A Streetcar Named Desire with Dave Shumka
Adam and Nate rope comedian and podcaster Dave Shumka (Stop Podcasting Yourself) into watching A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) alongside its Simpsons musical parody in “A Streetcar Named Marge” (S4E2). Does Elia Kazan’s actor’s showcase hold up on its 75th anniversary?
Also in this episode:
Stuntcasting: Which Springfieldian should play Stanley, Blanche, Stella, and Paperboy Steve?
Marlon Brando’s sexy, scary, marble-mouthed performance
Breaking down that “Stella!” moment that launched a thousand parodies
Should “Oh, Streetcar!” become a real musical?
Next time, Adam and Nate celebrate spooky season with The Fly (1958) and "Treehouse of Horror VIII" (S9E4).
For more of Dave’s work check out Stop Podcasting Yourself, a comedy podcast that Adam has been listening to for 17 years!
Every Simpsons Reference to A Streetcar Named Desire
By our count, A Streetcar Named Desire has been directly referenced 3 times in the first 13 seasons of The Simpsons. The first reference appears in “A Streetcar Named Marge” (S4E2) from 1992, 41 years after the release of the movie.
Plot & Scene References
A Streetcar Named Marge (S4E2): In this episode, Marge takes the role of Blanche DuBois in a musical production of A Streetcar Named Desire called “Oh, Streetcar!” This offers a nearly front-to-back parody of the movie and play, albeit with some surprising highlights and omissions for comedic effect. (For example, did you remember that the third lead Stella is played by Helen Lovejoy and the fourth lead Mitch is played by Lionel Hutz?)
One of the biggest omissions comes in the “bottle scene” that Marge and Flanders keep rehearsing, which in the movie ends with Stanley raping Blanche. The Simpsons ommitted that plot point for obvious reasons, but it does make it that much more ridiculous when Marge tells director Llewellyn Sinclair, “I just don’t see what’s so bad about Stanley.“
Meanwhile, Blanche’s brief encounter with a newsboy in the movie and play is stretched into a full musical number in “Oh, Streetcar!” Is this a commentary on how mega-musicals of the era milk their source material for all they’re worth—I’m looking at you Cats—or is it just a great excuse to have Apu sing? Maybe a little from column A, a little from column B.
Even Marge’s big special effects number, complete with smoke and lasers has an analog in the movie, when Blanche frantically runs around the apartment turning off the lights and drawing the blinds to hide her age.
In classic musical fashion, Blanche’s melancholy final line of the movie—“I’ve always relied on the kindness of strangers”—is transformed into an upbeat grand finale with the full cast singing and dancing.
Secrets of a Successful Marriage (S5E22): Of course, the most well-known moment in the entire movie is Marlon Brando screaming “Stella!” at the foot of the staircase, trying to win back the wife he recently abused. This moment is not only recreated twice in “A Streetcar Named Marge”—once musically, and once in prose—but also in Smithers’s dreams in this episode. With a touch of camp, Smithers imagines his relationship with Mr. Burns as a mashup between Streetcar and another Tennessee Williams drama, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
Small References
Marge Be Not Proud (S7E11): Among many other punny video games, the Try-N-Save carries one called “A Streetcar Named Death.”
