Nancy Cartwright

Nancy Jean Cartwright was born on October 25, 1957,{{Cite web|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/october-celebrity-birthdays_n_1030744|title = Nancy Cartwright, Randy Jackson & More: This Week's Famous Post50 Birthdays|date = October 25, 2011}} in Dayton, Ohio. She was the fourth of six children born to Frank and Miriam Cartwright.{{cite web | url=https://www.legion.org/memoriam/248917/frank-c-cartwright-sr | title=Frank C. Cartwright Sr | date=June 21, 2023 | access-date=August 26, 2022 | archive-date=August 26, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220826162255/https://www.legion.org/memoriam/248917/frank-c-cartwright-sr | url-status=dead }}{{Cite web|url=http://nancycartwright.com/html/about/bio.html |title=Biography highlights |publisher=Nancycartwright.com |access-date=February 7, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511223935/http://www.nancycartwright.com/html/about/bio.html |archive-date=May 11, 2008 }} She grew up in Kettering, Ohio, and discovered her talent for voices at an early age. While in the fourth grade at the school of St. Charles Borromeo, she won a school-wide speech competition with her performance of Rudyard Kipling's How the Camel Got His Hump.{{cite news |title=Nancy Cartwright: Eat my shorts |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/features/nancy-cartwright-eat-my-shorts-491916.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220618/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/features/nancy-cartwright-eat-my-shorts-491916.html |archive-date=June 18, 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |date=May 24, 2005 |work=The Independent |access-date=February 6, 2009 |location=London}} Cartwright attended Fairmont West High School, and participated in the school's theater and marching band. She regularly entered public speaking competitions, placing first in the "Humorous Interpretation" category at the National District Tournament two years running. The judges often suggested to her that she should perform cartoon voices. Cartwright graduated from high school in 1976 and accepted a scholarship from Ohio University.Cartwright, pp. 9–10. She continued to compete in public speaking competitions; during her sophomore year, she placed fifth in the National Speech Tournament's exposition category with her speech "The Art of Animation".Cartwright, pp. 15–16.

In 1976, Cartwright landed a part-time job doing voice-overs for commercials on WING radio in Dayton.{{Cite web |title=Bart Simpson's secrets revealed |url=http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2000/12/18/tem_kiesewetter_bart.html |author=Kieswetter, John |work=The Cincinnati Enquirer |date=December 18, 2000 |access-date=February 6, 2009}} A representative from Warner Bros. Records visited WING and later sent Cartwright a list of contacts in the animation industry.Cartwright, pp. 12–13. One of these was Daws Butler, known for voicing characters such as Huckleberry Hound, Snagglepuss, Elroy Jetson, Spike the Bulldog, and Yogi Bear. Cartwright called him and left a message in a Cockney accent on his answering machine. Butler immediately called her back and agreed to be her mentor. He mailed her a script and instructed her to send him a tape recording of herself reading it. Once he received the tape, Butler critiqued it and sent her notes. For the next year, they continued in this way, completing a new script every few weeks. Cartwright described Butler as "absolutely amazing, always encouraging, always polite".Cartwright, p. 14.

Cartwright returned to Ohio University for her sophomore year, but transferred to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) so she could be closer to Hollywood and Butler. Her mother, Miriam, died late in the summer of 1978.{{Cite news |title=Just don't call me Bart |work=Scotland on Sunday |date=November 19, 2000}} Cartwright nearly changed her relocation plans but, on September 17, 1978, "joylessly" left for Westwood, Los Angeles.Cartwright, pp. 16–18.

File:Daws Butler (1976).jpg was Cartwright's mentor and helped her become a voice actress.]]

While attending UCLA, which did not have a public speaking team,Cartwright, p. 19. Cartwright continued training as a voice actress with Butler. She recalled, "every Sunday I'd take a 20-minute bus ride to his house in Beverly Hills for a one-hour lesson and be there for four hours ... They had four sons, they didn't have a daughter and I kind of fitted in as the baby of the family."{{Cite web |url=http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/thesimpsons/And-speaking-of-the-Simpsons.2554090.jp |title=And speaking of the Simpsons |date=August 12, 2004 |work=Edinburgh Evening News |access-date=February 7, 2009}} Butler introduced her to many of the voice actors and directors at Hanna-Barbera. After she met the director Gordon Hunt, he asked her to audition for a recurring role as Gloria in Richie Rich. She received the part, and later worked with Hunt on several other projects. At the end of 1980, Cartwright signed with a talent agency and landed a lead role in a pilot for a sitcom called In Trouble. Cartwright described the show as "forgettable, but it jump-started my on-camera career".Cartwright, pp. 23–25. She graduated from UCLA in 1981 with a degree in theater.{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12253984 |title=Cartwright: It's Bearable Being Bart's Likeness |access-date=July 26, 2007 |author=Terry Gross Interview on "Fresh Air" (Interview confirms transfer to UCLA) |date=July 26, 2007 |publisher=National Public Radio}} During the summer, Cartwright worked with Jonathan Winters as part of an improvisation troupe at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio.

Returning to Los Angeles, Cartwright won the lead role in the television film Marian Rose White. Janet Maslin, a critic for The New York Times, described Cartwright as "a chubby, lumbering, slightly cross-eyed actress whose naturalness adds greatly to the film's impact".{{cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0DE1D81138F93AA25752C0A964948260 |title=TV: 'Marian Rose White' in a mental institution |author=Maslin, Janet |author-link=Janet Maslin |work=The New York Times |date=January 19, 1982 |access-date=February 7, 2009}} Cartwright replied by sending Maslin a letter insisting she was not cross-eyed, and included a photograph.{{Cite news |title=Bart is a good girl at heart; the mischievous little boy, who brings his iconoclastic status to the big screen, is really a middle aged woman |work=Guelph Mercury |date=July 26, 2007 |author=New York Times News Service}} Later, Cartwright auditioned for the role of Ethel, a girl who becomes trapped in a cartoon world in the third segment of Twilight Zone: The Movie. She met with director Joe Dante and later described him as "a total cartoon buff, and once he took a look at my resume and noticed Daws Butler's name on it, we were off and running, sharing anecdotes about Daws and animation. After about twenty minutes, he said, 'considering your background, I don't see how I could cast anyone but you in this part!{{' "}} It was her first role in a feature film.Cartwright, pp. 26–27. The segment was based on The Twilight Zone television series episode "It's a Good Life", which was later parodied in The Simpsons episode "Treehouse of Horror II" (1991).Groening, Matt; Jean, Al; Reiss, Mike; Castellaneta, Dan; Martin, Jeff; Reardon, Jim. (2003). Commentary for "Treehouse of Horror II", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.

Cartwright continued to do voice work for projects including Pound Puppies, Popeye and Son, Snorks, My Little Pony and Saturday Supercade.Cartwright, pp. 27–28. She joined a "loop group", and recorded vocals for characters in the background of films, although in most cases the sound was turned down so that very little of her voice was heard. She did minor voice-over work for several films, including The Clan of the Cave Bear (1986), Silverado (1985), Sixteen Candles (1984), Back to the Future Part II, and The Color Purple (1985).Cartwright, p. 29. Cartwright also voiced a shoe that was "dipped" in acid in Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988), describing it as her first "off-screen death scene", and worked to correctly convey the emotion involved.

{{quote box

|width=30em |bgcolor=transparent |align=left |quote=Once I had graduated from UCLA, I decided that as long as I was an actress, I was going to find related work in the industry. There were plenty of opportunities. And fortunately, I am just pushy enough to find and get myself in touch with those who can provide such opportunities. |salign=right |source=—Nancy Cartwright, My Life as a 10-Year-Old Boy}}

In 1985, she auditioned for a guest spot as Cynthia in Cheers. The audition called for her to say her line and walk off the set. Cartwright decided to take a chance on being different and continued walking, leaving the building and returning home. The production crew was confused, but she received the part. In search of more training as an actress, Cartwright joined a class taught by Hollywood coach Milton Katselas. He recommended that Cartwright study La Strada, a 1956 Italian film starring Giulietta Masina and directed by Federico Fellini. She began performing "every imaginable scene" from La Strada in her class and spent several months trying to secure the rights to produce a stage adaptation. She visited Italy with the intention of meeting Fellini and requesting his permission in person. Although they never met, Cartwright kept a journal of the trip and later wrote a one-woman play called In Search of Fellini, partially based on her voyage.Cartwright, pp. 30–33. The play was co-written by Peter Kjenaas, and Cartwright won a Drama-Logue Award after performing it in Los Angeles in 1995. In a 1998 interview, she stated her intention to make it into a feature film,{{Cite news |title=Voicing her ambitions — The Kettering native stretches her wings — from the sounds of Bart Simpson to producing films |work=Dayton Daily News |author=Hopkins, Tom |date=April 27, 1998}} which she succeeded in doing in 2017.

File:Nancy Cartwright.jpg

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Cartwright voices the character Bart Simpson on the long-running animated television show The Simpsons. On March 13, 1987, she auditioned for a series of animated shorts about a dysfunctional family that was to appear on The Tracey Ullman Show, a sketch comedy program. Cartwright had intended to audition for the role of Lisa Simpson, the elder daughter. After arriving at the audition, she found that Lisa was simply described as the middle child and at the time did not have much personality. Cartwright became more interested in the role of Bart, described as "devious, underachieving, school-hating, irreverent, [and] clever".Cartwright, pp. 35–40 Creator Matt Groening let her try out for Bart and gave her the job on the spot.{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/1017238.stm |title=Bart's voice tells all |access-date=February 5, 2009 |date=November 10, 2000 |work=BBC News}} Bart's voice came naturally to Cartwright, as she had previously used elements of it in My Little Pony, Snorks, and Pound Puppies. Cartwright describes Bart's voice as easy to perform compared with other characters. The recording of the shorts was often primitive; the dialog was recorded on a portable tape deck in a makeshift studio above the bleachers on the set of The Tracey Ullman Show. Cartwright, the only cast member to have been professionally trained in voice acting,{{sfn|Turner|2004|p=21}} described the sessions as "great fun". However, she wanted to appear in the live-action sketches and occasionally showed up for recording sessions early, hoping to be noticed by a producer.Cartwright, pp. 43–50.

In 1989, the shorts were spun off into a half-hour show on the Fox network called The Simpsons. Bart quickly became the show's breakout personality and one of the most celebrated characters on television—his popularity in 1990 and 1991 was known as "Bartmania".{{sfn|Turner|2004|pp=120–121}}{{cite news |title=Cartoon leads a revolt against apple-pie family — Simpsons |date=July 8, 1990 |author=Cassidy, John |work=The Sunday Times}}{{cite news |url=http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22062437-5009160,00.html |title=Simpsons set for big screen |access-date=February 7, 2009 |date=July 15, 2007 |work=The Daily Telegraph |archive-date=March 1, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090301032414/http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22062437-5009160,00.html |url-status=dead }}{{cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE0D71F3AF93AA15757C0A966958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=4 |title=Cashing in on a Hot New Brand Name |author=Kleinfield, N.R. |access-date=February 7, 2009 |date=April 29, 1990 |work=The New York Times}} Bart was described as "television's brightest new star" by Mike Boone of The Gazette{{cite news |title=Bart Simpson was ray of hope in a year of generally drab television |date=December 30, 1990 |author=Boone, Mike |work=The Gazette}} and was named 1990's "entertainer of the year" by Entertainment Weekly.{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/article/1990/12/28/bart-simpson-1990-entertainer-year/ |title=1. Bart Simpson |access-date=September 15, 2008 |date=December 28, 1990 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |author=Harris, Mark |archive-date=November 3, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141103192921/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,318928,00.html |url-status=live }} Despite Bart's fame, however, Cartwright remained relatively unknown. During the first season of The Simpsons, Fox ordered Cartwright not to give interviews, because they did not want to publicize the fact that Bart was voiced by a woman.{{cite news |title=Bart Simpson's secret: he's a woman |author=Bark, Ed |date=July 15, 1990 |work=Ottawa Citizen}} Cartwright's normal speaking voice is said to have "no obvious traces of Bart",{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2004/aug/02/broadcasting.edinburgh04 |title=That's my boy |author=Brockes, Emma |access-date=February 5, 2009 |date=August 2, 2004 |work=The Guardian |location=London}} and she believes her role is "the best acting job in the world" since she is rarely recognized in public. When she is recognized and asked to perform Bart's voice in front of children, Cartwright refuses because it "freaks [them] out". Bart's catchphrase "Eat My Shorts" was an ad-lib by Cartwright in one of the original table readings, referring to an incident from her high school days. Once while performing, members of the Fairmont West High School marching band switched their chant from the usual "Fairmont West! Fairmont West!" to the irreverent "Eat my shorts!" Cartwright felt it appropriate for Bart, and improvised the line; it became a popular catchphrase on the show.{{cite news|url=http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1565538/20070725/story.jhtml |title='Simpsons' Trivia, From Swearing Lisa To 'Burns-Sexual' Smithers |access-date=July 29, 2007 |date=July 26, 2007 |author=Carroll, Larry |publisher=MTV |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071220140402/http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1565538/20070725/story.jhtml |archive-date=December 20, 2007 }}

File:The Simpsons star.jpg

Cartwright voices several other characters on the show, including Nelson Muntz, Ralph Wiggum, Todd Flanders, Kearney, and Database.{{sfn|Richmond & Coffman|1997 |pp=178–179}} She first voiced Nelson in the episode "Bart the General" (season one, 1990). The character was to be voiced by Dana Hill, but Hill missed the recording session and Cartwright was given the role.Cartwright, pp. 102–103. She developed Nelson's voice on the spot and describes him as "a throat-ripper".{{cite news |url=http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/movies/orl-ent-cartwright072507,0,318783.story |title=Nancy Cartwright, voice of Bart Simpson, has personal theme: 'Simpsons Forever' |access-date=September 13, 2008 |date=July 25, 2007 |author=Moore, Roger |work=Orlando Sentinel}} Ralph Wiggum had originally been voiced by Jo Ann Harris, but Cartwright was assigned to voice the character in "Bart the Murderer" (season three, 1991).Cartwright, p. 107. Todd Flanders, the only voice for which Cartwright used another source, is based on Sherman (voiced by Walter Tetley), the boy from Peabody's Improbable History, a series of shorts aired on The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.

Cartwright received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance in 1992 for her performance as Bart in the episode "Separate Vocations"{{cite web|url=http://www.emmys.org/awards/awardsearch.php |title=Primetime Emmy Awards Advanced Search |publisher=Emmys.org |access-date=February 5, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080330160256/http://www.emmys.org/awards/awardsearch.php |archive-date=March 30, 2008 }}{{cite news |title=Briefing–'Simpsons' score big in Prime-Time Emmys |date=August 3, 1992 |page=L20 |newspaper=Daily News of Los Angeles}} and an Annie Award in 1995 for Best Voice Acting in the Field of Animation.{{cite news|url=http://annieawards.org/23rdwinners.html |title=Legacy: 23rd Annual Annie Award Nominees and Winners (1995) |access-date=February 5, 2009 |publisher=Annie Awards |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928204550/http://annieawards.org/23rdwinners.html |archive-date=September 28, 2007 }} Bart was named one of the 100 most important people of the 20th century by Time,{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,1101901231,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050205161934/http://www.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,1101901231,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 5, 2005 |title=TIME Magazine Cover: Bart Simpson |access-date=May 16, 2007 |date=December 31, 1990 |magazine=Time}} and in 2000, Bart and the rest of the Simpson family were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, located at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard.{{cite web |access-date=September 4, 2008 |url=http://www.tibp.com/cgi-bin/foxweb.dll/wlx/dir/wlxdirectory?cc=WOFAME++++&lcName=The+Simpsons |title=Hollywood Icons |publisher=Hollywood Chamber of Commerce }}

Until 1998, Cartwright was paid $30,000 per episode. During a pay dispute in 1998, Fox threatened to replace the six main voice actors and made preparations for casting new actors. The dispute was resolved, however, and Cartwright received $125,000 per episode until 2004, when the voice actors demanded $360,000 an episode.{{cite news |url=http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/04/02/1080544690429.html |title=Simpsons actors demand bigger share |access-date=February 5, 2009 |date=April 3, 2004 |author=Glaister, Dan |work=The Age |location=Melbourne}} A compromise was reached after a month,{{cite news |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/simpsons-cast-goes-back-to-work/ |title='Simpsons' Cast Goes Back To Work |access-date=February 5, 2009 |date=May 1, 2004 |work=CBS News}} and Cartwright's pay rose to $250,000 per episode.{{cite news |title=Meet the Simpsons |date=May 6, 2004 |newspaper=Daily Express |author=Sheridan, Peter}} Salaries were re-negotiated in 2008 with the voice actors receiving approximately $400,000 per episode.{{cite news |title=Simpsons cast sign new pay deal |work=BBC News |date=June 3, 2008 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7434296.stm |access-date=February 5, 2009}} Three years later, with Fox threatening to cancel the series unless production costs were cut, Cartwright and the other cast members accepted a 25 percent pay cut, down to just over $300,000 per episode.{{cite news |last=Block |first=Alex Ben |title='The Simpsons' Renewed for Two More Seasons |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/simpsons-renewed-two-more-seasons-245748 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |access-date=October 15, 2011 |date=October 7, 2011}}

{{quote box |width=30em |bgcolor=transparent |align=right |quote=It is quite a curiosity being a celebrity that nobody knows. I ask you, how many celebrities would you {{em|not}} recognize were they to walk down the street? ... I can think of no one—besides my fellow cast members and me. The anonymity factor is such a unique aspect of this job. I must admit, sometimes I wish it were different. |salign=right |source=—Nancy Cartwright, My Life as a 10-Year-Old BoyCartwright, pp. 248–249.}}

In addition to her work on The Simpsons, Cartwright has voiced many other characters on several animated series, including Chuckie Finster in Rugrats and All Grown Up!, Margo Sherman in The Critic, Mindy in Animaniacs, and Rufus the naked mole-rat in Kim Possible. For the role of Rufus, Cartwright researched mole-rats extensively, and became "a font of useless trivia".{{Cite news |title=Voice behind Bart Simpson also lends her animated talents to other TV shows |work=The San Diego Union-Tribune |author=Knutzen, Eirik |date=August 18, 2002}} She was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program in 2004 for her work on the show. In 2001, Cartwright took over the Rugrats role of Chuckie Finster when Christine Cavanaugh retired. Cartwright describes Rufus and Chuckie as her two most difficult voices: "Rufus because my diaphragm gets a workout while trying to utilize the 18 vocal sounds a mole makes. Chuckie because ... he's an asthmatic with five personalities rolled into one—plus I have to do the voice the way [Cavanaugh] did it for 10 years." Other television shows that have used her voice work include Galaxy High, God, the Devil and Bob, Goof Troop, Mike, Lu & Og, The Replacements, Pinky and the Brain and Timberwolf. Cartwright has appeared on camera in numerous television shows and films, including Fame, Empty Nest, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Flesh and Blood, Godzilla, and 24.

In 2000, Cartwright published her autobiography, My Life as a 10-Year-Old Boy. The book details her career (particularly her experiences as the voice of Bart) and contains stories about life behind the scenes of The Simpsons.{{cite news |url=http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/03/11/1078594483215.html |title=Bart to the bone |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=March 12, 2004 |access-date=February 6, 2009}} Laura A. Bischoff of the Dayton Daily News commented that the book was the "ultimate insider's guide to The Simpsons".{{Cite news |title=Inside look at 'The Simpsons' makes for a fun read |author=Bischoff, Laura A. |work=Dayton Daily News |date=October 29, 2000}} Critics complained that the book lacked interesting stories and was aimed mostly at fans of The Simpsons rather than a general audience.{{cite news |url=http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20133257,00.html |title=Pages |work=People |date=December 18, 2000 |access-date=February 6, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090204015649/http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20133257,00.html |archive-date=February 4, 2009 }}{{Cite news |title=We'd like to see more Bart and less Ralph |author=Bacchus, Lee |work=The Province |date=November 5, 2000}}{{Cite news |title=Life in Springfield isn't as fun and exciting as it seems |date=December 23, 2000 |work=National Post |author=Sheridan, Rob}}

Cartwright adapted My Life as a 10-Year-Old Boy into a one-woman play in 2004. Cartwright has performed it at a variety of venues, including the August 2004 Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland.{{Cite web |title=Little Voice |url=http://news.scotsman.com/ViewArticle.aspx?articleid=2538956 |work=The Scotsman |date=June 20, 2004 |access-date=February 5, 2009 |author=Smith, Aidan}} The play received modest reviews, including criticism for a lack of inside stories about The Simpsons, and its "overweeningly upbeat" tone.{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2004/aug/11/comedy.edinburghfestival20044 |title=Nancy Cartwright |author=Logan, Brian |date=August 11, 2004 |work=The Guardian |access-date=February 5, 2009 |location=London}} David Chatterton of The British Theatre Guide described the show as "interesting and entertaining, but not really a 'must see' even for Simpsons fans".{{Cite web |url=http://www.britishtheatreguide.info/otherresources/fringe/fringe04-07.htm |title=Fringe 2004 Reviews (7) |author=Chatterton, David |work=The British Theatre Guide |year=2004 |access-date=February 5, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090629214945/http://www.britishtheatreguide.info/otherresources/fringe/fringe04-07.htm |archive-date=June 29, 2009 |url-status=dead }}

Cartwright has shown an interest in stock car racing and as of 2007 was seeking a NASCAR license.{{cite web|url=http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Features/articleId=119604 |title=Bart Simpson Does NASCAR |publisher=Edmunds Inside Line |author=Gordon, Elliott |date=February 16, 2007 |access-date=February 7, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070219190709/http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Features/articleId%3D119604 |archive-date=February 19, 2007 |url-status=dead }} In 2001, she founded a production company called SportsBlast and created an online animated series called The Kellys. The series is focused on racing; Cartwright voices a seven-year-old named Chip Kelly.{{Cite web |title=Nancy Cartwright On The Spot |url=http://www.adweek.com/aw/esearch/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001525209 |work=Adweek |date=November 21, 2005 |access-date=February 7, 2009}}

In 2016, Cartwright launched Spotted Cow Entertainment, her own film and television production company, with Peter Kjenaas, Monica Gil and Kevin Burke. With a focus on international audiences, Spotted Cow is seeking "to finance, produce and acquire live action and animated films, television series, as well as entertainment for digital platforms with budgets up to $15M."{{cite news |date=February 12, 2016 |title='The Simpsons' Nancy Cartwright Launches Production Banner Spotted Cow With First Projects In Place – Berlin |url=https://deadline.com/2016/02/spotted-cow-new-production-outfit-launched-by-nancy-cartwright-1201701767/ |agency=Deadline Hollywood }}{{cite news |title=About |url=https://spottedcowentertainment.com/about/ |agency=Spotted Cow Entertainment }} With Spotted Cow, Cartwright made her first film as a screenwriter and producer, In Search of Fellini, which was released on September 15, 2017.{{cite news |date=September 14, 2017 |title=Review: Love of Il Maestro Drives 'In Search of Fellini' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/14/movies/in-search-of-fellini-review.html?_r=0 |newspaper=The New York Times }}{{cite news |date=April 21, 2017 |title=Nancy Cartwright's 'In Search of Fellini' Set for September Release |url=https://variety.com/2017/film/news/ksenia-solo-in-search-of-fellini-release-1202391905/ |newspaper=Variety }} Based on her own journey to Italy in 1985 in a bid to meet the famed director Federico Fellini, the film fulfilled Cartwright's longtime vision of turning her 1995 one-woman play In Search of Fellini into a film.{{cite news |date=September 14, 2017 |title=Actress behind Bart Simpson's voice made a movie about real-life quest to meet Fellini |url=https://nypost.com/2017/09/14/actress-behind-bart-simpsons-voice-made-a-movie-about-real-life-quest-to-meet-fellini/ |newspaper=New York Post }}{{cite news |date=April 28, 2017 |title=Simpsons Star Nancy Cartwright Opens Up About Her 20-Year Search for Federico Fellini |url=http://www.dallasobserver.com/arts/bart-simpson-made-a-film-about-federico-fellini-9408289 |newspaper=Dallas Observer }}

Cartwright met real-estate agent Warren Murphy, 24 years her senior, on her birthday in 1988 and married him two months later.{{Cite news |title=Bart's voice is claim to fame — Kettering woman home to give thanks |work=Dayton Daily News |author=Hopkins, Tom |date=November 24, 1990}} In her book, she describes Murphy as her "personal laugh track".Cartwright, pp. 76–77. The couple had two children, before divorcing in 2002.{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-sep-13-hm-cartwright13-story.html |title=Country charm? Ay caramba! |work=Los Angeles Times |date=September 13, 2007 |access-date=February 5, 2009 |author=Keeps, David A.}}{{cite web|url= https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/frank-cartwright-obituary?pid=196169158 |title=Frank Cartwright Sr. Obituary on Legacy.com|website=Legacy.com|date=May 9, 2020 }}

Cartwright was raised a Roman Catholic{{Cite news |title=The Pain is gone — Bart Simpson's 'voice' talks about her discovery of Scientology |newspaper=The Washington Post |author=Broadway, Bill |date=December 10, 1994}} but joined the Church of Scientology in 1991.{{cite news |title=Ay caramba! Bart Simpson is spruiking Scientology |url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/tv_and_radio/article5609115.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090509082155/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/tv_and_radio/article5609115.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 9, 2009 |author=Sweeney, Claire |date=January 29, 2009 |access-date=February 13, 2009 |work=The Sunday Times |location=London}}{{registration required}} In 2007, Cartwright, then making about $400,000 per episode, was awarded Scientology's Patron Laureate Award after donating $10,000,000 to the Church.{{cite news |url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/simpsons-producers-have-a-cow-as-bart-lends-his-voice-to-scientologists-pzq3qfp78pl |title=Simpsons producers 'have a cow' as Bart lends his voice to Scientologists |author=Ayres, Chris |work=The Times |date=January 30, 2009 |access-date=May 11, 2015 |location=London}}

Cartwright is a contributor to ASIFA-Hollywood's Animation Archive Project.{{cite news|title=Nancy Cartwright |publisher=FoxFlash |url=http://www.foxflash.com/div.php/main/page?aID=1z2z2z175z13z4&bioid=1673 |access-date=February 22, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090112075330/http://www.foxflash.com/div.php/main/page?aID=1z2z2z175z13z4&bioid=1673 |archive-date=January 12, 2009 }} In September 2007, Cartwright received the Make-A-Wish Foundation's Wish Icon Award "for her tremendous dedication to the Foundation's fundraising and wish-fulfillment efforts."{{cite news |title=$2 Million Gift Announced at Wish Night |publisher=Make-a-Wish Foundation |url=http://www.wishla.org/news/2-million-bequest-announced-wish-night-awards-gala |date=November 2, 2007 |access-date=April 6, 2009 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120918071626/http://www.wishla.org/news/2-million-bequest-announced-wish-night-awards-gala |archive-date=September 18, 2012 }} In 2005, Cartwright created a scholarship at Fairmont High School "designed to aid Fairmont [graduates] who dream of following in her footsteps and studying speech, debate, drama or music" at Ohio University.{{Cite news |title=Bart Gives Back – 'Simpsons' voice Nancy Cartwright returning to Fairmont with scholarship and one-woman show |work=Dayton Daily News |date=April 30, 2005 |author=Moss, Meredith}} In 2005, Cartwright was given the title of Honorary Mayor of Northridge, California (a neighborhood of Los Angeles) by the Northridge Chamber of Commerce.{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-jun-17-me-only17-story.html |title=Mayor Bart Simpson of Northridge? Don't Have a Cow, Man |date=June 17, 2005 |access-date=February 5, 2009 |work=Los Angeles Times |author=Harvey, Steve}}

In 2007, Cartwright was in a romantic relationship with contractor Stephen Brackett,{{cite journal |last=Rozen |first=Leah |author2=Michelle Tauber |title=D'oh! They're Hitting the Big Screen Catching Up with the Simpson Family |journal=People magazine |volume=68 |issue=6 |publisher=www.people.com |date=August 6, 2007 |url=http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20061497,00.html |access-date=May 29, 2010 }} a fellow member of Scientology.{{cite news |last=Rusoff |first=Jane Wollman (The New York Times Syndicate) |title=Nancy Cartwright, an American TV icon |work=Reading Eagle |page=E4 |date=July 29, 2007 }} In early 2008, the couple had made plans to marry, but Brackett died by suicide in May 2009.{{cite news |last1=Brown |first1=Karina |title='Simpsons' Star Sued Over Late Fiance's Debt |url=https://www.courthousenews.com/simpsons-star-suedover-late-fiances-debt/ |access-date=February 18, 2025 |date=September 22, 2010}}

In 2012, Cartwright received an honorary doctorate degree in communication from Ohio University, where she was a student from 1976 to 1977 before transferring to UCLA.{{Cite web|title=Nancy Cartwright's Commencement Address at Ohio University|website = YouTube| date=July 29, 2015 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upBa5Wh4RBc| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211114/upBa5Wh4RBc| archive-date=November 14, 2021 | url-status=live}}{{cbignore}}

Cartwright is also a painter, sculptor and philanthropist. She co-founded the Know More About Drugs alliance.{{Cite web|url=https://www.today.com/popculture/nancy-cartwright-reflects-simpsons-audition-bart-s-catchphrases-t169983|title=Voice of Bart Simpson, Nancy Cartwright, shares stories behind his catchphrases|website=TODAY.com|date=December 17, 2019 |language=en|access-date=December 19, 2019}}

Singer and actress Sabrina Carpenter is her niece through Cartwright's stepbrother David Carpenter.{{cite magazine |last1=Paul |first1=Larisha |title=Yes, Bart Simpson Voice Actress Nancy Cartwright Really Is Sabrina Carpenter's Aunt |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/sabrina-carpenter-nancy-cartwright-simpsons-family-connection-1235056938/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=July 10, 2024 |access-date=November 23, 2024}}{{cite web|url= https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/frank-cartwright-obituary?pid=196169158 |title=Frank Cartwright Sr. Obituary on Legacy.com|website=Legacy.com|date=February 8, 2025 }}

{{Reflist}}

Bibliography

{{refbegin}}

• {{cite book |last=Cartwright |first=Nancy |title=My Life as a 10-Year-Old Boy |year=2000 |publisher=Hyperion |location=New York City |isbn=0-7868-8600-5 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/mylifeastenyearo00nanc }}
• {{cite book |last=Groening |first=Matt |author-link=Matt Groening |editor1-first=Ray |editor1-last=Richmond |editor1-link=Ray Richmond |editor2-first=Antonia |editor2-last=Coffman |title=The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family |edition=1st |year=1997 |location=New York |publisher=HarperPerennial |lccn=98141857 |ol=433519M |oclc=37796735 |isbn=978-0-06-095252-5 |ref={{harvid|Richmond & Coffman|1997}}}}
• {{cite book |last=Turner |first=Chris |author-link=Chris Turner (author) |title=Planet Simpson: How a Cartoon Masterpiece Documented an Era and Defined a Generation |others=Foreword by Douglas Coupland. |edition=1st |year=2004 |location=Toronto |publisher=Random House Canada |oclc=55682258 |isbn=978-0-679-31318-2}}

{{refend}}

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• {{Official website}}
• {{IMDb name|id=0004813|name=Nancy Cartwright}}
• {{TCMDb name|id=30099%7C0|name=Nancy Cartwright}}
• {{EmmyTVLegends name|nancy-cartwright}}

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Category:1957 births

Category:Living people

Category:20th-century American actresses

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Category:Actresses from Dayton, Ohio

Category:Actresses from Los Angeles

Category:American film actresses

Category:American impressionists (entertainers)

Category:American memoirists

Category:American Scientologists

Category:American stage actresses

Category:American television actresses

Category:American video game actresses

Category:American voice actresses

Category:American women comedians

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Category:Annie Award winners

Category:Converts to Scientology from Roman Catholicism

Category:Hanna-Barbera people

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Category:People from Westwood, Los Angeles

Category:Primetime Emmy Award winners

Category:UCLA Film School alumni

Category:Comedians from Ohio

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