The Simpsons Honors Sam Simon With Touching Tribute

See how the Fox animated comedy said goodbye to one of its own

By Chris Harnick Mar 16, 2015 3:18 PMTags
Simpsons Tribute to Sam SimonFOX

The Simpsons said goodbye to a one of their own. The Sunday, March 15 episode included a tribute to executive producer Sam Simon. Simon, who is credited as a co-developer on the beloved long-running animated comedy, died at the age of 59 after a battle with cancer.

Simon helped develop the show with Matt Groening and James L. Brooks in the late 1980s, but left in 1993. He remained an executive producer on the Fox series. The tribute at the end of the episode included a video clip of Simon and the below tribute cards.

FOX
FOX

"I see it as kind of a triumph of doing your work from that very pure place of just doing stuff that you personally enjoy," Simon said in the undated clip at the end of the episode.

"He was a genius and a great humanitarian in ways public and private. I personally owe him more than can be repaid, but I will do my best to help every animal I can in his memory," Simpsons executive producer Al Jean said in a statement after Simon's death.

The Simpsons has been known for touching tributes. Recently the series honored the late Joan Rivers be including her in a Jewish heaven scene and Marcia Wallace with two separate tributes, one also including late writer Don Payne.