"Rosebud" | |
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The Simpsons episode | |
Episode no. | Season 5 Episode 4 |
Directed by | Wes Archer |
Written by | John Swartzwelder |
Production code | 1F01 |
Original air date | October 21, 1993 |
Guest appearances | |
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Episode features | |
Couch gag | The family finds identical copies of themselves sitting on the couch.[1] |
Commentary | Matt Groening David Mirkin Wes Archer David Silverman |
"Rosebud" is the fourth episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 21, 1993. In the episode, Mr. Burns misses his childhood teddy bear Bobo on the eve of his birthday. After flashbacks reveal Bobo's journey through history, the bear ends up in the hands of Maggie Simpson. Burns does everything in his power to get Bobo back.
"Rosebud" was directed by Wes Archer and written by John Swartzwelder. It was the first episode to be executive-produced by David Mirkin, who was the show runner for the fifth and sixth seasons of the show. Supervising director David Silverman describes the episode as "one of the more challenging ones" to direct. The Ramones (Joey Ramone, Johnny Ramone, C. J. Ramone and Marky Ramone) guest-star in the episode as themselves. The episode is largely a parody of the 1941 film Citizen Kane and the title references Charles Foster Kane's dying word "Rosebud". The episode contains references to The Wizard of Oz, Planet of the Apes, George Burns, Charles Lindbergh, The Rolling Stones and Adolf Hitler.
Since airing, “Rosebud" has received universal acclaim from fans and television critics. In 2003, Entertainment Weekly placed the episode in second place on their list of the 25 best episodes of The Simpsons.[2]