Matthew Abraham Groening is best known for being the creator of the immensely famous show “The Simpsons,” which holds the record for the longest-running primetime television series in the annals of television history. In December of 1989, The Simpsons made its official premiere as its very first standalone primetime half-hour show.
It is still functioning normally at this time. With an uncountable number of licensing arrangements and theme park attractions, The Simpsons has become an empire in the same vein as other intellectual properties such as Lego and Star Wars.
In the Beginning
On February 15th, 1954, Matthew Abraham Groening was brought into the world in Portland, Oregon. He is the third child of Margaret Ruth, a former educator, and Homer Philip, a filmmaker, advertising, writer, and cartoonist. He is the middle child of five children born to his parents. His brothers and sisters are named Mark, Patty, Lisa, and Maggie respectively.
After completing his high school education at Lincoln High School, he went on to study at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, from 1972 through 1977. After watching the Disney animated film “One Hundred and One Dalmatians,” which is where he got his start in the world of cartoons, he credits Robert Crumb, Ernie Bushmiller, Ronald Searle, Monty Python, and Charles M. Schulz as his primary sources of creative motivation.
Early in One’s Career
Groening traveled to Los Angeles in 1977, at the age of twenty-three, with the intention of pursuing a career as a writer there. During this time period, he did a variety of odd jobs at establishments such as restaurants, nursing homes, record stores, and sewage treatment plants, among other places.
In order to better describe life in Los Angeles to his pals, he began creating the comic book “Life in Hell,” which he later self-published. 1978 marked the year that he made his first sale as a professional cartoonist to the cutting-edge Wet Magazine. The issue of Wet that was published in September/October 1978 featured the comic strip “Forbidden Words.”
After that, he began working at the Los Angeles Reader, first as a newspaper deliverer, then as a typesetter, and finally as an editor. Later on, he became a cartoonist for the publication. On April 25, 1980, the first issue of “Life in Hell” appeared as a comic strip for the first time in the “Reader.”
Life in Hell
Groening and his girlfriend at the time, Deborah Caplan, eventually started publishing books of “Life in Hell” strips with different themes such as “Love is Hell” and “Work is Hell.” “Life in Hell” was an almost immediate hit, and eventually, Groening and his girlfriend at the time, Deborah Caplan, started publishing books of “Life in Hell” strips.
In order to take care of the merchandising for “Life in Hell,” Caplan and Groening established the company Life in Hell Co. “Life in Hell” was published in a total of 250 weekly newspapers at its height. On June 16, 2012, the strip’s final installment was released.
The Simpsons series
James L. Brooks, a well-known writer and producer in Hollywood, took notice of the play “Life in Hell.” Groening was contacted by Brooks, who made a proposal to work together on an unspecified future project.
Groening is the brains behind “The Simpsons,” and he named the characters in the show after members of his own family. The popularity of the “Simpsons” shorts that were broadcast on “The Tracey Ullman Show” led to the creation of a “Simpsons” spin-off show that lasted for half an hour in 1989.
On December 17, 1989, the half-hour show made its debut for the first time. Groening, Brooks, and Sam Simon were the three people that worked together to establish “The Simpsons” show for Fox Broadcasting Company. Despite this, Groening and Simon frequently butted heads, which ultimately led to Simon leaving the show in 1993 due to creative differences.
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Groening is currently involved with the show in the capacities of executive producer and creative consultant. In addition to that, he is credited with writing or co-writing a number of episodes of the show, as well as “The Simpsons Movie” (2007).
Aside from Futurama, Other Works
Groening is a producer who is best known for his work on “The Simpsons,” but he has also worked on other shows and projects. In 1997, he created the animated series “Futurama” in collaboration with David X. Cohen, who was the writer and producer for “The Simpsons.” The plot of the show revolves around everyday living in the year 3000.
In March of 1999, Fox broadcast the first episode of “Futurama,” which aired for a total of four years until being pulled from the schedule. On the other hand, it was brought back following successful sales of the DVD and high ratings on Adult Swim. After beginning negotiations for the rights to screen “Futurama” reruns, Comedy Central agreed to airing sixteen brand new episodes of the show.
In addition, there were four films that were developed exclusively for home video release; they included “Bender’s Big Score” (2007), “The Beast with a Billion Backs” (2008), “Bender’s Game” (2008), and “Into the Wild Green Yonder” (2009). In 2010, Comedy Central gave the go light for the production of 26 brand new episodes, and the series came to a close in September of 2013.
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Another series that Groening has created is called “Disenchantment,” which is being produced in collaboration with the streaming service Netflix. The first ten episodes of the series were made available on Netflix in August 2018, and the second ten episodes of the series were made available on the streaming service in September 2019. The show has been given a renewal for an extra 20 episodes by Netflix, which will be made available in batches of 10 episodes throughout the years 2020 and 2021.
Groening’s work on The Simpsons and Futurama has earned him a dozen Primetime Emmy Awards in the past. On the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television, located at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard, a star was placed in his honor in the year 2012. In addition, he is the recipient of a National Cartoonist Society Reuben Award as well as a British Comedy Award.
Comics published by Boingo Inc.
Groening, Steve Vance, Cindy Vance, and Bill Morrison founded Bongo Comics in 1994. Groening was a co-founder of the company. In addition to publishing some original works, this firm also distributes comic books based on the animated television series “The Simpsons” and “Futurama.” Groening also established Zongo Comics in 1995, which later became an imprint of Bongo Comics. It is a publisher of comics aimed towards readers of a more mature age.
Personal Life
Between the years 1986 and 1999, Groening was married to Deborah Caplan. Together, they gave birth to two boys, Homer and Abe. After dating for another four years, he finally tied the knot with Argentinean artist Augustina Picasso in the year 2011. Following the end of her previous relationship, he assumed the role of stepfather to her daughter. Groening and Picasso would go on to have a total of five children together, including two different sets of twins.
Real Estate
Groening paid a total of $11.65 million for a sizable mansion in Santa Monica, California, that was constructed in 1910 by Robert D. Farquhar. The home was purchased by Groening in the year 2011. Groening was responsible for a significant amount of the property’s enlargement and refurbishment. In May of 2019, he shelled out $11.9 million to purchase the house directly adjacent to his.
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The end result is a compound that encompasses more than an acre of Santa Monica’s most valuable real estate. Groening is also the owner of a beachfront property in Malibu, which he purchased for $8.5 million in the year 2000. If you were to sell that house now, you could probably expect to get at least $20 million.
Net Worth
An American animator, author, television producer, and cartoonist, Matt Groening has amassed a net worth of $600 million over the course of his career.
