ABSTRACT
Over the past twenty-fi ve years, primetime animated television programming for adults has come back from the dead. In fact, these programs have ascended from upstart novelty to an established staple of broadcast and cable programming. After the 1960s saw the run of The Jetsons and The Flintstones end, many wondered whether or not animation targeted toward adults during primetime would ever again be viable. That mindset changed with the success of Fox’s The Simpsons in 1989. After over 500 episodes of The Simpsons and a proliferation of animated television series designed for older audiences, doubts about animation’s longterm sustainability in television programming have been laid to rest. Moreover, contemporary animated programs have become a part of the public consciousness, largely because of their use of controversial humor that engages with various political and cultural issues in the American collective conscious. Given their prominence, it now might be reasonable to assess their place in the pantheon of American humor. More specifi cally, it might now be the time to ask whether or not they belong in the same conversation as celebrated humorists such as Mark Twain, Washington Irving, and Kurt Vonnegut. Animated programs from The Simpsons to Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim block of programming have drawn the attention of critics who have recently begun to recognize their parodic and satirical contributions to the postmodern landscape. However, the bulk of this critical attention is placed on the postmodern qualities of animated programs and how they fi t into the history of television. This neglects to account for the ways in which they participate in a long tradition of American humor that preceded them.
