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Elizabeth Gunderson, B.Ed. (née Hoover; also known as Miss Hoover) is a recurring character on The Simpsons. She is a second-grade teacher at Springfield Elementary School.

Biography[]

Elizabeth Hoover Miss Hoover Blue Hair

Mrs. Hoover with blue hair

Miss Hoover has been worn down by her years in the public school system and is therefore unable to retain an enthusiastic attitude during her job, although she does show premises of it on some occasions. As much as Hoover is concerned for the future of the children (as opposed to Edna, who doesn't seem to care the slightest), she hates her job and seems overwhelmed with stress, seeking whatever remedies she can to alleviate it. Hoover is often seen smoking even while teaching, even under a "No Smoking" sign in the assembly hall. She also occasionally drinks on the job. Once she was granted tenure, she willingly turned over her teaching responsibilities to Ralph Wiggum.

Her desperate attempts to regain her stability include rushing out of class to recite "Calm blue ocean, calm blue ocean" with her eyes closed, and even, on two occasions, getting into her car and driving off (although one of those instances also had to do with a teacher's strike that Edna proposed).

She was replaced by a substitute teacher, Mr. Bergstrom, when she thought of being diagnosed with Lyme disease. It turned out that her condition was psychosomatic, which the kids thought meant that she was "faking it" and "crazy", with her admitting that it was "a bit of both."

She seems to have a better handle on Bart that Edna does, but this can be attributed to the fact that she likely was his teacher back when he was in second grade.

She also seemed to be dangerously unaware of how a teacher is supposed to act and is gullible at times relating to teaching. This trait was especially evident when Homer Simpson, who was a newly-made teacher at the Springfield Adult Education center, was speeding and driving through red lights while behaving as though being a teacher made him entitled to do such a thing: Hoover, who briefly witnessed, and heard, Homer's behavior, felt that she must be entitled to do the same thing, and began to do the same reckless behavior. She also was not above sleeping in class, which Nelson Muntz once exploited by doodling a message saying "Insert Booze Here" with an arrow pointing to her mouth.[2] She also appears to be somewhat resistant to injury, as she was hurled head-first out of the teachers lounge during a massive brawl after Mike said Edna's fourth grade students suck, but simply got back up, straightened her blouse and went back inside to resume fighting. Despite her negative attitude towards teaching, she has demonstrated considerable skill in math, being able to calculate 926 dollars simply by leafing through them - though this could also be meant to imply that she has extensive experience with illicit, cash-only transactions.

Romances[]

Non Canon Appearances[]

Ssi 5 The contents of this article or section are considered to be non-canon and therefore may not have actually happened/existed.

Video Games[]

In The Simpsons Game, Miss Hoover is one of two characters that doesn't have any lines, even whilst exploring the town; the other being Lunch-lady Doris.

She becomes a character in The Simpsons Tapped Out, coming with the Ah, Fudge! Factory and Cocoa Beanie.

Future[]

In "Future-Drama", she can be seen in Moe's Tavern with Edna Krabappel when Homer Simpson and Bart Simpson attempt to look for females.

In "Days of Future Future", she is one of the many women Bart has a relationship with.

At the end of "Flanders' Ladder", she is shown to be one of the many wives of Ned Flanders.

Treehouse of Horror series[]

"Treehouse of Horror XX"[]

In the second segment, Dial "M" for Murder or Press "#" to Return to Main Menu, she picks a student other than Lisa to represent the class at a reading roundup. Lisa's enraged response causes Miss Hoover to give her detention where she and bart concoct a plan to get revenge on their teachers. Lisa ding-dong-ditches Mrs. Krabappel, but Bart kills Miss Hoover.

Behind the Laughter[]

Miss Hoover is voiced by Maggie Roswell, and was temporarily voiced by Marcia Mitzman Gaven while Roswell was involved in a salary dispute.

In her initial appearances in season 2 and 3, her hair is bright blue, barring Lisa's Substitute, Bart the Lover and Homer at the Bat, where it is light brown, and Bart the Murderer, where it is orange. From season 4 onwards, brown becomes the norm.

Trivia[]

  • She is named after Matt Groening's first grade teacher.
  • She lives next door to the Van Houtens.
  • In the Latin American dub, she is named Elizabeth Stricter.
  • In The Simpsons: Tapped Out, she states of having a tramp stamp.
  • She has a slight New England accent in the earlier episodes.

Appearances[]

Joystick Video gameThe Simpsons: Tapped Out

Gallery[]

Ms. Hoover (Official Image)
The full image gallery for Elizabeth Hoover may be viewed at Elizabeth Hoover/Gallery.

Reference[]

Characters voiced by Maggie Roswell
Maude Flanders | Helen Lovejoy | Elizabeth Hoover | Luann Van Houten | Princess Kashmir | Mary Bailey | Shary Bobbins | Barbara Bush | Mona Simpson | Martha Quimby
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