The Principal of Springfield High School during the 1970s, this no nonsense educator lived only to dole out detentions and undermine any attempt at having fun or enjoying life. Harboring a particular dislike of Homer, that would apparently endure for decades, he was so unlikeable that he could be considered a minor antagonist. Though Shearers other Principal character Seymour Skinner shares many qualities with Dondelinger, Skinner at least has shows optimism, vulnerability and at times a genuine effort to do what's best for his students, which all makes him sympathetic and sometimes likeable. Dondelinger possesses none of those qualities. He is just a mean old man whose emotional range seems limited to suspicion and disapproval. Such is his contempt for all students that he and can't even get through a prom without dishing out a detention. You know where and when!