George Meyer
George Meyer is a producer and writer for The Simpsons, and arguably the writer who has contributed the most to the show over its long run. In 2000, Meyer was called the "the funniest man behind the funniest show on TV" by The New Yorker.
Biography
Meyer grew up in Arizona, the eldest child of eight in a Roman Catholic family of mostly German descent. An excellent student, he later went on to Harvard University, where he served as president of the Harvard Lampoon, a comedy magazine at Harvard University. Meyer graduated from Harvard in 1978 with a degree in biochemistry. After college, Meyer became a writer for Late Night with David Letterman, The New Show, and Saturday Night Live. In 1987, Meyer founded the legendary humor zine Army Man, which attained a cult following. One of its readers was Sam Simon, who was a producer on a new animated sitcom called The Simpsons. In 1989 Simon asked Meyer to join the writing staff, and he has remained there intermittantly ever since.
Odds and Sods
Raised Roman Catholic, but later became an atheist
Fan of the Grateful Dead
Once won a little over 2,000 dollars on Jeopardy!
A space travel enthusiast and avid collector of space-related memorabilia
A strict vegetarian, as well as a practitioner of yoga
Has a daughter named Poppy Valentina after Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space.
According to fellow Simpsons writer David X. Cohen, Meyer once attempted to live on a "flavorless mush," believing it to be a moral victory if he succeeded. He did not last long in his attempt.
Has a cameo in the 2004 film I ♥ Huckabees. He appears near the end as an annoyed tuxedoed man in an elevator with Jude Law and Jason Schwartzman.
Wrote a full length screenplay for David Letterman, which was never produced after Letterman's talk show really took off. It is considered a masterpiece by those who have seen it, and a copy remains in The Simpsons re-write room that the show's writers occasionally consult it when they're in need of a joke.