Matt Groening

Matt Groening's animated creations, the Simpson family, first appeared on The Tracey Ullman Show, which opened on the Fox network in 1987. The new network took a chance and gave The Simpsons a prime-time slot in 1989, and it soon became the network's flagship series. At first the popularity of the show worried those who considered it a glamorization of a dysfunctional family (it was even condemned by Barbara Bush, the First Lady of the United States). But by 2000 the show had become the longest-running animated series in television history, and was still a critical and popular success. Groening branched out and started Futurama, another animated series that began in 1999 and ran for five seasons. Groening still draws "Life in Hell," a syndicated weekly cartoon panel.

Extra credit: His last name is pronounced "graining."