FAQ for
"King of the Hill" (1997) More at IMDbPro »

Arlen is located in Texas, United States. It is in Heimlich County, and near Durndle County, both of which are fictional. Some episodes indicate that Arlen is located near Houston, some episodes indicate Arlen to be near Dallas, some episodes indicate Arlen to be near Corpus Christi, and some episodes indicate Arlen to be near the United States (Texas)/Mexico border. Recent episodes show a map on the wall in the newspaper office which places Arlen where Abilene is (in real life), further muddying the waters (as this would conflict with earlier plot points). This is done on purpose so that one can't pinpoint on a map of Texas, United States where Arlen is located.

Arlen is indeed a fictional city and not a real city. The name is similar to Arlington, but Arlen is not a suburb of a larger city like Arlington is. The exterior of several prominent buildings in the town bear a striking resemblance to those around the city of Denton, located in the North Texas area.

Hank's dad, Cotton lives in Houston, Texas, United States except for the time when he lost his house and had to live at the VFW in Arlen, Texas, United States.

G.H.'s name stands for Good Hank.

VFW stands for Veterans of Foreign Wars. To be eligible for membership, an individual must have been honorably discharged from any of the branches of military service (or active duty) and earned a United States Government-issued overseas expeditionary or campaign medal, or have been awarded any one of the following:

Combat Infantryman Badge Combat Medical Badge, Combat Action Badge Combat Action Ribbon Korea Defense Service Medal Air Force Expeditionary Service Ribbon with gold border U.S. Navy SSBN Deterrent Patrol Insignia. Service in Korea from 30 June 1949 for 30 consecutive, or 60 nonconsecutive days to present hostile fire-imminent danger pay records

Anyone may visit a VFW (often a simple gathering place not unlike a pub or bar used for social events) and /or to interact with other people. Cotton Hill, Didi Hill, and G.H. Hill lost their house in Houston, Texas, United States and had to move to a VFW associated facility in Arlen, Texas, United States for a short time.

His mother is called Tilly and she is living with a man called Gary. Hank's father is named Cotton, and he remarried a woman named Didi. They had a son called Good Hank (G.H.). Cotton also fathered a son while in a Japanese hospital during the Second World War. He is called Junichiro.

Boomhauer's occupation was not revealed until the series finale, when we see a Texas Ranger badge in his wallet.

Jeff

No. However, Beavis and Butt-Head featured an old war veteran character named Tom Anderson who spoke in a voice almost identical to Mike Judge's Hank voice, and was drawn similarly with similar clothing. Both characters were based on the same person from Judge's youth. Anderson is often referred to as the "unrefined" version of Hank Hill, however the two are NOT the same character.

The schools that appear on King of the Hill are as follows:

-Tom Landry Middle School: This is the school Bobby attends, along with most of his friends and peers. It is named in honor of Tom Landry, a famed football coach.

-Arlen High School: This school is often referenced but rarely seen, although Bobby does sneak over there in one episode to recover his bike - only to be ushered into the school by a security guard, where he is forced to make the locals believe he is a student.

-Arlen Beauty Academy: Luanne goes here in the first few seasons in an effort to become a stylist. She is often looked down upon by her instructors and her peers, and eventually drops out, deciding to attend Arlen Community College following a strange experience. While Luanne ultimately DOES become a stylist in later seasons, she never returns to this school to accomplish it.

-Arlen Community College: This is where Luanne begins going after parting ways with Arlen Beauty Academy, though she ultimately aborts going here in favor of wanting to get back into a potential career as a stylist. Bobby takes a "classic clowning" class here as well.

-Staubach Elementary: Hank is forced to attend an anger management class here. It is named after Roger Staubach, a famed football player.

The school district featured on the show is called "Heimlich County School District" in early episodes and flashbacks Hank and Peggy have, though in later seasons the name is changed to "Arlen Independent School District." While this is most likely a continuity error, it IS possible that schools in Arlen were originally part of a county-wide district, and the town eventually split off and formed its own separate district.

No characters from one show have ever appeared on the other, although the Beavis and Butt-Head character Tom Anderson strongly resembles Hank Hill. See the entry above for more information. These are some similarities/parallels/etc. between the two shows:

-Stewart Dooley's voice is very similar to that of Butt-Head (although he doesn't use Butt-Head's obnoxious giggling after speaking each sentence.)

-Gary Kasner has a submarine tattoo on his chest. So did Coach Buzzcut on Beavis and Butt-Head.

-The Beavis and Butt-Head episode Temporary Insantity features a female real estate office employee who strongly resembles Peggy Hill, both in appearance and personality.

-The Beavis and Butt-Head episode The Beaverly Butt-Billies features a sewage company employee who speaks in a voice identical to that of King of the Hill's Joe Jack.

-Bobby shares many characteristics with Beavis and Butt-Head's Stewart - both are chubby and "nerdy" compared to their peers. While Stewart is clearly the more intelligent of the two in an "academic" way, Bobby has more self confidence and common sense.

-Many Beavis and Butt-Head episodes feature a morbidly-obese woman living in a trailer, with one of her constant companions being a man wearing nothing but pink underwear, a cap, and always smoking a cigarette. This character is believed to be a prototype for Dale Gribble.

-While not any kind of direct reference, the voice of Boomhauer is based on that of an irate viewer that called Mike Judge to complain about the content of Beavis and Butt-Head.

-Toby Huss voiced one of the men who steal Beavis and Butt-Head's TV in the theatrical movie. Huss later became a regular voice actor on King of the Hill, voicing Kahn, Cotton, and many others.

-Beavis and Butt-Head once watched auto racing, calling it a "bunch of dumbasses going around in circles", but called it "the greatest show in the history of television" the second someone crashed and went up in flames. Bobby and Joseph had the exact same reaction to watching auto racing - wondering what the appeal was, but going insane with happiness upon seeing a crash.