Matt Groening Initiative

Growing up in Portland, Oregon, Matt Groening did not particularly like school, which is what originally turned him towards drawing. In the mid-1980s, he moved to Los Angeles and started drawing a comic strip named "Life in Hell" which eventually became published in the newspaper where he worked. In 1988, James Brooks, looking for a filler in the television show "The Tracy Ullman show", turned towards a framed "Life in Hell" strip on his wall and contacted Groening.

Groening has been nominated for 25 Emmy awards and has won twelve: ten for The Simpsons and two for Futurama in the "Outstanding Animated Program (for programming one hour or less)" category. Groening received the 2002 National Cartoonist Society Reuben Award and a British Comedy Award for "outstanding contribution to comedy" in 2004. He will receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2012.