Matt Groening was the successful cartoonist behind "Life In Hell," an alternative comic strip that appeared in 200 newspapers across the country.

In the mid-1980s, the produce. of "The Tracey Ullman Show" approached him about doing cartoon version of his strip for the program.

Rather than give Fox television the licencing rights for "Life in Hell," Groening came up with a new cartoon about another family.

He named the characters after his father, Homer, his mother, Marge, and his sisters, Lisa and Maggie. He named his own character Bart, which was an anagram for brat.

"The Simpsons" became so popular that they outlasted "The Tracey Ullman Show." Their own show began on January 13, 1990.