10 The Simpsons Characters Who Were KILLED OFF!

Prior to the season 26 premiere, The Simpsons producer Al Jean hinted that the writers had plans to kill off a character that had "appeared more than twice in the show" and that was "voiced by an Emmy Award-winning actor". After much speculation, it became obvious that the death would somehow be linked to Krusty the Clown, especially as the episode in question would be called "Clown in the Dumps".

Rather than kill off Krusty, which would have been a huge decision, the showrunners opted to instead focus on the passing of the clown's father, Rabbi Hyman Krustofsky, a character who had been a part of the show ever since season 3.

In his final appearance, Rabbi Krustofsky is approached by his son who is desperate for affirmation that his straight-laced father approves of his career choice. Before the Rabbi can give his verdict, he dies mid-sentence, leaving Krusty to believe he never had his blessing.

Don't worry though, the episode isn't a complete downer. Thanks to some help from Bart and Lisa, Krusty eventually realises that his father did approve of him becoming a clown, and actually enjoyed his off-brand sense of humour. It was a nice way to bring the two characters' story full circle, and added a new dimension to the usually bad tempered, philandering funnyman.