Do'h - Simpsons pulled off the screen in Venezuela
South American teenage boys rejoice as Marge and Homer are replaced by Pam and the Hoff.
The Simpsons, the longest running animated show of all time, has been removed from TV listings in Venezuela after it was deemed inappropriate for children and adolescents.
The show to replace the critically acclaimed cartoon is Baywatch, which propelled Pamela Anderson and David Hasselhoff to fame in the early nineties as scantily clad lifeguards in California.
Elba Guillen, spokesperson for the TV station, was unforthcoming as to why a show about attractive young men and women splashing about in the waves was more appropriate for children than The Simpsons, but she did not rule out it returning in a later time slot.
The Venezuelan snub is unlikely to concern creator Matt Groening who has seen the show cause much controversy in Brazil, New Orleans and with Tracey Ullman and the White House. During a presidential speech George Bush senior said: "We're going to strengthen the American family to make them more like the Waltons and less like the Simpsons." He promptly went on to lose to Bill Clinton.
Last year the residents of Springfield hit the big screen, and the movie was predictably an international smash, confirming the world's love affair with the yellow American family. The film grossed $74 million in its opening weekend, and by the end of 2007 it had made over half a billion dollars internationally.
The Simpsons has become a world-wide brand, and has been in the UK with Sky, and later BBC and Channel 4 since 1990. But Baywatch can lay its own claim to world supremacy, reaching a record 1.1 billion viewers at its peak. The lifeguard show become notorious for its slow-motion beach running scenes and helped Pamela Anderson to become one of the most famous, and infamous, supermodels in the world. But the show fell upon hard times against its American competitors, and following the re-named Baywatch Hawaii the show was cancelled in 2001.
So far Baywatch has received no complaints in the 11am Venezuelan slot, and representatives of the TV station hope that the show will emulate the success of its predecessor. General manager of the station, German Perez Nahim, said: "We are hoping it will continue to have a good rating, because The Simpsons worked very well - so much so that it had received the highest level of viewership for that morning timetable in the history of the channel."
The Simpsons can be found on British TV on Channel 4 at 6pm and Sky at 7pm. To check all the TV listings go to www.uknetguide.co.uk/TV/.
