Guide Note

Matt Groening is the creator of The Simpsons, Futurama, and his long-running comic strips, Akbar and Jeff and Life in Hell. Growing up in Portland, OR, and took to cartooning as an escape from the drudgery of school. Life in Hell was first published in 1978 and quickly gained a cult following, but Groening's wouldn't enter mainstream media until 1985, when he was commissioned to make animated shorts for the FOX comedy series The Tracey Ullman Show. These shorts featured The Simpsons in a developmental phase, with starker humor and quirkier character designs. The Simpsons were spun off into their own program in 1989, becoming enormously successful, broadly merchandised and, eventually, the stars of their own film, The Simpsons Movie. Futurama, Groening's other major TV endeavor, ran for four years (1999 to 2003) and was revived by Comedy Central in 2008, for a run of four direct-to-DVD movies, aired in half-hour episodes.

Fast Facts

1. Born: February 15, 1954
2. Created TV programs, The Simpsons and Futurama
3. Created comic strips, Akbar and Jeff and Life in Hell
4. Emmy Nominations: 25
5. Emmy Wins: 10

1. Groening's habit of giving his characters the middle initial "J" ("Philip J. Fry," "Homer J. Simpson") is a tribute to Jay Ward, creator of The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show ("Bullwinkle. J. Moose" and "Rocket. J. Squirrel").
2. Simpsons named after Groening's family: his parents (Homer and Marge) and sisters (Maggie and Lisa).