Principal Charming

{{Distinguish|Superintendent Chalmers{{!}}Superintendent Charming}} {{Use American English|date=January 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=September 2023}} {{Infobox Simpsons episode | caption = | season = 2 | episode = 14 | director = [[Mark Kirkland]] | writer = [[David M. Stern]] | guests = *[[Marcia Wallace]] as [[Mrs Krabappel]] | production = 7F15 | airdate = {{Start date|1991|02|14}} | blackboard = "I will not belch the national anthem" | couch_gag = When the Simpsons sit on the couch, it opens into a [[sofa bed]]. | commentary = [[Matt Groening]]<br>[[Mike Reiss]]<br>[[Mark Kirkland]] | prev = [[Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment]] | next = [[Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?]] }} "'''Principal Charming'''" is the fourteenth episode of the [[The Simpsons season 2|second season]] of the American animated television series ''[[The Simpsons]]''. It originally aired on [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]] in the United States on February 14, 1991. In this episode, [[Marge Simpson|Marge]] asks [[Homer Simpson|Homer]] to find a husband for her sister [[Patty and Selma|Selma]]. Homer invites [[Principal Skinner]] to dinner after [[Bart Simpson|Bart]] gets caught vandalizing the school's lawn. Skinner's dinner with the Simpsons fails to go as planned when he instead falls for Selma's twin sister [[Patty and Selma|Patty]].

The episode was written by [[David M. Stern]] and directed by [[Mark Kirkland]]. The characters [[Hans Moleman]], [[Groundskeeper Willie]] and [[List of recurring The Simpsons characters#Squeaky-Voiced Teen|Squeaky Voiced Teen]] make their first appearances on ''The Simpsons'' in this episode. "Principal Charming" features cultural references to films such as ''[[Vertigo (film)|Vertigo]]'', ''[[Gone with the Wind (film)|Gone with the Wind]]'', and ''[[The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939 film)|The Hunchback of Notre Dame]]''.

Since airing, the episode has received mostly positive reviews from television critics. It acquired a [[Nielsen ratings|Nielsen rating]] of 14.1, and was the highest-rated show on Fox the week it aired.

==Plot== After attending the wedding of a coworker, [[Patty and Selma|Selma]] begs her sister [[Marge Simpson|Marge]] to help her find a husband. Marge asks [[Homer Simpson|Homer]] to help find a husband for Selma, but he struggles to find anyone suitable. When [[Bart Simpson|Bart]] is caught spelling his name on the school's lawn by killing the grass with a [[herbicide]], [[Principal Skinner]] summons Homer to his office to discuss the prank. After learning that Skinner is single, Homer invites him to dinner. When Skinner arrives at the Simpsons' house, Homer accidentally introduces him to [[Patty and Selma|Patty]] instead of Selma; Skinner is instantly smitten with her, making Selma feel even worse about her marriage prospects.

Skinner asks Patty for a date, but she is reluctant. Selma encourages her to go on her first date in 25 years and warns her this may be her last chance to marry. Patty does not enjoy her first date with Skinner, but they keep seeing other and eventually bond, much to Selma's chagrin. Because Skinner is distracted by his love for Patty, he allows Bart and the other children to do whatever they want at school. He soon enlists Bart's help to persuade Patty to marry him. At the same time, Homer arranges a date between [[Barney Gumble|Barney]] and Selma, which she reluctantly attends.

Following Bart's lead, Skinner uses an herbicide to write "Marry Me Patty" on the school's lawn. Skinner takes her to the top of the school's bell tower to propose marriage. Patty is flattered, but she declines because she and Selma share a special bond as twin sisters. Patty appreciates Skinner's understanding and [[gentleman]]ly conduct, and admits that were she ever to settle down with a man, she would marry him. After rescuing Selma from her date with Barney, Patty drives her home to their apartment. Meanwhile, Skinner accepts his fate and reasserts his authority over Bart by destroying the entire lawn with herbicide and forcing him to repair the damage by replanting the field seed by seed, much to [[Groundskeeper Willie]]'s satisfaction.

==Production== [[File:Dan Castellaneta cropped.jpg|130px|left|thumb|[[Dan Castellaneta]] provided the voice of several new characters.]]

The episode was written by [[David M. Stern]]<ref name="bbc">{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/simpsons/episodeguide/season2/page14.shtml|title=Principal Charming|access-date=2007-07-30|last1=Martyn |first1=Warren |author-link1=Gary Russell |last2 = Wood |first2=Adrian |author-link2=Gareth Roberts (writer)|year=2000|publisher=BBC|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031004074028/http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/simpsons/episodeguide/season2/page14.shtml|archive-date=2003-10-04|df=mdy-all}}</ref> and directed by [[Mark Kirkland]]. Stern particularly liked writing episodes about Marge and her sisters [[Patty and Selma]]. Executive producer [[Mike Reiss]] said none of the staff members could relate on a personal level to the twins, but Stern "seemed to really hook in to them, so he did some great episodes featuring members of the [[Simpson family#Extended Bouvier family|Bouvier family]]."<ref name="Reiss"/> Due to the episode's romantic theme, the airdate was pushed back to [[Valentine's Day]] on February 14, 1991.<ref name="book">{{cite book|last=Groening|first=Matt|author-link=Matt Groening|editor1-first=Ray|editor1-last=Richmond|editor1-link=Ray Richmond|editor2-first=Antonia|editor2-last=Coffman|title=The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family|edition=1st|year=1997|location=New York|publisher=[[HarperPerennial]]|lccn=98141857|ol=433519M|oclc=37796735|isbn=978-0-06-095252-5|page=[https://archive.org/details/simpsonscomplete00groe/page/49 49]|ref={{harvid|Richmond & Coffman|1997}}|title-link=The Simpsons episode guides#The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family}}</ref> It was, however, ready to be aired several months earlier.<ref name="Reiss">{{cite video |people=Reiss, Mike |date=2002 |title=The Simpsons season 2 DVD commentary for the episode "Principal Charming" |medium=DVD |publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref>

The characters [[Hans Moleman]], [[Groundskeeper Willie]] and [[List of recurring The Simpsons characters#Squeaky-Voiced Teen|Squeaky Voiced Teen]] made their first appearances on the show in "Principal Charming". Willie's role in the episode was to punish Bart by making him re-sod the grass. Originally, Willie was just written as an angry janitor, and the fact that he was Scottish was added during a recording session. [[Dan Castellaneta]] was assigned to do the voice, but he did not know what voice to use. [[Sam Simon]], who was directing at the time, told Castellaneta to use an accent. He first tried using a [[Spain|Spanish]] voice, which Simon felt was too [[cliché]]d. He then tried a "big dumb [[Sweden|Swede]]", which was also rejected. For his third try, he used the voice of an angry Scotsman, which was deemed appropriate enough and was used in the episode.<ref name="Reiss"/> Originally thought by the directors to be a one-shot appearance, Willie has since become a common recurring character.<ref name="Kirkland">{{cite video |people=Kirkland, Mark |date=2002 |title=The Simpsons season 2 DVD commentary for the episode "Principal Charming" |medium=DVD |publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> The show's creator [[Matt Groening]] later revealed that the character was based partially on Angus Crock, a [[kilt]]-wearing chef from the sketch comedy show ''[[Second City Television]]'', who was portrayed by [[Dave Thomas (actor)|Dave Thomas]],<ref name="SoS">{{cite news |url=http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=1143082007/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071023093243/http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=1143082007%2F |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 23, 2007 |title=Groening lifts toilet lid on the real-life Groundskeeper Willie |work=[[Scotland on Sunday]] |date=July 21, 2007 |first=Marc |last=Horne |access-date=2007-08-02 }}</ref> and [[Jimmy Finlayson]], the mustachioed [[Scotland|Scottish]] actor who appeared in thirty-three [[Laurel and Hardy]] films.<ref name="doh">{{cite news |first=Jeremy |last=Simon |title=Wisdom from The Simpsons' 'D'ohh' boy |work=The Daily Northwestern |date=1994-02-11}}</ref> In addition to Willie, Castellaneta also provided the voice of Squeaky Voiced Teen, whose voice is lifted from actor [[Richard Crenna]]'s character Walter Denton in the sitcom ''[[Our Miss Brooks]]''.<ref>Castellaneta, Dan (2004). Commentary for "[[Boy-Scoutz 'n the Hood]]", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Fifth Season'' [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.</ref> Moleman's voice was also provided by Castellaneta. While his driver's license in this episode showed his name as "Ralph Melish," he was later given the name Moleman by Groening, who thought the character looked like a [[Mole (animal)|mole]].<ref name="Groening">{{cite video |people=Groening, Matt |date=2002 |title=The Simpsons season 2 DVD commentary for the episode "Principal Charming" |medium=DVD |publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref>

==Cultural references== The scene with Skinner climbing the bell tower to get a better look of where the sodium tetrasulfate smell is coming from is a reference to the final scene of the 1958 film ''[[Vertigo (film)|Vertigo]]''.<ref name="book"/> Moleman's drivers license says his name is Ralph Melish, a reference to the [[Monty Python]] sketch "The Adventures of Ralph Melish: Hot Dog and Knickers" from the 1973 album ''[[The Monty Python Matching Tie and Handkerchief]]''.<ref name="Mirkin">{{cite video |people=Mirkin, David |date=2004 |title=The Simpsons season 7 DVD commentary for the episode "Secrets of a Successful Marriage" |medium=DVD |publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> While searching for a man worthy of Selma, Homer imagines himself using a computer-enhanced overlay on his vision, similar to characters from the films ''[[Westworld (film)|Westworld]]'', ''[[The Terminator]]'' and ''[[RoboCop]]''.<ref name="bbc"/><ref name="totalfilm"/> Skinner sings the song "[[Inchworm (song)|Inchworm]]" by [[Danny Kaye]] as he rings the bell to Patty and Selma's apartment.<ref name="Groening"/> Skinner carries Patty up the steps of the bell tower as [[Quasimodo]] did with [[Esmeralda (The Hunchback of Notre Dame)|Esmeralda]] in the 1939 film ''[[The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939 film)|The Hunchback of Notre Dame]]''.<ref name="book"/> During the bell tower scene, Skinner exclaims, "You love me! Callooh! Callay!", a reference to [[Jabberwocky]]. Selma sings [[Lisa Simpson|Lisa]] a lullaby version of the song "[[Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)|Brandy]]" by [[Elliot Lurie]].<ref name="bbc"/> When Patty bids farewell to Skinner, she says, "Goodnight, sweet principal", a reference to "Goodnight, sweet prince" from ''[[Hamlet]]''. When Skinner returns to school, he declares that "Tomorrow is another school day!", a reference to the line "Tomorrow is another day!" from the 1939 film ''[[Gone with the Wind (film)|Gone with the Wind]]''.<ref name="book"/> During Stanley and Martha Peterson's wedding, their vows include two lines from [[The Beatles]]' song "[[Martha My Dear]]".

==Reception== In its original broadcast, "Principal Charming" finished thirty-second in the ratings for the week of February 11–17, 1991, with a [[Nielsen ratings|Nielsen rating]] of 14.1, equivalent to approximately thirteen million viewing households. It was the highest-rated show on Fox that week.<ref>{{cite news |title=Nielsen Ratings /Feb. 11–17 |work=Long Beach Press-Telegram |page=B8 |date=February 21, 1991}}</ref>

Since airing, the episode has received mostly positive reviews from television critics. The authors of the book ''I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide'', [[Gary Russell]] and [[Gareth Roberts (writer)|Gareth Roberts]],<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=http://doctorwho.org.nz/archive/tsv51/garyrussell.html|title=Gary Russell: From Peladon to Placebos|author=Preddle, Jon|date=June 1997|magazine=Time Space Visualiser|issue=51|access-date=20 August 2020|publisher=The New Zealand Doctor Who Fan Club|quote=I've just done my first non-fiction book, Oh No It's A Completely Unofficial Simpsons Guide for Virgin, co-authored with Gareth Roberts which has, to be frank, been more of a nightmare than it needed to be [the book was published as I Can't Believe It's An Unofficial Simpsons Guide, with Gary and Gareth writing under the pseudonyms Warren Martyn & Adrian Wood].}}</ref> wrote: "Good fun, with both Patty and Selma gaining a degree of humanity. Bart makes very good use of his new-found freedom as Skinner's pseudo-in-law, much to the annoyance of Groundskeeper Willie, making his first appearance."<ref name="bbc"/>

DVD Movie Guide's Colin Jacobson wrote: "Many shows might have trouble concentrating on secondary characters like Skinner and Patty, but this episode worked nicely. Though the romantic tone could have become sappy, the program managed to stay on the right side of that equation, and it expanded the characters well."<ref name="dvdmg">{{cite web |url=http://www.dvdmg.com/simpsonsseason2.shtml |title=The Simpsons: The Complete Second Season |last=Jacobson |first=Colin |publisher=DVD Movie Guide |access-date=2009-03-23}}</ref> Doug Pratt, a DVD reviewer and ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' contributor, wrote that "the [episode] is heavily character orientated but poignantly comical".<ref name="Pratt">{{cite book |last=Pratt |first=Doug |title=Doug Pratt's DVD: Movies, Television, Music, Art, Adult, and More! |publisher=UNET 2 Corporation |year=2005 |pages=1094–1095 |isbn=9781932916010 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vxmg-LuBTWIC |access-date=2009-04-10}}</ref> A member of the ''[[IGN]]'' staff wrote in a season two review: "There are some real winners to be found in the second season, and I was actually surprised at some of the episodes in the collection because I thought they were later in the series, like [...] 'Principal Charming', where Skinner falls for Patty."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2002/07/22/simpsons-the-the-complete-second-season |title=The Simpsons – The Complete Second Season Review |date=July 22, 2002 |publisher=IGN |access-date=January 15, 2022}}</ref>

Bill Goodykoontz of ''[[The Arizona Republic]]'' said "Principal Charming" was the episode that made it "clear that ''The Simpsons'' wasn't just a smart little cartoon but something much, much more."<ref>{{cite news |title=a&e |last=Goodykoontz |first=Bill |date=December 15, 2002 |work=The Arizona Republic |pages=E3}}</ref> The episode's references to ''Gone with the Wind'' and ''Terminator'' were named the sixth and fifth greatest film references in the history of the show by Nathan Ditum of ''[[Total Film]]''.<ref name="totalfilm">{{cite news |url=https://www.gamesradar.com/the-50-greatest-simpsons-movie-references/ |title=The 50 Greatest Simpsons Movie References |last=Ditum |first=Nathan |date=June 6, 2009 |work=[[Total Film]] |access-date=January 15, 2022}}</ref> Dawn Taylor of The DVD Journal thought the best line of the episode was Moe's line to the depressed Homer: "Homer, lighten up. You're making [[happy hour]] bitterly ironic."<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.dvdjournal.com/reviews/s/simpsons.season02.shtml |title=The Simpsons: The Complete Second Season |last=Taylor |first=Dawn |year=2002 |publisher=The DVD Journal |access-date=2009-03-23}}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{Wikiquote|The_Simpsons/Season_2#Principal_Charming|Principal Charming}} {{Portal|The Simpsons}} * {{Snpp capsule|7F15}} * {{IMDb episode |id=0767445}}

{{The Simpsons episodes|2}} {{Good article}}

[[Category:1991 American television episodes]] [[Category:The Simpsons season 2 episodes]] [[Category:Television episodes directed by Mark Kirkland]]