Alf Clausen is an Emmy-winning composer who scored more than 560 episodes of “The Simpsons” across 27 years. He was fired from the show in 2017, and today, he filed a lawsuit against Fox over his firing from the show, Variety reports. He alleged in the lawsuit that he was fired because of his age.
According to the lawsuit, he was told that the show was taking the music in a “different direction.” It continues, “This reason was pretextual and false. Instead, Plaintiff’s unlawful termination was due to perceived disability and age.” Disney and James L. Brooks’ Gracie Films are also listed as defendants.
Clausen was nominated for 23 Emmys and won twice for “We Put the Spring in Springfield” and “You’re Checkin’ In (A Musical Tribute To The Betty Ford Center).” He was responsible for many of the show’s most memorable musical moments, including the Planet of the Apes musical, Poochie’s rap, and “We Do (the Stonecutters’ Song).”
After news surfaced of Clausen’s firing from the show, producers released a statement claiming that Clausen “will continue to have an ongoing role in the show.” They added, “We remain committed to the finest in music for ‘The Simpsons,’ absolutely including orchestral. This is the part where we would make a joke but neither Alf’s work nor the music of ‘The Simpsons’ is treated as anything but seriously by us.”
Read “Twenty Great ‘Simpsons’ Musical Moments” and “Lisa Simpson’s Second Grade Blues.”
