The Simpsons shorts are a series of 48 one-minute shorts that ran on the variety television programme
The Tracey Ullman Show for three seasons, before the characters spun off into
The Simpsons, their own half-hour prime time show. It features
Homer,
Marge,
Bart,
Lisa, and
Maggie. The series was created by
Matt Groening, who designed the Simpson family and wrote many of the shorts. The shorts first aired on April 19, 1987 starting with "Good Night". The final short to air was "TV Simpsons", originally airing on May 14, 1989.
The Simpsons later debuted on December 17, 1989, as an independent series with the Christmas special "
Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire".