WAIT IT'S NOT OREGON?: 'Simpsons' Creator Reveals Actual Springfield Location Sunday Night
Kimberly Potts
"The Simpsons" used its blackboard opening sequence Sunday to reveal that Springfield is located… somewhere far from you.
"The true location of Springfield is in any state but yours," Bart wrote on the blackboard in the opening of Sunday's "Beware My Cheating Bart" episode.
That followed the beginning of the opening sequence, which read "The Simpsons Now Entering Oregon."
"The Simpsons" creator Matt Groening said in an interview in the new issue of Smithsonian magazine that he named Springfield after the town in Oregon, which is near his hometown, Portland. But that doesn't mean "The Simpsons" live in Oregon.
Also read: 'The Simpsons' Bombshell: Matt Groening Reveals Springfield Origin
"I have no idea where the hell it is," Groening later told E! News. "Like all Americans, I flunked geography."
He also used a "Citizen Kane" reference to joke to TV Guide that "Springfield was the name of my sled," while "Simpsons" showrunner Al Jean told TV Guide that Smithsonian magazine "misinterpreted something I've heard him say for at least 10 or 20 years. He was inspired by growing up in Portland, but it's really an every town.
"It's really funny. Matt grew up in Oregon and parts of 'The Simpsons' were definitely inspired by his childhood," Jean said last week. "But there is no specific state that Springfield is in, and we will never reveal that secret … except this coming Sunday at 8."
So, to sum it up, the Simpson family's Springfield is not in your state. Unless your state is Oregon. But not even then.
"In the ('Simpsons') movie we say it borders on Ohio, Nevada, Maine and Kentucky," Jean told TV Guide. "So good luck finding that state. When you do, you're a true 'Simpsons' fan."
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