The Great Money Caper
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"The Great Money Caper" is the seventh episode of the twelfth season of The Simpsons. It aired on December 10, 2000.
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[edit] Plot
The family goes to a magic themed restaurant. Once there, Bart becomes so fascinated with magic that he wants a magic set. Unfortunately, a sturgeon falls from the sky onto the family car's hood, which is severely damaged. Homer and Bart start their magic show as a way to make money, but the act becomes a failure, and he leaves Bart to do the rest of the act on his own. Bart is left out on the street, and people such as a Michael Jackson look-a-like begin giving him money so he can get a lift on public transportation. As Homer drives home, he sees Bart in a taxi, and when he gets home he sees him eating a steak dinner. The two find that they can make a lot of money grifting, and start their grifting business, with help from Grampa. The grifting business is destroyed when Homer and Bart are arrested, and scam their way out of the problem by using Groundskeeper Willie as the scapegoat. It is not long, however, before the citizens of Springfield reveal themselves to have actually staged this trial to teach Homer and Bart a lesson, and before Lisa can say why, Otto says that the citizens should go surfing, and they do.
[edit] Trivia
- Some scenes which have been removed after the original broadcast of the episode:
- When the Simpsons are watching a live broadcast of the arrest of Groundskeeper Willie, the scene originally ended with Homer suggesting to his family that "we all go to sleep with some Chloroform", at which point he pours some onto a rag and sniffs it.
- When Homer attempted to do the very same thing inside the courtroom, instead of Chloroform he finds a bottle of Mountain Dew in his hand. He screamed "Mountain Dew?! Awwww...".
- This is the fourth episode where Homer has been mistaken for a bum, the other three being Homer Loves Flanders (at the homeless shelter), The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson (waiting in front of his car), and Hello Gutter, Hello Fadder (by Ron Howard's son).
- Homer's amazement as to why the entire town had nothing better to do than pull off a scam is obviously the writer's jab at the preposterousness of the "Cheers" episode in which the entire city of Boston joined in with Gary's Old Town Tavern to pull a prank on Sam.
- In a freeze frame moment, it is possible to see that the FBI card the grifter flashes is a fake.
- Apparently Bart did the cake grift 3 times during the episode. The first time to Kent Brockman, the second time to the car repairman, and the final time is not actually seen but mentioned by Devon Bradley.
[edit] Cultural references
- The title is a spoof on the movie The Great Muppet Caper.
- The plot is similar to the 1973 film Paper Moon. This reference is indicated when Homer and Bart attempt to fool Ned Flanders with a presumably false Bible from the recently deceased Maude Flanders, Flanders begins to realize it is a scam and says "Wait a minute, this is awfully like that movie Paper Moon!"
- Grandpa's line about being able to afford a "crazy stripper wife" is a reference to Anna Nicole Smith (who started out as a stripper) and her marriage to J. Howard Marshall.
- Grandpa explains that the con they attempt at the old folks' home was from The Sting II "so nobody knows about it!"
[edit] External links
| The Simpsons Portal |
- "The Great Money Caper" episode capsule at The Simpsons Archive
- "The Great Money Caper" at the Internet Movie Databasees:The Great Money Caper
