The Beatles' Yellow Submarine premiered 50 years ago today, becoming a major influence on The Simpsons

Esquire

Family Guy and Ren and Stimpy also owe a debt to the 1968 animated film, says former Simpsons and Futurama writer Josh Weinstein. “What I think is great about both Yellow Submarine and The Simpsons is it's for everybody," he says. "It's for kids, but it's for adults, and I think one thing is it doesn't talk down to kids. It doesn't bother to explain a joke that will go over their head, because it knows somebody will get it. And it's the same with The Simpsons. You have big, broad jokes, but you also have these really oblique references as well. So I think that helped influence its writing style.”