Cotton Hill
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King of the Hill
Colonel Cotton Lyndal Hill (born December 7, 1927) was the father of Hank Hill, Good "G.H." Hank Hill, Junichiro (his illegitimate half-Japanese son), the father-in-law of Peggy Hill, and the grandfather of Bobby Hill. Cotton was also a WWII veteran who had his shins "blowed off by a man's machine gun" in combat, and later had his feet attached to his knees. That made Cotton a foot shorter than his fellow family members and caused a characteristic waddle (according to Hank, Cotton was 6'4" with his shins, and 5'1" without). Despite his disability, Cotton eventually reached the rank of Colonel in the Texas State Militia and was often addressed by that rank.
Cotton was extremely proud of his military service record and his status as a war hero, although he tended to exaggerate his exploits. Cotton claimed that he killed "fitty (50) men" during the war. He also consistently reminded everyone within earshot about how he lost his shins during WWll.
Not much was known about Cotton after WWII until the present. He was an insulation contractor and made good money doing it since he owned a "Cadillac car". His son, Hank, was born sometime in 1953 at a baseball game in Yankee Stadium in New York City. Tilly had to give birth in the stadium's ladies' bathroom. Both Cotton and Tilly kept Hank's birth location a carefully guarded secret, until Hank found out when he tried to find his birth certificate to get a "Born in Texas" license plate, which neither Cotton nor Tilly claimed to have (Yankee Hankie). Cotton was a longtime member of the Arlen VFW and served as its commanding officer.
Cotton briefly used the alias "General Mills" when he failed his driver's test and carried a fake driver's license manufactured from a Cheerios box by Dale Gribble. Cotton's second wife, Didi, was a dancer but she retired, and became a candy striper or a voluteer at a local hospital. Her age is unknown and is different in different episodes. Didi was about the same age as Hank, who attended the same kindergarten class as her. Other episodes identify her as much younger than Hank. In the episode where Peggy was in the cast, Didi is said to be much older.
Cotton's relationship with Hank was strained; while Hank seemed to have a deep reverence (and fear) of his father, he stood up to Cotton on several occasions. Cotton also became depressed (and enraged) by the fact that he and Hank did not have a good relationship and once went insane when Hank said that he hated him. In spite of all that, however, Cotton never hesitated to refer to Hank as "My Boy," and on several occasions tried to help him (such as when Kahn and Minh befouled his house).
Interestingly enough, Cotton appeared to have a good relationship with his grandson Bobby, likely due to his outgoing nature as opposed to Hank's uptight reserved attitude. It could be assumed that Cotton was attempting to make up for his own strained relationship with Hank through his close relationship with his grandson, although he legitimately thought the world of Bobby. He once conceded that Hank was a better father than himself and stated to Hank "You made Bobby. I only made you." Cotton often showed that he was proud of Bobby and supported him. Cotton confided in Bobby and gave him a letter of recommendation for the Army, which irked Hank. Cotton demonstrated his affection for Bobby in numerous instances. He came to watch Bobby and Hank shoot in a father-son shooting competition and stated:, "I'm always here to support my Bobby." Cotton even went as far as to take the blame for Bobby after Bobby confessed that he was the one who burned down the church. Didi revealed to Bobby that Cotton told her that if their unborn child turned out as good as Bobby, he wouldn't abandon it. In "Death Picks Cotton" Hank stated that, "My dad doesn't love a lot of things, but he does love Bobby.".
Instead of calling Peggy by her name, Cotton addressed her as "Hank's Wife".
Cotton was extremely proud of his military service record and his status as a war hero, although he tended to exaggerate his exploits. Cotton claimed that he killed "fitty (50) men" during the war. He also consistently reminded everyone within earshot about how he lost his shins during WWll.
Not much was known about Cotton after WWII until the present. He was an insulation contractor and made good money doing it since he owned a "Cadillac car". His son, Hank, was born sometime in 1953 at a baseball game in Yankee Stadium in New York City. Tilly had to give birth in the stadium's ladies' bathroom. Both Cotton and Tilly kept Hank's birth location a carefully guarded secret, until Hank found out when he tried to find his birth certificate to get a "Born in Texas" license plate, which neither Cotton nor Tilly claimed to have (Yankee Hankie). Cotton was a longtime member of the Arlen VFW and served as its commanding officer.
Cotton briefly used the alias "General Mills" when he failed his driver's test and carried a fake driver's license manufactured from a Cheerios box by Dale Gribble. Cotton's second wife, Didi, was a dancer but she retired, and became a candy striper or a voluteer at a local hospital. Her age is unknown and is different in different episodes. Didi was about the same age as Hank, who attended the same kindergarten class as her. Other episodes identify her as much younger than Hank. In the episode where Peggy was in the cast, Didi is said to be much older.
Cotton's relationship with Hank was strained; while Hank seemed to have a deep reverence (and fear) of his father, he stood up to Cotton on several occasions. Cotton also became depressed (and enraged) by the fact that he and Hank did not have a good relationship and once went insane when Hank said that he hated him. In spite of all that, however, Cotton never hesitated to refer to Hank as "My Boy," and on several occasions tried to help him (such as when Kahn and Minh befouled his house).
Interestingly enough, Cotton appeared to have a good relationship with his grandson Bobby, likely due to his outgoing nature as opposed to Hank's uptight reserved attitude. It could be assumed that Cotton was attempting to make up for his own strained relationship with Hank through his close relationship with his grandson, although he legitimately thought the world of Bobby. He once conceded that Hank was a better father than himself and stated to Hank "You made Bobby. I only made you." Cotton often showed that he was proud of Bobby and supported him. Cotton confided in Bobby and gave him a letter of recommendation for the Army, which irked Hank. Cotton demonstrated his affection for Bobby in numerous instances. He came to watch Bobby and Hank shoot in a father-son shooting competition and stated:, "I'm always here to support my Bobby." Cotton even went as far as to take the blame for Bobby after Bobby confessed that he was the one who burned down the church. Didi revealed to Bobby that Cotton told her that if their unborn child turned out as good as Bobby, he wouldn't abandon it. In "Death Picks Cotton" Hank stated that, "My dad doesn't love a lot of things, but he does love Bobby.".
Instead of calling Peggy by her name, Cotton addressed her as "Hank's Wife".