Michael Jackson famously lent his voice to the 1991 “Simpsons” episode “Stark Raving Dad,” playing a mental patient who believes he’s Michael Jackson. In a way, then, it’s fitting that the catchy-as-hell “Happy Birthday Lisa” song wasn’t sung by Jackson, but by a Jackson impersonator named Kipp Lennon.
Simpsons actress Yeardley Smith (who voices Lisa Simpson) revealed that Sony blocked Jackson from doing any of the singing for Jackson’s character, the large bald-headed mental patient Leon Kompowsky, who actually thought he was Jackson and serenaded Little Lisa with “Happy Birthday, Lisa”. Jackson, who was credited as John Jay Smith, instead handpicked impersonator Kipp Lennon, who also sang for the King of Pop during the miniseries The Jacksons: An American Dream. [consequenceofsound; original story at TMZ]
It seems like a lot of “Simpsons” fans are upset by this news, but I don’t see what the big deal is. Michael Jackson still voiced the character, and he even chose the guy who would sing in his place because his record deal precluded him from doing so. It doesn’t make “Happy Birthday Lisa” any less catchy, either. That thing’s gonna be in my head all day. At least until I go to the nuclear option of earworms.
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God, Lisa is such a know-it-all tattle-tale.
Singing a song shouldn’t be political or corporate. Michael Jackson was an amazing singer. So therefore he can’t possibly be allowed to sing on a non-Sony project. Instead, he has to choose someone who can sing almost like but not as good as himself to do it.
When did shit go south? In the 70s if you wanted a Sonny Bono-character to sing a song on your show, you got Sonny Bono to do it.
I understand contracts and rights and such, but it’s just a f’n shame it can’t be as simple as just doing it.
What? This is news? I’m pretty sure they mention this on the DVD commentary for the episode. They couldn’t afford paying him to sing.
This is new news? Pretty sure I’d heard this years back. Still, regardless of who sang that song, that was a classic episode.
Yeah, this is definitely not new. I think Harry Shearer or someone mentioned this in an interview years ago when asked about the celebrity voiceovers, and specifically Jackson’s. And anyone who is really bothered by that fact needs to stop being a 5 year old. If you like something, like it and be happy it exists.
“Come on, Milhouse, there’s no such thing as a soul. It’s just something they made up to scare kids, like the Boogie Man or Michael Jackson.”
@sc and @gardenievel, yes, many of us already knew this, but I’ll accept any excuse to listen to the song again.
Do not click the nuclear option link.
WHAT?! YOU CALL THIS NEWS?! WHAT KIND OF JOURNALIST ARE YOU?! I ASSUME BECAUSE I KNEW THIS SO DID EVERYONE ELSE AND ALSO WHO CARES ABOUT TIMELY CONFIRMATION.
A sad day for journalism, indeed.
This makes me question my entire sense of reality. What else in my life has been faked (besides that)? I … I … Wait a minute. I don’t care. Yep, that pretty much sums it up.
I’ll forgive anyone who hasn’t listened to Simpsons Commentaries (or hasn’t read the Wiki page for the episode) and might not know this fact already. People are allowed to like the Simpsons but not be fanatical.
That said, I am in fact one of the ultra-nerds who listen to the commentaries more than watching the actual episodes (what’s the point when you know Seasons 3-8 by heart, amirite?), so I was well aware of this (but barely, since this is the first episode of Season 3).
But since someone already quoted “Bart Sells His Soul” and its Michael Jackson gag, I might as well throw another quote from the Simpsons on Michael, this one from “Lisa’s Sax”.
“Disco Duck and Fleetwood Mac /
Coming out of my 8-track /
Michael Jackson still was black /
Those wereeeee theeee dayyyys”
Oh, geeks. Never change.
“This is common knowledge! It was in the DVD commentary!”
Here’s another little known tidbit — When The Simpsons makes reference to Hitler, they’re not actually using his voice either. It’s a shame, though, because I hear that guy was a gas.
Also, I was pretty sure this was mentioned in John Ortved’s book about “The Simpsons,” but I decided not to be a pretentious dickwad fanboy about it.
Worst. Timing. Ever.
*complains on message boards*
I’ve stopped posting as “Matt” to avoid any confusion, though it shouldn’t be hard to tell which was an unregistered loser and which was Ufford. I concede my name to you, sir. Continue using it well.
And a REAL JOURNALIST would have uncovered the pictures of Paz making out on the couch with her “friend”.
I’m boycotting this site (until the next post)
As long as that was really Yeardley Smith playing the saxophone with Bleeding Gums Murphy, we’re cool.
[someone whispers in my ear]
Those BASTARDS!
Anyone ever notice that Bleeding Gums Murphy and Hans Moleman are never in the same place at the same time? Same person?
alt.nerd.obsessive.
Patsy Cline still sang “Crazy” for the asylum’s hold music though, didn’t she?
To be fair to the fanboys, your post does seem to imply that this is a new revelation.
“It seems like a lot of “Simpsons” fans are upset by this news”
“It seems like a lot of “Simpsons” fans are upset by this news”
This would have destroyed 6 year old me. 26 year old me wonders if any children were physically assaulted during the handpicking of the Michael substitute. Such is life.
This is kinda old news.
MJ did do a version ferreals, tho: [www.youtube.com]
But he did really give his voice for the Itchy and Scratchy Movie right? I know he wasn’t credited, but you could tell it was him.
What is obnoxious is not that people didn’t know (like Matt, I have watched the DVDs with commentary) but why in the world with anyone take a “bombshell exclusive” from TMZ as news? TMZ’s reporter asked Smith if it was really MJ, and instead of saying “Don’t waste my time with something that happened 20 years ago, douchebag,” she actually answered his question politely. And then TMZ doesn’t have the common sense to even Google it to make sure it wasn’t common knowledge (which yeah, it really was). And then Uproxx (and many other sites) follow suit and also don’t take the 12.3 seconds to Google it? Argh.
Oh, come on. If you can’t tell the difference between MJ’s voice and Lennon’s please throw away your Simpsons Season 03 right now.
Ufford, you claim to carry the Simpsons book in your back pocket as if it’s you’re bible, yet you haven’t heard the commentary track for this episode? For shame
Ufford. You claim to carry the Simpson’s book in your back pocket, as if it’s your bible, yet you haven’t heard the commentary track for this episode? For shame
*srry. i was drunk
Regarding Simpsonology’s comment: Can we please keep this conversation strictly withing the realm of Simpson’s lore, without resorting to TMZ bashing? You are only prolonging our suffering.
Oh, i get it Matt. You were simply exploiting a popular(?) story that was published by a popular(?) website.
I still love your blog
my apologies to Simpsonology
I’ll not bitch about TMZ here anymore. I did it for Splitsider instead: [splitsider.com]
The Internet is great. Somehow, I enjoyed reading a Splitsider story about a Buzzfeed story that got wrong information from a series of retweets about a TMZ story that was, in fact, a non-story. Not only that, but I found the splitsider link from a Warming Glow story about how the story is both a story and a non-story.
If nothing else, this cements my notion that everyone should be forced to memorize every Simpsons fact encyclopedically.