62 Facts About Phil Hartman

Philip Edward Hartman was a Canadian-American actor, comedian, screenwriter and graphic designer.

Phil Hartman co-wrote the film Pee-wee's Big Adventure and made recurring appearances as Captain Carl on Reubens' show Pee-wee's Playhouse.

In 1986, Phil Hartman joined the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live as a cast member, and stayed for eight seasons until 1994.

Phil Hartman starred as Bill McNeal in the sitcom NewsRadio, voiced Lionel Hutz and Troy McClure on The Simpsons, and appeared in supporting roles in the films Houseguest, Jingle All the Way, and Small Soldiers.

In 1998, while Phil Hartman was sleeping in his bed, Brynn shot and killed him, and later committed suicide.

Phil Hartman was posthumously inducted into the Canada and Hollywood Walks of Fame in 2012 and 2014.

Phil Hartman was the fourth of eight children of Doris Marguerite and Rupert Loebig Hartmann, who sold building materials.

Phil Hartman was 10 when his family moved to the United States.

Phil Hartman returned to school in 1972 to study graphic arts at California State University, Northridge.

Phil Hartman played Captain Carl in the show, and reprised the role for the children's TV show Pee-wee's Playhouse.

Reubens and Phil Hartman made cameos in the 1980 film Cheech and Chong's Next Movie.

Phil Hartman co-wrote the script of the 1985 feature film Pee-wee's Big Adventure and had a cameo role as a reporter.

Phil Hartman had considered quitting acting at the age of 36 due to the challenges of finding work; but the success of Pee-wee's Big Adventure changed his mind.

Phil Hartman took more small roles in 1986 films such as Jumpin' Jack Flash and Three Amigos.

Phil Hartman worked as a voice actor in animated television programs, including The Smurfs, Challenge of the GoBots, The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo, and in Dennis the Menace as characters Henry Mitchell and George Wilson.

Phil Hartman developed a strong persona providing voice-overs for advertisements.

Phil Hartman successfully auditioned to join NBC's variety show Saturday Night Live in its 12th season, which began on October 11,1986.

Phil Hartman had been recommended for the show by fellow Groundlings and SNL cast members Jon Lovitz, and Laraine Newman as well as Jumpin' Jack Flash director Penny Marshall.

Phil Hartman first performed his Clinton impression on an episode of The Tonight Show.

When he met Clinton in 1993, Phil Hartman remarked, "I guess I owe you a few apologies", adding later that he "sometimes [felt] a twinge of guilt about [his Clinton impression]".

Phil Hartman opted against wearing a larger prosthetic nose when portraying Clinton, as he thought it would be distracting.

Phil Hartman instead wore a wig, dyed his eyebrows brighter, and used makeup to highlight his nose.

Phil Hartman won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program for SNL in 1989, sharing the award with the show's other writers.

Phil Hartman was nominated in the same category in 1987, and individually in 1994 for Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program.

Phil Hartman said he thought it was time to leave because the show was "getting less sophisticated" and his style of humor did not fit with the less intellectual comedy of newer cast members like Adam Sandler.

Phil Hartman had originally planned to leave the show in 1991, but Michaels convinced him to stay to raise his profile; his portrayal of Clinton contributed to this goal.

Jay Leno offered him the role of his sidekick on The Tonight Show but Phil Hartman opted to stay on SNL.

Phil Hartman planned to "reinvent the variety form" with "a hybrid, very fast-paced, high energy [show] with sketches, impersonations, pet acts, and performers showcasing their talents".

Phil Hartman was to be the show's executive producer and head writer.

Phil Hartman became one of the stars of the NBC sitcom NewsRadio in 1995, portraying radio news anchor Bill McNeal.

Phil Hartman signed up after being attracted by the show's writing and use of an ensemble cast, and joked that he based McNeal on himself with "any ethics and character" removed.

Phil Hartman had publicly lambasted NBC's decision to repeatedly move NewsRadio into different timeslots, but later regretted his comments, saying, "this is a sitcom, for crying out loud, not brain surgery".

Phil Hartman stated that if the sitcom were cancelled "it just will open up other opportunities for me".

Phil Hartman provided the voices for numerous characters on the Fox animated series The Simpsons, appearing in 52 episodes.

Phil Hartman made his first appearance in the second season episode "Bart Gets Hit by a Car".

Phil Hartman voiced the recurring characters Lionel Hutz and Troy McClure, as well as Duffman and several background characters.

The Simpsons creator Matt Groening said that he "took [Phil Hartman] for granted because he nailed the joke every time", and that his voice acting could produce "the maximum amount of humor" with any line he was given.

Phil Hartman said he was "looking forward to [McClure's] live-action movie, publicizing his Betty Ford appearances", and "would love nothing more" than making a film and was prepared to buy the film rights himself in order to make it happen.

Phil Hartman's first starring film role came in 1995's Houseguest, alongside Sinbad.

Phil Hartman made a considerable amount of money from television advertising, earning $300,000 for a series of four commercials for the soft drink Slice.

Phil Hartman wrote a number of screenplays that were never produced.

Phil Hartman appeared on David Letterman's Late Night and Late Show 13 times between 1989 and 1996, where he can be seen speaking German fluently.

In contrast to his real-life personality, which was described as "a regular guy and, by all accounts, one of show business's most low-key, decent people", Phil Hartman often played seedy, vain or unpleasant characters as well as comedic villains.

Phil Hartman described his standard character repertoire as the "jerky guy" and "the weasel parade", citing Lionel Hutz, Bill McNeal, Troy McClure, and Ted Maltin from Jingle All the Way as examples.

Phil Hartman enjoyed playing such roles because he "just want[ed] to be funny, and villains tend to be funny because their foibles are all there to see".

Phil Hartman often played supporting roles, rather than the lead part.

Phil Hartman assembled a collection of video footage of the figure he was preparing to impersonate and watched this continually until he "completely embodied the person".

Phil Hartman married Gretchen Lewis in 1970 and they divorced in September 1972.

Phil Hartman married real estate agent Lisa Strain in 1982, and their marriage lasted three years.

Phil Hartman tried to get Brynn acting roles, but she became progressively reliant on alcohol and narcotics, entering rehab several times.

Phil Hartman befriended Joe Rogan during his time on NewsRadio and confided his marital problems to him.

Phil Hartman stated in 1997 that, though a non-practicing Catholic, he displayed a sense of religiousness.

Phil Hartman entered his bedroom some time before PDT on May 28,1998, and, as he slept, she fatally shot him once between the eyes, once in the throat, and once in the upper chest with a Charter Arms.

Phil Hartman was taking Zoloft, had been drinking alcohol, and had recently used cocaine.

The police stated Phil Hartman's death was caused by "domestic discord" between the couple.

Phil Hartman's will stipulated each child would inherit money over several years after turning 25.

Phil Hartman has a headstone in Thief River Falls, MN with wife Brynn.

Everyone who had the pleasure of working with Phil Hartman knows that he was a man of tremendous warmth, a true professional and a loyal friend.

Phil Hartman was preparing to voice Zapp Brannigan, a character written specifically for him on Groening's second animated series Futurama, at the time of his death.

Phil Hartman was planning to appear with Lovitz in the indie film The Day of Swine and Roses, scheduled to begin production in August 1998.

The campaign ended in success and Phil Hartman was inducted on September 22,2012, to the Walk of Fame, with Paul accepting the award on his late brother's behalf.

In June 2013, it was announced that Phil Hartman would receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which was unveiled on August 26,2014.