Biography
Philip Edward “Phil” Hartman (born September 24, 1948), known professionally as Phil Hartman, is an American actor, writer, graphic designer, and stand-up comedian.
He was a Canadian-born character known for his distinctive sense of humor and biting wit. Although, by all accounts, he was a typically calm, easygoing, and easygoing person in real life, he was best at portraying arrogant, annoying, and unpleasant characters.
Phil Hartman started working as a graphic artist after finishing school. He enrolled in comedy classes offered by the California-based improvisational comedy troupe “The Groundlings” to find a more exciting outlet for his talents after becoming dissatisfied with his day job. He later joined the group and redesigned their logo instead of paying.
He worked with Paul Reubens to develop the character of Pee-wee Herman. He joined the cast of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” in 1986, where he quickly became famous for his extraordinary talent for imitating celebrities.
Other lucrative offers soon followed. He voiced Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz on “The Simpsons,” as well as Bill McNeal on “NewsRadio.”
He was a rising screenwriter who had sold his first feature film script by the time of his death in 1998, one of the busiest feature actors in the industry. Phil Hartman was posthumously honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2014.
Canadian-American actor
Phil Hartman |
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 Phil Hartman: History • Biography • Photos |
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| Wiki Events & About Data | |
| Full name: | Philip Edward Hartman |
| Stage name: | Phil Hartman |
| Born: | September 24, 1948 (age 49) |
| Place of birth: | Brantford, Canada |
| Deceased: | May 28, 1998, Encino, Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Nationality: | USA, Canada |
| Height: | 1.79 minutes |
| Parents: | Doris Hartmann and Rupert Hartmann |
| Siblings: | Mary Hartmann, John Hartmann, Paul Andrew Hartmann, Jane Hartmann, Nancy Hartman-McCoy, Martha Hartmann, Sara Hartmann |
| Wife • Husband/wife: | Brynn Hartman (married 1987–1998), Lisa Strain (married 1982–1985), Gretchen Lewis (married 1970–1972) |
| Girlfriend • Partner: | Do not have |
| The children: | Birgen Anika Hartman, Sean Edward Hartman |
| Job: | Actor • Comedian |
| Net worth: | 3 million US dollars |
Early life
The fourth of eight children of Doris Marguerite (née Wardell) and Rupert Loebig Hartmann, Philip Edward Hartmann (he later dropped the final ‘n’ from his surname to spell “Hartman”), was born on September 24, 1948 in Brantford, Ontario, Canada to Doris Hartmann (mother) and Rupert Hartmann (father).
In 1958, his father, a building materials salesman, brought the family to the United States. Before moving to California, they spent a short time in Connecticut. He has two brothers, John Hartmann and Paul Andrew Hartmann, and five sisters, Mary Hartmann, Sara Hartmann, Nancy Hartman-McCoy, Martha Hartmann, and Jane Hartmann.
He attended Westchester High School and came from a Catholic family. He later attended Santa Monica City College, but in 1969 he left to join a touring rock band.
He returned to California State University, Northridge, in 1972 to complete his degree in graphic arts. After graduating from college, he found success as an entrepreneur, founding his own graphic design firm, where he created album covers for over 40 bands, including Poco and America.
Career
At the age of 27, Phil Hartman signed up for The Groundlings’ evening comedy class in 1975. His creativity soon found a social outlet in comedy, and one night, after watching other members of the troupe perform, he took the stage and joined the show. He progressed to become one of the show’s stars in 1979. After one of these performances, he met Betty Fanning McCann, his future agent.
Paul Reubens was one of his fellow performers with The Groundlings. They eventually became close friends and collaborated on several projects, including creating the character Pee-wee Herman.
They made a live production of “The Pee-wee Herman Show” in 1981, which HBO eventually aired. As Dirty Kap’n Karl on the CBS TV spin-off series “Pee-Playhouse,” Hartman also co-wrote the 1985 film “Pee-Big Wee’s Adventure” and its sequel.
He made his television voice acting debut in 1979 with the cartoon Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo.
He appeared in other small roles over the next several years in films such as “The Six O’Clock Follies” (1980), “The Gong Show Movie” (1980), “Pandemonium” (1982) and “Magnum, P.I.” He also lent his voice to several animated films, such as “Red Pepper” (1981), “The Little Rascals” (1982) and “The Dukes” (1983).
He voiced Henry Mitchell and George Wilson in “Dennis the Menace” (1986). He co-starred with Steve Martin, Chevy Chase, and Martin Short in “Three Amigos” (1986), with Bruce Willis in “Blind Date” (1987), with Bill Murray and Geena Davis in “Quick Change” (1990), and with Dan Aykroyd in “Coneheads”. He was comfortable playing supporting roles (1993).
During the second season of “The Simpsons” (1991–1998), Phil Hartman was originally only going to voice one episode, but the experience was so beneficial that he was later given regular roles as Lionel Hutz and Troy McClure.
He also considered producing a live-action film about Troy McClure. Showrunners Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein retired the characters after Phil Hartman’s death.
Major works
Phil Hartman was a member of the SNL cast and writing team for eight years from 1986 to 1994. He was known as “The Glue” backstage for his helpful and thoughtful demeanor, and many other crew members credited him with keeping the show running smoothly.
He was also a great imitator and improviser. He imitated people like Frank Sinatra, Ronald Reagan, Ed McMahon, Barbara Bush, Charlton Heston, Phil Donahue, and Bill Clinton during his time on the variety show; the latter is considered his best performance.
On the NBC sitcom “NewsRadio,” he was cast as Evelyn William “Bill” McNeal (1995–98). McNeal was a news anchor for WYNX, the radio station where the story was made, and was bombastic, pretentious, and insubordinate.
Phil Hartman earned a TV Land Award nomination for the role despite allegedly claiming that he based the character on himself without regard to any moral considerations.
Achievements & Awards
As a member of the writing team for “Saturday Night Live,” Phil Hartman won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety or Music Program in 1989.
His Television Star’s address is 6600 Hollywood Boulevard on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The event took place on August 26, 2014.
Furthermore, he was inducted into Canada’s Walk of Fame (Class of 2012).
List of movies played
- Skateboard Madness (1980)
- Spaceballs (1987)
- Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985)
- The Ruthless (1986)
- Rapid Change (1990)
- Cheech and Chong’s Next Movie (1980)
- Three Friends! (1986)
- So I Married an Axe Murderer (1993)
- Greed (1994)
- Amazon Women on the Moon (1987)
Personal life
Phil Hartman has been married three times. In 1970, he married Gretchen Lewis, his first wife. In 1972, the couple filed for divorce.
He married Lisa Strain, a real estate saleswoman, in 1982, and the couple separated in 1985. His first two marriages were childless.
He dated Brynn Hartman (born Vicki Jo Omdahl), a former model and aspiring actress, and they married in November 1987.
Due to Brynn Hartman’s desperation and continued drug use, their relationship became tumultuous and progressively worse. Sean Edward Hartman, his son, was born to her in 1989; Birgen Anika Hartman, his daughter, was born to her in 1992.
Brynn Hartman was even more frustrated as Phil Hartman’s career took off because she was still looking for success on her own. He didn’t want to be away from her, so he gave her a lot of work and briefly thought about retirement.
After returning from dinner with friends on May 27, 1998, Brynn Hartman had a violent disagreement with her husband, who threatened to leave her if she continued to use drugs.
She killed Phil Hartman three times at 3 a.m. by breaking into his bedroom while high on cocaine and alcohol. She locked herself in the bedroom, called friends and the police, put a .38 caliber pistol in her mouth, and pulled the trigger to end her life.
Net worth
Phil Hartman’s estate was estimated to be worth US$1.23 million at the time of his death.
After accounting for inflation, that’s the equivalent of about $3 million today. The value of his home contributed the bulk of his fortune.
Phil Hartman has amassed a net worth of $3 million.
Social media
- Instagram: @phil_hartman_507
- Twitter: @philhartman1948
