An incorruptible federal agent sent to enforce Prohibition in Springfield, in "Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment" (1997).

Who is the "Beer Baron"?

Homer himself, turned clandestine liquor bootlegger — and one Banner never manages to unmask.

What is Rex Banner a parody of?

Of the series "The Untouchables" and of Eliot Ness; his original-version voice is inspired by actor Robert Stack.

How does he leave town?

He is catapulted out of Springfield on Chief Wiggum's orders, once Prohibition is invalidated.

Un homme au chapeau mou et au costume marron, mâchoire serrée et regard sévère, bras croisés dans une pièce en bois

Rex Banner: the Simpsons' untouchable lawman

July 16, 2026

1002 words | Reading time: 6 minutes

CharacterRex Banner

Hat clamped on and jaw of steel, the Treasury agent arrives from Washington to enforce a forgotten anti-alcohol law in Springfield — and to replace a Chief Wiggum judged too lax. Rex Banner, seen in the single episode "Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment" (1997), hunts a masked bootlegger who is none other than Homer, missing every clue along the way. A tribute to Eliot Ness and "The Untouchables", with an original-version voice by Dave Thomas modeled on Robert Stack: the references are laid out in full, right down to his catapulted exit from town.

Hat clamped on, jaw of steel and film-noir incorruptibility: when Springfield revives a forgotten anti-alcohol law, Washington sends its most rigid agent.

Facing the mysterious "Beer Baron", Rex Banner embodies, for the length of one episode, the implacable law. Here is his profile.

Who is Rex Banner?
Prohibition and the Beer Baron
A parody of The Untouchables
A spectacular exit
Summary table
FAQ
Conclusion

Who is Rex Banner?

Rex Banner is a U.S. Treasury agent, dispatched from Washington to enforce Prohibition in Springfield — and, along the way, to replace Chief Wiggum at the head of the police force, judged too lax. Incorruptible and inflexible, he appears only in the episode "Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment" (1997).

🧥 Sent from Washington to take over the police force from Chief Wiggum, Treasury agent Rex Banner lands in a police station that isn't his own; the day you're the one making your debut somewhere, our Simpsons jackets polish your first impression, without Banner's stiffness.

Prohibition and the Beer Baron

It all starts with a forgotten anti-alcohol law, which Springfield suddenly decides to enforce. Deprived of its precious beer, the town sees a masked bootlegger emerge, the "Beer Baron" — who is none other than Homer. Banner's mission: to capture him. The running gag? The agent regularly walks straight past blatant clues, unable to unmask a culprit who could hardly be more obvious.

🧣 Masked, the "Beer Baron" slips past Banner despite blatant clues; pulled up to your nose, one of our Simpsons neck warmers keeps you just as incognito when you head out in the dead of winter.

A parody of The Untouchables

The character is a direct tribute to the series The Untouchables and to the figure of Eliot Ness, the agent who hunted Al Capone. In the original version, his voice — provided by Dave Thomas — is modeled on Robert Stack's performance as Eliot Ness. Even the episode's narrator imitates the announcer from the original television series.

Black-and-white portrait of a young Robert Stack — Robert Stack, the Eliot Ness of "The Untouchables": Rex Banner takes over his stiffness and his delivery. *Photo: Bob Beerman [1], Public domain.*

A spectacular exit

Prohibition finally falls on a legal technicality: the law had in fact been repealed barely a year after it was passed. Discredited, Banner lectures the crowd one last time on the duty to obey the law… before being catapulted out of town on Wiggum's orders. He is never seen in Springfield again.

🧸 Wiggum has Banner catapulted out of Springfield; in your living room, the only characters you can send flying without the slightest damage are our Simpsons plush toys.

Summary table

Profile	Details
Identity	Treasury agent in charge of Prohibition
His mission	Capture the "Beer Baron" (in fact Homer)
His model	Eliot Ness and the series "The Untouchables"
His exit	Catapulted out of Springfield on Wiggum's orders
Original voice	Dave Thomas (modeled on Robert Stack)

FAQ

Who is Rex Banner?
An incorruptible federal agent sent to enforce Prohibition in Springfield, in "Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment" (1997).
Who is the "Beer Baron"?
Homer himself, turned clandestine liquor bootlegger — and one Banner never manages to unmask.
What is Rex Banner a parody of?
Of the series "The Untouchables" and of Eliot Ness; his original-version voice is inspired by actor Robert Stack.
How does he leave town?
He is catapulted out of Springfield on Chief Wiggum's orders, once Prohibition is invalidated.

Conclusion

Rigid, upstanding and magnificently out of his depth, Rex Banner is the perfect caricature of the incorruptible lawman. A one-episode character who turned Prohibition into one of Springfield's greatest comic moments.