Phil Hartman

Phillip Edward Hartmann (known professionally as Phil Hartman; September 24, 1948 – May 28, 1998) was a Canadian-born American graphic designer, artist, writer, comedian, voice artist, and actor. Hartman was born in Brantford, Ontario, Canada. In 1990 he moved to the United States with his family and became an American citizen. Hartman was a cast member of Saturday Night Live.

Early life
Hartman was born Philip Edward Hartmann on September 24, 1948 in Brantford, Ontario, Canada. He was the fourth of eight children of Doris Marguerite (Wardell) and Rupert Loebig Hartmann, a salesman specializing in building materials.http://www.mytrees.com/ancestry/Canada/Born-1915/Ha/Hartmann-family/Rupert-Hartmann-cr000093-783.html One of his brothers is named John Hartman.http://www.autopsyfiles.org/reports/Celebs/hartman,%20phil_report.pdf His parents were Catholic and raised their children in that faith. As a middle child, Hartman found affection hard to earn and stated: "I suppose I didn't get what I wanted out of my family life, so I started seeking love and attention elsewhere."

Career
Hartman got his start in show business as a performing member of the comedy troupe, Groundlings. Hartman then joined the cast of Saturday Night Live in 1987, and stayed on the show for 8 years. Hartman also did prominent voice acting roles on The Simpsons until his untimely death in 1998. He was also part of the main cast on the critically-acclaimed sitcom NewsRadio, until his murder. Hartman, before becoming an actor and performer, worked as an album designer and graphic artist for multiple rock bands such as Poco, America and Crosby, Stills and Nash, while also co-creating the signature logo for the latter group. Hartman had also co-created the character Pee-wee Herman together along with his fellow Groundlings member and associate Paul Reubens. Hartman also co-wrote the screenplay for the film Pee-wee's Big Adventure. 

He had also appeared in multiple films such as Coneheads, Kiki's Delivery Service, Cheech & Chong's Next Movie, House Guest, The Pagemaster, Small Soldiers and Jingle All The Way, among many others. Hartman was also a prolific voice actor who had voice roles in several cartoons, such as Scooby Doo, The Simpsons, Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child, Darkwing Duck and The Smurfs.

One of Hartman's last notable projects was in the 1998 video game Blasto, released for the PlayStation.

Death
On the evening of May 27, 1998, Brynn returned home and had a big fight with her husband. After the fight, Phil told her that if she ever used any drugs or abused their children, he would break up with her and take the children with him.
Later, on May 28, 1998 around 3:00 AM, while he slept in his bed, Phil died at the hands of his wife, Brynn Omdahl-Hartman, by a revolver. Brynn, intoxicated and under the influence of cocaine and alcohol, drove to the home of a friend and confessed to the murder. Returning to the house, with the couple's two children asleep inside, Mrs. Hartman put a gun to her head and ended her life around 6:30 AM. Phil Hartman was cremated days later, with his ashes spread over an island off the coast of Southern California.

The Hartmans' two children, Sean Edward Hartman (born in 1989) and Birgen Anika Hartman (born in 1992), were raised by their aunt and uncle, Katherine Omdahl (Brynn's sister) and Michael Wright in Minnesota.

References

Other websites


 Phil Hartman at Yahoo! Movies
 Phil Hartman at The New York Times
 Hartman's autopsy and death certificate
 Phil Hartman’s final night: The tragic death of a “Saturday Night Live” genius, Mike Thomas, Salon, September 21, 2014

Category:1948 births
Category:1998 deaths
Category:Naturalized citizens of the United States
Category:Writers from Ontario
Category:Actors from Ontario
Category:Comedians from Ontario
Category:Comedians from Los Angeles
Category:Actors from Los Angeles
Category:Canadian comedians
Category:Canadian voice actors
Category:Canadian movie actors
Category:Canadian murder victims
Category:Canadian television actors
Category:Canadian television writers
Category:American television writers
Category:American television actors
Category:American movie actors
Category:American voice actors
Category:American murder victims
Category:Murdered entertainers
Category:Murders by firearm in California
Category:Murder-suicides in the United States
Category:People murdered in California