Blame IT On Lisa - Background

Background

"Blame It on Lisa" was written by Bob Bendetson and directed by Steven Dean Moore as part of the thirteenth season of The Simpsons (2001–2002). For the scenes taking place in Brazil, the animators based much of their work on photographs taken by a staff member who had previously visited the country. This episode is not the first in which the Simpsons travel to a location outside of the United States. Throughout the series, they have visited Australia, Canada, France, Israel, Japan, and the United Kingdom. Their visit to Brazil in "Blame It on Lisa" was later referenced in the twentieth season episode "The Wife Aquatic" (2007), in which the family makes a trip to an island called Barnacle Bay that they discover has been devastated by overfishing. Lisa says to Bart: "This is the most disgusting place we've ever gone," to which Bart asks: "What about Brazil?" Lisa corrects herself, responding: "After Brazil."

Several references to popular culture are included in the episode. The title "Blame It on Lisa" refers to the 1984 film Blame It on Rio, which also takes place in Brazil. As Homer and Bart walk on Copacabana Beach, the famous 1939 song "Aquarela do Brasil" (also known as "Brazil") is played. Teleboobies is a parody of the children's television series Xuxa that attracted complaints because of the revealing outfits worn by the host, Brazilian actress and singer Xuxa. The name "Teleboobies" is a reference to the British television series Teletubbies. The Itchy & Scratchy cartoon that Homer and Bart watch at the beginning of the episode parodies Georges Méliès' 1902 film A Trip to the Moon; Itchy and Scratchy are playing golf when Itchy hits Scratchy's head with his golf club, sending his head crashing into the Man in the Moon as the rocket does in the film. According to showrunner Al Jean, the staff members of The Simpsons asked American golfer Tiger Woods to do a guest appearance in this cartoon, but they were turned down.