"Brush with Greatness" is the eighteenth episode of The Simpsons' second season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on April 11, 1991. In the episode, Marge revives her high school-era interest in painting by enrolling in an art class after getting encouraged by Lisa. When she wins first prize in a local art competition for a portrait of Homer on the couch in his underwear, Mr. Burns commissions her to paint a portrait of him. Meanwhile, Homer is determined to lose weight after becoming stuck in a water slide at an amusement park.
The episode was written by Brian K. Roberts and directed by Jim Reardon. Beatles member Ringo Starr guest starred in it as himself, while Jon Lovitz starred as Marge's art teacher, Professor Lombardo. The episode features cultural references to films such as Rocky and Gone with the Wind. Since airing, the episode has received mostly positive reviews from television critics, who praised the use of Starr and the central focus on Marge. It acquired a Nielsen rating of 12.0, and was the second highest-rated show on the Fox network the week it aired.
Read more about Brush With Greatness: Plot, Production, Cultural References, Reception
Famous quotes containing the words brush and/or greatness:
“When the ice is covered with snow, I do not suspect the wealth under my feet; that there is as good as a mine under me wherever I go. How many pickerel are poised on easy fin fathoms below the loaded wain! The revolution of the seasons must be a curious phenomenon to them. At length the sun and wind brush aside their curtain, and they see the heavens again.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“The aim of literary ambition is to demonstrate one’s greatness of soul.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)