The future is now. Making the rounds across the internet this weekend is the belief that George Jetson, the patriarch of the Jetson family from the iconic 1960s animated television series The Jetsons, will be born today, July 31, 2022.
The theory stems from a Tweet by fan Brendan Kergin who shared a chart from the character's online fan page that offered basic information about George Jetson. Included in the chart was the character's birthday: July 31, 2022. If true, that would mean George Jetson will be born today.
The show never explicitly states when George Jetson was born; however, promotional materials when the series first debuted set up a general timeline. According to MeTV, promotional materials when The Jetsons premiered on September 23, 1962, explained that the series was set exactly 100 years in the future. That would mean the show takes place in 2062.
Going deeper into the timeline, in the episode "Test Pilot," which aired on December 30, 1962, a physician named Dr. Lunar tells George to expect to "live to be 150." Shortly after, George begs his boss Mr. Spacely not to launch the missiles because "I've got 110 good years ahead of me." This exchange strongly suggests that George Jetson is 40 years old during the time that the show takes place. Admittedly, I'm not entirely sure where they get the specific July 31st date from for George, but it's still fun to think that somewhere, sometime today George Jetson will be born.
The Jetsons was an animated sitcom by Hanna-Barbera Productions that followed the Jetsons family in a comical version of the future — one in which homes and businesses are in the skies high above the ground and humans live with elaborate robot contraptions, aliens, holograms, and flying cars. Now seeing as how it's 2022 and we still haven't fully embraced electric vehicles, I don't see how we'll realisticlaly get to flying cars in the next 40 years. But here's to the future.
In the show, George Jetson works as a digital index operator at Spacely Space Sprockets. He lives in the Skypad Apartments with his family: his wife Jane, the homemaker; their teenage daughter Judy, who attends Orbit High School; and their son Elroy, who attends Little Dipper School. There was also their robot maid named Rosie and their dog Astro.
The series originally ran for just one season — 24 episodes — airing in prime time from September 23, 1962, to March 17, 1963. Following its primetime run, the show then aired on Saturday mornings where it grew in popularity. New episodes were produced in syndication from 1985 to 1987 resulting in a total of 72 episodes for The Jetsons.
Happy birthday, George Jetson.