Barney was formerly an A-student back at Springfield High, but lost it all due to his drinking alcohol and is since then seen as a disgrace by his whole family, none of whom drinks.
Barney was born on April 20, sharing his birthday with Adolf Hitler.His father, Arnie Gumble, died in a 1979 parade float accident along with Sheldon Skinner, Iggy Wiggum, Etch Westgrin, and Griff McDonald, all of whom had served in Abe Simpson's WWII squad, the Flying Hellfish. Barney once had a near-death experience in which he expects to be reunited with "my loved ones, my dad, and that plant I never watered," perhaps implying that he did not get along with his father, though this line could also be interpreted as Barney reuniting with his "loved ones: my dad and that plant I never watered."
As a teenager, Barney had great potential. He was Harvard-bound until Homer introduced him to beer on the night before they had to take the SATs. It has also been implied that he took to drinking after his high-school sweetheart Chloe Talbot left Springfield to become a successful TV reporter. In spite of the years of alcoholism, he still appears to maintain some of his great early potential. For example, when forced to quit drinking while training to be an astronaut, he almost immediately regained his diction and balance and proved to be an exceptional astronaut candidate. (Unfortunately, to celebrate the completion of his training and selection as an astronaut, he was given non-alcoholic champagne, which immediately resulted in a relapse.)