--- title: The Simpsons at 25: TIME Looks Back description: But don't have a cow, man canonical: https://time.com/3636198/the-simpsons-25-years/ author: Dan Hirschhorn article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-12-17T12:00:07.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:49:45.526Z article:section: History og:title: The Simpsons Make It to 25 Years og:description: But don't have a cow, man og:url: https://time.com/3636198/the-simpsons-25-years/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8d626f94b8c6d113/69876f213c16394d03450ab4/simp_homer_and_marge_015f_hires2.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Homer and Marge og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Simpsons Make It to 25 Years twitter:description: But don't have a cow, man twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8d626f94b8c6d113/69876f213c16394d03450ab4/simp_homer_and_marge_015f_hires2.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # _The Simpsons_ Make It to 25 Years by [Dan Hirschhorn](https://time.com/author/dan-hirschhorn/) ## Dan Hirschhorn Dec 17, 2014 12:00 PM UTC  Homer and Marge Simpson Homer and Marge SimpsonFox by [Dan Hirschhorn](https://time.com/author/dan-hirschhorn/) ## Dan Hirschhorn Dec 17, 2014 12:00 PM UTC It was 25 years ago Wednesday that America first met _The Simpsons_ for real. Sure, some folks had seen a rough version of the family during sketches on _The Tracey Ullman Show_. But Dec. 17, 1989, marked the first actual episode, a dedicated time of the week for Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie to enter Americans’ living rooms. It’s been quite a ride since then, with the show becoming such a cultural touchstone that [TIME’s James Poniewozik called it “The Best TV Show Ever” in 1999](http://www.nohomers.net/content/info/articles/14.shtml). In the decade between the premier and that declaration, it transformed from a show about trouble-making Bart into what was really a show about Homer, America’s lovable oaf of a dad—and, of course, about the entire universe of characters creator Matt Groening brought to Springfield. **MORE:** [Hello Simpsons World, goodbye rest of your life](http://time.com/3018428/hello-simpsons-world-goodbye-the-rest-of-your-life/) Twenty-five years and more than 550 episodes later, true fans know _The Simpsons_ has long since passed it’s prime (it went downhill after season nine). But with its 26th season underway, the 25th anniversary is a fitting time to take stock of its unprecedented staying power. Marking the show’s 100th episode in 1994, [TIME’s Richard Corliss noted some of the things that make the show special](http://time.com/vault/issue/1994-05-02/page/79/), and they’re just as fitting today. Here’s just one of them: --- > “” --- **_Read the rest here, in the TIME Vault:_** [Simpsons Forever!](http://time.com/vault/issue/1994-05-02/page/79/) ### Meet the Voices of The Simpsons  Dan Castellaneta is the voice of Homer, the bumbling patriarch of the Simpson family. He also voices other adult males such as Grampa Simpson, Groundskeeper Willie and Krusty the Clown. Michael Tran—FilmMagic/Getty Images; Fox  Julie Kavner voices Marge Simpson as well as her twin sisters Patty and Selma and their estranged mother Jacqueline. Michael N. Todaro—Getty Images; Fox  Nancy Cartwright voices many of the male children in The Simpsons. She primarily voices Bart, but also gives life to Nelson Muntz, Todd Flanders and Ralph Wiggum, amongst others. Amanda Edwards—WireImage/Getty Images; Fox  Yeardley Smith is the voice of Lisa, the brains of the Simpson clan. Imeh Akpanudosen—Getty Images; Fox  Hank Azaria plays the town barkeep, Moe Szyslak, as well as a wide cast of male characters ranging from Chief Wiggum and Apu to Duffman (can't breathe! oh no!). Brad Barket—Getty Images; Fox  The other everyman of the series, Harry Shearer gives voice to Ned Flanders, Mr. Burns, Principal Skinner and a host of other Springfield residents. Dave J. Hogan—Getty Images; Fox  Pamela Hayden voices Milhouse, Bart's sidekick, as well as some other male children in Springfield like Jimbo Jones and Rod Flanders. Frazer Harrison—Getty Images; Fox  The late Marcia Wallace was the voice of elementary school teacher Edna Krabappel. Angela Weiss—Getty Images; Fox  Russi Taylor voiced some of the kids at Springfield Elementary such as Martin Prince, Terri and Sherri, and German exchange student Üter Zörker. David Livingston—Getty Images; Fox ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3636198/the-simpsons-25-years/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3636198/the-simpsons-25-years/"},"headline":"The Simpsons Make It to 25 Years","datePublished":"2014-12-17T12:00:07.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:49:45.526Z","description":"But don't have a cow, man","url":"https://time.com/3636198/the-simpsons-25-years/","keywords":["Television","The Simpsons"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8d626f94b8c6d113/69876f213c16394d03450ab4/simp_homer_and_marge_015f_hires2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Dan Hirschhorn","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/dan-hirschhorn/"}],"articleSection":"History","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8d626f94b8c6d113/69876f213c16394d03450ab4/simp_homer_and_marge_015f_hires2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Homer and Marge","caption":"Homer and Marge","creditText":"Fox","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/history/","name":"History"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3636198/the-simpsons-25-years/","name":"The Simpsons Make It to 25 Years"}}]}] ```