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<em>Spider-Man</em> Digs <em>Simpsons</em>, <em>Live!</em> Spoofs, But Not <em>South Park</em>'s?
By
Garth Johnston
Published Oct 31, 2011
Modified Oct 31, 2011
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By
Garth Johnston
Published Oct 31, 2011
Modified Oct 31, 2011
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Spider-Man: There Will Be Blood Turn Off The Dark has had a whole lot of free publicity this past week, a fact which its producers have (mostly) been happy to acknowledge. Not only did The Simpsons riff on the show on its annual Treehouse of Terror episode last night but Live! with Regis and Kelly's Michael Gelman dressed up as a wheelchair-bound Spidey for that show's Halloween episode this morning (Regis's last before he bids the show adieu). Naturally Spider-Man's spokesperson Rick Miramontez sent out two press releases praising both references—but he remains silent when it comes to South Park's more biting attack from last week's Broadway-themed episode. The truth hurts?
Regarding The Simpsons' spoof (the plot: Homer gets bit my a spider that paralyzes him, learns to talk with farts, and then gets bit by another spider which gives him powers at which point he becomes a crippled Spider-Man—and swings by a rest home for crippled Spider-Men) Miramontez had this to say:
Everyone at SPIDER-MAN Turn Off The Dark was extremely flattered by last night’s tribute on ‘The Simpsons.’ ‘The Simpsons’ is an iconic American institution, and being part of last night’s episode was an honor and dream come true. As a token of their appreciation, the SPIDER-MAN Turn Off The Dark producers, Michael Cohl and Jeremiah J. Harris, have invited the entire Simpsons family (including, and especially Bart) on an all-expense-paid trip to New York City to sit front row at a performance of SPIDER-MAN Turn Off The Dark, and then come backstage for a meet-and-greet with the cast and for a champagne toast (the French stuff).
As if Fox would let their recently renewed cash cow go to New York to see a Disney-produced musical!
Still, mere hours after sending out his thank you note to The Simpsons, Miramontez followed it up with this note to Michael Gelman over at Live!:
Gelman, like Spider-Man, is a true New York hero who has been entertaining American families for decades. He is very much deserving of the Spider-Man costume. On behalf of everyone at SPIDER-MAN Turn Off The Dark, we wish him a speedy recovery.
Yet when it came to South Park's inspired take on Spidey (terrified that his daughter is going to become a sexual being because of the subversive nature of Broadway musicals, Randy dresses as Spider-Man and sets out to "put an end to Broadway") the show has been completely silent. We reached out for a comment, but have yet to hear back. We're assuming their silence is due to the fact that South Park's creators made the much less accident-prone Broadway smash hit The Book of Mormon. And luckily for Spidey's producers, if not for fans of the Great White Way, that troubled show continues to do quite well when it comes to ticket sales.
Still, for good measure, here's South Park's spoof (the Simpsons and Live! ones aren't online yet):
Tagged
live with regis and kelly
south park
spider man musical
spider-man the musical
spider man turn off the dark
spoofs
the simpsons
Garth Johnston
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