Well, it turns out Disco Stu, Bumblebee Man, Ralph Wiggum and Montgomery Burns don’t reside in Western Massachusetts after all.
Matt Groening, the creator of the America’s favorite yellow-skinned cartoon family the Simpsons, finally revealed perhaps the biggest secret in the popular show’s history Tuesday when he announced the inspiration behind the show’s hometown of Springfield.
In an interview with Smithsonian Magazine, Groening said “Springfield was named after Springfield, Oregon. The only reason is that when I was a kid, the TV show Father Knows Best took place in the town of Springfield, and I was thrilled because I imagined that it was the town next to Portland, my hometown. When I grew up, I realized it was just a fictitious name. I also figured out that Springfield was one of the most common names for a city in the U.S. In anticipation of the success of the show, I thought, ‘This will be cool; everyone will think it’s their Springfield.’ And they do.”
While coming as a bit of a blow to the hopes and dreams of fans in the Pioneer Valley and other towns named Springfield across the country, at least all disappointed parties may soon have an abundant soundtrack to raise their spirits back up, courtesy of punk rock superstars and avowed Simpson fans Green Day.
Watch Green Day’s appearance in The Simpsons Movie, where the group plays the show’s classic theme here:
According to a press release sent out Wednesday, the masterminds behind Dookie and American Idiot announced that they are currently in the studio working on not one, not two, but three new albums to be released over a six month period.
“We are at the most prolific and creative time in our lives. This is the best music we’ve ever written, and the songs just keep coming,” said the members of Green Day. “Instead of making one album, we are making a three album trilogy. Every song has the power and energy that represents Green Day on all emotional levels. We just can’t help ourselves…We are going epic as fuck!”
The names of the albums in the trilogy will be ¡Uno!, ¡Dos!, and ¡Tré!. And they will be released on Tuesday, September 25, 2012; Tuesday, November 13th 2012 and Tuesday, January 15th 2013 respectively.
For more information on The Simpsons or Green Day please visit www.thesimpsons.com and www.greenday.com.
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