] The event was a "table read," when the cast of "The
] Simpsons" gathered with a roomful of writers, producers
] and guests, using their imaginations to conjure up the
] animated family with the distinctive mustard hue.

] Actors, producers and writers sit at a massive conference
] table littered with water bottles and note pads. Invitation-
] only visitors ring the table. (Noticeably absent are the
] network executives who always haunt rehearsals; "The
] Simpsons" has a rare stipulation, won by executive
] producer James L. Brooks, limiting Fox meddling.)

] "It's sort of the hottest ticket on the lot," said Yeardley
] Smith, who voices young Lisa, the wise Simpson daughter.

] After all these years, Jean has developed his own script
] shorthand: a check mark for a joke that gets a laugh, an
] "X" for one that falls flat. "Something that's sweet but
] doesn't necessarily get a huge laugh will stay in," Jean said.

It would be interesting to see a store with more detail that follows the script creation process.

The making of a Simpsons episode