Hungry, Hungry Homer

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The Simpsons episode
"Hungry, Hungry Homer"
Image:Cabf09.jpg
Episode no.	262
Prod. code	CABF09
Orig. airdate	March 4, 2001
Show runner(s)	Mike Scully
Written by	John Swartzwelder
Directed by	Nancy Kruse
Chalkboard	"Temptation Island was not a sleazy piece of crap"
Couch gag	The Simpsons are black belts in karate. They use their hands to chop up the couch while Homer does an elaborate flip and switches on the TV with his remote.
Guest star(s)	Stacy Keach as Howard K. Duff VIII
Season 12 November 1 2000 – May 20 2001
Treehouse of Horror XI A Tale of Two Springfields Insane Clown Poppy Lisa the Tree Hugger Homer vs. Dignity The Computer Wore Menace Shoes The Great Money Caper Skinner's Sense of Snow HOMR Pokey Mom Worst Episode Ever Tennis the Menace Day of the Jackanapes New Kids on the Blecch Hungry, Hungry Homer Bye Bye Nerdie Simpson Safari Trilogy of Error I'm Goin' to Praiseland Children of a Lesser Clod Simpsons Tall Tales
List of all The Simpsons episodes
Seasons
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"Hungry, Hungry Homer" is the fifteenth episode of the twelfth season of The Simpsons. It aired on March 4, 2001.

1 Plot
2 Notes
3 Cultural references
4 External links

[edit] Plot

The Simpson family visits Blockoland, a theme park which is completely made of blocks (a parody of Legoland). Lisa is ripped off when her Eiffel Tower kit has a missing Blocko piece. In response, Homer "sticks up for the little guy", and he gets Lisa the piece she needs. He also stands up for the little guy by helping Bart get a girlfriend for an upcoming school dance and helps Marge get two free hair streaks. When he tries to help Lenny by getting him a refund on his tickets for the Springfield Isotopes, Homer encounters the Isotopes' owner Howard K. Duff VIII. The owner refuses to give Homer a refund but in his haste to leave, Homer discovers evidence that the Isotopes are moving to Albuquerque. Duff insists that they are not moving and he has Duffman drug Homer to cover up the truth.

Homer is shocked and attempts to alert the media to the plan, but Duff removes all traces of the evidence Homer found. The journalists dismiss Homer's story and call him a liar. In response, Homer stages a hunger strike in which he chains himself to a pole near Duff Stadium in order to force the owners of the team to admit they are moving to Albuquerque. He attracts a great deal of attention so the team decides to move him into the ballpark and exploit his popularity using the name "Hungry, Hungry Homer." Eventually Homer becomes so thin and sickly that the team decides to get rid of him, replacing him with a man who drinks a bucket of paint but falls down twitching doing so. In a public ceremony, the team's owner unchains him and offers him a free hot dog. Homer realizes the hot dog is topped with Southwestern ingredients and this proves the team really is moving to Albuquerque. The crowd then takes notice that the hot dogs are even wrapped with "Albuquerque Isotopes" paper and are enraged. Howard K. Duff VIII tries to continue his denials but even Duffman turns against him. Homer's hunger strike is over as he celebrates under a shower of food thrown by the cheering fans who now praised him as a hero. He eats the food as well.

Meanwhile, the mayor of Albuquerque decides to abandon his plan to steal the Isotopes and instead plans to purchase the Dallas Cowboys and make them play baseball because, as he menacingly says in the final shot of the episode, "for I am the MAYOR OF ALBUQUERQUE!"

[edit] Notes

Duffman's first name is Sid, but in the season eleven episode Pygmoelian, the actor's name was Larry. It is learned in later episodes (namely Jaws Wired Shut and Marge and Homer Turn a Couple Play), however, that Duffman is played by different actors (who have all died), or in the case of "Marge and Homer Turn a Couple Play", there are multiple Duffmen who look, act, and sound alike (but this is kept a secret so as not to disillusion children).
The hair salon is called Hairy Shearers, after The Simpsons voice actor and former SNL castmember Harry Shearer.
Although purely fictional at the time, the Albuquerque Isotopes became a real baseball team in 2003 as a minor league affiliate of the Florida Marlins. The name was inspired by this episode (although New Mexico does have a connection with nuclear energy) and was selected by fans.
On subsequent airings of this episode, the ending with the mayor of Albuquerque choosing another city for his baseball team was cut in syndication, so the episode ends with Homer celebrating in the stadium. The original ending with the sinister mayor is still shown in the UK and Australia.
In the scene where Duffman offers Homer a hot dog, the ingredient placement changes in different shots.
This is the only time Homer tries to strangle Millhouse. Mainly, he does that to Bart.

[edit] Cultural references

The episode title is a reference to the game Hungry Hungry Hippos which, coincidentally, had a hippo named Homer.
Blockoland is a parody of Legoland.
The ghost of César Chávez visits Homer during his hunger strike, but takes the appearance of César Romero, because Homer doesn't know what Chavez looks like.
The scene where Bart sees Homer lying on top of the red dog house is a direct reference to Charlie Brown and Snoopy. Bart even utters Charlie Brown's signature line "Good Grief".