10. The Bush family was not a fan of the show. In October 1990, then-first lady Barbara Bush called the show “the stupidest thing[she]had ever seen,” prompting the show’s writers to write a response from Marge Simpson, who insisted her family was doing what was best. The first lady later apologized.
In early 1992, then-President George H.W. Bush said in a speech during his failed re-election campaign: “We will continue to strengthen American families, to make American families more like the Waltons and less like the Simpsons.” In the show’s next broadcast, a rerun, the writers respond with an opening scene in which the family watches the speech, when Bart replies, “Hey, we’re just like the Waltons. We’re praying for an end to the recession.”
11. The show was a Sunday night mainstay for most of its run, but its initial success there, becoming the first Fox series to rank in the season’s top 30 highest-rated programs in its first season, led the network to move it to Thursdays, where it aired opposite The Cosby Show, which was the number one show at the time. It remained there until season 6, when it was brought back on Sunday.
12. Yearly Smith, who voices Lisa, is the only main cast member to regularly voice only one character.
