Earlier in the week it was announced that the voice of Bart Simpson, Nancy Cartwright, will be coming to Australia in June as part of the Supanova Pop Culture Expo.
Nancy Cartwright, now 57 years old, has been playing the role of ten-year-old Bart for 26 years now and shows no signs of slowing down. The Simpsons, of course, is a pop culture juggernaught. It’s both the longest running American sitcom and longest running American animated program, and has every earned accolade imaginable, including a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
What better excuse to revisit some of Bart’s best moments?
1. Bart vs Australia
Despite the fact the show isn’t made by Australians, when we one day have to capture the spirit of our nation within a time capsule, right next to a copy of The Castle must be The Simpsons episode ‘Bart vs Australia’.
Hitting screens right around the time The Simpsons were reaching their peak, ‘Bart vs Australia’ is one of the highlights of Season 6, and is the one of the best representations of our nation ever captured in media. From our national sport of knifey-spoony, to an explanation of our currency system, it’s an episode that should be written into our constitution.
2. Do The Bartman
Any song that starts with the line “Yo! Hey, what’s happenin’ dude? I’m a guy with a rep for being rude” is destined to be an absolute chart smasher.
The 1990 song ‘Do The Bartman’ exists so that future generations can discover it in an attempt to understand their ancestors. The song was secretly penned by The King of Pop, Michael Jackson, and features terrible rapping by Bart Simpson, as well as a poorly-animated six-minute music video. Despite never being released as a single in the United States, it scored a ton of radio airplay, and it went to number in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Norway, and the United Kingdom.
You can watch it in all its glory below.
3. Starting A Fight With The White Stripes
The Simpsons have always had a string musical guests, from The Smashing Pumpkins to Lady Gaga to The Who. There’s been some fantastic musical moments, but none beats this for Bart.
In Season 18, it turns out that Bart is a musical prodigy. He gets behind a drum kit, and no-one can stop him becoming one of the best jazz drummers in all of Springfield. It’s magic the first time he gets behind the kit, playing a few simple beats before paryoding The White Stripes’ music video for ‘The Hardest Button To Button’. While drumming his way down the street he runs into Jack & Meg White, where things turn sour.
4. Bart’s Boy Band
Nancy Cartwright has risen to fame as the voice of Bart Simpson, but it’s not the only voice she has provided for the show. While not contributing the biggest amount compared to other cast members, she still voices characters like Todd Flanders, Nelson Muntz, Kearney and Ralph Wiggum.
Cartwright has also done voice work for other shows, playing Chuckie in Rugrats and Rufus in Kim Possible. The woman is a living legend, and so she should be. She is 3/4ths of the Party Posse! Yvan Eht Nioj!
You can see Nancy Cartwright at Supanova 2015, taking place from Friday June 19 – Sunday June 21 at Sydney Showground, Olympic Park.
