'Scuse Me While I Miss The Sky - Cultural References

Cultural References

• The title is a play on the Jimi Hendrix song "Purple Haze": "Actin' funny, but I don't know why-- 'scuse me while I kiss the sky".
• When Lisa shuts down the power for the last time in the episode, Sideshow Mel says: 'I say we'll tear her limb from limb'; as a reference to the Bob Dylan song 'Bob Dylan's 115th Dream' from the album Bringing It All Back Home.
• The recording from Springfield Museum mentions Rigel VII as a planet, although it is merely a fictional planet originally from the Star Trek universe, and the apparent home of Kang and Kodos from The Simpsons.
• The store where Homer buys Lisa's telescope is called "Teenage Pasteland". This is a parody of the phrase "teenage wasteland" which is a line from (and is often mistaken to be the title of) the The Who song "Baba O'Riley".
• The music playing when Lisa is in the museum and first develops her inspiration for astronomy is Jupiter from Gustav Holst's The Planets Suite.
• The Krusty Burger documentary's name Do You Want Lies with That? became the tagline for the film version of Fast Food Nation and may also refer to Super Size Me.
• Groundskeeper Willie is revealed to be an Aberdeen F.C. fan.
• Don McLean's song "Vincent" plays during the meteor shower.
• The scene in which the baseball lights explode parodies the home run scene from The Natural, accompanied by the dramatic music.
• While sleep-deprived, Marge yells Saturday Night Live's famous opening catch-phrase, "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!".
• In the background of the toy store there is a box that reads Clay D'oh. The item's name is a parody, combining Play-Doh and Homer's annoyed grunt.
• While watching the meteor shower, Marge comments "this is better than a screen saver". This is a reference to the 'Starry Starry Night' module on the 'After Dark' screensaver packs.
• The picture on which the Captain draws Lisa's petition by way of signature is an image of the closing chapter of Moby Dick. It depicts the Pequod being smashed by an upwards lunge from Moby Dick.
• Declan mentions Machiavelli while in the playground.
• Documentarian asks several children, "where do you see yourself in seven years," referring to the Up Series.
• Mayor Quimby's comment about the fading southern belle is an allusion to the Tennessee Williams play A Streetcar Named Desire.