Ep. 33 - Glengarry Glen Ross
Adam and Nate dig into the backstory of The Simpsons character Gil Gunderson and his debut in “Realty Bites” (S9E9) by watching Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) for the first time. Does this real estate-based whodunnit live up to its reputation as one of the best movies of the 1990s?
Also in this episode:
A superhero team-up of a cast led by the incomparable Jack Lemmon, one-time Simpsons guest star in “The Twisted World of Marge Simpson” (S8E11)
Is this Al Pacino’s last performance as a real human being? (Hooah!)
David Mamet’s snappy dialogue and brass balls
The Neo-Noir stylings of director James Foley, from Madonna music videos to Fear (1996) to Fifty Shades Darker (2017)
Next time, as we enter into spooky season, Matthew Simpson joins the podcast to discuss the completely cursed Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983) and its parodies in “Treehouse of Horror II” (S3E7) and “Treehouse of Horror IV” (S5E5). The frogurt is also cursed.
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Every Simpsons Reference to Glengarry Glen Ross
By our count, Glengarry Glen Ross has been directly referenced 3 times in the first 13 seasons of The Simpsons. The first reference appears in “The Twisted World of Marge Simpson” (S8E11) from 1997, 5 years after the release of the movie.
Scene & Character References
The Twisted World of Marge Simpson (S8E11): When Jack Lemmon guest starred on The Simpsons, they based his character of Frank Ormand on Shelley “The Machine” Levene, his role in this film.
Realty Bites (S9E9): Interestingly, the character of Gil Gunderson is also based on Lemmon’s role as Shelley Levene. This is especially obvious in his initial introduction, when he immediately badgers Marge about “leads,” a key plot point in the movie.
Was the creation of Gil an intentional effort to revive Lemmon’s character from the previous episode, or is it just a coincidence? Unfortunately, we haven’t found any evidence either way.
Small References
Realty Bites (S9E9): Lionel Hutz (in his final appearance voiced by the late Phil Hartman) tells Marge that “cubicles are for closers,” a reference to Alec Baldwin’s famous line, “coffee is for closers” from the film.
Extra Credit
Looking for more like this or an interesting double feature? Here are our recommendations.
From Nate: American Psycho (2000)
From Adam: Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
Further Reading & Viewing
Encyclopedia Entry: “Glengarry Glen Ross (1992),” AFI Catalog.
