The Simpsons' was about children and married parents; 'Futurama' is about people in between; they're growing up and haven't settled down. Every other cartoon show seemed to be, you know, dumb dad, bratty kids.

My father was a really sharp cartoonist and filmmaker. He used to tape-record the family surreptitiously, either while we were driving around or at dinner, and in 1963 he and I made up a story about a brother and a sister, Lisa and Matt, having an adventure out in the woods with animals.

The Simpsons' from the very beginning was based on our memories of brash '60s sitcoms - you had a main title theme that was bombastic and grabbed your attention - and when you look at TV shows of the 1970s and '80s, things got very mild and toned down and... obsequious.

I was always frightened by taverns. They just seemed like very unpleasant places to go.

As an artist, you can always learn different ways to refine your look. I mean, you look at any one time in my career and you see all the hairstyles I went through. You make changes until something feels comfortable with you. And people vibe with it because they can see the difference.

I never understood bands saying Nirvana had anything to do with derailing their career. Maybe those bands didn't have the goods.

I did it for a living, made a career out of it, but now I've turned it into somewhat of a hobby.

I gave up my childhood for a career.