Matt Groening is an American cartoonist, writer, producer, and director. In conversations over two days and several venues -- at a party at his friend Frank Zappa's house, over lunch at the Fox commissary and in his office -- he revealed a deep association with the adolescents who form the core audience of "The Simpsons." (Statements like these, of course, set off fits of right-wing apoplexy, much to the amusement and delight of everyone else. Executive producer and show runner Mike Scully once told the New Yorker, "People are always asking why 'The Simpsons' is still so good after all these years, and, at the risk of pissing off all the other writers, I think I'd have to say that the main reason is probably George." "The Simpsons" has earned Fox's parent company, Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., well over a billion dollars, and its role in the network's growth has been incalculable. MATT GROENING would like to tell you a few things about his family: His father, Homer, is not bald. Matt Groening was born on 15 February 1954, at Portland, in Oregon, USA. He studied at Evergreen State College and edited the campus newspaper. [30] Groening distributed the comic book in the book corner of Licorice Pizza, a record store in which he worked. In the 10 years since the debut of "The Simpsons," however, Groening had gone from semifamous alternative cartoonist to iconic powerhouse. He donned the role of an executive producer for animated films Futurama: Bender's Game (2007), Futurama: The Beast with a Billion Backs (2008), Futurama: Bender's Game (2008), and Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder (2009). He is the creator of the comic strip Life in Hell (19772012) and the television series The Simpsons (1989present), Futurama (19992003, 20082013, 2023present[2]), and Disenchantment (2018present). The company published comics related to The Simpsons and Futurama. [99], Groening is a self-identified agnostic. Claiming that it was a bit too obvious to name a character after himself, he chose the name "Bart," an anagram of brat. Groening worked as the editor of the campus newspaper, The Cooper Point Journal, for which Groening also wrote articles and drew cartoons. Its shorts were spun off into their own series, The Simpsons, which has since aired 727 episodes. About Matt Groening is a 68 year old American Cartoonist. It may simply be, he speculates, "that people don't get it.". Groening has received 13 Primetime Emmy Awards, 11 for The Simpsons and 2 for Futurama, and a British Comedy Award due to outstanding contribution to comedy in 2004. [17] He served as the editor of the campus newspaper, The Cooper Point Journal, for which he also wrote articles and drew cartoons. [85], Groening is known for his eclectic taste in music. After the two became romantically involved, she established a business to promote her future husband's work, negotiating syndication arrangements with other publications and a book deal with Pantheon. The show centers on Fry, a pizza-delivery man who is accidentally frozen in a cryogenics lab and defrosted 1,000 years later. "I wake up every morning thinking how lucky I am. They divorced in 1999, after 13 years of marriage.Following this, Groening was in a six-year commitment with dating expert Lauren Frances. "I never saw anything as crude as my stuff getting published," he has said. The shorts were spun off into their own series, The Simpsons, which has since aired 742 episodes. His son Leroy."' [110], He received the 2,459th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on February 14, 2012. In 2013, the couple had a son named Nathaniel Philip Picasso. I said, 'It's not going to be like "Blade Runner."' Matthew Abram Groening (/ren/ GRAY-ning; born February 15, 1954)[1] is an American cartoonist, writer, producer, and animator. [51] At the time Groening was primarily drawing in black and "not thinking that [Bart] would eventually be drawn in color" gave him spikes that appear to be an extension of his head. He made his first professional cartoon sale to the avant-garde Wet magazine in 1978. Along with mailing the comics to friends and family back in Portland, he attempted to sell his stapled-together books from his record store. His spirit of solidarity with children extends to his own sons, Homer, 3, and Abe, 1, toward whom, he confesses, he is "indulgent and spoiling. "Bart is like what would happen if Eddie Haskell got his own show," he said. For a man who has become famous on the strength of his dark musings, starting with "Life in Hell," his weekly comic strip, Mr. Groening (it rhymes with complaining, his publicist says) comes off in person as surprisingly benign: big, bearish and still a bit astonished to find his jokes getting so out of hand. In 2011, he married artist Augustina Picasso, with whom he had been in a relationship for four years. 2002, 2003 and 2004. [65] The names of a few other characters were taken from major street names in Groening's hometown of Portland, Oregon, including Flanders, Lovejoy, Powell, Quimby and Kearney. "A Bit From the Animators", illustrated commentary for "All Singing, All Dancing", in, From a radio interview with Groening that aired on the, Frank Zappa Plays the Music of Frank Zappa: A Memorial Tribute, List of awards and nominations received by Matt Groening, Outstanding Animated Program (for programming one hour or less), "My Rock 'n' Roll Life, Part One: So You Want To Snort Derisively", "Homer Groening, Cartoonist's Father, 'Simpsons' Inspiration", "The real people behind Homer Simpson and family", "Homer Simpson has Canadian Mennonite roots", "Matt Groening Creator and Executive Producer [Bio]", "Matt Groening says Monty Python influenced new show Disenchantment", "Matt Groening | Biography, Cartoons, & Facts | Britannica", "Interview with Harry Shearer (Part 3 of 4)", "Prime time is heaven for 'Life in Hell' Artist", "Index to Comic Art Collection: "Gro" to "Groenne", "Conan on being left out of "Simpsons Movie", "Matt Groening's Reaction to The Critic's First Appearance on The Simpsons", "EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Claudia Katz on Futurama the Movie: Bender's Big Score", "Toon comedy has logged seasons on Fox, Comedy Central since 1999", "Matt Groening Netflix Animated Comedy A Go With 20-Episode Order, Abbi Jacobson, Nat Faxon & Eric Andre Lead Voice Cast", "Matt Groening Talks Origins of New Netflix Series 'Disenchantment', "Meet The End of The Century With Gary Panter", "Frank Zappa Plays The Music Of Frank Zappa", "Photos of Simpsons creator and his son Nathaniel", "aguspicassogroening on Instagram: "nirvana", "aguspicassogroening on Instagram: "One month of my zen baby Satori his name is Him thanks @chriscallahanphotography", "Virginia Roberts Giuffre Alleges Jeffrey Epstein Ordered Her to Massage Matt Groening's 'Crusty' Feet", "Matt Groening's Federal Campaign Contribution Report", "Jennifer Aniston, Vin Diesel among Hollywood Walk of Fame class of 2012", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Matt_Groening&oldid=1142437596, Creator, writer, executive producer, and creative consultant, This page was last edited on 2 March 2023, at 10:48. [14] Following his high school graduation in 1972,[15] Groening attended the Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. Matt Groening and Deborah Caplan married in 1986 and have two children: Homer (who goes by the name of Will) and Abe. At its peak, the cartoon was carried in 250 weekly newspapers. Who is Matt Groening? Net Worth, Bio, Age, Height, Affairs (2023) But before delirium set in, Groening spun a lingering bad mood and an "accidental" cartooning career into a billion-dollar print, broadcast, merchandising and licensing empire. He married Deborah Caplan 1986 . I like the idea of trying to be successful on some level, at least reaching an audience enough so that you can sustain it and keep on going." . Of Akbar and Jeff, he said: "'People always ask, 'Are they lovers or brothers or both?' Despite the unprecedented success of "The Simpsons," the process of getting "Futurama" on the air has been described by Groening as "the worst experience of my adult life." [92] In May 2013, Picasso gave birth to Nathaniel Philip Picasso Groening, named after writer Nathanael West. "It turns out I was the latest in a long line of writer-chauffeurs," Mr. Groening said. Groening won a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on February 14, 2012. His mission, Groening has said, was to create a sofa-centric sitcom about a typical American family and turn it upside down in retaliation for all the bad TV he watched as a kid. [8][50] Bart's original design, which appeared in the first shorts, had spikier hair, and the spikes were of different lengths. The show is watched by more than 60 million people weekly in more than 60 countries around the world -- beating out even the lowest-common-denominator friendly "Baywatch" as the world's most-watched show. Published a month later, the book was an underground success, selling 22,000 copies in its first two printings. [36] Released a month later, the book was an underground success, selling 22,000 copies in its first two printings. Ever since his syndicated comic strip "Life in Hell" -- that series of nihilistic but cuddly dispatches from the epicenter of gloom -- first appeared in 1980, Groening has been raising the dampened spirits of the fashionably alienated by dunking Binky, his rabbity, buck-toothed proxy, into a weekly bog of self-pity, anxiety and existential despair. [94] On June 16, 2018, he became the father of twins for a second time when his wife gave birth to Sol Matthew and Venus Ruth, announced via Instagram. "That there's no Jim Brooks around. [49] Marge's distinct beehive hairstyle was inspired by Bride of Frankenstein and the style that Margaret Groening wore during the 1960s, although her hair was never blue. After spending a few years researching science fiction, Groening got together with Simpsons writer and producer David X. Cohen (known as David S. Cohen at the time) in 1997 and developed Futurama, an animated series about life in the year 3000. On the radio, a drunken DJ wept a final farewell to his job. Fearing the loss of ownership rights, Groening created a new set of characters, the Simpson family. [72] Groening described trying to get the show on the air as "by far the worst experience of [his] grown-up life. After graduating in 1977, Groening headed to Los Angeles with the idea of pursuing a writing career. Most importantly, The Simpsons retained the subversive undercurrent that has driven its creator since he was a bored grade school student. 1. He is not. Deborah Caplan Born - Unknown Deborah is a publisher. 2. The strip continued to be published in the LA Weekly until 2009, when they were unable to pay Matt Groening anymore. Groening's writing credits for the show are for the premiere episode, "Space Pilot 3000" (co-written with Cohen), "Rebirth" (story) and "In-A-Gadda-Da-Leela" (story). This show won many Emmy Awards. Anyone can read what you share. After four years the show was cancelled, however, it maintained a strong fan following. "[19] The show premiered on March 28, 1999. In 1997, he and retired Simpsons writer David X. Cohen developed Futurama, an animated series about life in the year 3000, which premiered in 1999, ran for four years on Fox, then picked up by Comedy Central for more seasons. He befriended fellow cartoonist Lynda Barry and, finding no real authority to rebel against, he turned to cartooning in earnest. [24], In 1977, at the age of 23, Groening moved to Los Angeles to become a writer. He found some work along those lines, whipping up slogans for horror movies, but also took on a series of jobs that included chauffeur, dishwasher and record store clerk to make a living. The pilot episode of "Futurama" was scheduled to air in the coveted slot between "The Simpsons" and "The X-Files" on Sunday night, and was watched by 19 million viewers. Brooks selected his longtime colleague Sam Simon to help Groening develop the animated series, and The Simpsons dynasty began on December 17, 1989, when the first episode aired. Playdate with Destiny (2020) Deborah Caplan: Net Worth: $600 million: Birth Place: Portland, OR: Nationality: American: Education: Evergreen State College: Father: Homer Philip Groening: Mother: