10 Unusual Demands Made By Guest Stars On The Simpsons
1. Michael Jackson - Use A Sing-A-Like
The story of Michael Jackson on The Simpsons is as complicated as it is sad. The pop megastar lent his voice to Leon Kompowsky, a man in a mental asylum who believed he was actually The King of Pop. Due to legal restrictions imposed by his record label, MJ didn't appear under his real name (like Hoffman and Brooks) and was instead credited as "John Jay Smith". The label also didn't want him to sing on the show, which was a big problem, as the episode's finale centred around Bart and Kompowsky duetting on the song, "Happy Birthday Lisa".
To get around these legal issues, the writers hired sing-a-like named Kipp Lennon to perform the song. So that means that "Happy Birthday Lisa" was sung by Kipp Lennon who was pretending to be Michael Jackson who was performing under the name John Jay Smith playing Leon Kompowsky, a character who thought he was Michael Jackson. Got all that?
Sadly, this episode is hard to come by these days after serious allegations against Jackson resurfaced a few years ago, which means that this great episode and its fascinating history will be lost on many a Simpsons fan.