Krusty the Clown, or Herschel Schmoikel Krustofski (full name: Herschel Pinkes Remochel Krustofski), is a fictional character in the cartoon The Simpsons, voiced by Dan Castellaneta. Krusty is the long-time clown host of Bart and Lisa's favourite TV show. The TV show is a combination of kiddie variety-television hijinks with a sidekick, and cartoons including the Tom and Jerry parody Itchy and Scratchy. His original sidekick Sideshow Bob has now been replaced by Sideshow Mel.
The character of Krusty was partially inspired by real-life clown "Rusty Nails" who Simpsons creator Matt Groening watched as a child while growing up in Portland, Oregon.
Biography
The episode "Like Father, Like Clown," based on the film The Jazz Singer and first released on October 24, 1991, expanded on his origin. According to it, he was born Herschel Schmoeckel Krustofski and is of Jewish heritage. Krusty is a third generation American. In 1902, Krusty's grandfather Zed Krustofski left Imperial Russia for the United States and gained entry through Ellis Island. His son Hyman Krustofski became an Orthodox rabbi and a leader of his community, whose wise counsel is continually sought. Rabbi Krustofski, voiced by Jackie Mason, hoped that his son would follow in his footsteps (he brags that Herschel is on top of his Yeshiva class). However, Herschel wanted to become a clown because he wanted to make people laugh. Consequently, the Rabbi disowned him. Decades later, Krusty memorably reconciled with his father with the assistance of Bart and Lisa.
It was later revealed Krusty did not have a Bar Mitzvah, for Hyman feared he would violate the sanctity of the rites by "acting up." Krusty had two adult Bar Mitzvahs: a Hollywood gala, then a simple ceremony intended to reconnect with his father.
After leaving New York, Krusty started his 50-year show biz career as a street mime in Tupelo, Mississippi. He then appeared on a variety of Laugh-In style variety shows, but in the 1950s was banned from television for 10 years after saying "pants" on the air, which was not allowed at the time. In the 1960s he finally got his own television show, The Krusty the Klown Show, which featured Krusty discussing current events with serious guests. The interview format got increasingly wacky, and by the 1980s the show had evolved into a children's entertainment show.
Krusty quickly became a multi-millionaire – mostly by mass marketing his name and image to a variety of suspect products and services. In the Simpsons' world, there are everything from Krusty alarm clocks, to Krusty dolls, to Krusty eye wash, and Krusty Klown Kollege (which Homer attended), many of which are owned by Bart. The more dangerous ones include: the Krusty home pregnancy test, which "may cause birth defects"; Krusty's brand of bubble gum, which contains spider eggs (which they knew about) and a deadly virus (which they didn't know about); and Krusty's brand of cereal, which in one episode has a boast on the box first for a jagged metal Krusty-O in each box, and then flesh-eating bacteria in each box. There is only one lawsuit to date regarding these products, the time that Bart ate a jagged metal Krusty-O and had to have his appendix removed. However, it was suggested at the end of the episode that he would sue Krusty again after he ingested the flesh-eating bacteria that was put into the cereal. There is a list of Krusty related products at the end of this page.
His much-abused sidekick, Sideshow Bob, framed him for armed robbery – which resulted in Krusty's brief incarceration. In the interim, Bob ran the show, but was fired when he was identified as the real culprit.
Krusty is a hard-living entertainment veteran who has been down and out several times (always being rescued by the Simpson children) and remains addicted to cigarettes and alcohol (and, in one episode, Percodan). His show was canceled once after the debut of Gabbo the ventriloquist dummy, who was so popular Krusty was driven out of business. Bart managed to get the Gabbo show cancelled when he sneaked into the studio an switched on the camera during what was supposed to be a commercial break, revealing ventriloquist Arthur Crandall saying "All the children in Springfield are S.O.B.s" through Gabbo. A comeback special for Krusty was ultimately held, in which Krusty's many Hollywood friends bailed him out.
In 1996, after an IRS bust for tax evasion which resulted in his bankruptcy, Krusty faked his death and lived briefly as sailor Rory B. Bellows. Krusty insured Bellows's life in his own name and then staged an accident to "kill" Bellows, collecting the money to rebuild his life.
He seems to retire from and then get back into showbiz repeatedly throughout his career. His last retirement was almost a permanent one because of recently-paroled Sideshow Bob's latest scheme – wiring plastique explosives to a hypnotized Bart and sending him up on stage. However, a last minute change of heart at Krusty's touching mention of him in a speech waylaid Bob's plan (as well as a last minute rescue by Krusty's chain smoking chimp, Mr. Teeny).
Recent history
It has been noted that Krusty was supposedly illiterate in "Krusty Gets Busted ," first released on April 29, 1990, where Sideshow Bob framed him for armed robbery. He has since been seen reading with varying ability (many fans have noted that in the episode "Lisa's First Word", he is shown reading a wire service article in 1983. Through his unnamed mother Krusty is reportedly an older half-brother to actor Luke Perry. His only other known relatives are his father, his grandfather, and his illegitimate daughter Sophie, whose voice actor was Drew Barrymore. She was introduced in "Insane Clown Poppy ," first released on November 12, 2000, as the result of an affair with a female soldier during the Gulf War. Although Sophie attempts to seek him out, the mother developed a bitter hatred of clowns and displays it with her choice of artwork, all of which depict violence being done to clowns.
His profligate spending has resulted in encounters with the local Mafia, not to mention schemes such as running a clown college to turn out clone Krustys to appear at birthday parties, and running a concentration camp-like summer camp called "Kamp Krusty". He willingly sells out to commercial interests to sell all manner of second-rate goods – he even has a generic spoken endorsement: "I heartily endorse this event or product!" Another example of the little attention he pays to the things he is involved in is the unfortunate acrostic of his Christmas show, "Krusty Kinda Kristmas", his TV special, "Krusty Komedy Klassics", and a tennis tournament he sponsored, the "Krusty Kharity Klassic". Unfortunately, the only one he notices is the TV special, and that was only because the initials (KKK) are shown behind him. In a hindsighted booking decision, Krusty was live at the Apollo Theater at the time.
In 2003, Krusty was elected to the United States House of Representatives as a Republican (though he once joked of voting for Bill Clinton in 1992 whilst campaigning for the GOP). A year later, he served on a House committee to investigate Ziffcorp – run by one Artie Ziff until he lost 98% of the company to Homer for corporate malfeasance. Apparently back in showbiz (despite having retired several times), he balances a political career with his local cable shenanigans.
Krusty – minus his trademark clown-hair, pale "facepaint" and red nose – bears an uncanny physical resemblance to Homer Simpson. However, there also differences such as his superfluous third Censored page, his cow-skull birthmark, and his small feet. Krusty, like Homer, apparently has faced heart problems in the past as he currently has an artificial rather than a natural cardiac pacemaker. The pacemaker has since permanently made his face white.
Sideshow Mel, full name Melvin van Horne, is a Cornell University graduate who has served as Krusty's sidekick for more than a decade. He seems to be named for Roy Van Horn, one half of the famous Vegas lounge act Siegfried and Roy (currently recovering from a near-fatal mauling by a show tiger). Little is known about him. When not in character, he speaks in a grandiose British/Shakespearean accent. His main accomplishment so far has been successfully removing Waylon Smithers from suspicion of having shot Mr. Burns. Bart Simpson has found out that Mel is lactose intolerant. He perpetually wears a bone in his hair which may or may not be permanently affixed: once he claimed it was stuck there with gum, but elsewhere he removed and used it as a weapon during a duel. He may be married or living with a woman, with whom he wished to purchase a house from Marge in "Reality Bites" (he declined, disliking the bowling alley feature).
Quotes
(During a marathon TV performance) "Now kids, let's go and see Sideshow Mel for some more of his legal, over the counter wake-up drugs!"
BART: The Krusty I know didn't get where he is today by giving up!
KRUSTY: No, I got where I am today by naming names in the '50s.
(During an 'adult' stand-up performance) "Let's talk about herpes! Herpes, boberpies, banana-fanna-fo-ferbes, herpes!"
"Uh...I could pull a better cartoon out of my a-- ah he he he he. Hey! Wow! Wasn't that great kids!"
"The fercockta doors are stuck! Don't just stare, Arte, help me!" (Krusty's ill-fated appearance on Laugh-In forty years ago)
"The Academy hates me. Don't know why. Bunch of old know-nothing dinosaurs wouldn't know talent if it bit them in the..." (does his trademark laugh).
KRUSTY: "Ohh, sex chat!" (Dials the number, and is connected with four other guys who dialed the number at about the same time.)
APU: "Hello?"
KRUSTY: "Hello?"
APU: "Are you a beautiful woman?"
KRUSTY: "Do I sound like a beautiful woman?"
APU: "This is not as hot a party as I had anticipated."
MRS. LOVEJOY: "We're not talking about love, we're talking about S-E-X in front of the C-H-I-L-D-R-E-N!"
KRUSTY: "Sex Cauldron? I thought they closed that place down!"
Krusty products
Krusty has endorsed many products and places that are named after him. Here is a partial list.
- Krusty Brand Seal of Approval (on everything that meets the high standards of Krusty the Clown)
- Krusty the Clown Show
- Krusty Handguns
- Krusty Brand Home Pregnancy Test ("May cause birth defects")
- Krusty Brand Cereal
- Krusty Brand Imitation Gruel (9 out of 10 orphans can't tell the difference)
- Chocolate Frosted Frosty Flakes ("Only sugar has more sugar!")
- Krusty Brand Lo-Cal TV Dinner
- Krusty's Famous Sauce
- Krusty Burger (hamburger and fast food establishment)
- Kamp Krusty ("The Krustyist place on earth!")
- Krusty's Klown Kollege
- Krusty Land
- Euro Krusty Land (Later blew up)
- Mount Splashmore
- Krusty's Non-Narkotik Kough Syrup
- Krusty Brain & Health Tonic
- Krusty Brand Vitamins
- Krusty Doll
- Krusty the Clown Alarm Clock (Gets EXTREMLY hot when plugged in)
- Krusty Calculator
- Krusty Phone
- Krusty Wallclock
- Krusty Lamp
- Krusty Pencil Tops
- Krusty Lunchboxes
- Krusty Giant Toy Drum
- Krusty's Sulfuric Acid
- Krusty Trash Basket
- Krusty T-Shirts
- Krusty Posters
- Krusty Non-Toxic Kologne
- Krusty's Autobiography
- Krusty Slippers
- Lady Krusty Mustache Removal
- Krusty Electric Toothbrush
- Krusty Mini-Basketball Hoops
- Krusty Knife Doll
- Krusty Eye wash
- Krusty Home Depot (hardware store)
- Krusty Brand Geiger Counter (That thing's gonna blow! Drop this toy and run!)
Ironically, Krusty also endorses endorsement contracts.
External links
- "The Original Krusty the Klown Homepage http://www.silverbox.com/krusty/
Last updated: 02-10-2005 15:56:20
