"Your actions have brought devastation upon this town. And all because of your selfish desire to be accepted by others."
WARNING: This article contains a controversy. We absolutely take no responsibility for any controversial topics (including this page). You are solely responsible by reading at your own risk. The reason given is: As of 2019, this episode was pulled from reruns, streaming services and more due to the controversy surrounding Michael Jackson that was addressed in the documentary Leaving Neverland.
“Look, boy, either Michael Jackson is some guy working in a recording studio in L.A., or he's here with you willing to work on this song. It's your choice.”
―Leon Kompowsky
"Stark Raving Dad" is the first episode of Season 3 (originally going to be the Season 2 finale in production order)
Synopsis[]
When Homer is declared insane after coming into work wearing a pink T-shirt (that turned pink after Bart put his lucky red cap in the wash) and having Bart fill out his psychiatric evaluation for him, Homer is committed to the New Bedlam Rest Home for the Emotionally Interesting and meets a big, bald mental patient who claims he's pop singer Michael Jackson. Meanwhile, Lisa is depressed over her upcoming eighth birthday.
Controversy[]
Following the premiere on March 7th, 2019, of the documentary Leaving Neverland that provided further allegations about Jackson's "behavior and relationships", a decision was made by James L. Brooks, Dan Reed, director of the documentary and Al Jean to ban "Stark Raving Dad" from future rebroadcasts and streaming services worldwide. The episode has already been banned from the Simpsons World website and will be removed from syndication and "future physical media editions". A lot of fans were enraged and unhappy with this decision.
Both Reed and Brooks have said that they are not in favor of "book burning", which in this case would be erasing all information relating to Michael Jackson from history. Brooks did state, "[T]his is our book, and we're allowed to take out a chapter."
However, this episode is still available on pre-2019 prints of The Complete Third Season. The episode is also still available for purchase on Google Play and YouTube. The episode was also put back in syndication in October 2019, airing on FXX.
Unfortunately, this is the only episode of the entire series to not be available on Disney+, because of the documentary.
Currently, new and used copies on DVD are available for sale on websites like Amazon are being sold by third parties and many of them have raised their prices. However, the DVD is still available in the smaller stores for cheaper prices.
