Potus Geeks Summer Reruns: The Simpsons Feud with George H. W. Bush
(This article was originally posted on August 13, 2015 as part of a series entitled Presidents in Parody.)
I was going to begin this entry explaining what The Simpsons is, but really, if you haven't heard of the very popular award winning Fox satire cartoon show that has been running for [at the time this was first written] 26 years, then you probably don't have internet access and can't read this post anyhow. Many US presidents have made appearances on the Simpsons, but one of the most famous of these was when former President George H. W. Bush appeared as a character (voiced by Harry Shearer).
The episode is called Two Bad Neighbors and it was the 13th episode of The Simpsons' seventh season. It originally aired on January 14, 1996. The episode begins with the Simpson family having a garage sale. George H. W. Bush upstages Homer Simpson by moving in across the street, and Homer develops a grudge against Bush. When Bart Simpson misbehaves (as usual), George Bush gives Bart a spanking, leading Homer starts a prank war with Bush. This escalates into a one-on-one confrontation that results in the Bushes leaving Springfield.
The episode was written by Ken Keeler and directed by Wesley Archer. It was inspired by some negative comments made towards the show by the Bushes earlier on. Vanity Fair named it the fifth best episode of the show. It acquired a Nielsen rating of 9.9, and was the second highest-rated show on the Fox network the week it aired.
In the episode, when the Bushes move in, Ned Flanders and his family came over to visit them and George takes a liking to Ned. Bart decides to visit, and makes a friend out of Barbara Bush. But Bart's habit of calling adults by their first names and his overall annoying attitude irritates George. When Bart accidentally shreds George's newly typed memoirs, the former President takes Bart across his knee and spanks him. Upon learning this, an outraged Homer confronts George, demanding that he must apologize for spanking Bart, but Bush refuses and instead demands Homer to apologize. Both men vow to make trouble for each other, despite Barbara's suggestion to George that he should apologize to Homer.
The pranks escalate despite Barbara and Marge urging their husbands to stop. Former Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev arrives to bring a housewarming present for the Bush family, but he finds Homer and George fighting, until George recognizes Gorbachev. Finally having enough, Barbara forces George to apologize to Homer for spanking Bart, and he does so in front of Gorbachev (much to his humiliation). Believing that the neighborhood is not worth living in, George decides to sell the house to Gerald Ford, as he and Barbara leave Springfield for good. Ford invites Homer to watch a football game with beer and Nachos at his house. The two quickly get off to a good start.
The show was inspired by an actual feud with the Bushes. In the October 1, 1990, edition of People, Barbara Bush called The Simpsons "the dumbest thing I've ever seen" which had led to the writers sending a letter to Bush where they posed as Marge Simpson. Mrs. Bush immediately sent a reply in which she apologized. Then on January 27, 1992, then-current President George H. W. Bush made a speech during his re-election campaign, at a time when "family values" were a campaign issue. Bush said, in a following speech at the National Religious Broadcasters' convention in Washington, D.C., "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". The next broadcast of The Simpsons was a rerun of "Stark Raving Dad" on January 30, 1992. It included a new opening, which was a response to Bush's speech. The scene begins in the Simpsons' living room. Homer, Patty and Selma sit on the couch. Bart and Lisa are sprawled on the carpet. They all stare at the television and watch Bush's speech. After Bush's statement, Bart replies "Hey, we're just like the Waltons. We're praying for an end to the Depression too."
Simpsons' producer Josh Weinstein has said that the the writers made special effort to keep the parody apolitical. Writer Bill Oakley said "it's not a political attack, it's a personal attack" intended to poke fun at Bush's "crotchetiness".
When originally conceived, Richard Nixon was going to move in after Bush, instead of Ford, and this was changed to Bob Dole following Nixon's death. But the writers said that they decided it would be funnier if it were Ford since they believed he was the politician who best represented Homer.
The episode is included in The Simpsons season 7 DVD set, which was released on December 13, 2005. Oakley and Weinstein participate in the DVD's audio commentary. In its original American broadcast, "Two Bad Neighbors" finished 52nd in the ratings for the week of January 7 to January 14, 1996, with a Nielsen rating of 9.9. The episode was the second highest-rated show on the Fox network that week.
This is the only YouTube clip I've managed to find from the episode. It's of the closing scene:
I was going to begin this entry explaining what The Simpsons is, but really, if you haven't heard of the very popular award winning Fox satire cartoon show that has been running for [at the time this was first written] 26 years, then you probably don't have internet access and can't read this post anyhow. Many US presidents have made appearances on the Simpsons, but one of the most famous of these was when former President George H. W. Bush appeared as a character (voiced by Harry Shearer).
The episode is called Two Bad Neighbors and it was the 13th episode of The Simpsons' seventh season. It originally aired on January 14, 1996. The episode begins with the Simpson family having a garage sale. George H. W. Bush upstages Homer Simpson by moving in across the street, and Homer develops a grudge against Bush. When Bart Simpson misbehaves (as usual), George Bush gives Bart a spanking, leading Homer starts a prank war with Bush. This escalates into a one-on-one confrontation that results in the Bushes leaving Springfield.
The episode was written by Ken Keeler and directed by Wesley Archer. It was inspired by some negative comments made towards the show by the Bushes earlier on. Vanity Fair named it the fifth best episode of the show. It acquired a Nielsen rating of 9.9, and was the second highest-rated show on the Fox network the week it aired.
In the episode, when the Bushes move in, Ned Flanders and his family came over to visit them and George takes a liking to Ned. Bart decides to visit, and makes a friend out of Barbara Bush. But Bart's habit of calling adults by their first names and his overall annoying attitude irritates George. When Bart accidentally shreds George's newly typed memoirs, the former President takes Bart across his knee and spanks him. Upon learning this, an outraged Homer confronts George, demanding that he must apologize for spanking Bart, but Bush refuses and instead demands Homer to apologize. Both men vow to make trouble for each other, despite Barbara's suggestion to George that he should apologize to Homer.
The pranks escalate despite Barbara and Marge urging their husbands to stop. Former Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev arrives to bring a housewarming present for the Bush family, but he finds Homer and George fighting, until George recognizes Gorbachev. Finally having enough, Barbara forces George to apologize to Homer for spanking Bart, and he does so in front of Gorbachev (much to his humiliation). Believing that the neighborhood is not worth living in, George decides to sell the house to Gerald Ford, as he and Barbara leave Springfield for good. Ford invites Homer to watch a football game with beer and Nachos at his house. The two quickly get off to a good start.
The show was inspired by an actual feud with the Bushes. In the October 1, 1990, edition of People, Barbara Bush called The Simpsons "the dumbest thing I've ever seen" which had led to the writers sending a letter to Bush where they posed as Marge Simpson. Mrs. Bush immediately sent a reply in which she apologized. Then on January 27, 1992, then-current President George H. W. Bush made a speech during his re-election campaign, at a time when "family values" were a campaign issue. Bush said, in a following speech at the National Religious Broadcasters' convention in Washington, D.C., "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". The next broadcast of The Simpsons was a rerun of "Stark Raving Dad" on January 30, 1992. It included a new opening, which was a response to Bush's speech. The scene begins in the Simpsons' living room. Homer, Patty and Selma sit on the couch. Bart and Lisa are sprawled on the carpet. They all stare at the television and watch Bush's speech. After Bush's statement, Bart replies "Hey, we're just like the Waltons. We're praying for an end to the Depression too."
Simpsons' producer Josh Weinstein has said that the the writers made special effort to keep the parody apolitical. Writer Bill Oakley said "it's not a political attack, it's a personal attack" intended to poke fun at Bush's "crotchetiness".
When originally conceived, Richard Nixon was going to move in after Bush, instead of Ford, and this was changed to Bob Dole following Nixon's death. But the writers said that they decided it would be funnier if it were Ford since they believed he was the politician who best represented Homer.
The episode is included in The Simpsons season 7 DVD set, which was released on December 13, 2005. Oakley and Weinstein participate in the DVD's audio commentary. In its original American broadcast, "Two Bad Neighbors" finished 52nd in the ratings for the week of January 7 to January 14, 1996, with a Nielsen rating of 9.9. The episode was the second highest-rated show on the Fox network that week.
This is the only YouTube clip I've managed to find from the episode. It's of the closing scene:
Click to view