Was Mr. Smithers being gay controversial in the early years of Simpsons?

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In the early seasons we get some subtle hints here and there that Mr. Smithers is gay, but they never directly confirm it. There was also very little episodes or gag's about homosexuality when the show started.

Then as the show progressed, we've gotten countless gay kissing, episodes about gay lifestyle, Smithers kissing Mr. Burns, and so forth.

When the show first started, was homosexuality still a controversial subject on TV? Is this why Mr. Smithers and all other storylines about homosexuality very subtle or not used at all?

And now, this doesn't matter anymore? Is it because society has changed?
 
I don't think it was.. it was humorous, after all. Three's Company's been doing it since the 70s. If anything, I'd say comedy about being gay is less controversial than if a show took the subject seriously. It seems people are more open about homosexuality if it's being played for laughs; like it was for Smithers.
 
It was subtle because it wasn't meant to be a major plot point, it began as just throwaway gags that Smithers is a little too devoted to his boss.

The only controversy I ever recall over Smithers is when some toy stores refused to stock his action figure.
 
I always knew Smithers was gay, the problem was admitting to the world, especially Mr. Burns that he is gay.

When they announced that someone on the Simpsons was getting married in a same sex marriage. I thought Smithers was the rightful choice, not Patty.

Maybe its time for Smithers to come out.
 
Nah I don't think it was very controversial. I remember more people talking about "how come he was black in the first episode and now he's yellow" in school and just laughing at the subtle jokes about him being gay.
 
Smithers has been out, the writers just never gave him a huge coming out episode. Pretty much everyone in Springfiled knows about it, by now, or at least the characters associated with him.

Which episode was it where Smither's caught on fire while Burns was standing closeby with a hose?

Smithers: I'm flaming!

(Burns just stares into the camera without saying a word)
 
I don't remember the episode but there is a scene where Monty Burns sings "Happy Birthday Mr. Smithers," and he's coming out of a cake.
 
The teddy bear episode. Mr Burns complains that he never gets what he wants for his birthday (meaning his old teddy bear) and Smithers replies 'Me neither sir' and imagines the scene you described.
 
From what I recall in the early 90s, Smithers wasn't overly controversial---most of the attention was on how "outrageous" the show overall, particularly Bart, was by TV's standards at the time. Smithers was just an incidental character (Burns' minion)...

As for gays on TV back then, this being pre- Will and Grace/Ellen, gays weren't a regular TV presence back then... and when they did appear (usually in dramas), it was still in more limited/stereotyped roles versus how they're shown today. Today, of course, the "is Smithers gay?" jokes/Smithers not being openly gay seem rather dated compared to most modern sitcoms/dramas' portrayals of gays (and extremely tame compared to Showtime's "Queer As Folk" series from the mid-2000s)...

Then again, far as American animation's concerned, cartoons (Smithers aside) still seem stuck in the pre-Will and Grace/Ellen mode of media's portrayal of gays (when gays appear at all---not being "proper" for children's cartoons, "of course", as the flap over "Postcards From Buster" a few years back showed) as either rather closeted or some sort of stereotype. No cartoon seems to have, say, some well-rounded character like Batman, Kim Possible, etc. who happens to be gay...
 
I don't think there was any controversy. I mean, he's just Mr. Burns' assistant, in his early 40s, unmarried, and currently residing in Springfield.
 
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