George HW Bush is being remembered for his role in a classic Simpsons episode
The 41st president of the United States died on Friday at the age of 94.
The death of George HW Bush has prompted many to remember the former US president for his part in one of The Simpsons’ finest episodes.
Bush died at the age of 94 on Friday evening, having served as president from 1989 to 1993. He presided during the collapse of the Soviet Union and the final months of the Cold War.
But many also remember him for his appearance in Two Bad Neighbors, a 1996 episode of The Simpsons in which Bush and his wife Barbara – who passed away earlier in 2018 – move opposite Homer and his family.
In the episode, Bush clashes with the Simpson family after spanking Bart for bad behaviour, prompting a back-and-forth battle between the two houses which ends with Homer fighting the former president in a sewer.
The episode followed a number of exchanges between the Bush family and the makers of the Simpsons.
In 1990, Mrs Bush labelled the show “the dumbest thing I had ever seen,” in an interview, which prompted the showrunners to write her a letter from Marge.
Mrs Bush apologised to Marge, writing back: “Clearly you are setting a good example for the rest of the country. Please forgive a loose tongue.”
It didn’t end there, however. During a campaign stop in 1992 Bush told a crowd: “We are going to keep on trying to strengthen the American family, to make American families a lot more like the Waltons and a lot less like the Simpsons.”
Bush failed to secure re-election and years later Two Bad Neighbors was aired, complete with all the biting satire the show was known for.
Even so, fans of The Simpsons remember the former president’s part in the episode fondly, with some deciding to re-watch the season seven classic after the news of Bush’s passing, while Simpsons writer Al Jean posted this tribute.
