It may seem like yesterday, but "The Simpsons" mural in Springfield is nearly a decade old.
Cowabunga!
Many things have changed in 10 years, but two constants endure.
"The Simpsons", an animated sitcom on Fox, is still on the air — 36 seasons and counting.
And, Springfield, Oregon is the undisputed true setting for the satirical story of the dysfunctional middle-class American family and their neighbors.
Don't have a cow you other Springfields, but eat our shorts!
Clues have existed since the show's first episode, but in 2007 the show’s creator Matt Groening, who grew up in Portland, sent a plaque with an eerily prophetic cartoon image to Springfield city officials that read, “Yo to Springfield, Oregon — The real Springfield! Your pal, Matt Groening, proud Oregonian.” The plaque now hangs in the mayor's office at Springfield City Hall.
If that isn’t evidence enough, seven years later Groening agreed to collaborate on a mural to grace downtown Springfield.
In 2014 a crew from Old City Artists spent four days painting a 15-by-30-foot mural on the west wall of the Emerald Arts Center on Fifth Street between Main and A Streets.
Some of the features of the painting, like the spotted owl, beaver and Three Sisters Mountains reportedly came directly from Groening.
When the work was completed on August 25, 2014, the city shut down Fifth Street and threw a huge block party featuring Yeardley Smith, the Emmy-winning voice of Lisa Simpson. The voice actress and entrepreneur flew in from California to dedicate the mural and leave her hand, shoe prints and name in cement, Hollywood Walk of Fame style.
According to Springfield Assistant City Manager Niel Laudati, Smith was initially reluctant to leave her footprints for posterity but was persuaded to step in the wet concrete wearing a pair of shoes from her personally designed Marchez Vous footwear line.
Speaking of Smith — you really can’t make this stuff up — she also met her future husband that week. Springfield Police Captain Dan Grice assigned himself to be Smith’s bodyguard during the festivities and the pair started making goo-goo eyes at each other during the visit. They were married in 2022.
Then-city councilor, now mayor, Sean VanGordon remembers seeing Smith on a flight back to Eugene weeks after the unveiling and wondered at the time why the TV star was making another trip to the area so soon after the previous visit. Who knew?
Since its creation, the mural has been a huge hit. TripAdvisor ranks the location as the number one thing to visit in Springfield. A typical day sees people from all over the world stopping by the location to make a selfie in front of the painting and more importantly, spend money at nearby businesses. The renaissance of downtown Springfield may owe some of its success to the mural.
“I think we really knew we were on to something when people were doing their graduation and Christmas card photos there,” Laudati said.
“There's only one thing to do at a moment like this: strut!” ~ Bart Simpson.
A 10-year birthday is cause for celebration and Springfield officials are making plans to do just that.
The 5th Annual Premier Springfield Block Party scheduled for Friday, Sept. 6 from 4-9 p.m. will also be a birthday party for the official Simpsons mural.
Main Street from 3rd to 7th will be blocked off to provide space for activities, food and beverages. Admittance to the event is free.
Visit https://www.springfieldblockparty.com/ for details.
“We are actually going to have a poster of the mural to hand out to those who attend the Block Party, along with, of course, donuts,” said Elyse Ditzel, public information officer for the City of Springfield.
¡Ay, Caramba! Donuts…is there anything they can’t do?
Contact photographer Chris Pietsch at chris.pietsch@registerguard.com , or follow him on Twitter @ChrisPietsch and Instagram @chrispietsch
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Looking back: Happy tenth birthday to 'The Simpsons' mural in Springfield
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