Movies - TV
The Simpsons Didn’t Actually Create Most Of Its Famous Catchphrases
By WITNEY SEIBOLD
We should appreciate how much "The Simpsons' has become part of our lives — so much so that Homer Simpson's grunt is now in the Oxford English Dictionary (under "doh").
What's more, popular catchphrases like "Ay caramba," "Don't have a cow," and "Cowabunga" were made even more famous by their usage on "The Simpsons."
"Springfield Confidential" by Mike Reiss and Mathew Klickstein confirmed that all of the catchphrases but one were preexisting references or an actor's improvisation.
Reiss said the phrases Bart Simpson used all came from preexisting sources. "Cowabunga" is prominent in surfer culture and is likely also heard on "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles."
Bart's famous line, "Don't have a cow," originated in the 1950s and was revived in the 1980s through the "valley girl" culture.
The quote credited to Springfield's founder, "A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man," is absolute nonsense, of course, and purely an invention by "The Simpsons."