# Simpsons: How can a ten-year old boy retire? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** cartoons-animation\ **Created:** [November 22, 2024, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624 "2024-11-22T20:25:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/1 "2024-11-22T20:25:24Z")
Milhouse, that is. Okay, so Milhouse isn’t retiring but Pamela Hayden, his voice actor, is. At age 70, she’s decided to drop the mike. Show says that they will re-cast the role. > **[The Simpsons: Milhouse voice actress Pamela Hayden retires from US series](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0mzy0e2kyro)** > > Pamela Hayden also voiced Ned Flanders' sons Rod and Todd and school bully Jimbo Jones. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/2 "2024-11-22T20:27:47Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Show says that they will re-cast the role. So this _isn’t_ the untimely end of Milhouse. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/3 "2024-11-22T20:29:32Z")
Yes, we’ll still have Milhouse to kick around. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.winston_oboogie/32/2945_2.png) [@Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Winston_OBoogie)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/4 "2024-11-23T04:42:41Z")
Everything’s coming up Millhouse! ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/5 "2024-11-23T07:42:53Z")
Where will they ever find an artist to draw Millhouse the same way? ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/6 "2024-11-23T08:00:01Z")
Just as long as they don’t try to do it live - it’s a terrible strain on the animators’ wrists. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/7 "2024-11-23T16:22:01Z")
But will his mom still think he’s cool? ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/8 "2024-11-23T16:45:31Z")
With the show in its 36th season and the main cast now in their sixties or seventies (Harry Shearer’s 81), I do wonder which if any voice actor’s retirement would force the end of the show. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/9 "2024-11-23T16:59:14Z")
Bart gave the answer 32 years ago, in season 3: > “Quality, shmality. If I had a TV show, I’d run that baby into the ground!” They’re doing marvellous things these days with AI, I hear. Grand Moff Tarkin would probably approve. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/10 "2024-11-23T17:03:10Z")
> [@flurb](#): > > With the show in its 36th season and the main cast now in their sixties or seventies (Harry Shearer’s 81), I do wonder which if any voice actor’s retirement would force the end of the show. In Germany the SImpsons are dubbed (as are 99% of foreign movies and TV shows), and the original voice actors for both Marge (Elisabeth Volkmann) and Homer (Norbert Gastell) have long died. I have given up watching new episodes more than 20 years ago, long before those deaths, but every time I catch a snippet of a new episode, their new voices sound totally off to me. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/11 "2024-11-23T17:05:37Z")
My guess (and it’s just a guess) is that if and when any one of the main cast retires (or dies, or becomes no longer able to voice their characters) the other cast members will retire in solidarity. And that would _probably_ mark the end of the show. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/12 "2025-04-05T04:16:18Z")
Renewed for four more seasons: > **[The Simpsons Record Breaking Renewal Makes It One of the Longest Animated...](https://comicbook.com/anime/news/the-simpsons-longest-animated-shows/)** > > With The Simpsons renewed through Season 40, it will officially be one of the longest animated shows of all time Has the show changed much over the years? [I haven’t seen any episodes since last century.] ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/13 "2025-04-05T04:25:17Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > Has the show changed much over the years? The Simpsons is like Sideshow Bob stepping on a succession of rakes. it’s funny, then it wasn’t, then it became cringeworthy, then it kept going on so long it became funny again. But when you pull back and look at it from a distance, it wasn’t funny after all. Does that clear it up? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simpsons-how-can-a-ten-year-old-boy-retire/1010624/14 "2025-04-05T07:33:36Z")
::Thwack:: (mumble mumble mumble)