The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson

"The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson"
The Simpsons episode
One of the promotional cards for the episode, featuring the Simpson family atop the Empire State Building.
Episode no.	Season 9 Episode 1
Directed by	Jim Reardon
Written by	Ian Maxtone-Graham
Production code	4F22
Original air date	September 21, 1997 (1997-09-21)
Guest appearances
Michael Dees sings "Theme from New York, New York"[1][2] Joan Kenley as woman on the phone
Episode features
Couch gag	The Simpsons are dressed as the Harlem Globetrotters, showing off elaborate basketball tricks to the tune of "Sweet Georgia Brown".[1]
Commentary	Commentary 1: Bill Oakley Josh Weinstein Jim Reardon Commentary 2: Ian Maxtone-Graham Dan Castellaneta
Episode chronology
← Previous "The Secret War of Lisa Simpson" Next → "The Principal and the Pauper"
The Simpsons season 9
List of episodes

"The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson" is the first episode of the ninth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It was originally broadcast on Fox in the United States on September 21, 1997, as the 179th episode of the series. The episode features the Simpson family traveling to Manhattan to recover the family car, which was taken by Barney Gumble and abandoned outside the World Trade Center, where it had been repeatedly posted with parking tickets, and disabled with a parking boot.

Writer Ian Maxtone-Graham was interested in making an episode where the Simpson family travels to New York to retrieve their misplaced car. Executive producers Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein suggested that the car be found in Austin J. Tobin Plaza at the World Trade Center, as they wanted a location that would be widely known. Great lengths were taken to make a detailed replica of the borough of Manhattan. The episode received acclaim from fans and television critics, and has since been on accolade lists of The Simpsons episodes. The "You're Checkin' In" musical sequence won two awards. Because of the World Trade Center's main role, the episode was taken off syndication in many areas following the September 11 attacks, but returned to syndication by 2006. The episode also features the first appearance of Duffman, who would become a recurring character in the series.