Philip Edward Hartmann was born on September 24th, 1948 in Brantford, Ontario, Canada. His surname was originally "Hartmann" but he later dropped the other "n", the reason of which is unknown. As one of the eight children of Rupert and Doris Hartmann, Phil was a very caring and sensitive person and was described as "very sweet and kind of quiet". Although he was born in Canada, the family left when Phil was young and he spent the majority of his childhood in Connecticut and Southern California. He later obtained his American citizenship in the early 90s. He often would visit his homeland of Canada throughout his career, and the City of Brantford even erected a plaque on the Walk of Fame in the town in honor of Phil's career and memory. The Humber College Comedy: Writing & Performance program in Toronto, Ontario also has an award in Phil's memory that is given out to their Post-Graduate comedy students. He originally studied Graphic Design at California State University. He began to work part time as a graphic artist designing album covers for such bands as Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young and Poco. In 1975, alongside doing album work, Phil joined the California comedy troupe, The Groundlings. While in The Groundlings, Phil worked with `Paul Rubens' and Jon Lovitz, who became good friends of his until his death. Phil and Paul created the character Pee Wee Herman together and Phil even had a role on _Pee Wee's Playhouse (1986)_ as pirate "Captin' Carl".

In 1986, Phil joined the cast of Saturday Night Live and was on the show for a record of 8 seasons (which was later broken by Tim Meadows). Phil played a wide range of characters including: Frank Sinatra, Bill Clinton, Ronald Regan, 'Ed McMahon (I), Barbara Bush and many others. He was known to help out other writers who wanted to get their sketches read and onto the show. He held SNL together during his 8 year reign, thus the nickname he garnered while on the show, "The Glue".

Phil was also known for his voice work on commercials and cartoons. He was probably most well known for the voices of Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz on the animated comedy, The Simpsons. He also provided other minor voices for The Simpsons.

Phil left Saturday Night Live in 1994 and in 1995 was cast in the critically acclaimed NBC show, NewsRadio as arrogant radio show host, Bill McNeal. After Phil's death, Phil's good friend Jon Lovitz attempted to fill the void as Max Lewis on Newsradio, but the struggling show's ratings dropped and the show later fizzled out and ended in 1999.

Phil had an interesting career in movies, mostly playing supporting characters. He was the lead in Houseguest (1995) and was also in: Greedy (1994), Jingle All The Way (1996), Sgt. Bilko (1996), and his last live action film, Small Soldiers (1998).

On May 28th, 1998, Phil was shot to death while sleeping in his Encino, California home by his wife, Brynn Hartman. He was shot three times: in the forearm, neck, and head. Brynn left the house and later came back with a friend to show him the dead body. When her friend went to call 911, Brynn locked herself in the bedroom with Phil's lifeless body and stuck a second gun in her mouth and shot herself. It was later discovered by the coroner that Brynn had alcohol, cocaine and the antidepressant, Zoloft, in her system. It was a deadly cocktail that cost her and Phil their lives, and left their two children, Sean Edward (b. 1987) and Birgen (b. 1992) without parents.

Phil and Brynn's bodies were cremated and spread upon Catalina Island, just off the coast of California, on June 4th, 1998. Phil had specifically stated in his will that he wanted the ashes spread on Catalina Island because it was his favorite holiday getaway (he was an avid boater).
Created artwork for Poco's 1978 album "Legend". Painted the cover for the album "America's Greatest Hits: History." He's credited as "Phil Hartmann." The signature "hartmann" is also on the artwork. Designed logo for the band Crosby, Stills, & Nash. Designed and drew the cover to the Firesign Theatre's 1980 album "The Fighting Clowns." Celebrity impersonations include Bill Clinton, Frank Sinatra, Michael Caine, Telly Savalas, Burt Reynolds, Jack Nicholson, Ronald Reagan, Barbara Bush, and Phil Donahue. He was one of seven actors to have portrayed Ronald Reagan on SNL 25. Died the same month as Frank Sinatra, whom he had many times impersonated on SNL 25. Children, with Brynn, Sean (b. 1987) and Birgen (b. 1992) are being raised in Wisconsin by Brynn's sister. Painted the cover for the album "America's Greatest Hits: History." He's credited as "Phil Hartmann." The signature "hartmann" is also on the artwork. Designed logo for the band Crosby, Stills, & Nash. Joined the Groundlings in 1975 where he met Jon Lovitz and Paul Reubens. Majored in graphic design at Cal State. Was born Canadian, but became a US citizen in the early 1990s. Was originally chosen to do the voice of Zapp Brannigan on the Futurama cartoon series. After his death, the role went to Billy West. Portrayed Bill Clinton on SNL 25. Designed and drew the cover to the Firesign Theatre's 1980 album "The Fighting Clowns." Was one of seven actors to have portrayed Ronald Reagan on SNL 25. One of 8 siblings born into a Catholic family that migrated to the U.S. from Canada in the 1950s. Died the same month as Frank Sinatra, whom he had many times impersonated on SNL 25. He is not related to cartoonist Butch Hartman, contrary to popular belief. During the taping of the 1998 NewsRadio episode where they find out that "Bill McNeal" has died, the cast and crew had to stop film a number of times because they continually broke out in tears. According to Simpsons creator Matt Groening, Hartman wanted to make a live action film out of Troy McClure, his character on the show. Jonathan Winters was his first comedic idol. Attended Orville Wright Junior High School with Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme. He was voted Happy-Go-Lucky Boy by his class. The character of Phillip J Fry in Futurama is named for him. Before every appearance on SNL 25, he would say the Lord's Prayer to calm himself. Was originally signed on to play the role of Zapp Brannigan in the series Futurama before his death. The role instead went to Billy West, whose main character, Phillip J. Fry, was named for him. Because he helped create the character of Pee Wee Herman, Phil was asked to co-write _Pee Wee's Big Adventure (1985)_ and he accepted. Auditioned for the announcer position on _"Price Is Right, The" (1972)_ which went to Rod Roddy. Over the course of 9 seasons of Phil on "The Simpsons", he voiced 19 characters. His regulars Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz, and his one time characters Moses, The Cable Guy, Plato, The Stockbroker, Horrace, Smooth Jimmy Apollo, Lyle Lanely, Duff Gardens Announcer, Security Guard 2, Mandy Patinkin, FNL announcer, Mr. Muntz, Conover, Charlton Heston, Doctor on Review Board Commitee and Bill Clinton.