Did you know about the forbidden 'Simpsons' episode?

Picture this: you’re all set with your Disney Plus subscription and decide it’s high time to binge every ‘Simpsons’ episode ever made. You’re starting from the very beginning, circa 1989, and tackling two episodes daily until you’re up to speed with the latest season. Sounds like a perfect plan? Well, there’s a catch: you won’t be able to watch one forbidden episode.

Photo: Disney Plus - Matt Groening - The Simpsons

With more than 750 episodes and over three decades on air, it’s only logical to expect that some plot lines haven’t aged particularly well. And that’s exactly what happened with one of the series’ most famous episodes: ‘Stark Raving Dad.’

Photo: 20th Century Fox - Matt Groening - The Simpsons

Search for it on IMDb, and you’ll find it as the first episode of the third season. Try to find it on Disney Plus, and well, you won’t. The reason? Michael Jackson.

Photo: IMdB - The Simpsons

The original episode was broadcast on September 19, 1991, marking the kick-off of the third season on Fox.

Photo: Disney Plus - Matt Groening - The Simpsons

To set the stage: the saga begins with Homer’s crisp white shirt turning a shocking pink, thanks to Bart’s renegade red cap. Seeing Homer in the pink shirt, Mr. Burns labels him a “free-thinking anarchist” and sends him off for a psychiatric evaluation.

Photo: 20th Century Fox - Matt Groening - The Simpsons

As payback for what happened, Homer asks Bart to take the evaluation for him. Bart agrees, leading to results that land Homer in a mental institution.

Photo: Disney Plus - Matt Groening - The Simpsons

Interestingly, this exaggerated portrayal of mental health issues or the fact that a boss would send an employee to a psychiatric facility due to the color of his shirt didn't raise any eyebrows.

Photo: Disney Plus - Matt Groening - The Simpsons

Leon Kompowsky appeared for the first time in this episode, who’s been neck-and-neck with Hank Scorpio for years, competing for the title of ‘The Simpsons’ best side character.

Photo: 20th Century Fox - Matt Groening - The Simpsons

Leon Kompowsky is the mental hospital inmate who ends up sharing a room with Homer, but he doesn’t introduce himself as Leon Kompowsky. Instead, he presents himself as Michael Jackson, claiming to be the King of Pop.

The truth is, there is no physical resemblance between Leon Kompowsky and Michael Jackson, although the character perfectly mimics Jackson’s characteristic falsetto.

And here’s the kicker: it was actually Michael Jackson who lent his voice to pull off that spot-on falsetto in a cameo that was uncredited due to legal restrictions.

Back in 1991, Michael Jackson was the brightest star in the music world. A revered and respected celebrity whose secret cameo in ‘The Simpsons’ only served to skyrocket the show’s popularity.

But everything shifted in the mid-90s and early 2000s when accusations of abuse and suspicions cast a dark shadow over the King of Pop—a shadow that would never fully lift, even after his death in 2009.

Ten years after his passing, in January 2019, HBO premiered ‘Leaving Neverland,’ a critically acclaimed documentary that thrust the suspicions surrounding Michael Jackson back into the spotlight.

In a twist of fate, Disney would acquire Fox (the home of ‘The Simpsons’) in March of that same year, with an eye on launching Disney Plus in November 2019.

Before Disney Plus even had to make a decision, both Al Jean, executive producer of ‘The Simpsons,’ and James L. Brooks, co-creator of the series, expressed their disapproval of the late King of Pop.

So, in March 2019, Al Jean announced to the ‘Wall Street Journal’ that the episode would no longer be aired on TV and would be pulled from future distribution of the series.

Naturally, Disney Plus accepted the decision, and for now, ‘Stark Raving Dad’ is the only episode that has been pulled from the 751 aired over 33 seasons.

Photo: Disney Plus - The Simpsons

And that’s how one of the most acclaimed and beloved episodes in history became the only forbidden ‘Simpsons’ episode.

In 2023, according to the Financial Times, Disney quietly removed the episode’ One Angry Lisa’ in Hong Kong, which makes an unflattering reference to China.

Image: The Simpsons - One Angry Lisa - 20th Television - Disney Television Studios

In the banned episode, Marge’s virtual bike instructor says: “Behold the wonders of China. Bitcoin mines, forced labor camps where children make smartphones, and romance,” as first reported by the Financial Times.

Image: The Simpsons - One Angry Lisa - 20th Television - Disney Television Studios