¡Ay Caramba! The Simpsons in Argentina

If you find anyone who does not instantly recognise the faces of Homer, Marge, Bart and Lisa, they are clearly from another planet. Matt Groening’s animated series, which hit the screens for the first time in the early 90s, is loved worldwide, and The Simpsons hold a particularly special place in the hearts of Argentines.

The cult family managed to escape the wrath of the Argentine public when an episode due to be aired in 2008 was abruptly cancelled due to distasteful comments about former president Juan Domingo Perón. It suggested that he was a villain in the Dirty War, a name given to the turbulent period between 1976 and 1983, when the military violently ruled the country.

The scene depicts a conversation in Moe’s Tavern, where Carl, Homer’s drinking buddy is heard saying “I’d like a military dictatorship like Perón’s. When he disappeared you, you stayed disappeared.” Eva Perón is then referred to as Madonna by Lenny.

Despite that, Argentine fans were in a frenzy to see the episode online and it became the most viewed show ever, generating all kinds of debate and even attracting new viewers.

Diego, editor of the blog Pudrete Flanders (literally ‘Fuck-you Flanders’), explains why the episode was not so ill-received.

“What seems to be an error from The Simpsons is actually a really smart comment, because a lot of people here in Argentina believe that Perón’s government was not as good as his fans want everyone to think.”

Aside from politics, Diego goes on to emphasise that The Simpsons is right up there with the best of Argentine shows and has been highly revered for over a decade.

“The average Argentine family can relate to the Simpsons, because in many families here the husband works while the wife takes care of the house and children. Also lots of families have children like Bart, who would not exactly get a medal for their behaviour.”

More remarkable is that The Simpsons manages to unite people from contrasting social backgrounds. Lucas Rubinich, researcher of sociology at the University of Buenos Aires interviewed a range of teenagers in various barrios in Buenos Aires, and found that Homer Simpson was their most loved fictional character.

“The Simpsons, through humour, put the challenges of everyday life to the forefront,” he asserts. “And the storylines unite the son of a working class family from La Matanza and the son of high-earning professionals in Barrio Norte. Homer shows the characteristics and faults of the everyday man in a funny way. He is exaggerated but does what he can.”

The cartoon reached such levels of popularity, that Duff, Springfield’s fictional beer and favourite tipple of Homer, has just been launched in Argentina. The 350ml are bottles are available in various outlets throughout the country and can also be ordered online.

The links with Argentina do not stop there. The voices of Krusty, Grandpa, Willy, Professor Fink, Fat Tony and Snake in the Latin American version are all dubbed by an Argentine from Córdoba, Sebastián Llapur. He went to the ‘mecca of dubbing’ – Mexico – in search of work over ten years ago. He soon met Humberto Vélez, the original voice of Homer in the Latin American version of the show, who invited him to audition as Grandpa. He explains that it was hard to play the voice of an old man, especially as the former voice belonged to a man of over 70. But he adapted and has now been working with the series since 2003.

Father of the series, Groening, went as far as saying that The Simpsons was more popular in Argentina than anywhere else in the world. He told how he saw graffiti all over Buenos Aires in honour of the show and bought the whole collection of chocolates related to the programme, one for each of the main characters. On his latest trip to Argentina, he was spotted with Argentine girlfriend, Agustina Picasso, no doubt fuelling suspicions that he made the comments to please his other half.

Diego tends to disagree. “I don’t believe that Matt Groening says that everywhere he goes. The episodes are amongst the most watched on TV, even the old ones. There are lots of toys and confectionaries sold, and many bars, kioscos and restaurants are named after characters. Some mobile phone companies even offer a ‘Simpsons pack’.”

In one episode, Lisa’s experience as student president parodied Alan Parker’s ‘Evita’, but something bound to delight Simpsons fans in Argentina and attract even more fans would be an episode actually set in the country. Diego thinks that it would showcase the Obelisk, the Casa Rosada and the Caminito, and believes that the style wouldn’t be that different from the episode set in Brazil, where their Latin neighbours portrayed as somewhat crazy and haphazard. “Because that’s how the Northern Hemisphere sees us, isn’t it?” he says cheekily.

“There is also a resemblance between some Simpsons characters and some politicians here,” he suggests. “Like the Springfield mayor, corruptus in extremis, the police and the crazy TV crews.”

 

Visit the blogspot http://www.pudreteflanders.com/blog/ for frequent updates on The Simpsons in Argentina, and if the thought of a real-life Duff beer wets your whistle, visit www.duffargentina.com to find out where you can get one.