Springfield Confidential: Jokes, Secrets, and Outright Lies from a Lifetime Writing for The Simpsons

by Mike Reiss, Mike Reiss, Mathew Klickstein

In celebration of The Simpsons thirtieth anniversary, the show’s longest-serving writer and producer offers a humorous look at the writing and making of the legendary Fox series that has become one of the most revered artistic achievements in television history.

Four-time Emmy winner Mike Reiss—who has worked on The Simpsons continuously since episode one in 1989—shares stories, scandals, and gossip about working with America’s most iconic cartoon family ever. Reiss explains how the episodes are created, and provides an inside look at the show’s writers, animators, actors and celebrity guests. He answers a range of questions from Simpsons fans and die-hards, and reminisces about the making of perennially favorite episodes.

In his freewheeling, irreverent comic style, Reiss reflects on his lifetime inside The Simpsons—a personal highlights reel of his achievements, observations, and favorite stories. Springfield Confidential exposes why Matt Groening decided to make all of the characters yellow; dishes on what it’s like to be crammed in a room full of funny writers sixty hours a week; and tells what Reiss learned after traveling to seventy-one countries where The Simpsons is watched (ironic note: there’s no electricity in many of these places); and even reveals where Springfield is located! He features unique interviews with Judd Apatow, who also provided the foreword, and Conan O'Brien, as well as with Simpsons legends Al Jean, Nancy Cartwright, Dan Castellaneta, and more.

Like Cary Elwes’ As You Wish, Jennifer Keishin Armstrong’s Seinfeldia, and Chris Smith’s The Daily Show: An Oral History, Springfield Confidential is a funny, informational, and exclusive look at one of the most beloved programs in all of television land.

Genres: Nonfiction, Humor, Comedy, Memoir, Audiobook, Biography, Pop Culture

320 pages, Hardcover

First published June 12, 2018

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's certainly okay. Breezy, geeky, slight and silly fun. Perfectly fine as a mechanism for adorable Simpsons errata, but Mike Reiss's occasional hackery gets in the way. Its transformation from Springfield Confidential to Mike Reiss memoir happens a bit oddly, even if I did appreciate hearing about my dearly beloved The Critic. He boasts about a "That's what my wife said at my wedding night" moment (barf), throws in some Muslim jokes for good measure, and has a bizarre assessment of Richard Pryor "personality comics" as if he's lamenting the bygone era of delivering strictly jokes. Ultimately it's a cobbled-together hodgepodge that results in varying degrees of success, and as such it speaks for itself. Otherwise it's a cute little romp that you can read in a day.

He does address, for a short while, a "nasty little documentary" called The Problem with Apu, a controversial non-controversy because there is no one to root for. Kal Penn's caricature of a horny Indian-American in Van Wilder is a catastrophe; Hari Kondabolu's middling Netflix special spends a painstaking and defamatory long time on how much Indians love mangoes (right out of the Russell Peters playbook, except somehow worse); and the Simpsons' rebuttal episode to that silly documentary gave Lisa a criminally uncharacteristic moment of capitulation. Just roll your eyes and move on.

[Char · Rating 4 out of 5]

SPRINGFIELD CONFIDENTIAL is chock full of exactly what every Simpson fan would want-behind the scenes information, (so to speak, it's a cartoon), a little background on the main writer and all the others, a bit of name dropping, (and maybe a little dirt?), on the hundreds of guest stars, and finally, the stories about how certain jokes came about. It's a quick, breezy, informative and fun book.

Mike Reiss has been writing for The Simpsons from almost day one. He and everyone else on the show never thought it would last, but here we are right now, with The Simpsons being the longest running primetime scripted series to ever run in the history of television. With that many years under his belt, you can bet Mike has a lot of information for the die-hard fans and the causal fans alike. Things like the fact that one episode of the show takes 9 months from the idea to the airing. The show is written here in the U.S., but it's animated in South Korea. (Who knew?) There's some celebrity mentions as well, but I'll leave those nuggets for those of you who are interested enough to check out the book.



Being from Springfield, (MA, which is NOT the home of The Simpsons show, darn it!), I've been a fan of the show since it had a short spot on The Tracey Ullman Show, back in the day. Boy has it improved since then! I believe that I've always been smart enough to realize that I don't get all of the jokes in every episode, (Mike Reiss reads Voltaire, for heaven's sakes, I do NOT). But I do think I'm smart enough to get most of them, and that's why I've stuck with the show for all these years. If you want to know how Homer got his name or how Krusty's dad became Rabbi Krufstofski, you'll have to read this book!



Highly recommended for serious fans of the show, and for the casual fan that wants to know more!

*Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. This is it.*

[Flor ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Muy entretenido ! 😄

Lo recomiendo para fans de “los Simpson” y de la comedia en general.

Si bien hay muchos secretos e info de los Simpson, es más una biografía de Mike Reiss. No soy de leer este tipo de libros pero me ha parecido muy interesante, tanto que dejé de lado otras lecturas.

[Phil · Rating 2 out of 5]

Self content, low information, deeply unfunny.

[Brent Hoover · Rating 2 out of 5]

This starts out great but then just peters out as it becomes "Mike Reiss Confidential" which is probably a book that would only be interesting to his wife and children unless you are super interested in the inner workings of "The Critic".

Also, if you are interested in the out-of-touch opinions of a rich privileged white guy on all-things-comedy, this is a fountain of it. A rare outlook that is only available in every single other media outlet 24 hours a day.

Overall my feeling was that I was sort of swindled with a bait-and-switch.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have such mixed feelings about this one. I love the Simpsons and this show had been a part of my life for 30+ years.
The author, one of the original writers for the show, is at times obnoxious, boring and downright offensive. (Jokes about the deaths of real people are never funny.) The few truly funny moments from this audiobook are great, but I'm not sure they're worth it. It is 50% autobiography of Mike Reiss, 40% content about the Simpsons (industry secrets, origin stories, background etc) and 10% lists.

[Richard Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite wandering away from their contemporary adventures, The Simpsons is important to me. Not just me, but most people from my generation. Rarely a day goes by without at least one quote deliberately or unconsciously slipping its way into an unrelated conversation. A show so fiendishly clever in its in-tric-acies. See, there I go.

At any rate, we owe much of it to this feisty feline Mike Reiss. Taking us through his time before The Simpsons, during the The Simpsons, after The Simpsons, and back again at The Simpsons, Reiss never misses an opportunity to drop a pun into proceedings. He's like a kid in some kind of store.

Yet the book remains entertaining, informative, and most of all, funny. Reiss is generous with his compliments to other creators ("If you want dirt, dig a hole"), his insights into the world of writing comedy, and the 9-month process of creating 22 minutes of television is perfect for process junkies. Regular junkies too!

[Sidebar: at one point, Reiss refers to himself as "the office girl" because he's not into sports. I know what he means, but it's a rare sour note in an otherwise terrific bit of self-deprecation and self-awareness].

Alongside never-before-heard anecdotes - and Reiss' thoughts on critics, Hollywood, and the cutthroat world of children's books - two things come across most clearly: being funny full-time takes dedication, and Reiss is someone who loves what he does. All grumbles are (mostly) tongue-in-cheek, and all Gumbles are Barney.

[Online Eccentric Librarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

More reviews (and no fluff) on the blog http://surrealtalvi.wordpress.com/

Springfield Confidential reads very much like a Simpsons version of a biography - irreverent, sarcastic, self effacing, and never taking itself too seriously. But at the same time, I actually want the serious version here - all the endless jokes and "no not really" after reading four paragraphs of 'truths' was frustrating. I don't read biographies for comedy nor fluff and at some point it was getting really hard to tell what was real and what was made up for comedic effect. So what was the point of this being a biography of being a part of the Simpsons cast - it should really have been an episode of the Simpsons where a comedy writer comes to visit Homer.

Mike Reiss has a joke for every occasion including much of his own personal life. The endless Jewish jokes are about as interesting as endless Catholic ones and I didn't feel I got much insight into the tv show or the people running it. Every time Reiss would start to go in depth, he'd back off quickly and crack a joke or make something up. By the end, it felt like I was reading the equivalent of a Twinkie - cute and sweet but not very (ful)filling. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shopkeeper: Take this object, but beware it carries a terrible curse!

Homer: Ooh, that's bad.

Shopkeeper: But it comes with a free frogurt!

Homer: That's good.

Shopkeeper: The frogurt is also cursed.

Homer: That's bad.

Shopkeeper: But you get your choice of toppings.

Homer: That's good!

Shopkeeper: The toppings contain potassium benzoate.

[Homer looks puzzled]

Shopkeeper: ...That's bad.

Homer: Can I go now?

Boo-Urns! Everything's coming up Milhouse! It was the best of times it was the BLURST of times?!? The kids can call you Hoju!

Sorry. Had to get that out of my system.

The book?

Oh yeah. It's fun. Mike is funny. He names names. I wish he was a bit more honest with himself (and the readers) about the show being mediocre for over 20 years. He's basically like "the show has been on forever, look how many stories we've done! It's super popular, you guys!!" But where did the heart go? Why all the celebrity focused episodes? Why jerk-ass Homer?! Not a terrible show by any means, just not all that good.

Oh, a bit too much humble bragging as well. Otherwise, this sure beats a football to the groin.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review of the audiobook narrated by the author.

The Simpsons is my favorite show that I haven't watched in a decade. At one point I had the DVD box sets for the first 13 seasons of the show (maybe I still have them... I don't know anymore now that everything is streaming). I used to watch each episode and then watch them again with commentary. So, I had listened to Mike Reiss many times before in those commentaries (season 1-4 and occasionally afterwards) and listening to him narrate this book brought back some fun memories.

This book is both an autobiography and a collection of nerdy Simpsons insights for super-fans. It reminded me of an episode of the Simpsons, in that Mr. Reiss constantly crams in as many jokes as possible. I enjoyed the parts about the author the most and his constant jokes make the story of his already interesting career even more entertaining. For the most part the Simpsons "trivia" parts of the book are successful, except for the many lists (and even a series of riddles), which are neat but don't translate well to the audiobook medium.

Mike Reiss always sounds like he's on the verge of laughing, which is a whole lot less annoying than you may think. It's just the way he talks - and is actually quite endearing. Overall a very entertaining listen.

Final verdict: 4 star story, 5 star narration, 4 stars overall

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A peek into the world of comedy writing, animation, television production, world travel and more by Mike Reiss. This guy has been around since the beginning of the Simpsons show and has a lot of fun and funny stories to share.
Whether you're a die hard fan, a casual watcher, or not really into the Simpsons (who?!), everybody can get some laughs from the book while learning how this animated show is made. Despite the jokes about the writer's room (people sleeping or doing crosswords all day) it's awesome to see how much work really goes into the writing for this specific show because the author and his writing partner are so dedicated to getting the joke just right every time.
I've hardly known TV without the Simpsons being part of it so reading this book has me digging through boxes in the basement for early season Simpsons DVDs...time to revisit some classics!
Thanks so much to goodreads and Dey Street Books for the advanced copy of this book.

[M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s exactly the kind of book you’d expect a writer for The Simpsons to write but it has some truly funny and insightful moments and it makes me want to watch the show again.

[Spring · Rating 1 out of 5]

Let me begin by saying that the writing is not bad. The book is very easy to read. The author has a funny voice and he has a very easy to read writing style. It makes sense considering the man writes comedy for a living. The good parts are largely limited to the mechanical side of the book rather than the content itself.

Throughout the book, Mike Reiss' humour often comes off as outdated. He is definitely not a young person. It is clear from the comments made throughout the book and the off colour humour that is used.

I was completely fine and enjoying myself to a decent degree until we got to the mess that is the section on whether or not Mike Reiss thinks Apu is problematic or not (spoiler: he thinks that Apu is a beloved character and isn't actually problematic). My entire enjoyment of the book was destroyed from then on after that. I did go on to finish it simply because I was interested to see what else there was to say, but I definitely skimmed the remaining pages rather than read them in depth.

In my edition, the Apu section, is on pages 107-108. It may be different for you. When addressing the racist actions of kids teasing South Asian kids and mocking them in an Apu voice, Reiss says "That's not racism. That's just saying kids are dicks". He also described the documentary "The Problem With Apu" as a "nasty little documentary". It was a well done film. I watched it in my university course that was focused around The Simpson's. If someone cannot accept criticism about their TV character, which follows negative stereotypes, then maybe, just maybe they should either leave the TV industry or at least keep quiet about this view. Reiss concludes the Apu section with this great line (please note the sarcasm in my words):
"...as a white Jewish guy, I can't tell Indians not to be offended by another white Jewish guy playing an Indian."

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

As someone who's been watching The Simpson's since I was born, and having recently discovered a love for non-fic, I felt like this was a must-read for me. I'm a big fan of hearing all about the BTS information on...well on pretty much anything. I love learning about how things come to exist, all the moving pieces that came together in just the right way. This book just missed the mark for me.

Overall I did quite enjoy reading this, but at the end of the day there wasn't much that I think I'll take away from it. An easy read filled with silly and fun anecdotes, some nose-breath worthy jokes (and a bunch of cringe-worth ones too). The way it's assembled leaves a lot to be desired, especially the janky transitions between Reiss' biographical sections and the Simpson's focused parts.

In the end, it turns out this book wasn't a must-read after all. I didn't lose out on anything by reading it, but I also didn't gain anything either.

A 2.5 rating which after some deliberation I rounded down to a 2.

[Stefanie Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mike Reiss is a television writer, who focuses mostly on comedic writing. He studied at Harvard University, even writing on the Harvard Lampoon. While at Harvard, Reiss met another Simpsons alum, Al Jean. Reiss lets us into his life and how he got on his career path, though it seems as if he came from a family full of funny people. Reiss provides an humorous look into the writing room on one of the longest running animated shows in television history. There were inside stories about some of the guest stars on the show, the main cast, and ideas that never made it to the screen.

If you are a Simpsons fan, I would strongly suggest checking out this book. I personally have the Audible version, which is listed at 7 hours. I have my speed up, so it was just a bit over 6 hours. I listened to this over two days. I loved hearing some of the behind the scenes stories from one of my favorite comfort shows.

[Michael Martin · Rating 2 out of 5]

You know what you get from me when your book slams Nichols and May?
A two-star rating.

[Andrea Frazee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook

[Kris (My Novelesque Life) · Rating 3 out of 5]

RATING: 3 Stars
2018; Dey Street Books/HarperCollins Canada
(Review Not on Blog)

The Simpsons is a show that most everyone in my family could agree on, if not always for the same reasons. I was the same age as Bart when the show started, and felt this kinship with Lisa for books and not fitting in. It is hard to characterize this book -it's a mix of trivia, behind the scenes and biography of the show. I read the first few chapters and then found myself skimming to the "good" parts. It's a good book for anyone that is a fan as you will learn some new things and have a moment down memory lane. I would suggest getting it from the library as I cannot recommend this at the hardcover price.

***I received an eARC from EDELWEISS***

[Rafael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Springfield Confidential By Mike Riess 🌟🌟🌟🌟

The endlessly funny Mike Reiss gives you a tremendous insight on what is it like working on the Simpsons, all the ups and downs and his life as a joke writer, this is not and entirely Simpson's book but more about his life as a comedian and writer and what It takes to reach the success of the Simpsons, they are lots of secrets and facts on the Simpsons and is quite a funny book with jokes and puns riding across the book.
.
An excellent book on comedy pop culture and a light read, so if you like The Simpsons, pop culture and comedy pick it up an excellent read to pass the time and if you have enough of horror (or whatever other genera you engulfed on a daily basis) for a bit then this will lighten your brain.

[Leo H · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, SO Ghostwritten. It's basically a transcript of a long interview with Mike Reiss. The guy's a professional writer, I don't understand why he needs a ghostwriter. Reiss is an interesting and engaging subject, but I was looking for a little more in-depth detail about how The Simpsons is written, especially in the 90s, when it was good. He spends about two chapters on this part of his life, the rest, while interesting, isn't really what I wanted out of this book. Good but a little disappointing, then.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I confess, I am not a big fan of the Simpsons, Homer tends to annoy me too much to be able to watch the show religiously.
I am though a fan of trivia and behind the scenes information and this book certainly delivers. Brilliantly fascinating read, with a author who is not afraid of voicing his opinion, without any shame or disclaimers. Quite refreshing really.

[Maxi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sin dudas es un libro que todo fan de Los Simpson debería leer. Mike Reiss, con su característico sentido del humor (la primera vez que un libro me hace reír tanto), nos va narrando su propia vida, y a su vez, un montón de historias y curiosidades acerca de uno de los mejores programas de televisión del mundo.

Es la primera vez que leo un libro acerca de un comediante y me llamó la atención su pasión y dedicación que lleva trabajar para un programa de este estilo. Desde escribir los chistes, revisar guiones, ideas, lidiar con las productoras, etc.

Contar chistes es genial pero...hay que saber inventarlos y escribirlos

[Corey · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of funny anecdotes in here that encapsulate the dream of writing for one of the most acclaimed comedies of all time. It took a bit of getting used to Mike Reiss’s distinct tone, and some of his jokes fall flat, but by the end the comedy comes through. My biggest issue is in the deadpan way in which he tells the stories. It’s hard to know what is a true tidbit, and what is just the punchline to a joke. But overall it was a fun read that any Simpsons fan or fan of comedy television should check out.

[Rade · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a HUGE Simpsons fan...of the early seasons, not so much now. This book has a lot of inside tidbits of info on how the show came to be. Sometimes it is all over the place with its narrative but the love that the original creators had for this show is all too real. Personally, the humor in this show shaped my understanding of what I find funny and how I go about telling jokes. For that, it will forever remain as my favorite show of all time.

[Steven Yenzer · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a Simpsons fan, I found plenty to interest me in Springfield Confidential. Unfortunately Mike Reiss comes across as kind of an old white dude and rubbed me the wrong way a bit — for example, his joke about how he thinks his maid (whom he says doesn't drive or speak English) liked the Homer Simpson GPS he gave her.

[Jaime · Rating 4 out of 5]

D’oh, it got me laughing from beginning to end. I love the Simpsons and always will.

And you better read it fast before Mr. Burns releases the hounds on you. Afterwards, a well deserve Duff beer is in order and if you don’t agree, you can eat my shorts.

[John McDonald · Rating 3 out of 5]

An episode about Grandpa going fishing is entitled "the Old Man and the She". Or, one of the writers suggested a gag where Homer see a form which says, 'Do Nott write in the box', and Homer writes,
"OK." Then, there's the joke about Brook Sheilds being so bad playing the role of Ann Franks that when the actors playing Nazis came onstage, the audience yelled, 'she's in the attic'.

Much of this book is funny, enlightening about how the show gets written, acted, and animated, and much of is funny. But a large part of it is devoted to Mike Reiss reciting his admiration of Conan O'Brien, or some other former gag writer, and some of it is devoted to tributes that seem to stress how important Mike Reiss is to the show. I read the book because I wanted to find out how a show like the Simpsons get written and produced, and I got that from the book. And, I loved the funny parts. But, the book, as many books are, could have been 50 pages shorter and not lost anything. Once again, the editors seemed to go AWOL.

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Springfield Confidential by Mike Reiss is a book that takes you behind the scenes of one of the longest running shows in American television history, The Simpsons. Springfield Confidential is hilarious. The book is fast paced, irreverent and packed with jokes, similar to a Simpsons episode. While the book does have confidential in the title, and Reiss does give you a behind the scenes look at how the show is made, there is little attention paid to any of the juicy drama between the producers, writers and cast of the show. Another non sequitur about Springfield Confidential is that despite making a living making fun of and criticizing others under the guise of comedy, Reiss has a thin skin when it comes to receiving criticism. Springfield Confidential is a great summer read for not just Simpsons fans, but anyone looking for a good laugh.

[Peter Derk · Rating 4 out of 5]

I somehow missed rating this one. Probably because I was moving at the time.

An audiobook is a great friend when you're moving. Because you basically have a lot of time to perform a lot of boring tasks.

My life fantasy will always be gaining enough wealth to have a move go like this:

1. I tell my Alfred that we're moving.
2. I pick out a house on Zillow, hire someone to check it out for me.
3. I tell Alfred my moving dates.
4. I leave on vacation for a week.
5. I return to my new home where everything is placed as though it's been there for a decade.

I'd give my right nut for that. Or left. I don't really think either is better than the other. I don't know why it's necessary to specify when it comes to that. It's not like most people know whether they're "right-nutted."

[Erica Hollinger · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I asked the librarian for help finding this book, she looked on the computer and said "wow no one has checked it out in a long time"
After she found it and dusted it off, I was able to start reading and it was pretty good.
I haven't watched the Simpsons regularly in over ten years but was a big fan in the early days.
I have Simpsons dolls, figures, video games and even the music on cassette.
This book answered questions I didn't know I had and was full of interesting stories and had interviews with people I didn't know were associated with the Simpsons