The Simpsons killed the church organist!

After 35 seasons, Alice Glick, the iconic Springfield mass musician, has breathed her last.

In the Simpsons universe, the “death” of secondary characters is often temporary. Or a simple joke to fuel a special episode (ghosts, dreams and others). But some deaths are indeed considered definitive and the latest is that of Alice Glick!

The Springfield church organist, who first appeared on the show in 1991, officially died in the Season 35 episode that aired last Sunday. She joins Maud Flanders (killed in season 11), Frank Grimes (died in season 8) and Edna Krabappel (in season 25)

“In one way, Alice the Organist will live forever through the beautiful music she created. But in another, more important way, yes, she is dead and dead,” executive producer Tim Long confirms to TVLine.

If you missed the episode, here’s how it goes: The scene takes place in the middle of a regular church service, with Reverend Lovejoy’s sermon building to its comical climax. Thinking that Alice was simply being overzealous, he is startled by a noise coming from the organ, only to discover the lifeless body of the organist slumped over his instrument. The congregation, faithful to Alice for more than thirty years, is in shock.

The episode then shifts to Springfield Elementary School, where Principal Skinner introduces Alice to the students as “that dead lady you never met.” Because she would have left all her money to the school to finance a new musical program… A departure in style.

A departure that will also remind Simpsons fans of its most memorable sequence: at the start of the season 7 episode, Bart tricks the congregation into singing a biblical version of the classic “In the Garden of Eden” by Iron Butterfly. Offering Alice Glick an anthology solo until she fainted…

Moreover, the organist’s history with the series has always been more or less diffuse. Because in season 22, she was killed at the hands of an unleashed Robopet. But she still made other appearances, and fans were amused by the authors’ lack of continuity regarding her. Today, her case is settled: we can say without ambiguity that Alice has played her last anthem.