CHICAGO – Bart Simpson, the lovably frustrating brat in Matt Groening’s cartoon The Simpsons, very well may consider dropping the “don’t” from the beginning of his famous exhortation, “Don’t have a cow, man.” His mother, the blue beehive hairdo-crowned Marge, has bared all for Playboy magazine.The matriarch of Springfield’s most notorious dysfunctional family is the first cartoon character to join the ranks of Playboy cover models like Marilyn Monroe, Cindy Crawford, Pamela Anderson, the Girls of Hooters and Jerry Seinfeld.
According to Playboy Chief Executive Officer Scott Flanders (seriously, Flanders!), Simpson’s appearance is part of a plan to attract younger readers to the iconic men’s magazine. As Flanders calculates things, Simpson should draw in a new audience in its 20s. The average age of Playboy’s current market is 35.
“It had never been done, and we thought it would be kind of hip, cool and unusual,” Flanders told Chicago’s Sun-Times.
Simpson appears on the November cover, which is expected to hit newsstands Oct. 16. Inside, a three-page pictorial — including a pullout centerfold — exposes way more of Simpson’s yellow skin than viewers are accustomed to seeing, although Flanders revealed full-frontal nudity will be implied, not shown in explicit detail. The accompanying article, “The Devil in Marge Simpson,” reportedly gives voice to Simpson’s thoughts about a variety of topics.
The Simpson exposé was designed to commemorate The Simpsons’ 20-year run on television. The televised cartoon, which debuted in December 1989 with a Christmas show, has won 24 primetime Emmys. Earlier this year, Fox renewed the program for two more seasons.
