Origin Of Springfield On "The Simpsons" Revealed...

[DToTheJ]

It's Springfield, Oregon, close to where creator Matt Groening was raised:
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/enterta...als-town-that-inspired-springfield/?kljkljlkj

 

[KML0224]

It's not exactly by Portland, OR. If anything, it's in Lane County, central coast Oregon, close to Eugene. They're 104 air miles apart. 160 air miles separate Portland, Maine and Springfield, Massachusetts.

 

[DToTheJ]

Groening said he was inspired by the show "Father Knows Best" which was set in Springfield, but the actual location of that show's Springfield has not been disclosed... is it too late to get Ed James on the phone?

 

[Markxxx]

Groeing has always said, he used his hometown and people he knew for the inspiration for the Simpson characters. I don't know why it's taken ABC so long to report on this

 

[borderblaster]

I thought he had said, or implied that before. On the show, there are never enough references to tie 't down to one state, and in fact, the references change. All we know is that it's next to Shelbyville.

 

[imhomerjay]

And not a lot of hurricanes blow through Oregon.

 

[TheRob]

And not a lot of hurricanes blow through Oregon.

In Springfield's defense, the Hall of Records only goes back to 1978, when the Hall of Records mysteriously blew away.

 

[bpatrick]

I thought he had said, or implied that before. On the show, there are never enough references to tie 't down to one state, and in fact, the references change. All we know is that it's next to Shelbyville.

Which is why a lot of people thought the show took place in Kentucky; Springfield and Shelbyville are about 30-40 miles apart. But Kentucky is more likely to get a tornado than a hurricane. Well, now we know.

Sort of reminds me of trying to figure out what state "Guiding Light"'s Springfield was in; unlike most of the other soaps "GL" never pinpointed a specific state. I still think it was Illinois; it was close to Chicago, the zip code started with "6," and I've seen cars with Illinois license plates on that show. But I digress. Most sitcoms and dramas today are pretty specific as to where the state is, something that generally wasn't true prior to the '70s unless the show took place in New York or Los Angeles ("I Dream Of Jeannie" stands out as an exception: Cocoa Beach, FL).

 

[wncc]

I thought he had said, or implied that before. On the show, there are never enough references to tie 't down to one state, and in fact, the references change. All we know is that it's next to Shelbyville.

Which is why a lot of people thought the show took place in Kentucky; Springfield and Shelbyville are about 30-40 miles apart. But Kentucky is more likely to get a tornado than a hurricane. Well, now we know.

Sort of reminds me of trying to figure out what state "Guiding Light"'s Springfield was in; unlike most of the other soaps "GL" never pinpointed a specific state. I still think it was Illinois; it was close to Chicago, the zip code started with "6," and I've seen cars with Illinois license plates on that show. But I digress. Most sitcoms and dramas today are pretty specific as to where the state is, something that generally wasn't true prior to the '70s unless the show took place in New York or Los Angeles ("I Dream Of Jeannie" stands out as an exception: Cocoa Beach, FL).

I never could figure out what state Mayberry was in. (*sarcasm*)

 

[bpatrick]

Ha, ha. It's not hard to figure out where Mayberry is if
you know anything about (a) Andy Griffith or (b) North
Carolina and parts of Virginia. OTOH, Shelbyville and
Springfield, KY are real towns that are not far apart, and there
were enough clues over the years on "Guiding Light" (and on
"As The World Turns," which specifically identified Oakdale as
being in Illinois and 90 miles from Springfield) to suggest it might
be Springfield, IL (my second guess would be Springfield, MO, since
Josh and Reva made frequent trips to Oklahoma, which is close to Springfield, MO).

 

[FreddyE1977]

as if the people of Oregon needed this after Portlandia....

 

[Studio20]

Ha, ha. It's not hard to figure out where Mayberry is if
you know anything about (a) Andy Griffith or (b) North
Carolina and parts of Virginia. OTOH, Shelbyville and
Springfield, KY are real towns that are not far apart, and there
were enough clues over the years on "Guiding Light" (and on
"As The World Turns," which specifically identified Oakdale as
being in Illinois and 90 miles from Springfield) to suggest it might
be Springfield, IL (my second guess would be Springfield, MO, since
Josh and Reva made frequent trips to Oklahoma, which is close to Springfield, MO).

For the original post, let's all page "Kent Brockman"...maybe that erstwhile reporter can deliver the goods on just where Springfield really is

Never thought that Springfield IL would have a lighthouse...the hallmark of "Guiding Light"...

and finally, there was one episode late in the Andy Griffith series..and it might have even been on the first season of Mayberry RFD where they were down at the train station...and someone forgot to have the "Union Pacific" logo on the passenger rail car covered up...lol...No, the UP never went that far east...

 

[bpatrick]

"Guiding Light"'s Springfield had a lake large enough to make a
lighthouse feasible; there is a rather large lake, Lake Springfield,
southeast of the real Springfield, IL (adjacent, BTW, to Spaulding
Dam, and "GL" fans will pick up the reference). The Sangamon River
is on the northwest side of town, so it's theoretically possible that
there is a body of water in real Springfield large enough for a lighthouse.

If not, the lighthouse is merely symbolic, like the globe on "As The World
Turns," the hourglass on "Days Of Our Lives," or the family album on "All
My Children."

 

[DToTheJ]

Then: The "Guiding Light" lighthouse.
Now: The Castle Rock ("Seinfeld") lighthouse.

 

[DToTheJ]

Did anyone happen to spot the blackboard gag on last Sunday's "Simpsons"?
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/li...pringfields-location-snarky-blackboard-312430