You probably know his work from Saturday Night Live, The Simpsons, or News Radio. Phil Hartman was a comedic genius on his way straight up the ladder when he was brutally murdered by his wife Brynn. Hours after she killed Phil, Brynn took her own life not being able or wanting to face the consequences of what she had done. Two lives gone. A very rocky marriage based on cocaine use, alcohol use, domestic violence, lack of intimacy, and two innocent children that, in the end, would end up losing both their mother and their father.
Phillip Hartman was born on September 27th, 1948, in Brantford, Ontario Canada. He and his family moved to the United States when Phil was 10 years old. After graduating high school, he studied art at Santa Monica City College, dropping out in 1969 to become a roadie with a rock band. He returned to school in 1972 to study graphic arts at California State University, Northridge. He developed and operated his own graphic art business, creating more than 40 album covers for bands including Poco and America, as well as advertising and the logo for Crosby, Stills & Nash. In the late 1970s, he made his first television appearance on an episode of The Dating Game, where he won, but the young lady backed out and never went on a date with him. In 1975, Phil wanted to explore his talent for comedy and impersonations, so he decided to take evening comedy classes with an improv group called The Groundlings. He was so eager to begin he once jumped up on stage to join in and in 1979 he officially joined the cast of the Groundlings.
In the Groundlings, Hartman befriended Paul Reubens, with whom he often collaborated on comedic material. Together they created the character Pee-wee Herman and developed The Pee-wee Herman Show, a live stage show that subsequently aired on HBO in 1981. Hartman played Captain Carl in the show and reprised the role for the children's TV show Pee-wee's Playhouse. Reubens and Hartman made cameos in the 1980 film Cheech & Chong's Next Movie. Hartman co-wrote the script of the 1985 feature film Pee-wee's Big Adventure (My favorite Pee Wee Herman movie!) and had a cameo role as a reporter. He'd considered quitting acting at the age of 36 due to the challenges of finding work; but the success of Pee-wee's Big Adventure changed his mind. After a creative disagreement with Reubens, he left the Pee-Wee Herman project to pursue other roles.
Hartman took more small roles in 1986 films such as Jumpin' Jack Flash and Three Amigos. He also worked as a voice actor in animated television programs, including The Smurfs, Challenge of the GoBots, the 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo, and in Dennis the Menace as characters Henry Mitchell and George Wilson. He developed a strong persona providing voice-overs for advertisements as well. Next would be Phil's big break. He auditioned for Saturday Night Live and began his journey on October 11th, 1986, in the shows 12th season. Phil was very interested in writing his own content and wanted to write his own movies. He knew that SNL would be a great jumping off point to get him the exposure that he needed. In his eight seasons with the show, Hartman became known for his impressions, and performed as over 70 different characters. Hartman's original SNL characters include Eugene, the Anal-Retentive Chef and Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer. His impressions included Frank Sinatra, Ronald Reagan, Ed McMahon, Barbara Bush, Charlton Heston, Kelsey Grammer, Michael Caine, Oliver Stone, Phil Donahue, Telly Savalas, Barry Humphries, Kirk Douglas and Bill Clinton.
In his personal life, he was a recluse and would often wonder away or be in his own world. From 1970-1985, Phil had two marriages and two divorces. One of his ex-wives quoted him as being compassionate, talented, and sweet. It seemed that he just couldn't hold a connection to a woman and to his career. In 1986, Phil went on a blind date with an aspiring actress and model, Brynn Omdahl. Brynn and Phil dated for about a year and married in 1987. Let me start off by saying that Brynn had drug problems way before she and Phil ever got together. Her addiction to cocaine had her in rehab on and off her entire life. After marrying Phil, she hoped that his fame would allow her to further purse her lifelong dream of being an actress. That is not exactly what happened....
Phil really did try and get Brynn some roles, even small ones, but her addiction to alcohol and hard drugs it was hard for her to completely function. Phil even had to have their two children Bergan and Sean, removed from the house several times due to violence towards him, such as Brynn throwing things at him and punching him. Their relationship was very tumultuous and to help with her depression, Brynn was put on a prescription of Zoloft. Zoloft is used to treat depression, panic attacks, obsessive compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, social anxiety disorder (social phobia), and a severe form of premenstrual syndrome (premenstrual dysphoric disorder). is used to treat depression, panic attacks, obsessive compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, social anxiety disorder (social phobia), and a severe form of premenstrual syndrome (premenstrual dysphoric disorder). This is a medication that should not have been mixed with any alcohol or street drug but that didn't stop Brynn. Mixing the Zoloft with her alcohol and recreational drugs seemed to make her even more on edge. Unfortunately, it would cause her marriage to end in murder.
On May 27, 1998, Hartman's wife, Brynn, visited the Italian restaurant Buca di Beppo in Encino, California with producer and writer Christine Zander, who said she was "in a good frame of mind"; they had drinks. After returning home, Brynn had a "heated" argument with Phil, after which he went to bed. Of course, no one knows what the argument was about and sadly we will never know. She entered his bedroom (they were sleeping in separate bedrooms at the time) some time before 3:00 a.m. on May 28, 1998 and, as he slept, fatally shot him once between the eyes, once in the throat, and once in the upper chest with a .38 caliber handgun. Phil was an avid gun lover and had several guns, he had even bought Brynn one......
Brynn then drove to the home of her friend Ron Douglas and confessed to the killing, but he did not believe her. They drove back to the house in separate cars, and she called another friend and confessed a second time. On seeing Hartman's body, Douglas called 9-1-1 at 6:20 a.m. Police arrived and escorted Douglas and the Hartman's' two children from the premises, by which time Brynn had locked herself in the bedroom. Yes, she shot the father of her children and then left them there ALONE with his dead body. Mother of the year.
Shortly afterward, she committed suicide by a self-inflicted gunshot.
The police stated Hartman's death was caused by "domestic discord" between the couple. A friend said Brynn "had trouble controlling her anger ... She got attention by losing her temper". A neighbor of the Hartman's told a CNN reporter that the couple had marital problems. Yet actor Steve Guttenberg said they had been "a very happy couple, and they always had the appearance of being well-balanced". In the limelight, they were the perfect couple (usually the way most couples having Domestic Violence Issues do), but behind closed doors, Phil Hartman was verbally and physically abused. He felt like staying in the marriage was the best-case scenario for his children. I cannot say for sure, but I also believed he stayed for fear of what might anger her and what may happen to him or his children. A very common issue/decision made in domestic violence relationships. Little did he know, staying would not save him.
Phil was not only a great person, but one of the best comedians of the 1980s-1990s. I watched some of his SNL skits while researching this case and I can only imagine what in these past years he could have brought to us. He was so talented. Women are not the only people to be abused. In this case we have a male celebrity that felt like no one would believe him due to him being famous and a man. This has to stop. Physical abuse is NOT the only form of abuse. The stigma must stop, and more resources made available.
If you or someone that you know is in an abusive relationship, PLEASE reach out to the Domestic Violence Hotline @ 1-800-799-7233. Or please visit the website at thehotline.org
YOU ARE NOT ALONE!
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