 Sam Simon wrote the third segment, "The Raven", and David Silverman directed it.The segment was based on Edgar Allan Poe's 1845 narrative poem "The Raven".During production, "Simpsons" creator Matt Groening was nervous about "The Raven" because it did not have many gags, and felt it would be "the worst, most pretentious thing [they had] ever done" on the show.