'Simpsons' creator Matt Groening's mom's obituary reveals inspiration behind TV family

Some of the best stories are drawn from real-life experiences, and many filmmakers and authors have shared how personal incidents shaped their work. Matt Groening, the creator of The Simpsons, famously known for the show's uncanny ability to predict real-life events, also took inspiration from people in his own life for its characters. However, this connection went largely unnoticed until his mother, Margaret Groening, passed away in 2013, and her obituary was published by Oregon Live.

A snapshot of the obituary was posted on X by Eric Alper (@thatericalper), and fans immediately recognized the connection. It revealed that Matt's mother was born on March 23, 1919, in Minnesota as “Margaret Wiggum,” which sparked recognition of The Simpsons character Chief Clancy Wiggum. Margaret's parents, Matt and Ingeborg Wiggum, met on a boat to America from Norway and later settled in Everett, Washington, where the paper mill "smelled like money." This backstory offered fans a glimpse into how Groening's personal history inspired elements of the beloved show.

After graduating from college, Margaret married her classmate, Homer Groening, whom she chose because he “made her laugh the most.” Homer is another name that "The Simpsons" fans are acquainted with. Apart from Homer and Marge, Matt also drew inspiration for the names Lisa and Maggie from his two sisters. Speaking to The Smithsonian, Matt confessed that initially, he was going to name the main character “Matt,” but he didn’t think it would look good in a pitch meeting, so he changed the name to “Bart.”

He was running short on time and so, he drew out all the names from his family and used them for the show. He even used his hometown Springfield as the fictional town in the “The Simpsons.” Even more so, some of the characters are also based on the names of people who bullied Matt in third and fourth grades.

But there are of course some differences in the way people are in real life and the way they are portrayed on screen. Homer Simpson, for instance, is a nuclear power plant worker who loves beer, doughnuts, and bacon. But Matt told The Smithsonian that real-life Homer doesn’t like doughnuts, just ice cream. Besides, Marge wasn’t included in his mother’s name.

According to Toon’s Magazine, Matt spent an idyllic childhood and had a happy family life. He grew up writing short stories and scribbling doodles in his notebooks, many of which were ripped by his class teachers. In college, he started submitting his cartoons to publications and magazines. In the 1980s, he received an offer from Fox’s The Tracy Ullman Show. If he accepted the offer, he’d have to lose the rights to the cartoons in his comic “Life in Hell.” So, while sitting in the waiting room of their office, he quickly made up the Simpsons characters, never knowing that they would go on to create history.

Users on X decided to dig deeper to find more connections between Matt’s real life and The Simpsons. “How did I never know how many characters he named after family members,” said @rupert_suarez2. Others pointed out that the names of other Simpsons characters are based on the names of streets in Portland where Matt grew up.

While his mother rests in peace, Matt has already immortalized her and all of his family members with his quick-witted creativity.