Principal Skinner
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Principal Seymour Skinner is a recurring fictional character in the animated
sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...
''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
'', who is voiced by Harry Shearer. He is the principal of Springfield Elementary School, which he struggles to control, and is constantly engaged in a battle against its inadequate resources, apathetic and bitter teachers, and often rowdy and unenthusiastic students, Bart Simpson being a standout example. Skinner attempts to institute discipline at the school, with an uptight, militaristic attitude that stems from his years in the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
as a Green Beret including service in the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
, where he was captured and held as a prisoner of war. He is quick to take orders from his superiors, chiefly his mother Agnes and Superintendent Chalmers.


Role in ''The Simpsons''

Skinner's actions often involve ensuring the school has adequate funding. His constant, desperate, and usually ineffective attempts at maintaining discipline are an effort to receive good reviews in the frequent inspections of his very strict boss, Superintendent Chalmers, who makes no effort to hide his disapproval of Skinner. These inspections usually turn awry due to Bart Simpson's elaborate pranks, which play off Skinner's desperation for order. Over the years of pranks and inspections, though, Skinner has developed a love–hate relationship with Bart; when Skinner was fired and replaced by
Ned Flanders Nedward "Ned" Flanders Jr., commonly referred to by his surname, is a fictional character in the animated television series ''The Simpsons'', voiced by Harry Shearer and first appearing in the series premiere episode "Simpsons Roasting on an ...
, Bart found pranks less meaningful, due to Flanders' lax approach to discipline, while Skinner missed his constant battles with Bart. The two bonded during this time and Bart made an effort to get Skinner reinstated in the school. One of Skinner's defining traits is that he has served as a Green Beret sergeant during the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
, where he was captured by the
Viet Cong The Viet Cong (VC) was an epithet and umbrella term to refer to the communist-driven armed movement and united front organization in South Vietnam. It was formally organized as and led by the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam, and ...
at the Battle of Khe Sanh and spent three years as a
prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...
. Seeing his entire platoon devoured by an elephant was one of the many things that led to the development of his
post-traumatic stress disorder Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental disorder that develops from experiencing a Psychological trauma, traumatic event, such as sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse, warfare and its associated traumas, natural disaster ...
. He is also quite bitter about the treatment that he and other Vietnam veterans have received upon returning from the war. Skinner is a highly skilled combatant, particularly hand-to-hand, and demonstrates his abilities in several episodes. Skinner often seems weak-willed and easily suppressed, but often uses his military command experience to get real respect and discipline. When he and the students are snowed-in at the school, he treats them like his squad to control the chaos temporarily, before they mutiny. Although Skinner likes to maintain the image of a strict disciplinarian, he is often weak-willed and nervous and has a very unhealthy dependence on his mother, who still lives with him, constantly torments him and nicknames him "Spanky". Aside from a short-lived relationship with
Patty Bouvier Patricia Maleficent "Patty" Bouvier and Selma Bouvier-Terwilliger-Hutz-McClure-Discotheque-Simpson ( ) are fictional characters in the American animated sitcom ''The Simpsons''. They are twin sisters and are voiced by Julie Kavner, who also vo ...
, most of Skinner's love life is focused on
Edna Krabappel Edna Krabappel-Flanders ( ) is a fictional character from the American animated sitcom ''The Simpsons'', voiced by Marcia Wallace. A Fourth grade, 4th-grade teacher, she teaches Bart Simpson's class at Springfield Elementary School. In the The ...
. He and Edna kiss in Martin's playhouse after they are invited to a birthday party, and they are witnessed by Bart. He loses his job along with Edna when Superintendent Chalmers is advised of their romance by Chief Wiggum, after which Skinner and Edna lock themselves in the school with Bart demanding their jobs back. After Skinner is reinstated, he and Edna date for several more years and become engaged, but later cancel the wedding. Edna has shown she does want to continue dating Skinner, but first wants him to commit to her—namely by not letting his
mother A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of ges ...
, with whom he still lives, control him anymore. The controversial season 9 episode " The Principal and the Pauper" heavily alters Skinner's backstory, revealing him as an impostor. Born as Armin Tamzarian, he has been a troubled orphan from Capital City, who is forced into the US Army during the Vietnam War. There, he serves as a Green Beret under Sgt. Seymour Skinner, whom he comes to idolize and befriend. When the sergeant is reported missing and presumed dead, Armin returns to Springfield to inform Skinner's mother, Agnes, but she deliberately mistakes him for Seymour, so he assumes his identity and follows Skinner's dream of becoming a school principal. The real Seymour Skinner (voiced by
Martin Sheen Ramón Gerard Antonio Estévez (born August 3, 1940), known professionally as Martin Sheen, is an American actor. His work spans over six decades of television and film, and his accolades include three Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and ...
) is alive after all, and briefly returns to Springfield to take his rightful place as Springfield Elementary School principal, but proves hopelessly unpopular and the Springfielders run him out of town on the railroad. Judge Snyder grants Tamzarian Skinner's "name, and his past, present, future, and mother", and decrees that no one will mention his true identity again "under penalty of
torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons including corporal punishment, punishment, forced confession, extracting a confession, interrogational torture, interrogation for information, or intimid ...
" (although Lisa uses the real name in the episode " I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot"). A clip from the episode is used in season eleven's " Behind the Laughter" as an example of the show's increasingly "gimmicky and nonsensical plots". The continuity of the series appears to have been
retconned Retroactive continuity, or retcon for short, is a literary device in fictional story telling whereby facts and events established through the narrative itself are adjusted, ignored, supplemented, or contradicted by a subsequently published work ...
to the original story of Seymour Skinner in the 2010 episode "
Boy Meets Curl "Boy Meets Curl" is the twelfth episode of the twenty-first season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 14, 2010. In this episode, Homer and Marge ...
", as he is clearly shown to kick Agnes Skinner in utero, establishing him as Agnes' biological son after all. This is further declared in the Season 29 episode " Grampy Can Ya Hear Me" where a teenage Seymour is shown living with Agnes before going off to college. Another part of Skinner's backstory is revealed in the season 21 episode " Pranks and Greens". When Bart plays numerous pranks on teachers at school, Skinner reveals to Bart that there was a student who was an even better prankster than him. Bart is eager to discover the prankster's identity. Later, Groundskeeper Willie tells him the story: years ago, the school had a swimming pool and team, with Willie as their coach. Skinner was a more easygoing principal, but it all changed when student Andy Hamilton filled the pool with worms and locked Skinner inside it for a long weekend (Monday being a teachers' holiday, Skinner was not rescued until Tuesday morning). This experience has caused him to become serious and almost merciless in his approach to rules, even going as far as to shut down the pool and demoting Willie, the swim teacher, to groundskeeper.


Character


Creation

Principal Skinner first appeared in " Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", which was also the first ''Simpsons'' episode to air. The first drawing of Skinner was done by
Matt Groening Matthew Abram Groening ( ; born February 15, 1954) is an American cartoonist, writer, producer, and animator. He is best known as the creator of the television series ''The Simpsons'' (1989–present), ''Futurama'' (1999–2003, 2008–2013, 2 ...
, who based him on "all the principals of isyouth, rolled into one bland lump." Writer
Jon Vitti Jon Vitti is an American writer best known for his work on the television series ''The Simpsons''. He has also written for ''King of the Hill'', ''The Critic'' and '' The Office'', and has served as a screenwriter or consultant for several animat ...
named him after behavioral psychologist B. F. Skinner.Reiss, Mike. (2002). Commentary for " Principal Charming", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Second Season'' VD 20th Century Fox. An original idea for Skinner was that he would continually mispronounce words. He does this in the series premiere " Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", but the idea was later dropped. Skinner was originally supposed to wear a
toupée A toupée ( ) is a Fake hair, hairpiece or partial wig of natural or synthetic fiber, synthetic hair worn to cover partial baldness or for theatrical purposes. While toupées and hairpieces are typically associated with male wearers, some women a ...
, but it was dropped because the writers disliked "that type of joke".Groening, Matt. (2002). Commentary for "Principal Charming", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete SecondSeason'' VD 20th Century Fox. In later episodes, Skinner's behavior was based on teachers that Bill Oakley and
Josh Weinstein Josh Weinstein (born May 5, 1966) is an American television writer and producer, known for his work on the animated comedy series ''The Simpsons''. Weinstein and Bill Oakley became best friends and writing partners at St. Albans School; Weins ...
had in high school.Weinstein, Josh. (2004). Commentary for " Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Fifth Season'' VD 20th Century Fox.


Development

Superintendent Chalmers was introduced in the episode " Whacking Day" as a boss for Skinner. Harry Shearer and
Hank Azaria Henry Albert Azaria ( ; born April 25, 1964) is an American actor and producer. He is known for voicing many characters in the long-running animated sitcom ''The Simpsons'' since 1989, including Moe Szyslak, Chief Wiggum, Superintendent Chalmer ...
, the voice of Chalmers, fell right into the characters and quite often ad-lib between them.Jean, Al. (2004). Commentary for " Whacking Day", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Fourth Season'' VD 20th Century Fox.


"The Principal and the Pauper"

In " The Principal and the Pauper", it is revealed that Skinner was not who he claimed to be and was really named Armin Tamzarian. The episode was pitched and written by Ken Keeler, who was inspired by the Tichborne case of 19th-century England.Keeler, Ken. (2006). Commentary for "The Principal and the Pauper", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Ninth Season'' VD 20th Century Fox. Producers Bill Oakley and
Josh Weinstein Josh Weinstein (born May 5, 1966) is an American television writer and producer, known for his work on the animated comedy series ''The Simpsons''. Weinstein and Bill Oakley became best friends and writing partners at St. Albans School; Weins ...
were excited about the episode because Principal Skinner was one of their favorite characters. They "spent a month immersed in the mind of Seymour Skinner" to prepare that episode, and from that point forward, took every opportunity to "tinker with kinner'spersonality and his backstory and his homelife." They intended for the episode to be "an experiment" and that the ending was meant to allow viewers to reset to the point before Skinner was revealed to be an impostor.Oakley, Bill. (2006). Commentary for "The Principal and the Pauper", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Ninth Season'' VD 20th Century Fox. The revelation that Principal Skinner was not who the audience had long been led to believe (as well as the self-referential
deus ex machina ''Deus ex machina'' ( ; ; plural: ''dei ex machina''; 'God from the machine') is a plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly or abruptly resolved by an unexpected and unlikely occurrence. Its function is general ...
ending of the episode) was negatively received by many fans and critics, and is considered by some to be the point at which the series as a whole jumped the shark. Oakley considers "The Principal and the Pauper" the most controversial episode from his tenure as executive producer. In April 2001, in an interview, Harry Shearer, the voice of Principal Skinner, recalled that after reading the script, he told the writers, "That's ''so'' wrong. You're taking something that an audience has built eight years or nine years of investment in and just tossed it in the trash can for no good reason, for a story we've done before with other characters. It's so arbitrary and gratuitous, and it's disrespectful to the audience." The writers themselves have since mocked the inconsistencies created by the episode; in the season 15 episode " I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot", Lisa is seen talking to her new cat, Snowball V, saying "You're Snowball Five. But to save money on a new dish, we'll just call you Snowball Two and pretend this whole thing never happened", after losing three cats to death in the episode. Skinner walks by and asks "That's really a cheat, isn't it?", to which Lisa pointedly replies, "I guess you're right, ''Principal Tamzarian''." Skinner then quickly excuses himself to Lisa with "I'll just be moving along, Lisa. Snowball Two", and walks away.


References

Bibliography * *


External links


Principal Skinner
on
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Skinner, Seymour The Simpsons characters Adoptee characters in television Fictional characters from New Orleans Television characters introduced in 1989 Fictional characters with post-traumatic stress disorder Fictional impostors Fictional Mensans Fictional orphans Fictional principals and headteachers Fictional schoolteachers Fictional United States Army Special Forces personnel Fictional Vietnam War veterans Male characters in animated television series Characters created by Matt Groening Animated characters introduced in 1989