The series looked (and sounded) a lot different during its first half-season. Who could ever imagine, back then, that it's STILL on, in first-run episodes, 20 years later? Incidentally, most reference books [including Brooks and Marsh's] incorrectly list December 18, 1989 as the official start of the series; that, of course, was the "first" Christmas special (informally known as "Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire"). As RGJ mentioned above, the first episode of the SERIES aired on January 14, 1990.