Phil Hartman may be best-known for his iconic work on "Saturday Night Live," but he actually got his start at The Groundlings with Paul Reubens, John Paragon, and fellow "Playhouse" legend Lynne Marie Stewart (Miss Yvonne). From there, he jumped feet-first into Pee-wee's wild world as Captain Carl — a rough-and-tumble sea captain — in Reubens' original stage production of "The Pee-wee Herman Show" in the early 1980s.
Hartman also made an appearance as a reporter and co-wrote Reubens' breakout film effort, the Tim Burton-directed "Pee-wee's Big Adventure," before reprising his role as Carl for the first season of "Playhouse."
From there, his career exploded on "SNL," where he came to be known for impersonating the likes of Phil Donahue, Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, and Charlton Heston and creating characters like the Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer. Hartman was a fixture on the show for eight seasons from 1986 to 1994. He was later a regular on "NewsRadio," did a number of voices on "The Simpsons," and showed up in films like "Jingle All the Way" and "Sgt. Bilko."
According to CNN, Hartman was murdered by his wife, Brynn Omdahl, in 1998, when he was just 49. Omdahl died by suicide soon after confessing to the crime. The couple had been married since 1987 and had two children together.
If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
