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As a very meta example, currentA.P.
Biowriter and formerSimpsonsstafferDonick Cary shared The SimpsonsDid It.
Its what a lazy writer says when they dont like a joke, he explains.
And then I still get argued down.
Bio
The ChipsMike OBrien, showrunner:We talk about What are the chips of an episode?
We had a line in there where someone said, Its just about the chips, Jack?
and he said, Its 80 percent getting Marcus, 20 percent chips.
I do want the chips, but theyre more a symbol.
Chuffahs almost always get cut.
JeffingOBrien: Its a verb based on our writer Jeff Vanderkruik.
Its awkward for a second because everyones like, Do we tell this person that Mark just said that?
Now youre like, Oh, did I just Jeff?
I think Im Jeffing.
I probably did it more often than him.
But he did it first.
Lateral Pitches Get StitchesOBrien: Shelly initiated this when I was out of the room.
Gossman:And its used against me!
I never heard the end of it.
Little BootyOBrien:This was grandfathered in fromMarlonby Britt Matt.
We call spillover onto an otherwise mostly blank page little booties or big butts.
Its just got a little booty on there.
Cary: You have all the middle-aged white guys using phrases that very clearly came fromMarlon.
Its now just part of our vernacular in here.
Its another generic one that comes up in writers rooms.
Cary:Before sneakers were all the craze!
Whatever BarrelOBrien:Theres sock barrel.
We just say whatever barrel.
Were in a poop barrel, or whatever youre hitting too often.
Not to body shame script pages, but thats what we call them.
I think I should just email you what it looks like.
Its so hard to explain.
Were going to rewrite them now.
Nick does a great Duke Ellington.
The Biggest CrabsGroff:I imported this saying from my grandfather: Eat the biggest crabs first.
That way youre always eating the biggest crabs.
Ill say, Well, why dont we do it now?
Lets just figure it out.
Lets eat the biggest crabs first.
Do the best idea right away instead of trying to save it or forget about it.
That piece that didnt work here.
Well buff-carc it into another scene.
Cutting Is PunchingGroff:Punching means making the script funnier.
Sometimes just by removing stuff that isnt working, itll make the script funnier without adding a joke.
CzechoslovakiaGroff:This is one I think every show says.
This next page was Czechoslovakia, meaning there are tons of checks on it those jokes all worked.
You know how I know this page is Prague?
Because there are lots of checks.
Hat on a HatGroff:There are a lot of terms that go across all shows.
Hat on a hat is when you do an extra joke on top of a joke thats already working.
Its adoring something too much.
Adding florid language at the end is like putting a hat on a hat.
A good hat doesnt need another hat on top of it.
Hot FightGroff:Its exactly what it sounds like.
Its serious conflict: Fuck you, fuck you.
Set It and Forget ItGroff:This comes from Ron Popeils infomercials selling the Showtime Rotisserie Ovens.
He would say, Set it, and the studio audience would say, And forget it!
Just go back to the original.
Tuesday UsGroff:We do our table reads on Tuesdays.
The shorthand is, Sorry, youre going to hate me.
I have a blow dart for that spot.
Dan Fybel, writer: It was a K4N and it made the episode.
It lived there for years and we were like, Oh my God, fine.
Its the secret spice.
We generally wont do something if weve already done it, but sometimes we do.
Rinaldi:Well say, Weve done that three times.
Is it a character trait now?
Did we just own that?
Fybel:We have that with Linda going, Ow, my face!
Summer FrankensteinRinaldi:Its like a Frankenstein.
The summery-ness of it is, picture Frankenstein wearing a Hawaiian shirt.
Table CandyRinaldi:We have so many fans at our live table reads now, its just amazing.
We might throw in a fuck or shit for the crowd to get a little shock.
Fybel:Thats the table candy that well get out before we record.
He asks, How old are you?
and the guy says, 49.
Bob just said, Fuck you.
Sometimes its tell, dont show.
I dont fully have it figured out.
Give me a break.
Belt and SuspendersGoor:Where you give multiple justifications for a plot action.
Sometimes it can be overkill, but sometimes it can be really good to reinforce it.
Candy BagGoor:The list of our favorite alt jokes we have on set.
Its a terrible term.
GoldilocksGoor:A story document told with the level of detail that you would tell the Goldilocks story.
So, not every joke, not every description, just a very plain version of the story.
Invisible WeakenerGoor:A good joke that, in the moment, youre like, This is great!
but it weakens the plot.
They dont all get cut.
J on a JGoor:It stands for joke on a joke, which is hat on a hat.
Vomit DraftGoor:When you write without stopping to edit along the way.
You get it out and then you could worry about stuff afterward.
Superstore
Hey MayJustin Spitzer, executive producer:Its an act break or big moment.
Youve got to come here and see this!
Refrigerator LogicSpitzer:Its something that would only be logical in retrospect.
Did that make sense?
It ends up confusing things.
SqueeSpitzer:This one comes fromThe Office.
We need to give the fans a little romance.
