Phil Hartman died ten years ago today. I can still remember hearing about this. When I was reminded that it was ten years ago today, it made me legitimately sad. Phil Hartman was one of my first comedic heroes. It wasn’t just the amazing impressions or zany characters (Anal-Retentive Chef, anyone?), but the way that he played everything with such conviction and utter selflessness that really got me. It seemed that doing the character well was what mattered, not getting the most attention. Some people would call that “workman-like” and say that it was the wrong way to go, but the more you watched him, the more you saw that he always had your eye, even when he wasn’t trying to. Phil Hartman brought gravitas and importance to even the silliest of roles.
[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=FmFVeeLL01c[/youtube]
[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=3JpwjnMFlJI[/youtube]
My point exactly.
He played the late-80′s , schmaltzy pitchman to perfection and with his voicing of Lionel Hutz (among other characters) on The Simpsons, he made every episode that he appeared in a gem. Hell, he even made a sitcom featuring Joe Rogan and Andy Dick (News Radio) extremely watchable and often hilarious.
It was because of Phil Hartman that I would spend hours trying to come up with impressions of my own, which, you can imagine, would annoy the living bejesus out of my friends and family. I thought I had a rather decent Bill Clinton and would trot it out at every opportunity. I felt many a person’s pain, although not quite enough to stop doing that awful impression for at least a few months. That’s one of the drawbacks of growing up in rural Minnesota, people are often too nice to tell you how badly they want you to shut the hell up.
It’s scary how much I miss a guy that I only knew from televison. Not just because today is the anniversary of his death, although it is amplified. Every time I catch a Simpsons episode featuring Lionel Hutz, I find myself turning to my wife to commiserate about Phil. Every couple of months, I pull out the SNL: Best of Phil Hartman DVD and laugh like I’ve never seen it before. I don’t quite miss him enough to rent “Jingle All The Way,” but I might get there, someday.
We Still Miss You, Phil…
