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(CNN Spanish) - After 30 seasons and 678 episodes, 'The Simpsons' have not only managed to ironize on many aspects of US society. and the world, but have managed to anticipate several phenomena in real life. In fact, one of the most talked about cultural references after the victory of Donald Trump in the elections was the episode of the year 2000 in which Lisa talks about Trump as president.
In the "Bart to the Future" chapter, viewers could see the unsuccessful life of the mischievous son of the Sprignfield family, while his sister Lisa has managed to become the first heterosexual president of the United States. "As you know, we have inherited a serious budget shortage of President Trump," Lisa tells her team.
But it is not the only time that Matt Groening's popular animated series manages to prophesy events of the future. That is to say, due to the great love of the program and its validity after three decades, there are innumerable lists of things on the internet that 'The Simpsons', under the criteria of viewers and Internet users, have supposedly prophesied.
Some are somewhat forced relationships between tiny details in the series and future events (such as the attack on the Twin Towers), others are obvious (like the NSA, an intelligence agency, spying on citizens), while others are blatant falsehoods (Like the image of Trump going down the escalator to announce his candidacy, which was a chapter after the actual event but which went viral as if it were 2000).
But there are several in which we can say that they were definitely right in some way.
These are the most accurate predictions:
Siegfried & Roy Tiger Attack
In the episode “$ pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling” of December 1993, the white tiger attacks Gunter and Ernst, casino illusionists, characters based on Siegfried and Roy.
In 2003, in the middle of a show in which Siegfried and Roy's tickets were sold out in Las Vegas, Nevada, Mantecore, a white tiger, attacked Roy Horn, throwing himself at his neck and dragging him off the stage, according to a member of the public who spoke with CNN. Horn survived the attack but was partially paralyzed. Mantecore lived the rest of his life in the "Siegfried & Roy's Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat" until he died in 2014.
Video calls and smart watches
In 'Lisa's Wedding' of March 1995, another chapter in which they anticipate the possible future lives of Simpson children, we see technology that already other productions (such as Back to the Future or The Jetsons ) had predicted but that in The Simpsons gets a higher level of closeness to what was seen a decade later: video calls and smart watches. It could almost be said that Apple was inspired by the series to create FaceTime and the Apple Watch.
(Credit: FOX)
(Credit: FOX)
Virtual reality lenses
In the "Bart to the Future" chapter of 2000, the same mention of Trump, Homer and Marge use virtual reality lenses very similar to those sold today, such as the Samsung Gear.
The legendary and prophetic chapter still has to make hologram cards and virtual food come true.
(Credit: FOX)
There is also an image that became popular but only appeared in a chapter aired on the air and not in repetitions, according to the specialized blog 11 Points. It shows Bart, an adult, playing in virtual reality at Moe's bar.
Restaurant fat theft
In "Lard of the Dance", August 1998, Homer and Bart embark on the business of selling fat and end up stealing the oil from a Krusty Burger.
Well, in 2012 the New York Post reported that thieves began stealing oil from restaurants to sell it (at 38 cents per pound).
Ebola outbreak
In October 1997, in the episode "Lisa's Sax," Marge tells Bart that if he wants to read a book, and shows him one of the Curious George comic series called "Ebola Virus."
In 2014, the world experienced an Ebola outbreak that caused thousands of deaths in West Africa (mainly in Liberia and Sierra Leone, according to CNN records).
Although the disease was identified in 1976, the great outbreak began in 2014.
FIFA scandal
The words FIFA and corruption have been linked for years, but it was not until May 2015 that the law was able to prove it with accusations against several people linked to the organization and with alleged bribes. Could the Simpsons have predicted this, always pending what happens in society?
(Credit: FOX)
The evidence is in a March 2014 episode entitled 'You Don't Have to Live Like a Referee', in March 2014, in which a FIFA official asks Homer to help restore the credibility of the organization.
Neymar's injury at the 2014 World Cup
In that same episode they predicted other moments lived in the last World Cup in Brazil, such as Neymar's injury and the result of Germany's match against Brazil.
The Lady Gaga show at the Super Bowl 2017
In social networks, there was much talk in February 2017 about the enormous resemblance that the artist's presentation had in the Super Bowl with that of a chapter of the popular series broadcast in 2012: “Lisa Goes Gaga”.
In the episode of 'The Simpsons', Gaga is giving a concert in Springfield and flies over the audience wearing a harness and a similar dress with the one presented at the sporting event. The surprising thing is that there was also suspended in the air a few minutes. However, in real life, the artist's dress did not burn, as in the chapter.
And 'The Simpsons' also did not predict that Lady Gaga would use an army of drones for her presentation: 300, to be exact. The devices were used to illuminate the stage color and even to trace the US flag.
Nor was the inclusion message he gave during the part-time presentation at the Supero Bowl. While there were no political statements, as many expected, Gaga concluded his introduction by citing the Pledge of Allegiance: "A nation, under God, indivisible, with freedom and justice for all," with a clear emphasis on "for all."
Still, the huge similarity between the details of the most recent show and the fiction series flooded social networks then.
The Simpsons did it again, predicted Lady Gaga's performance in the #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/6BY3bQjwap
- 𝗢𝗛𝗛 𝗠𝗬 𝗚𝗔𝗚𝗔 ❤️ (@OHHMYGAGAcom) February 6, 2017
The purchase of Fox by Disney
The episode called "When You Dish Upon A Star", aired for the first time on November 8, 1998, shows a building that has a sign in front with the words "20th Century Fox, a division of Walt Disney Co. ”
This chapter of Fox's long series focuses on an unlikely relationship between Homer Simpson, Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger. The sign appears towards the end of the episode, when Ron Howard successfully proposes a film about "a killer robot driving instructor, who travels in time for some reason" and "a cake that talks", and receives bags full of money for the project.
That prediction about Disney-Fox became a reality on December 14, 2017: Disney announced the purchase of most of 21st Century Fox, which was owned by 20th Century Fox, for $ 52.4 billion.
ESPN journalist Darren Rovell noted Thursday the "The Simpsons" forecast and posted it on Twitter, along with an image of the cartoon's sign.
Disney announces it has reached a deal to acquire 21st Century Fox, as predicted by a Simpsons episode that first aired on November 8, 1998. pic.twitter.com/kzloJQHeM8
- Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) December 14, 2017
This content was originally published in 2016 and updated since then
The Simpsons