Dr. Nick Riviera

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Dr. Nick Riviera (voiced by Hank Azaria) is a character in the long-running animated TV show The Simpsons. Nick is a quack physician (although he claims to be "just as good as Dr. Hibbert"), and a satiric reference of doctors trained in dubious medical schools in the Caribbean (ie. Haiti, etc.). Riviera is of Hispanic descent and has a medical degree from a community college (at which he apparently spent much of his time using his ability to acquire prescription drugs to impress a succession of attractive women back in the 1970s), and a great deal of luck; thus far, none of the patients he has swindled, maimed, or given useless or dangerous medical advice to have sued. He also studied at the “Hollywood Upstairs Medical College.” He is a stereotype of shady, immoral doctors who perform medical procedures for money with little or no regard for ethics.

He frequently appears on infomercials, pitching all sorts of bizarre medical offers, and has often turned his operations into TV spectacles. He is also shown as an inventor/huckster (in the style of Ron Popeil) on the television show I Can't Believe They Invented It!

Dr. Nick is notable for his exclamation upon entering a room of “Hi, everybody!”, which is immediately followed by a response of “Hi, Dr. Nick!” from the other characters present (although in the episode Who Shot Mr. Burns? Part 2, all Mr. Burns could say was “Homer Simpson" -- but with the cadence of "Hi, Dr. Nick”: "HOH, MEH-er simp-SON!" -- to which Dr. Nick replied “Ok… that was a little weird…”) There was an Austrian version of Dr. Riviera in one of the episodes, where he portrays the doctor of the ailing Mozart, played by Bart, and his exclamation is "Guten Tag, everybody!" Another variation is an episode where Mel Gibson says, "Hi, everybody!" and Dr. Nick responds with "Hi, Mr. Gibson." Another episode featured a Jewish version of Dr. Nick during Homer's flashback to the first Christmas. Dr. Nick says: "Shalom, everybody!"

He has operated on the Simpson family a couple of times (when they cannot afford Doctor Hibbert) notably when Homer could not afford a heart bypass from his regular doctor. Lisa Simpson attended the live audience for the operation and saved the day by guiding the obviously clueless Dr. Riviera through the operation ("Homer's Triple Bypass").

The character design is based somewhat on Gábor Csupó, of Klasky Csupo studios – the animators mistakenly believed Hank Azaria was impersonating Gabor, when in fact the voice was actually an imitation of Ricky Ricardo from I Love Lucy. He may also be based on George C. Nichopoulos (who was also known as "Dr. Nick"), Elvis Presley's personal physician, a man of Greek descent and questionable ethics who was said to have pumped Presley so full of prescription drugs in his later years that it ruined the singer's health and eventually killed him.

Quotes

"Hi everybody!" To whom the salutation may concern: "Hi Dr. Nick!"
"Calm down, you are going to give yourself skin failure!"
"Don't worry, It's Inflammable."
(After the explosion) "Inflammable means flammable? What a country!"
"The Coroner?!...I'm SO sick of that guy!"
(With investigative reporters knocking on door) "What a nice day.....I think I'll go out through the window!"
(When confronted by a malpractice committee over his 'misuse of cadavers') "I get here quicker when I drive in the carpool lane!"
(When confronted by a malpractice committee over his 'preforming major surgeries with a knife and fork from a seafood restaraunt') But I cleaned them with my napkin!
(Prepping for an operation on Homer) "These gloves came free with my toilet brush!"
(Singing while operating) "The kneebone's connected to the... something! The something's connected to the... red thing! The red thing's connected to my wristwatch! Uh-oh..."
(On commercial) "Call 1-600-DOCTORB! The "B" is for BARGAIN! "
(As Homer is slipping under anesthesia for surgery) "What the hell is that?"
(Explaining to Henry VIII why his wife cannot conceive) "It is my learned opinion that the Queen's womb is filled with sea serpents!"
"I can tell from here that you have too much blood. Let's get you covered in leeches!"
"Now by the morning you'll be good as new. Or dead. The important thing is, we'll know."
(About to perform open heart surgery on Homer) "Now, if something should go wrong, let's not get the law involved. Remember, one hand washes the other. Oh, that reminds me." (Goes to sink to wash hands).
(Replying to Homer's "This is legal, right?") "Yeah, sure, whatever".
"With my new diet, you can eat as much as you want, any time you want," to which Marge replied "And you'll lose weight?" to which Nick responded "You might! It's a free country!"
(While reading a Gray's Anatomy)"That's how we look like inside? It's digusting! Whoa! That lady swallowed a baby!"
(Seeing one of the patients whose operation he messed up) "Well, if it isn't my old friend, Mr McGregg: With a leg for an arm, and an arm for a leg!"
"When you were in that coma, did you feel your brain getting damaged?"
"Holy smokes! You need booze!"
"Seriously, baby, I can prescribe anything that I want." (9F09 "Homer's Triple Bypass")
(To Homer) "Now there are many options available for dangerously underweighted individuals like yourself. I recommend a slow steady gorging process combined with assal horizontology."
"You've tried the best, now try the rest" Nick Riviera's commercial, "Homer's Triple Bypass"

Comparing Dr. Hibbert and Dr. Nick

A tongue-in-cheek analysis in the Canadian Medical Association Journal compares the services of Dr. Hibbert and Dr. Nick.Patterson R, Weijer C. D'oh! An analysis of the medical care provided to the family of Homer J. Simpson. CMAJ. 1998 Dec 15;159(12):1480-1. PMID 9988570 [Free Full Text] It concludes that Dr. Nick is a better role model for physicians; Dr. Hibbert is a paternalistic and wasteful physician, unlike Dr. Nick, who strives to cut costs and does his best to avoid the coroner.

References

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