beret in the United States Army, including service in the Vietnam War, where he was captured and held as a prisoner of war. He is quick to obey his superiors, particularly his mother, Agnes, and Superintendent Chalmers.

Most of Skinner's actions revolve around ensuring the school has adequate funding out of genuine concern for the quality of education provided to its students. One of Skinner's distinguishing characteristics is that he served as a Green Beret sergeant during the Vietnam War, where he was captured by the Viet Cong at the Battle of Khe Sanh and held as a prisoner of war for three years. One of the many events that contributed to the development of his post-traumatic stress disorder was witnessing his entire platoon being devoured by an elephant. He is also enraged by the treatment he and other Vietnam veterans received upon their return from the war. Skinner is a highly skilled combatant, particularly hand-to-hand, and demonstrates his abilities in several episodes. Skinner often seems weak-willed and easily suppressed, but often will use his military command experience gained in the Vietnam War to get real respect and discipline. When he and the students are snowed in at the school, he treats them like his squad to control the chaos temporarily, before they mutiny.

First appearance: Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire (1989)

Marge Simpson is a character in the American animated sitcom The Simpsons and a member of the eponymous family. She is based on the real Marge (Matt Groening's mother). She first appeared on television on April 19, 1987, with Julie Kavner as her voice. While waiting in the lobby of James L. Brooks's office, cartoonist Matt Groening created and designed Marge. Marge is a stereotypical sitcom mother, and she also plays the "long-suffering wife" who puts up with her children's and husband's antics. While she usually laughs off her family's problems, her workload and the resulting stress caused her to have a mental breakdown.

Marge is the Simpson family matriarch. She has three children with her husband, Homer: Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. Marge is the moral compass in her family, and she frequently provides a grounding voice in the midst of her family's antics by attempting to keep order in the Simpson household. Marge is more compassionate, understanding, and nurturing to Bart than Homer, but she refers to him as "a handful" and is frequently embarrassed by his antics. She is frequently portrayed as a stereotypical television mother and appears on lists of top "TV moms". She has appeared in other Simpsons-related media such as video games, The Simpsons Movie, The Simpsons Ride, commercials, and comic books, and she has inspired an entire line of merchandise. Marge's distinctive blue beehive hairstyle was inspired by a combination of the Bride in Bride of Frankenstein and the style that Margaret Groening wore in the 1960s. In 2000, Marge, along with the rest of her family, was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

First appearance: Good Night (1987)

Chief Clancy Wiggum is a fictional character from the animated television series The Simpsons, voiced by Hank Azaria. He is the chief of police in Springfield, the show's setting, and the father of Ralph Wiggum and the husband of Sarah Wiggum. Wiggum is a glutton, irresponsible, and immature character who is often too lazy and cowardly to fight crime. Eddie and Lou, his more responsible subordinate officers, play the straight men to his shenanigans. Matt Groening's mother's maiden name is "Wiggum". Wiggum was designed to look like a pig as a "conscious pun".

Chief Wiggum is descended from Irish immigrants. Wiggum's father, Iggy, served in Abe Simpson's infantry squad, implying that the Wiggums arrived in America by the early 1940s. In the episode "Mother Simpson", a teenage Wiggum was a trainee security guard at Springfield University when Homer's mother Mona sabotaged Mr. Burns' biological weapons laboratory. Wiggum's asthma was cured by the antibiotics used to kill the weapons, allowing him to join the police force. Despite his obvious incompetence, Wiggum has occasionally assisted other characters, such as Lisa Simpson in locating Mr. Burns' assailant in "Who Shot Mr. Burns?" and supporting her in a school protest in "The President Wore Pearls". Wiggum is also shown to be a loving father of his son Ralph. Although Wiggum can often antagonize others as well, it is heavily implied that it is not out of malice but merely because he is doing his job or because he is ignorant of the situation.

First appearance: Homer's Odyssey (1990)

Troy McClure is a fictional character in The Simpsons, an American animated television series. Phil Hartman originally voiced him. McClure is a low-level actor who is frequently seen hosting infomercials and educational films. In "A Fish Called Selma", he plays the main character and marries Selma Bouvier to help his failing career and dispel rumors about his personal life. McClure was inspired by B-movie actors Troy Donahue and Doug McClure, as well as Hartman.

Troy McClure is the stereotypical Hollywood bygone. He was a star in the early 1970s, but his career declined due to rumors of fish-related paraphilia. He hosts short video clips that other characters watch on television or in public places in the majority of his appearances on the show. He frequently shows educational videos and infomercials. "A Fish Called Selma" provides a more in-depth look into McClure's private life and backstory. Showrunners Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein were Hartman fans who wanted to make an episode entirely about McClure to give Hartman as much screen time as possible. From this came the idea of McClure's marriage to Selma Bouvier, as she was "always marrying people".

First appearance: Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment (1991)

Grampa Simpson is a recurring character in the animated television series The Simpsons. His full name is Abraham Jebediah "Abe" Simpson II. Before the television show's debut in 1989, he made his first appearance in "Grandpa and the Kids", a one-minute Simpsons short on The Tracey Ullman Show. Grampa Simpson is played by Dan Castellaneta, who also plays Homer Simpson. He is Bart, Lisa, and Maggie Simpson's paternal grandfather. Grampa was chosen as the "Grandpa for The Perfect TV Family" in the 1,000th issue of Entertainment Weekly. Grampa Simpson is a World War II veteran and retired farmer who was later transferred by Homer to the Springfield Retirement Castle. He is known for his long, rambling, often incoherent and irrelevant stories and senility.

Grampa Simpson also fathered two illegitimate children: Abbey by a British woman named Edwina while in the United Kingdom during WWII, and Herbert Powell by a carnival prostitute. Grampa's older brother, Cyrus, lives in Tahiti and has several native wives. He also has a younger brother named Chet who owns a failing shrimp business. Hubert, Tyrone, Fester, Bill, and Hortense are his siblings. Many of his stories appear to be wildly inaccurate, frequently physically or historically impossible, and occasionally inconsistent with one another, implying that Grampa is quite senile. Grampa's birthplace is unknown. Grampa was a hated wrestler named "Glamorous Godfrey" in the 1950s, revealed in the episode "Gorgeous Grampa", starring him and Mr. Burns.

First appearance: Grandpa and the Kids (1988)

Bart Simpson is a fictional character and member of the Simpson family in the American animated television series The Simpsons. Nancy Cartwright provides his voice, and he first appeared on April 19, 1987. While waiting in the lobby of James L. Brooks's office, cartoonist Matt Groening created and designed Bart. While the other characters were named after members of Groening's family, Bart's name is an anagram of the word brat. Bart has appeared in other Simpsons-related media such as video games, The Simpsons Movie, The Simpsons Ride, commercials, and comic books, and he has inspired an entire line of merchandise.

Bart is the eldest child and only son of Homer and Marge, as well as the brother of Lisa and Maggie, and he is ten years old. Mischievousness, rebelliousness, and disrespect for authority are among Bart's most prominent and popular personality traits. Character traits include his chalkboard gags in the opening sequence, prank calls to Moe,... During The Simpsons' first two seasons, Bart was the show's breakout character, and "Bartmania" ensued, spawning Bart Simpson-themed merchandise touting his rebellious attitude and pride in underachieving, which led many parents and educators to cast him as a bad role model for children. The series began to focus more on the family as a whole around the third season, though Bart remains a prominent character. Bart's character traits of rebelliousness and disrespect for authority have been compared to that of America's founding fathers, and he has been described as an updated version of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, rolled into one. In his book Planet Simpson, Chris Turner describes Bart as a nihilist, a philosophical position that argues that existence is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value.

First appearance: Good Night (1987)