The Simpsons writer David Mirkin said that one of his favorite jokes on the show is the one where Grampa cycles down the street in high speed and shouts that he feels young again, and is then knocked flying from his bicycle after a doll's head flies into the spokes and falls into an open grave.

Mirkin later said that recording with the McCartneys was one of the most " amazing " experiences of his life and considers the episode to be one of his favorites.

Mirkin said of the film: " These are women characters we haven't seen before.

" Mirkin has said that Patrick Stewart is " one of the best guest performances " because " he was so committed to character.

Mirkin said, " Things had to happen really fast.

Mirkin said he felt the gremlin was well-done because he looked scary and " yet it looks like a completely organic Simpsons character ".

Mirkin said he believes Halloween shows can be " scary as well as fun ".

David Mirkin said that Homer's line " Oh I wish, I wish I hadn't killed that fish " is one of his favorites in the show, and that the alternate future in which the family are rich " breaks heart every time ".

" There was an eerie silence ," Mirkin said.

It was filmed on Ventura Boulevard in Studio City and directed by David Mirkin, who later said that Fox " couldn't have been less supportive " because they thought it would be too expensive.

Mirkin later said that recording with the McCartneys was one of the most " amazing " experiences of his life.

" Mirkin said the episode was also a tour de force for Kavner, who in one scene voices Marge, Marge's two sisters, and Marge's mother.

Mirkin also said Neill was " really game " and did " a terrific job " on the episode.

" Mirkin said this was a joke the staff enjoyed doing because it pointed out how negative and mean-spirited news broadcasts can be, and how they are seemingly " always trying to scare everybody " by creating panic and depression.

Mirkin said Mantegna is a joy to direct and that Mantegna loves the role so much, he wishes to voice him " even if he only coughs ".

The Simpsons creator Matt Groening thought it was a " quintessential " Swartzwelder episode, and executive producer / show runner David Mirkin said it was a " fantastic job by one of the most prolific writers of the show ".

Mirkin said the elephant " never quite bonds because it's a very cantankerous animal, a concept that was very important to this episode ".

Mirkin said of the Westworld parody: " Again, to show you what a collaboration this is, we had the animators looking at Westworld and making sure of the animation, and then we made sure that Simpsons composer Alf Clausen got the brilliant soundtrack from the film.

Although " Homer the Great " was written by John Swartzwelder, the story was suggested by executive producer David Mirkin.

Mirkin did not have enough time to write the episode and asked Swartzwelder to do it.

" Rosebud " was written by John Swartzwelder and was the first episode to be executive produced by David Mirkin, who was the show runner for the fifth and sixth seasons of the show.

" Rosebud " was written by John Swartzwelder and was the first episode to be executive produced and run by David Mirkin.

The scene was directed by David Mirkin and was the first time a Simpsons character had been in the real world in the series.

Throughout his childhood, Mirkin had an interest in film, and explored both writing and filming.

Mirkin pitched to the series ' story editors for several years without success, because they had very limited script buying power.

" This meant Mirkin had to adapt his preference for character-driven comedy to fit the show ; it " forced you to put all the cleverness into the plot, a much more difficult thing to do.

It was the first nomination the show had received in that category and for the first episode Mirkin wrote as the series ' showrunner.

" A philosophy he carried in to his later work, Mirkin felt that " being the head writer ... was not enough ; you had to see the material through its execution – especially the weirder stuff.

Mirkin had wanted to cast comedian Chris Elliott in the pilot, but was prevented by Fox, which wanted Elliott for another show.

Mirkin served as executive producer for the series, directed most of the episodes, wrote several of them, and oversaw the filming and production of them all, to ensure that they had the correct " tone ".

Unlike most single-camera shows, which have around six days to film, Mirkin had to film each episode in two days.

Mirkin had long wished to produce a sketch show, and designed The Edge to be " fast-paced " and " some skits overlap, end abruptly or are broken into segments ," in order to maintain attention.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that Mirkin had been " forced off the show ," due to the negative reaction of Spelling and others, though in 2012, Mirkin stated that he left the series after refusing to accept a substantially reduced budget.

Due to the high staff departure at the end of season four, Mirkin " pretty much had to build show from the ground up again ," and noted that this " was exciting but also a big challenge.

In 2004, Mirkin stated that he " really wasn't at all intimidat to join show's writing crew ," because he " had worked with and written with " many of his fellow writers previously and concluded that, " took this show in a direction that is more personal to me.

" Lisa the Vegetarian " was approved by Mirkin after the story was pitched by Cohen ; Mirkin had just become a vegetarian himself, and so many of Lisa's experiences in the episode were based on his own.

James Berardinelli wrote that Mirkin " brings a lot of energy to the production, always keeping things moving ," while Jack Matthews of The Los Angeles Times says Mirkin " knew exactly what he had here and composed it like frames in a comic strip, ordering cheerful snow-cone colors for everything from the girls ' childlike outfits to the decor of a Laundromat.

In 1999, several of the Fox executives who had disliked Get a Life came to Mirkin and apologized for the way they had treated the show, stating that they now found it funny.

In the early 1990s, Mirkin was in a relationship with actress Julie Brown, with whom he had worked on The Julie Show and The Edge ; the two considered getting married.

On 9 January 1913, Jacob had married Marie Mirkin, who came to Amsterdam from Warsaw in May 1913.

David Mirkin had the initial idea for the episode, Steve O ' Donnell was the lead writer, and Steven Dean Moore directed.

Mirkin had been the show runner during seasons five and six, but had been brought back to run two episodes during the ninth season.