"The Springfield Files"

Original Air Date: "The Springfield Files" originally aired on January 12, 1997, during the eighth season.

Blackboard Quote: The truth is not out there

Guest Stars: Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny, and Leonard Nimoy.

Favorite Quote: Homer says, "I saw this in a movie about a bus that had to speed around the city, keeping its speed over fifty. And if its speed dropped, the bus would explode! I think it was called "The Bus That Couldn't Slow Down." "

Download Sound Files: Leonard Nimoy's Introduction
Truth
Grampa's Teeth
Homer's Jiggling
Homer's Polygraph Test

Synopsis: The episode opens with Leonard Nimoy narrating in the style of In Search Of or Unsolved Mysteries. Homer drinks too much at Moe's one night (one night?) and decides to walk home. On his way, he encounters a glowing figure emerging from the woods. Frightened, Homer runs home. Because of his inebriated state, the family ignores Homer's sighting.

The next day, Homer's eerie encounter is reported in the Springfield Shopper. FBI Agents Scully and Mulder decide to investigate the sighting further. They arrive in Springfield and ask Homer to take them to the woods where he spotted the creature. Mulder and Scully doubt Homer's credibility. Plus the townspeople start to get on their nerves. The agents leave Springfield.

Homer convinces Bart to camp out at the woods. The alien reappears and they catch it on videotape. The following Friday, everyone in Springfield gathers to see the alien appear again. When it does appear, Lisa shines her flashlight on the glowing form, revealing that the being is only Mr. Burns. Mr. Burns' appearance was altered after receiving longevity treatments from Dr. Riviera.