Bart, Lisa and Maggie

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Ullman Years

Step into the nostalgic realm of The Ullman Years, where we journey back to the humble beginnings of The Simpsons, America's beloved animated family. Discover the origins of those iconic yellow characters that captured our hearts, setting the stage for decades of laughter and entertainment. Plus, relive the magic with all 48 shorts available for viewing right here!

The beginnings

Back in the late '80s, the genius behind The Tracey Ullman Show, James L. Brooks, had a brilliant idea. He wanted to spice up the show's commercial breaks with some animated sketches. And thus, the seeds of The Simpsons were planted.

Brooks stumbled upon Matt Groening's "Life in Hell" comic and saw its potential. He asked Groening to pitch an idea, which initially was meant to be an adaptation of his comic series. But Groening, being the creative powerhouse he is, came up with something even better — a dysfunctional family that would become known as The Simpsons.

Groening whipped up the characters in a flash, naming them after his own family members, with "Bart" being an anagram of "brat." And thus, Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie were born.

To bring the shorts to life, Brooks enlisted Klasky Csupo, a small animation studio. With just three talented animators — Bill Kopp, Wes Archer, and David Silverman—they worked their magic, turning Groening's sketches into animated gold. 48 shorts were produced in total.

Tracey Ullman cast

Watch the episodes

01 - Good Night

As Marge and Homer say goodnight to the kids, Bart ponders the workings of the mind, Lisa fears that bedbugs will eat her, and Maggie is traumatized by Rock-a-Bye-Baby.

02 - Watching Television

Bart and Lisa argue over what to watch on television. The only thing that the pair can agree on is that they do not want Maggie to decide what to watch.

03 - Jumping Bart

Homer tries to get Bart to jump into his arms, but when Homer gets distracted as the last minute every time, Bart is left hurt and wounded.

04 - Babysitting Maggie

Bart and Lisa are asked to babysit Maggie but the pair ignore her. Maggie electrocutes herself, falls down stairs, and chases a butterfly onto the roof.

05 - The Pacifier

Bart and Lisa are sick of hearing Maggie suck on her pacifier, but Maggie has an entire drawer full of them and always has a replacement.

06 - Burping Contest

Despite Marge's objections, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie compete in a contest to see who can make the most disgusting burp. Homer comes home & wins.

07 - Eating Dinner

Marge serves the family purple goop for dinner but insists that the family say grace before they eat.

08 - Making Faces

Bart, Lisa, and Maggie make a succession of scary faces at one another despite Marge's warning that their facial positions will freeze in place forever.

09 - The Funeral

The family attends Uncle Hubert's funeral. Bart is excited to see a dead body for the first time but passes out when he glances into the casket.

10 - Maggie's Brain

Bart and Lisa hover over Maggie's crib, wondering what she's thinking. Maggie sees them first as demons and then as infants whom she towers over.

11 - Football

Bart will win a round of frosty chocolate milkshakes if he can catch one of Homer's long passes. Unfortunately he must stop at the cliff.

12 - House Of Cards

Bart's attempts to build a huge house of cards are constantly interrupted by Lisa and Maggie's sucking noises.

13 - Bart and Dad Eat Dinner

When the girls go out to the ballet, Homer gives Bart a choice of fish nuggets of port-a-roni.

14 - Space Patrol

Lisa, Bart, and Maggie play a save-the-earth game. Lisa is space pilot Lisuey, Maggie her sidekick Mageena, and Bart is Bartron the crazed martian robot.

15 - Bart's Haircut

Bart goes to a barber who does not know how to cut hair and ends up getting scalped by him.

16 - World War III

Obsessed with getting ready for the Apocalypse Homer repeatedly awakens the family for nuclear attack drills.

17 - The Perfect Crime

Bart sets out to steal cookies, figuring Maggie will take the blame. Instead he eats too many cookies and lays down among the crumbs revealling the evidence.

18 - Scary Stories

Bart tells Lisa and Maggie scary stories in the dark that seem to be coming true.

19 - Grampa and the Kids

Grampa tells Bart, Lisa, and Maggie boring stories about the good old days. Realizing that they are not listening he feigns his own death to recapture their attention.

20 - Gone Fishin'

Bart forgets to pack bologna for his fishing trip with Homer and substitutes worms in his sandwich. Bart and Homer take a ride down the rapids.

21 - Skateboarding

Bart, Lisa, and Maggie ride the local sidewalks on their skateboards, not always with success.

22 - The Pagans

While driving to church, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie anger their parents by deciding to convert to paganism.

23 - The Closet

Bart hides in the closet to avoid his chores and ends up outsmarting himself by getting locked in. By the time he escapes the family has left for frosty chocolate milkshakes.

24 - The Aquarium

At the aquarium, Bart foolishly risks his life to perform various tricks in the shark tank.

25 - Family Portrait

Homer gathers the family around for a portrait but the family continually sabotages his efforts to strike a normal family pose making him angry.

26 - Bart's Hiccups

Lisa and Maggie try to help Bart stop hiccuping, resorting to unorthodox methods to cure their brother of the health nuisance.

27 - The Money Jar

Lisa, Bart, and Maggie try to stave off the temptation to steal Marge's money from a cookie jar.

28 - The Art Museum

Marge and Homer take the hids to an art museum. After Bart ogles a nude painting, Marge realizes the children are not mature enough to appreciate fine art.

29 - Zoo Story

The Simpsons go to the zoo, where Homer and Bart have a close encounter with a family of monkeys which resemble the members of the family.

30 - Shut Up Simpsons

Grampa, Homer, and the kids persist in arguing until they formally forgive one another. Bart's forgiveness comes with strings attached.

31 - Shell Game

Bart tries to hide a cookie he stole from the cookie jar. He covers it with one bowl and then to keep his parents guessing, with three bowls.

32 - The Bart Simpson Show

Homer demands that the kids stop watching their favorite cartoon "Itchy & Scratchy". Bart turns off the TV, pulls out the tube and gets inside to put on his show.

33 - Punching Bag

A punching bag with Homer's picture on it inspires Bart, Lisa, and Marge to new heights of boxing prowess.

34 - Simpson Christmas

Bart narrates a holiday tale to the strains of "Twas the night before Christmas" which features the Simpsons kids sneaking a peek at their presents.

35 - The Krusty The Clown Show

The kids go to see Krusty The Clown's live TV show. To his great disappointment, Bart discovers his hero is not a real clown but some guy in clown makeup.

36 - Bart The Hero

When Bart goes the the candy store for a candy bar he unwittingly foils a robbery attempt and becomes a hero.

37 - Bart's Little Fantasy

Prompted by his parents' order to clean up his messy room, Bart tells a tale in which children look and sound like the parents and parents look and sound like children.

38 - Scary Movie

Instead of going to see Return Of The Happy Little Elves, a fearless Bart convinces his sisters to see The Revenge Of The Space Mutants.

39 - Home Hypnotism

Marge and Homer use hypnosis to try to make Bart, Lisa, and Maggie behave. The children pretend to act like zombies.

40 - Shoplifting

Bart Simpson is busted by the shop keeper when he tries to steal chocolate from the local candy store.

41 - Echo Canyon

During a family vacation, the Simpsons stop at Echo Canyon, where everyone frolics and Bart nearly crunches the family car with a boulder.

42 - Bathtime

To make his bath more exciting, Bart mimics Jacques Costeau but leaves the water running and the bathroom floods when Homer comes back to collect him.

43 - Bart's Nightmare

To make his bath more exciting, Bart mimics Jacques Costeau but leaves the water running and the bathroom floods when Homer comes back to collect him.

44 - Bart of The Jungle

Homer is incenced as Bart, Lisa, and Maggie who are swinging from trees on makeshift vines made from Homer's neckties.

45 - Family Therapy

Homer tricks the family into going to a psychologist by pretending to take them out for frosty chocolate milkshakes. The psychologist tries to make them laugh.

46 - Maggie In Peril (Chapter One)

Bart and Lisa do a poor job babysitting for Maggie. Unsupervised, she hops on Bart's skateboard and rolls through a sewage pipe to a waterfall. To be continued...

47 - Maggie In Peril (The Thrilling Conclusion)

Maggie survives her trip over the falls, flies out of the river into a carnival, grabs onto helium balloons and lands safely back in her playpen.

48 - TV Simpsons

Homer sends Bart outside to fly a kite but it gets tangled in the antenna and distorts the TV picture. Homer climbs onto the roof to restore it.

Tracey Ullman cast

Birth of "The Simpsons"

With the Ullman shorts capturing the hearts of viewers, it was only a matter of time before The Simpsons transitioned into a full-fledged half-hour series.

In 1989, a dream team of production companies, including the powerhouse Klasky Csupo animation house, joined forces to bring The Simpsons to life as a primetime sensation on the Fox Broadcasting Company. To handle the workload, they roped in the talents of South Korean animation studio AKOM, ensuring that Springfield's adventures would be brought to screens everywhere.

Led by the creative trio of Matt Groening, James L. Brooks, and Sam Simon, The Simpsons aimed to offer audiences an alternative to the tired tropes of mainstream television. Brooks even managed to secure a deal with Fox that kept meddling hands away from the show's content.

Initially, Fox wasn't sure if audiences could handle a full-length episode of The Simpsons. They proposed airing shorter segments, but the producers boldly asked for 13 full-length episodes. And the rest, as they say, is history. Simon's approach focused on developing rich, three-dimensional characters, setting The Simpsons apart from your typical Saturday-morning cartoons.

On December 17, 1989, The Simpsons burst onto screens with "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire," marking the beginning of a cultural phenomenon. Sure, there were some bumps along the way, but the show quickly found its footing, delighting audiences with its unique blend of humor and heart.

And thus, The Simpsons cemented its place in television history, forever changing the landscape of animation and pop culture.