‘Simpsons’ hometown picked

SPRINGFIELD, Vt. – Maybe it was the pink doughnut. Maybe it was the clever homemade video, or small-town charm.

Whatever the reason, this much is true: Tiny Springfield, Vt., beat out 13 other like-named cities Tuesday for the right to host the premiere of “The Simpsons Movie,” winning an online poll.

On July 21, the town’s 100-seat movie theater will play host to the movie.

“Ninety-three hundred people, and we won,” said an exultant Town Manager Bob Forguites. “I think it’s pretty neat, myself.”

Springfields in Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, Ohio, Oregon and Tennessee also made bids, submitting videos meant to playfully connect their cities to the fictional Springfield in “The Simpsons.”

Vermont’s Springfield submitted a video shot by a 17-year-old volunteer cameraman showing buildings with “Springfield” in them and featuring Homer – played by a Burlington talk-show host – running through town chasing a big, pink, rolling doughnut.

The video was posted on the contest Web site along with the other entries. By midnight Monday, the deadline, 109,582 votes were cast. Vermont got 15,367, edging out Springfield, Ill., which drew 14,634.