There have been scant references in the best animated comedies of our time – The Simpsons, Family Guy, South Park – to accountants. One that stands out was in the episode of The Simpsons when the April 15th tax deadline rolled around.
Ned Flanders did his taxes on January 1st and mailed them out the same day. Due to his own internal audits performed throughout the year whenever time was available, we can be reasonably assured that his taxes were assessed as filed.
However, everyone else in Springfield was lined up at the post office trying to get their returns in before midnight on April 15th. (In Canada our deadline is April 30.)
Kent Brockman is doing a newscast live on location at the post office, interviewing Springfieldians in line and asking them why they waited so long to take care of their taxes.
Kent is secure in the knowledge that he gave his tax information to his accountant months ago, he notes to his viewers. Just then, a bald man with semi-circle glasses and clutching a sheaf of disorganized papers appears on screen imploring anyone nearby: “Does anyone have a calculator?”
Kent recognizes his accountant. “Myron…?”
Classic. In all likelihood though if you give us your stuff months ahead of the deadline, it’ll be done on time. The earlier the better though, especially if you’ve got multiple sources of income and other complications.
Do you know of any other accountant references from other animated shows like The Simpsons? If so, let me know in the comments!
“If there’s a bad bookkeeping joke, I haven’t heard it.”
Adam and Eve must have been the first bookkeepers – they invented the “loose-leaf” system.