Matthew Abram "Matt" Groening is a U.S. cartoonist, screenwriter, producer, animator, author, musician, comedian, and voice actor. He is the creator of the comic strip Life in Hell as well as the co-creator of two successful television series, The Simpsons , Futurama and a Christmas special, Olive, the Other Reindeer. The Simpsons has gone on to become the longest running U.S. primetime television series in history, as well as the longest running animated series and sitcom, and is considered by many to be one of the greatest and most influential television shows ever produced.