Nancy Cartwright facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Nancy Cartwright
Cartwright in 2019
Born	Nancy Jean Cartwright (1957-10-25) October 25, 1957 (age 68) Dayton, Ohio, U.S.
Alma mater	University of California, Los Angeles (BA)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1980–2026
Relatives	Sabrina Carpenter (step-niece)
YouTube information

Nancy Jean Cartwright (born October 25, 1957) is a talented American actress. She is most famous for being the voice of Bart Simpson on the super popular TV show The Simpsons for many years. Her amazing work as Bart earned her a special award called a Primetime Emmy Award and an Annie Award. Nancy also gives voices to other characters on The Simpsons, like Maggie Simpson, Ralph Wiggum, Todd Flanders, and Nelson Muntz. You might also know her as the voice of Chuckie Finster in the Nickelodeon series Rugrats and its spin-off All Grown Up!.

Meet Nancy Cartwright: The Voice of Bart Simpson!

Nancy's Early Life and Discovering Her Talent

Nancy Jean Cartwright was born on October 25, 1957, in Dayton, Ohio. She grew up in Kettering, Ohio, and discovered her talent for voices at an early age. While in the fourth grade, she won a school-wide speech competition. Her performance of Rudyard Kipling's How the Camel Got His Hump showed her early skill.

Nancy attended Fairmont West High School. She participated in the school's theater and marching band. She regularly entered public speaking competitions, often winning first place. Judges often suggested to her that she should perform cartoon voices. Nancy graduated from high school in 1976 and accepted a scholarship from Ohio University. She continued to compete in public speaking competitions during her college years.

Starting Her Voice Acting Journey

In 1976, Nancy landed a part-time job doing voice-overs for commercials on WING radio in Dayton. A representative from Warner Bros. Records later sent her a list of contacts in the animation industry. One of these was Daws Butler, a very famous voice actor.

Learning from a Legend: Daws Butler

Daws Butler was known for voicing characters like Huckleberry Hound and Yogi Bear. Nancy called him and left a message using a fun accent. Butler immediately called her back and agreed to be her mentor. He mailed her scripts and critiqued her recordings. For the next year, they worked together this way, completing new scripts every few weeks. Nancy described Butler as "absolutely amazing, always encouraging, always polite."

Nancy transferred to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) to be closer to Hollywood and Butler. While attending UCLA, she continued training as a voice actress with him. Butler introduced her to many people at Hanna-Barbera, a famous animation studio.

Becoming Bart Simpson and Other Famous Voices

After meeting director Gordon Hunt, Nancy was asked to audition for a recurring role. Her first professional role was voicing Gloria in the animated series Richie Rich. She graduated from UCLA in 1981 with a degree in theater. Nancy also won a lead role in the television film Marian Rose White. Her first feature film role was Ethel in Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983).

She continued doing voice work for projects like Pound Puppies, Popeye and Son, and Snorks. Nancy also did minor voice-over work for several films. This included a memorable "off-screen death scene" for a shoe in Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988). In 1985, she auditioned for a guest role in Cheers and got the part. She also developed a one-woman play called In Search of Fellini, based on a trip to Italy. This play later became a film in 2017.

The Magic of The Simpsons

Cartwright in 2007

Nancy Cartwright voices the character Bart Simpson on the long-running animated TV show The Simpsons. On March 13, 1987, she auditioned for a series of animated shorts. These shorts were about a funny family and appeared on The Tracey Ullman Show. Nancy had intended to audition for the role of Lisa Simpson. However, she found the role of Bart more interesting. She described Bart as "devious, underachieving, school-hating, irreverent, [and] clever."

Creator Matt Groening let her try out for Bart and offered her the job on the spot. Bart's voice came naturally to Nancy. She had previously used elements of it in other cartoon roles. Nancy describes Bart's voice as easy to perform compared with other characters. In 1989, the shorts became a full half-hour show on the Fox network called The Simpsons.

Bart quickly became a huge star and one of the most celebrated characters on television. His popularity in 1990 and 1991 was known as "Bartmania." Despite Bart's fame, Nancy remained relatively unknown. This is because voice actors are rarely recognized in public. She believes her role is "the best acting job in the world" because she is rarely recognized. When children ask her to do Bart's voice, she sometimes refuses because it "freaks [them] out." Bart's famous catchphrase "Eat My Shorts" was something Nancy improvised. It came from a chant used by her high school marching band.

In 2000, Bart, along with the rest of the Simpson family, was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Beyond Bart: More Beloved Characters

Nancy Cartwright voices several other characters on The Simpsons. These include Nelson Muntz, Ralph Wiggum, Todd Flanders, Kearney, and Database. She first voiced Nelson in the episode "Bart the General" (season one, 1990). Ralph Wiggum had originally been voiced by someone else. Nancy was assigned to voice the character in "Bart the Murderer" (season three, 1991). Todd Flanders' voice is based on Sherman, a boy from Peabody's Improbable History.

Nancy won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance in 1992 for her performance as Bart in the episode "Separate Vocations". She also won an Annie Award in 1995 for Best Voice Acting in the Field of Animation. Bart was named one of the "100 most important people of the 20th century" by Time magazine. In 2000, Bart and the rest of the Simpson family were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Voice actors' salaries were adjusted over the years, reflecting the show's success.

Nancy's Other Creative Adventures

In addition to her work on The Simpsons, Nancy Cartwright has voiced many other characters. These include 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, Nancy researched mole-rats extensively. She was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award in 2004 for her work on Kim Possible. In 2001, Nancy took over the Rugrats role of Chuckie Finster. She describes Rufus and Chuckie as her two most difficult voices.

Other television shows that have used her voice work include Galaxy High, God, the Devil and Bob, Goof Troop, and The Replacements. Nancy has also appeared on camera in numerous television shows and films. These include Fame, Empty Nest, and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

In 2000, Nancy Cartwright published her autobiography, My Life as a 10-Year-Old Boy. The book shares details about her career, especially her experiences as the voice of Bart. She later adapted her book into a one-woman play in 2004. Nancy performed it at a variety of venues, including the August 2004 Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland.

Writing and Producing Films

In 2001, Nancy founded a production company called SportsBlast. She created an online animated series called The Kellys, which focuses on racing. In 2016, Nancy launched Spotted Cow Entertainment, her own film and television production company. With Spotted Cow, she wrote and produced her first film, In Search of Fellini. This film was released on September 15, 2017. It was based on her own journey to Italy in 1985.

Nancy's Life Outside Acting

Nancy Cartwright married real-estate agent Warren Murphy in 1988. They had two children. Nancy is also a painter, sculptor, and philanthropist. She is a contributor to ASIFA-Hollywood's Animation Archive Project. In September 2007, Nancy received the Make-A-Wish Foundation's Wish Icon Award. This was for her dedication to the Foundation's fundraising and wish-fulfillment efforts. In 2005, she created a scholarship at Fairmont High School. This scholarship helps graduates who dream of studying speech, debate, drama, or music. In 2005, Nancy was given the title of Honorary Mayor of Northridge, California. In 2012, she received an honorary doctorate degree in communication from Ohio University. Her stepbrother David Carpenter is the father of singer and actress Sabrina Carpenter.

Awards and Recognitions

Nancy Cartwright has received several awards for her outstanding work. She won a Primetime Emmy Award in 1992 for her voice-over performance as Bart Simpson. She also received an Annie Award in 1995 for Best Voice Acting in Animation. Her play, In Search of Fellini, earned her a Drama-Logue Award in 1995. She was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award in 2004 for her role as Rufus in Kim Possible. More recently, she received Primetime Emmy nominations in 2017 and 2020 for her character voice-over performance as Bart Simpson.

Filmography Highlights

Live-Action Roles

Film

Television

Voice Roles in Movies and TV

Film

Television

Video Game Voices

Music Videos

Theme Parks

Web Series

Podcasts

Producer

Other Credits

Awards

See also

In Spanish: Nancy Cartwright (actriz) para niños