Rush Limbaugh Cameos You Forgot Existed

On Feb. 17, 2021, The New York Times reported that Rush Limbaugh died in his home at Palm Beach, Florida, due to lung cancer. He was 70 years old. Limbaugh crafted a successful career on talk radio. While famous for his staunch right-wing talking points, he was not above a bit of self-deprecation.

Several times throughout his career, Limbaugh appeared in non-talk show mediums. He was never the star, but he was always the center of attention while on-screen. Moreover, Limbaugh was usually an episode's selling point, even if he was far from prolific outside of talk shows. Limbaugh hadn't been on television or in movies for a decade, so most of his appearances might fly over the heads and under the radars of young audiences.

Unless you paid attention to the right shows and movies, you'd probably never guess Limbaugh would show up, and few of these cameos have been properly preserved. But, here's every Rush Limbaugh cameo ever.

Since Rush Limbaugh was not a classically trained actor, he usually just portrayed himself. These ranged from respectable to comical renditions, but they always were "pure Limbaugh."

Limbaugh's first television role was in the sitcom Hearts Afire. He only appeared in the episode "Do the Limbaugh," where he fell in love with Georgie (Markie Post) despite — or possibly because — she wrote a critical article of him. This particular version of Limbaugh had a tendency to narrate his own thoughts to the audience, usually talking over other characters.

Limbaugh also played a bit part in the Billy Crystal comedy Forget Paris, which also serves as his only movie role – although his cameo is lost in the sea of NBA players who also guest-starred in the movie. Furthermore, Limbaugh showed up in The Drew Carey Show episode "The Salon," yet again as himself. He served as the voice of reason to bridge the gap between the liberal Kate (Christa Miller) and her conservative boss Mrs. Louder (Nan Martin).

While Rush Limbaugh usually played himself on TV — and only showed up for one episode — he landed his first and only role playing a fictional character on Fox's The ½ Hour News Hour. The show was a satirical news program with a conservative spin, so Limbaugh was a shoo-in given his hard conservative views. But instead of serving as one of the show's news anchors, Limbaugh landed the role of president of the United States.

The ½ Hour News Hour featured many recurring sketches, including presidential addresses. In these skits, Limbaugh addressed the audience in non-traditional ways, such as while smoking a cigar or while relaxing on the beach with a martini and Hawaiian shirt. Moreover, each time he appeared on-screen, President Limbaugh boasted how much he had improved America in a short amount of time. Despite the satirical nature of the show, these boasts weren't treated as jokes.

Usually, Limbaugh's presidential sketches served as openings for The ½ Hour News Hour proper, and Limbaugh also tended to appear alongside fellow conservative pundit Ann Coulter, who played the role of vice president.

Out of all Rush Limbaugh's cameos, none are more famous than his appearances on Family Guy. He was the star of the episode "Excellence in Broadcasting,” where he converted the usually liberal family dog Brian to conservatism — after saving him from a mugging, that is. The episode dove into Brian's psyche and what makes him tick, and it also featured the famous "Republican Town" song. While Limbaugh eventually used his signature brand of criticism to snap Brian back to liberalism, the episode wasn't Limbaugh's only visit to Quahog.

Limbaugh also had two smaller Family Guy cameos, and in their Star Wars parodies, no less. In the episode "Blue Harvest," Limbaugh cameoed as a Tatooine talk radio host who lampooned his real-life stances on global warming and affirmative action by claiming Hoth isn't melting and discussing how Lando Calrissian became leader of Cloud City. Moreover, according to the episode's IMDB page, Limbaugh voiced Red 6. Limbaugh appeared one final time in the episode "It's a Trap!" as a giant, Rancor-like beast that spent less time trying to eat Chris Griffin (who filled in for Luke Skywalker) and more time criticizing the Jedi Order's tax-exempt status. Like the Rancor in Return of the Jedi, Rush Limbaugh's final scene in Family Guy consisted of his skull being crushed by a closing gate.