Gracie Films

Gracie Films is an American independent film and TV production company created by James L. Brooks in 1986. The company is primarily responsible for producing 20th Century Fox's long-running animated TV series, The Simpsons, as well as the movies Big, Broadcast News, and Jerry Maguire.

James L. Brooks founded Gracie Films at the Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation in 1986, with Polly Platt as an executive vice president. Named for comedian Gracie Allen, the company was established to "provide real writers with a vehicle to get their movies made. It is primary a distributor to currently Sony Pictures Entertainment, though it continues to produce The Simpsons at Fox's studios in Century City, Los Angeles.

According to The Simpsons Confidential, Brooks gave The Simpsons ' writing staff free rein, as he firmly believed that they were the most important part of the process, and "in the legal battles over The Simpsons, it was Fox that was being sued, not Gracie Films. The company also coordinates international distribution and dubbing for The Simpsons, "in Italy, in particular...[finding] voices for dubbing that would match those of the original American actors as closely as possible.

Gracie Films' production logo depicts noisy patrons in a movie theatre being shushed by a woman before the company's name appears on the screen, accompanied by its nine-note musical signature. The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror episodes often have the jingle played in minor key on a pipe organ, with the shush replaced by a woman screaming. Other audio variations exist on The Simpsons, often with dialogue from the episode or characters such as Homer Simpson responding to the shush.