This episode marked the first time a recurring character has been killed off on the show. The writers and production team felt that it would be a good, emotional storyline, which, through Lisa, could focus on the theme of grief. They decided that it could not be one of the main characters; Jean joked that "we wouldn't want it to be someone like Mr. Burns, that we'd obviously want to see in the show again". Eventually, Jean decided on Bleeding Gums Murphy, a character introduced in the season one episode "Moaning Lisa"; a flashback to "Moaning Lisa" is featured in the episode. Murphy was a fairly minor character, only appearing in a couple of episodes, but he appeared in the show's opening sequence and remained there after this episode, until the opening was re-designed in season 20. Moore's first ever job on the show was in the animation department for "Moaning Lisa" so he "appreciated" being able to direct this episode. Reiss stated, "I had been polling for years to kill Marge's mom but this was a better idea". Actor Ron Taylor returned to guest star as Murphy in the episode. Comedian Steve Allen also made his second guest appearance on the show, having previously appeared in the episode "Separate Vocations".