 The episode makes mention of " 40 classic films starring Jim Carrey " , which include The Mask and " Ace Ventura VI " . According to David Mirkin , this is a joke about how " huge " Carrey 's movies were at the time , and how he was not garnering much respect as an actor . The sounds of the car are the same as the ones used in The Jetsons . Wrist communicators are using same sounds as communicators in Star Trek . In this episode 's version of the future , apparently three of the major American television networks have been bought by ABC and merged into CNNBCBS . At the same time , Fox has gradually become a hardcore sex channel . Hugh Parkfield is a parody of English actor Hugh Grant . The beginning of Lisa and Hugh 's romance is similar to the one in Love Story . Martin Prince 's fate is a parody of The Phantom of the Opera . The song that he plays on the organ is a variation of " A Fifth of Beethoven " by Walter Murphy , a disco version of Beethoven 's " Symphony No. 5 " in C Minor . 
