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Posts tagged as phil hartman

Animation

Phil Hartman's Comedy Album Is Being Turned Into an Animated Movie

by | May 7th, 2013

In the late '70s, nearly a decade prior to landing on Saturday Night Live, the late Phil Hartman recorded an album called Flat TV, consisting of him performing various characters and sketches. The album was lost and unreleased until Hartman's brother John dug it up and put it out on CD in 2002, and now, an animation studio is developing it into a film. Worker Studios has teamed up with Phil's brother Paul Hartmann (Phil dropped the extra 'n' at the end of his last name when he went into show business) on the project. Flat TV is a 22-track album of sketches written by and starring Hartman [...]

Lost Roles

The Lost 'Simpsons' Spin-offs

by | June 7th, 2012

When The Simpsons debuted 25 years ago as a series of shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, it was hard to expect that it would become one of the most successful and longest-running franchises in movie and TV history. While The Simpsons spun off from (and quickly eclipsed) The Tracey Ullman Show, it seems a little odd that, given the show’s rampant popularity, we have yet to see a spin-off from The Simpsons, itself. The show has occasionally mocked the concept of TV spin-offs – most notably in the Troy McClure-hosted “Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase” – but that doesn’t mean Fox and the Simpsons creative team haven’t attempted to use [...]

Classic Simpsons Week

Phil Hartman's Simpsons Legacy

by | November 30th, 2010

Later episodes of The Simpsons tend to unfold like Radiohead songs, starting off one way before taking an abrupt left turn. In stark contrast to this style, the plot of Season 2 gem “Bart Gets Hit By a Car” is thrust into motion within its first minute… when Bart gets hit by a car. Immediately afterward, the boy’s soul sheds its mortal shell and ascends the escalator to heaven, guided by a voice that is both pleasant and firm. It’s the kind of voice designed to convey trust during a commercial, and also the kind used during a fake commercial to mock such naked appeals for trust, perhaps on [...]

reddit

Buying Michael Jackson 20 Cases of Water and All the Best Parts from Former 'Simpsons' Writer Jay Kogen's AMA

by | September 19th, 2012

Jay Kogen was one of the OG Simpsons writers. He, with his writing partner Wallace Wolodarsky, wrote such classic episodes as "Bart the Daredevil" and "Last Exit to Springfield." He did an AMA yesterday to quench our undying desire for more Simpsons info. Here are the best parts:

On Phil Hartman:

Phil was a pal of mine from the Groundlings improv group in L.A. I saw him the night before he died. It was a tragedy. Horrible. Phil's voice is pretty distinctive. Hard to replace. Easy to make new characters so, we just let it go. (I created Lionel Hutz)

On what he thinks of Family Guy:

It's [...]

SNL

Saturday Night's Children: Phil Hartman (1986-1994)

by | November 1st, 2011

Saturday Night Live has been home to over a hundred cast members throughout the past 35 years. In our column Saturday Night’s Children, we present the history, talent, and best sketches of one SNL cast member each week for your viewing, learning, and laughing pleasure.

To any 90s kid who liked watching TV, Phil Hartman was Troy McClure, Lionel Hutz, or any other of his characters on The Simpsons, but on SNL he was the older, warmer, and wiser cast member who helped pull the show out of its flailing 11th season and lead it into one of its best heydays. Whether he played a smooth-talking Hollywood [...]

RIP

Al Franken Eulogizes Tom Davis

by | July 27th, 2012

This is beautiful and sad and tough and a bit fun. Franken spends a good bit of the speech talking about the process of writing and making comedy with Tom, focusing on SNL and the famous Julia Child sketch. It's a really great watch. While you're spending time with Franken, read this crazy story by a BoingBoing writer about the time he met with Franken for a job interview, minutes after Phil Hartman was killed. Then maybe watch the Julia Child sketch below, for something a bit more upbeat and Friday friendly.

Advice

Phil Hartman's Hand-Written Feedback to a Fan Who Sent Him a Tape Is Heartbreaking

by | August 16th, 2011

Here's a letter that Phil Hartman wrote to an aspiring comedian who had sent him a tape of his work in 1997. In case you were ever wondering if Phil Hartman was a good guy, well, try to think of who else would not only respond to a letter/tape like this, but would listen to it and sent back a multi-page hand-written note with specific feedback and well wishes. This was when Phil was at the peak of his career, doing Newsradio, The Simpsons and a slew of other projects, so it's not like he wasn't busy. One of the all-time greatest, and gone far, far too soon.

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