who did the voice of michael jackson on the simpsons
Stark Raving Dad Al Jean and Mike Reiss wrote the episode while Rich Moore served as director. Michael Jackson guest-starred in the episode as the speaking voice of Leon Kompowsky. For contractual reasons, he was credited as John Jay Smith in the closing credits, and his role in the episode was not officially confirmed until later. Jackson was a fan of the show and called creator Matt Groening one night offering to do a guest spot. Jackson pitched several story ideas for the episode and wrote the song "Happy Birthday Lisa" that is featured in the plot. He also stipulated that he would provide Kompowsky's speaking voice, but his singing voice would be performed by a sound-alike (Kipp Lennon) because he wanted to play a joke on his brothers. The episode contains references to many aspects of Jackson's career, with Kompowsky singing portions of the songs "Billie Jean" and "Ben".