Happy birthday, George Jetson!
This week, eagle-eyed fans of the iconic 1960s sitcom “The Jetsons” pointed out how the future has come to fruition. According to internet sleuths, the animated series’ main character George would have been born in 2022, and enthusiasts estimated his exact birthdate as potentially being Sunday, July 31.
On Thursday last week, a Twitter user pointed out the factoid to fans with an image of the characters’ wiki fan page post, writing, “I don’t mean to alarm anyone, but someone is about to give birth to George Jetson.”
The fan page referenced in the Twitter post has since had the exact birth date of the character altered to say only that George was born on July 1.
The Hanna-Barbera Production series, which debuted on Sept. 23, 1962, on ABC, made mention of its 21st century setting in various episodes throughout its run. While it seems that the specific birth date for the show’s patriarch was never officially revealed, the classic television network MeTV has claimed that promotional materials and articles at the time of its premiere set the Jetsons 100 years into the future.
With this knowledge in mind, fans have done the math, pointing out that in the season 1 episode titled “Test Pilot,” which aired on Dec. 30, 1962, Jetson’s doctor assured him that he “should live to be 150.”
“I’ve got 110 good years ahead of me!” Jetson replied soon after, putting his age at 40 years old.
Fans of the simultaneously nostalgic and futuristic series are having their laughs over how the fun tidbit is making them feel old.
"Me and the boys on our way to witness the birth of George Jetson." a user commented with a photo featuring the three maji from the Bible.
While fans mused over the date and the differences between now and what the show's creators predicted for the future, our present day.
"Meet George Jetson/ Jane his wife/ His boy, Elroy/ Daughter Judy," another user wrote in reference to the series theme song before remarking "Boy what I wouldn’t give to be living in those carefree fun days. Nobody promised a rose garden, but I wasn’t expecting a cesspool of corruption and depravity."
"So…in my life’s timeline, I have Albert Einstein and George Jetson? Not sure that was on my BINGO card," another commented.
"The Jetsons" originally aired for one season on ABC but was revived with new episodes in 1985 through 1987. The series has become synonymous with references to futurism, as it often made odd (at the time) predictions of devices of the future. Including a having robot vacuum, the series' main family had commonplace items of today, such as a flat-screen TV, smartwatches, and holograms.
