While Donald Trump’s Department of Justice has thrown a huge monkey wrench into one media-mega-merger by suing AT&T to block its planned acquisition of Time Warner, will Disney’s proposed $52.4-billion purchase of 21st Century Fox’s entertainment assets meet a similar fate?
Antitrust experts say that’s unlikely.
“This merger will happen, maybe with some tinkering around the edges,” George Hay, an anti-trust professor at Cornell law school who worked in the government’s anti-trust division in the 1970s, told TheWrap.
For one thing, Hay said, “there’s no elimination of any competition” among the Hollywood studios that would create a monopoly. “There are five or six studios now, so there will [still] be five or so others” if the deal goes through.
Also Read: Fox Film CEO Stacey Snider Cancels DC Trip to Console Staff After Disney News
Government lawyers are also unlikely to raise concerns because there is no consolidation of news outlets, Hay said. Fox is keeping Fox News, Fox Business and the Big Ten Network. “I think DOJ will decide there are enough sources of content. It’s not like CNN is acquiring Fox News.”
Brian Frons, former president of ABC Daytime and lecturer at UCLA’s Anderson Business School, said that the federal government will be examining the “concentration of power that disrupts the marketplace.”
That includes the combination of cable sports networks — especially Disney’s ESPN and Fox’s regional sports cable networks that the Mouse House hopes to acquire — and the “concentration of movie production and distribution, as it might affect theaters negotiating with a behemoth.”
But Frons noted that the new tech streaming companies have created more competition in the entertainment marketplace, which may help the Disney-Fox marriage pass antitrust muster. “Given the amount of money that Netflix is spending, Amazon is spending, Apple is going to spend, it doesn’t feel like just aggregating more content and more content resources should raise a red flag,” Frons said.
Also Read: Writers Guild West Warns Fox-Disney Merger Will Be at 'Expense of Creators'
A bigger issue for the Justice Department may be Disney assuming a 60 percent stake in the streaming service Hulu, which would allow the company to both produce and distribute content in a vertical integration that the Supreme Court has previously rejected for movie companies.
However, the government has adopted a more free market approach to vertical mergers in recent years — a sharp departure from the government’s antitrust lawsuits in the 1940s against the five major Hollywood movie studios. In that case, the DOJ argued that the studios had a market stranglehold as both movie creators and movie theaters owners, known as vertical integration. The Supreme Court strongly suggested that it agreed in its 1948 decision, U.S. v. Paramount, prompting the worried studios to sell off their theater chains.
In an odd twist of history, one of the independent studios that joined the federal government in its antitrust battle against the big five studios’ ownership of theaters was a then-upstart called Disney.
“Courts have not blocked any vertical mergers in at least 40 years,” Hay said. “Economists, for the most part, believe that vertical mergers are benign.”
Also Read: Disney Gets a Landlord: Will Lease Space on Fox Lot for 7 Years Post Merger
Consumer groups have notably not raised red flags over the deal. Matt Wood, policy director of the consumer watchdog group Free Press, said the merger is also “a classic horizontal merger” because it combines two rival movie studios, but the competition between movie studios and other content creators remains healthy.
“We are unlikely to oppose this deal,” Wood told TheWrap. “This is a relatively robust market.”
But that doesn’t mean the sale of Fox companies to Disney is a good thing for consumers, he said. “Any time you have a merger like this, there is a chance of fewer choices and higher prices.”
The deal also has the backing of another key player in the government: Donald Trump, who called Fox Executive Chairman Rupert Murdoch on Thursday to offer congratulations, according to White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders.
She said Trump anticipates that the deal will create jobs, but offered no specifics.
In contrast, Trump has said he opposed the rumored AT&T-Time Warner deal during his 2016 campaign, and said it would put “too much concentration of power in the hands of too few.”
After the Justice Department went to court to stop the merger, Trump said aboard Air Force One, “I do feel you should have as many news outlets as you can — especially since so many are fake.”
Sean Burch contributed to this report.
For the record: A previous version of this story included a quote from George Hay about government opposition to vertical mergers that he amended for accuracy.
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>. -
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox -
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.Fox
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.
-
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.
1 of 19
<span id="__caret">_</span><span id="__caret">_</span>"The Simpsons" has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump's presidency to the U.S. Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling. Here are 14 times the long-running comedic series got it right.<strong><a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a></strong>On the episode "Lisa Goes Gaga," <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/lady_gaga/">Lady Gaga</a> is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well surprise, surprise because at the Super Bowl LI's halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium's roof with suspension cables wearing pretty much the same outfit on her episode.<strong>2016 Nobel Prize Winner</strong>In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in<a href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/MIT/status/785551840205307904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"> 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart</a> were announced as joint winners of the prize.<strong>Donald Trump Presidency</strong>17 years ago in an episode titled "Bart to the Future" shows Lisa as president after Donald Trump apparently ruined the economy.<strong>Arnold Palmer</strong>On the 28th season premiere, the satirical series made an Arnold Palmer Joke ... on the day that golfer Arnold Palmer died.Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he plans to "Arnold Palmer" his pal Lenny."Arnold Palmer Lenny?" Marge responds. "You're going to Arnold Palmer Lenny?"He was of course referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture -- which was named after the golfer.<strong>Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack</strong>In 1993, an episode titled "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalised Gambling)," the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger.Well, in 2003 Roy was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries, but lived.<strong>Faulty Voting Machine</strong>During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9659694/US-election-2012-voting-machine-changes-vote-for-Barack-Obama-to-Mitt-Romney.html">votes cast</a> for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead.In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but ... his vote went to McCain instead.<strong>Higgs Boson</strong>In a 1998 episode, "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace," Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which if solved "you get the mass of a Higgs boson that's only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is," <a href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://time.com/3731370/homer-simpson-higgs-boson/">says Simon Singh</a>, science author.<strong>Horse Meat Scandal</strong>In 1994 an episode titled "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song," the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled "assorted horse parts" and putting the meat into the school's lunch pot.In 2013, it was reported that traces of <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-21631961">horse DNA</a> was found in beef products across the UK.<strong>Guitar Hero</strong>The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005.But in a 2002 Simpsons episode, <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/tag/mick_jagger/">Mick Jagger</a> and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has "guitar hero" printed on the back of it.<strong>Farmville</strong>The virtual reality game, Farmville, was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm.In a 1998 episode, "The Simpsons" shows a scene were kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.<strong>Old Beatles Letters</strong>In Season 2's episode 18, "Brush With Greatness," Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying: "They took the time to write me, and I don't care if it takes me another 20 years. I'm going to answer every one of them."Well, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail form Sir Paul McCartney <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-mce-href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-24318839">50 years later.</a><strong>Smart Watches</strong>Sorry Apple, but The Simpsons had smart watches first.In a 1995 episode, where the show is set in the future, Lisa's husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist.The first smart watch wasn't created until 2013.<strong>Disney Owns Fox </strong>Back in 1998, a quick scene in "The Simpsons" showed 20th Century Fox as "a Division of Walt Disney Co." And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox's film and TV assets.<strong>U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling</strong>In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, "Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in."<strong>Murder Hornets and Coronavirus</strong>In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious "Osaka Flu" to Springfield, and in the town peoples' rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of "murder hornets" in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020. The coincidence was first <a href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1258121128905543682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1258121128905543682&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeadline.com%2F2020%2F05%2Ffans-claim-the-simpsons-predicted-coronavirus-in-1993-1202848816%2F">noticed</a> by former "Simpsons" writer Bill Oakley.<strong>Ted Cruz's Cancun Trip </strong>In the 1993 episode "Marge in Chains," Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there's a pandemic happening -- and letting residents know he didn't escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It's later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. <a href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033" data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/jesse_brenneman/status/1362467127857324033">Fans were quick to point out</a> it's an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's recent <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/" data-mce-href="http://www.thewrap.com/ted-cruz-uses-his-daughters-as-scapegoats-for-controversial-cancun-trip/">escape attempt to Cancun</a>.
