‘Simpsons’ Creator Matt Groening Said George Harrison Wasn’t Interested in Answering Questions About The Beatles, but Opened up About 1 of His Solo Records
In The Simpsons Season 5, George Harrison voiced himself during the episode “Homer’s Barbershop Quartet.” George was always a good sport and loved comedy. However, George wasn’t too pleased when people started asking about The Beatles.
‘The Simpsons’ showrunners wanted to keep George a secret
The DVD commentary of The Simpsons Season 5 revealed that the casting director told the comedy’s showrunners, Al Jean and Mike Reiss, that George was coming and that they were to keep it a secret. It was meant to be a surprise for the staff.
Jean, Reiss, and creator Matt Groening went to see George when he recorded his lines. However, unaware of the planned surprise, Groening returned to the writer’s room and said, “Guess who I just met! George Harrison!”
Still, that declaration had to be somewhat of a shock.
‘Simpsons’ creator Matt Groening said George became closed off when people asked him about The Beatles
Groening said it was great having George at the studio. However, George became disinterested when people started asking him about The Beatles. Thankfully, the creator knew which question would make George happy.
“When you meet them and you don’t talk about the Beatles, they get really happy,” Groening said at Paley Festival in 2007 (per Harrison Archive). “We did talk about the Beatles, but I also mentioned one of [George Harrison’s] solo albums [Wonderwall Music], and his eyes lit up.”
In the episode commentary, Groening added that George was “pretty glum” and unenthusiastic regarding questions about The Beatles. However, Groening asked George about Wonderwall Music, and he “perked up.” George’s first solo album often fell under the radar.
Despite his uneasiness regarding questions about The Beatles, Groening said George was lovely and friendly to everyone. Interestingly, George was still annoyed by questions about The Beatles. By 1993, George had come to terms with being one of the Fab Four.
He eventually came to terms with being a Beatle
It’s good that George didn’t let questions about The Beatles ruin his time voicing himself on The Simpsons. He was sick of people only seeing him as Beatle George.
In Here Comes The Sun: The Spiritual And Musical Journey Of George Harrison, Joshua M. Greene quoted George saying, “I don’t want to die as ‘George Harrison record producer’ or ‘George Harrison lead guitarist’ or even just a Beatle. They’re all me—but they’re not really me. The moment people start typecasting, then it’s time to move on. I’m unlimited. We’re all unlimited.”
However, George told Creem Magazine in 1987 that he came to terms with being a Beatle.
“As things have settled down I’ve come to terms with it and it’s sunk into the past. We’ve gotten older and new generations have come along,” George said. “I spent years avoiding interviews and going on TV to get to a point where I could go out, walk down the street and go in a shop and just do regular little things that ordinary people do. Everything’s cool and it’s quite enjoyable.
“And now, if somebody comes up and says, ‘Alright, George,’ and they just congratulate you and thank you for all the music you did in the past and what you’ve been doing–that’s nice. It’s the concentrated mania that would make anybody go crazy.”
Eventually, George realized The Beatles weren’t going anywhere. So, why continue to be bitter?
