Ep. 6 - The Nutty Professor
Adam and Nate explore Jerry Lewis’s The Nutty Professor (1963), who helped inspire the voice and look of Professor Frink on The Simpsons, mm-hey. It’s a colorful, cartoony comedy filled with inventive filmmaking and Rat-Pack swagger. But watching this retelling of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, we can’t help but talk about Lewis’s real-life duality, too.
Also in this episode:
Exploring the cinematography, editing, and writing of the original auteur director
Professor Frink’s origin, evolution, and best bits
The process of creating a new Simpsons character
The rise, fall, and dark side of Jerry Lewis
Next week, Adam and Nate talk about what they’ve learned so far about parody on The Simpsons and explore their growing database of 1,500+ movie references.
Every Reference to The Nutty Professor on The Simpsons
By our count in The Simpsons Movie Reference Database, The Nutty Professor has been directly referenced in 5 episodes of the first 13 seasons of The Simpsons, including 3 scene parodies and 2 smaller references. The first reference appears in “Old Money” (S2E17) in 1991, 28 years after the release of the movie.
Scene & Character Parodies
Old Money (S2E17): When Professor Frink first appeared in the script for this episode, he was written as a generic mad scientist character, asking for Abe Simpsons’ money. But when Hank Azaria read it aloud, he chose to do an impression of Professor Kelp. The animators updated their design to look a little more like Jerry Lewis’s nutty professor, and the rest is history.
Flaming Moe’s (S3E10): When Professor Frink analyzes the Flaming Moe, the gas chromatograph finds that the secret ingredient is love, much to Frink’s chagrin. Wood and Martyn’s I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide calls this scene out as a specific reference to The Nutty Professor, although we didn’t find a scene that quite matches it. (Unconfirmed)
The Last Temptation of Homer (S5E9): When Bart gets glasses, ergonomic shoes, and a throat spray, he looks and sounds like Jerry Lewis, most notably in his role as Professor Kelp.
Grampa vs. Sexual Inadequacy (S6E10): When we saw the twist ending of The Nutty Professor, both Adam and Nate immediately thought of this episode. Kelp’s father begins selling his transformation formula as a tonic to improve marriages. We’re not sure if this is a direct reference or not, but it sure sounds familiar.
But we do know what happens to Professor Frink when he drinks Simpson and Son’s Revitalizing Tonic—he turns into Buddy Love, just like the movie!
The Blunder Years (S13E5): And that’s not the only time that Frink transforms into a suave version of himself. At the beginning of this episode, Mesmerino hypnotizes the good professor to become a “make-out artist,” and he goes through a much more dramatic transformation this time. Much like the first transformation scene in the movie, Frink looks pretty distressed!
Bonus: Other Jerry Lewis References
Like Father, Like Clown (S3E6) & Black Widower (S3E21): Jerry Lewis’s rise to fame came mostly during his musical and comedy partnership with Dean Martin, but eventually their egos caused a rift between them in the mid 1950s. At the 1976 MDA Telethon, which Lewis hosted for TK years, Frank Sinatra surprised Lewis with a special guest—Dean Martin. This reunion became a defining moment of television history, which The Simpsons writers room had as posters on their walls and referenced in not one but two episodes of season 3.
Treehouse of Horror XIV (S15E1): While season 15 is usually outside the focus of the podcast, we’d be remiss to not mention that Jerry Lewis would eventually guest star as Professor Frink’s father in ‘Frinkenstein’.
Extra Credit
Looking for more like this or an interesting double feature? Here are our recommendations.
From Nate: The Mask (1994) & Man on the Moon (1999)
From Adam: The King of Comedy (1982) & Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond (2017)
Further Reading & Viewing
Ephemera: Poster for Docteur Jerry et Mister Love, Paramount Pictures, 1963. The French-language summary on this poster is what Adam read so elegantly on the podcast.
Article: Lynn Hirschberg, “What’s So Funny about Jerry Lewis?” Rolling Stone, October 28, 1982. In this page-turner of a profile, Lewis talks at length about his “split personality” when on and off the set.
Video: Jenni Matz, “Hank Azaria Interview,“ Television Academy Foundation, April 6, 2015. In this wide ranging interview with voice actor Hank Azaria, he speaks about his work voicing several Simpsons characters, including Professor Frink, Moe, Apu, Snake, Lou, Kirk Van Houten, and the Comic Book Guy.
Article: Dave Kehr, “Jerry Lewis, a Jester Both Silly and Stormy, Dies at 91,” The New York Times, August 20, 2017. This obituary gives a broad overview of Lewis’s career, including his many accomplishments and his falling out with Dean Martin, and others.
Article: Megan McLachlan, “Hank Azaria on How ‘The Simpsons’ Has Evolved Into a Show That’s More Than About the Family,“ Awards Daily, August 28, 2020. Azaria talks about Professor Frink and other Simpsons characters on the occasion of an Emmy nomination for his performance as Frink in “Frinkcoin” (S31E13).
Video: Lydia Hicks, “The Complete Professor Frink Timeline,” Simpsons Theory, December 28, 2021. Ever want to see how Frink’s life has played out in order?
Article: Julie Miller, Amy Ziering & Kerby Dick, “Jerry Lewis’s Costars Speak Out: ‘He Grabbed Me. He Began to Fondle Me. I Was Dumbstruck,’“ Vanity Fair, February 23, 2022. This is a tough but important read, given all of the praise heaped up on Lewis over the years. Several co-stars and acquaintances came forward for this article to reveal not only Lewis’s sexual harassment and assaults, but also his retaliation whenever he was refused. Combined with the 1982 Rolling Stone profile above, this article certainly gives this Jekyll and Hyde tale a more sinister undertone.
Wiki Entry: “Jonathan Frink, Jr.,” Simpsons Wiki, accessed October 29, 2022. Still want to know more about the inventor of the Gamble-Tron 2000 and the Frog Exaggerator? The Simpsons Wiki has you covered, of course.
