- "Tappa-tappa-tappa. Tappa-tappa-tappa."
- ―Vicki Valentine instructs a dance class[src]
- "I'm ever so pissed!"
- ―Vicki's unconfirmed catchphrase
- "Nobody upstages Little Vicki!"
- ―Vicki after noticing Lisa
Little Miss Vicki Valentine is a dance instructor and former child star.
History[]
Vicki Valentine was a child star in the late 1930s and early 1940s. She appeared in over forty movies, among them Little Vicki for President, Little Vicki vs. Big Rhonda, and Hell Hath no Little Vicki, a war-themed movie whose poster showed her as a gunner in a bomber plane. When she grew up, she generally preferred to be called "just plain Vicki" rather than "Little Vicki" or "Little Miss Vicki," but apparently still reserved the right be called "Little Vicki" in a professional (i.e., dancing-related) context.
Vicki eventually became a dance instructor, and had her own studio in Springfield named Lil' Vicki Valentine's School of Dance. In her studio, Vicki kept her child-star movie posters on the walls. As an instructor, Vicki had a reputation for being very strict, but was also very successful, teaching many people how to dance. Lisa Simpson and Ralph Wiggum joined one of Vicki's dance classes. Ralph discovered that he was a natural at dancing, but Lisa just didn't have any knack for it and kept falling down.
Typical for performers, Vicki had a well-developed ego to go with her sense of professionalism. When Lisa borrowed a pair of high-tech automatic tap shoes from Professor Frink, the shoes went out of control, and Lisa ended up dancing onto the stage and interrupting a recital in which Vicki was starring. Vicki took Lisa's interruption as a personal affront and a deliberate attempt to upstage her, and matched Lisa (or rather, the shoes) move for move, until the shoes short-circuited and took Lisa off of the stage. When Vicki learned that Lisa had been using automatic tap shoes, she was highly offended, but understood Lisa's using the shoes out of a strong desire to be a dancer.
Vicki was later seen as one of the dancers who were dancing on Mr. Burns' presumed grave.[1]
Behind The Laughter[]
- Vicki Valentine is strongly based on Shirley Temple.
- Shirley Temple was offered the role of Vicki Valentine in "Last Tap Dance in Springfield", but turned it down.
- Judging by her movie posters including references to the USA being involved in World War II, Vicki's career as a child star had to have included the early 1940s as well as the late 1930s.
Appearances[]
- Episode – "Last Tap Dance in Springfield"
- Episode – "The Fool Monty"
- – The Simpsons Movie
- Video game – The Simpsons Game
- Video game – The Simpsons: Tapped Out
Notes and references[]
- ↑ The Fool Monty
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Ms. Albright | Alice Glick | June Bellamy | Belle | Billy (actor) | Booberella | Colin | Cosine | Crazy Cat Lady | Michael D'Amico | David (Treehouse of Horror XVI) | Devan Woosterfield | Dia-Betty | Mia Farrow | Ginger Flanders | Adil Hoxha | Bernice Hibbert | Cookie Kwan | Lester | Audrey McConnell | Medicine Woman | Mrs. Muntz | Lindsey Naegle | Manjula Nahasapeemapetilon | Opal | Poor Violet | Lois Pennycandy | Pepi | Phillips | Brunella Pommelhorst | Ronaldo (Blame It on Lisa) | Dr. Simpson | Agnes Skinner | Brandine Spuckler | Jitney Spuckler | Whitney Spuckler | Spud | Dolph Starbeam | Clara Stetson | Gino Terwilliger | Judith Terwilliger | Leslie Robin Swisher | Vicki Valentine | Plopper | Princess Diana |