The Simpsons

[Avaitor]

Yes R.I.P Marcia Wallace. Will her character will be retired?

I don't have a link with me right now (Daikun probably does though), but they will.

They'd be better off canceling the show if Harry Shearer or other principal cast members like Dan Castellaneta, Nancy Cartwright, or Hank Azaria die. I can't imagine anyone else replacing their iconic voices.

I'm pretty sure they will. You can't retire any of the primary Simpsons, and it's hard to imagine anyone replacing their voices.

[gunswordfist]

It's unimaginable. That should solicit a cancellation.

[Spark Of Spirit]

R.I.P.

I'd expect so. When Phil Hartman died, Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz were retired, after all.

I wonder how they'll write her out of the show, though. Especially considering the fact Edna is married to Ned, now. I guess this means he's going to have to become a widower twice...

Or just not have her in a speaking role again. I'd rather that to killing her off.

[gunswordfist]

I vote for the unexplained absence route.

[Nel_Annette]

R.I.P.

I'd expect so. When Phil Hartman died, Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz were retired, after all.

I wonder how they'll write her out of the show, though. Especially considering the fact Edna is married to Ned, now. I guess this means he's going to have to become a widower twice...

Or just not have her in a speaking role again. I'd rather that to killing her off.

Yeah. As I said on TZ, I'd still like to see her in background shots, preferably with Ned to show that that's still going well, but she doesn't need a prominent role ever again.

[Goldstar]

According to this article Mrs. Krabapple will be retired, but not killed off.

[Silverstar]

I'm probably going to catch a lot of flack for this (I KNOW I'd get shit flung at me if I said it on Toon Zone, which is why I'm not going to), but what is this thing the producers of this show have against just replacing voice actors? They'd rather retire characters or write them off than just get new people to voice them. I don't get it. Hanna-Barbera didn't retire their characters when Mel Blanc, Daws Butler and Don Messick and the principle voice cast of The Flinstones passed away, Warner Bros. didn't retire the Looney Tunes when Mel Blanc passed away, Sega didn't retire Sonic the Hedgehog when Jaleel White stopped voicing him. Disney didn't retire Mickey Mouse after Walt Disney passed away. Kermit the Frog wasn't retired after Jim Henson passed away. DiC didn't retire Inspector Gadget when Don Adams passed, and all of those characters are far more popular and iconic than Maude Flanders or Edna Krabappel, so why can't The Simpsons producers just hire new voices and get on with the show? Yeah, some voices become iconic and it's hard to imagine new people voicing certain characters, but IMO it's ridiculous to assume that only one person can be permitted to voice a character and if something happens to them or they leave, the character has to die or be retired. No one lives forever. If every cartoon did that, then eventually all cartoons would either be dead or permanently retired.

It especially makes no sense when you consider they had no problem replacing a voice actor on Futurama; the character of Zapp Branagan was originally going to be voiced by Phil Hartman, but when he was tragically killed, they didn't shelf the character, they just gave him to Billy West, so I really don't see why the same can't be done on The Simpsons.

[Dr. Insomniac]

Well, Phil wasn't alive when they actually made any episodes featuring Zapp.  It's the equivalent of shelving a character just because one of the audition actors died. With Edna, the producers felt that the role was just as much Marcia Wallace's as it was the show's after over two decades. Plus, Krabappel's not really one of The Simpsons or somebody carrying the show. The reason they replaced Kermit and Inspector Gadget was because, well, they're the leads. And even in Jim Henson's death, they kept Rowlf in stasis for a while before deciding to replace him.

Plus, the cast & crew saw her as family. It's hard to immediately replace people you've known and loved for years with someone right off the bat.

[Goldstar]

I would say that for the most part, whether or not or how soon the voice actor/actress should be replaced would depend on how famous the person doing the voice is. Marcia Wallace and Phil Hartman, for example were both known comedic actors whose faces were recognized on camera; they weren't just voice actors. People knew who they were, as opposed to the likes of Mel Blanc, Don Messick and Daws Butler, who were mainly known for the cartoon characters whom they provided the voices for, so they were easier to replace.

In the case of Phil Hartman, the characters of Lionel Hutz and Troy McLure, were clearly written with Phil Hartman in mind, so it's not surprising that the shows' producers wouldn't simply cast someone else in those roles. In the case of Maude Flanders, however, I still believe that it wasn't necessary to kill off her character simply because her voice actress quit the show. Edna Krabapple was a major player on the show, but Maude barely made a dent went she was alive. I didn't know the name of the actress who voiced Maude and still don't today. The shows' producers could have just gotten someone else to voice to Maude and doubt anyone would but the most hardcore of fans would have even cared.

In the case of Fred Flintstone, the syndicated series Fred Flintstone and Friends was the 1st series with Henry Corden as the voice of Fred. FF&F debuted 4 months after the death of Alan Reed, Fred's original voice actor, but most of the Flintstones material used on FF&F was recycled from Pebbles & Bamm-Bamm and The Flinstones Comedy Hour, which was the last series in which Fred was voiced by Reed. Henry Corden only voiced Fred in the wraparounds for the show, which I guess made for an easier transition.

I probably explained that very badly, but that's my take on it.

[Daikun]

what is this thing the producers of this show have against just replacing voice actors? They'd rather retire characters or write them off than just get new people to voice them. I don't get it. [long list] why can't The Simpsons producers just hire new voices and get on with the show?

Well, as you would state right after...

Yeah, some voices become iconic and it's hard to imagine new people voicing certain characters

That's exactly it. Have you HEARD some of these replacements after their VAs passed away? They sounded TERRIBLE. Many of the LT characters sounded awful post-Mel Blanc. Heck, even Blanc himself was starting to sound like a pale imitation of his own voices during his final years. The only people I can think of to nail some of Mel's classic voices today would be Joe Alaskey and Bob Bergen. It's hard to hear anyone else try their hand at Bugs Bunny and the crew.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Phil Hartman and Marcia Wallace's characters were specifically modeled after the actors and the actors' performances on them. It isn't like Maude Flanders who nobody really noticed when she was replaced for that brief time, nobody really sounds or acts quite like them.

[Commode]

I'm probably going to catch a lot of flack for this (I KNOW I'd get shit flung at me if I said it on Toon Zone, which is why I'm not going to), but what is this thing the producers of this show have against just replacing voice actors? They'd rather retire characters or write them off than just get new people to voice them. I don't get it. Hanna-Barbera didn't retire their characters when Mel Blanc, Daws Butler and Don Messick and the principle voice cast of The Flinstones passed away, Warner Bros. didn't retire the Looney Tunes when Mel Blanc passed away, Sega didn't retire Sonic the Hedgehog when Jaleel White stopped voicing him. Disney didn't retire Mickey Mouse after Walt Disney passed away. Kermit the Frog wasn't retired after Jim Henson passed away. DiC didn't retire Inspector Gadget when Don Adams passed, and all of those characters are far more popular and iconic than Maude Flanders or Edna Krabappel, so why can't The Simpsons producers just hire new voices and get on with the show? Yeah, some voices become iconic and it's hard to imagine new people voicing certain characters, but IMO it's ridiculous to assume that only one person can be permitted to voice a character and if something happens to them or they leave, the character has to die or be retired. No one lives forever. If every cartoon did that, then eventually all cartoons would either be dead or permanently retired.

I think the main differance here is that the directors of The Simpsons are deciding/decided to retire their characters after the VA dies, not the company.  It's a sign of respect.  Phil Hartman wasn't just a voice on their cartoon show.  He was their friend. Same with Marcia Wallace. If (god forbid)Mel Blanc had died in the 40s at the peak of the Looney Tunes creative output, I think that Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck may have been retired if Jones and Clampett and Freleng could get their way.  But the reason we still have the characters is because WB decided to recast them.  Nothing is saying that Fox can't recast Edna or Lionel Hutz, but I guarantee it wouldn't go over well with Matt Groening and Jim Brooks and Al Jean and the rest of the show's staff.

Another thing is that characters like Edna are more of side characters.  Sure they added a lot to the show over the years, but they could easily be pushed aside without greatly affecting the final product.  If Dan Castellenata dies tomorrow it's going to be a lot harder for them to try and keep the show alive with Homer down(not even mentioning the other characters he voices).  But if Fox really wanted to they could continue on, just likely with very little or none of the show's current staff(although I personally think with Jim Brooks' connections in Hollywood any chance of the show continuing without Homer would be slim to none).  And of course without Homer Fox risks alienating the audience, which would just lose them money.

[Avaitor]

Nice call here, Fox.

Since I now have the season this episode came from, I did end up rewatching the episode the other day. But this is nice for those who don't own it or just want to see it again.

[DarthGonzo]

Kermit the Frog wasn't retired after Jim Henson passed away.

No, but Rowlf the Dog went completely silent for over a decade while Scooter was retired completely for a long time after Richard Hunt passed away...

[Peanutbutter]

Nice call here, Fox.

Since I now have the season this episode came from, I did end up rewatching the episode the other day. But this is nice for those who don't own it or just want to see it again.

That is still the best peformance of Ms. Wallace in the entire show. A shame that aside from her realtionships with Skinners and Flanders, Mrs. Krabapple never got that kind of episode ever again. Unless I'm forgetting an episode.