Dan Castellaneta facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Dan Castellaneta
Castellaneta in 1988
Born	Daniel Louis Castellaneta (1957-10-29) October 29, 1957 (age 67) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Alma mater	Northern Illinois University (BA)
Occupation	Actor writer
Years active	1979–present
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Deb Lacusta ​ (m. 1987)​
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Daniel Louis Castellaneta (born October 29, 1957) is a famous American actor and writer. He is best known for being the voice of Homer Simpson on the long-running TV show The Simpsons. He also voices many other characters on the show, like Grampa Simpson, Krusty the Clown, and Groundskeeper Willie. You might also know his voice as Grandpa from Nickelodeon's Hey Arnold!. He has lent his voice to many other cartoons too, such as Futurama and Darkwing Duck.

In 1999, he won an Annie Award for his voice work in the Christmas special Olive, the Other Reindeer. He also made a funny album called I Am Not Homer. He wrote and starred in a special play where he played many different characters.

Growing Up and Early Life

Dan Castellaneta was born on October 29, 1957, in Chicago, Illinois. He grew up in nearby towns like River Forest and Oak Park. His family came from Italy. His dad, Louis, was an amateur actor.

Dan was good at doing impressions from a young age. His mom enrolled him in an acting class when he was 16. He would listen to his dad's comedy records and copy the artists. He loved the work of many performers and directors. He went to Oak Park and River Forest High School. After graduating, he started attending Northern Illinois University (NIU) in 1975.

At NIU, Dan studied art education. He wanted to become an art teacher. He even became a student teacher. He would entertain his students with his funny impressions. Dan was also a regular on a radio show at NIU called The Ron Petke and His Dead Uncle Show. This show helped him get better at voice acting. He said they did funny skits and parodies. He learned to switch between voices quickly.

Starting His Acting Journey

Dan Castellaneta began his acting career after graduating from college in 1979. He decided to try acting. If it didn't work out, he would try something else. He started taking improvisation classes. This is where actors make things up on the spot. He met his future wife, Deb Lacusta, in one of these classes.

In 1983, he started working at The Second City. This is a famous improvisational theater in Chicago. He worked there until 1987. During this time, he also did voice-over work for radio stations with his wife.

He tried out for a role in The Tracey Ullman Show. At first, the show's star, Tracey Ullman, and the producers were not very impressed. So, Ullman flew to Chicago to watch Dan perform live. That night, Dan played a blind man trying to be a comedian. Ullman later said that his performance made her cry. She was very impressed and hired him.

Becoming Homer Simpson and More

The Simpsons: A Voice for Many Characters

Castellaneta is most famous for his roles on The Simpsons. This is the longest-running American animated TV show. He is especially known as the voice of Homer Simpson. The Tracey Ullman Show had short animated cartoons about a family. The producers needed voices for these cartoons. They asked Dan and his fellow cast member Julie Kavner to voice Homer and Marge Simpson.

Homer's voice first sounded a bit like actor Walter Matthau. But Dan found it hard to keep that voice for long recording sessions. These sessions could last nine or ten hours. So, he tried to find something easier. He made the voice deeper and more flexible. It became the funny voice we know today. To do Homer's voice, Dan lowers his chin to his chest. People say he "lets his IQ go" to get into character.

Dan likes to stay in character while recording. He tries to imagine the scene in his mind. This helps him give the right voice to it. Even though Homer is very famous, Dan says people rarely recognize him in public. Only big fans might know him.

Castellaneta with fellow Simpsons voice actors Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith and Julie Kavner in 2009

Dan also voices many other characters on The Simpsons. These include Grampa Simpson, Barney Gumble, Krusty the Clown, Groundskeeper Willie, Mayor Quimby, Hans Moleman, Sideshow Mel, and Itchy. Krusty's voice is based on a Chicago TV actor named Bob Bell. He had a very raspy voice. He played Bozo the Clown from 1960 to 1984.

For Barney's loud burp, Dan recorded his best one. He told the producers to use that recording every time Barney burped. It was easier than trying to burp for each episode.

Groundskeeper Willie first appeared in the second season. He was written as an angry janitor. Dan was asked to do the voice. He didn't know what voice to use. The director, Sam Simon, suggested an accent. Dan first tried a Hispanic voice, but it was rejected. Then he tried a "big dumb Swede," which was also rejected. For his third try, he used a grumpy Scotsman voice. This one was perfect and used in the episode. The voice was partly based on a character from a comedy show called Second City Television.

Mayor Quimby is a funny copy of members of the Kennedy family. Dan improvised the accent for Quimby. Sideshow Mel's voice is Dan's impression of Kelsey Grammer, who voices Sideshow Bob. The unlucky character Gil Gunderson is a spoof of actor Jack Lemmon's role in the movie Glengarry Glen Ross. The show's producer, Mike Scully, thought Gil would only appear once. But Dan was so funny doing the character that they kept finding ways to include him. The Blue-Haired Lawyer's voice and manner are based on a real lawyer named Roy Cohn.

Awards for His Voice Work

Dan Castellaneta has won several awards for voicing Homer. He has won four Primetime Emmy Awards for "Outstanding Voice-Over Performance". He won in 1992 for "Lisa's Pony", in 1993 for "Mr. Plow", in 2004 for voicing several characters in "Today I Am a Clown", and in 2009 for voicing Homer in "Father Knows Worst".

In 1993, Dan received a special Annie Award. It was for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in the Field of Animation" for his work as Homer on The Simpsons.

In 2004, Dan and Julie Kavner (the voice of Marge) won a Young Artist Award. It was for "Most Popular Mom & Dad in a TV Series". Homer was ranked second on TV Guide's 2002 list of Top 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters. In 2000, Homer and the Simpson family got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Writing for The Simpsons

In the early 1990s, Dan and his wife, Deb Lacusta, wrote a script for an episode. In their story, Barney becomes sober. They showed it to the show's producer, Al Jean. He liked the story but felt it was too similar to another episode they were already working on.

So, they waited almost ten years. They offered an updated version of the script to a later producer, Mike Scully. He liked it and asked them to make some changes. Their script became the episode "Days of Wine and D'oh'ses". Dan and his wife have also written other episodes, including "Gump Roast" and "The Ziff Who Came to Dinner". In 2007, they were nominated for a Writers Guild of America Award for their episode "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bangalore". Dan is also listed as a consulting producer for the show.

Other Roles and Projects

Castellaneta in 2002

Dan Castellaneta has been a regular actor in many other TV shows. In 1991, he played Warren Morris in the sitcom Sibs. The show's creator wrote the part specifically for him.

He provided the voice for the main character in The Adventures of Dynamo Duck. He was also Megavolt in Darkwing Duck. He voiced "Doc" Emmett Brown in Back to the Future: The Animated Series. He was the main character in Earthworm Jim. He voiced several characters on Nickelodeon's Hey Arnold!, including Grandpa Phil. He also guest-starred as The Robot Devil in five episodes of Futurama.

Dan has also appeared as a guest in many TV series. In 1992, he was in an episode of the legal show L.A. Law. He played a Homer Simpson character at an amusement park. In 1996, he was a Zoo Keeper in an episode of Friends. In 2005, he appeared in Arrested Development as a funny, incompetent doctor.

In 2005, Dan guest-starred as Joe Spencer in the Stargate SG-1 episode "Citizen Joe". He also appeared in episodes of shows like ALF, Everybody Loves Raymond, Frasier, How I Met Your Mother, and Parks and Recreation.

He voiced the Genie in the Aladdin sequel The Return of Jafar. He also voiced the Genie in the 1994 Aladdin TV series. The Genie was originally voiced by Robin Williams. Dan said replacing him was like trying to play a famous role after a legendary actor. He also voiced Genie in the Kingdom Hearts video games.

Dan played Aaron Spelling in a 2004 TV movie about how Spelling created the show Charlie's Angels. Dan has also been in movies like Space Jam, The Simpsons Movie, Rugrats in Paris: The Movie, and The Pursuit of Happyness.

In 2000, he won an Annie Award for his role as the Postman in the Christmas TV special Olive, the Other Reindeer. In 2006, he appeared in the independent film I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With.

In 2000, his first music CD called Two Lips was released. In 2002, he released his first comedy CD, I Am Not Homer. On this album, he and his wife perform several funny skits. Most of these skits were written and performed before the CD was recorded. Dan wanted to save them because they didn't perform them much anymore. He chose the title I Am Not Homer as a funny reference to Leonard Nimoy's autobiography I Am Not Spock. It also showed that the comedy on the album was not just typical Homer Simpson humor.

Besides his TV and film work, Dan has acted in many plays. In 1992, he starred in Deb & Dan's Show with his wife. In 1995, Dan started writing Where Did Vincent van Gogh?. This was a one-man play where he played a dozen different characters, including the artist Vincent van Gogh. He first performed it in Los Angeles in 1999. In 2007, he appeared in The Bicycle Men in London.

Personal Life

In 1987, Dan Castellaneta married writer and actress Deb Lacusta. They met in an improvisation class in Chicago. They split their time living in Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, California.

He enjoys exercising regularly and practicing tai chi. He is Catholic.

Filmography

Discography

Also featured in:

• The Simpsons Sing the Blues (1990)
• Songs in the Key of Springfield (1997)
• The Yellow Album (1998)
• Go Simpsonic with The Simpsons (1999)
• The Simpsons: Testify (2007)

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Dan Castellaneta para niños