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Iconic Comedian Murdered by His Wife

Phil Hartman was at the pinnacle of his career when he died.

Reginald Ben-Halliday
8 min readMar 23, 2021
A picture of Phil Hartman

On the night of 27th May, 1998, Brynn Hartman, the wife to the Actor and Comedian Phil Hartman, had just returned home from spending time with a friend at a restaurant in California.

The moment she entered the house and spotted her husband, Phil Hartman, a heated argument began between them. While arguing, Phil brought up a previous incident where Brynn had hit their child while under the influence of alcohol.

At that time Brynn had serious alcohol and drug problems. Phil threatened to leave her if she continued to go on that path or harm their children again.

After the argument, Brynn went away, and Phil went to bed. It was around 3 am that Brynn entered the bedroom where her husband was sleeping. She aimed a gun at his face and shot him three times.

After realizing what she had done, she hurried out of the room, entered her car, and drove off.

By 6:30 am, the Entertainment world woke up to the shocking news of the murder of one of the most Iconic Comedians Hollywood had ever produced.

Born on the 24th of September, 1948, in Brantford, Ontario, Canada, Philip Edward Hartman was an actor, comedian, screenwriter, and graphic designer who became famous in the 1980s.

His family moved to the United States when he was ten years old. He was the fourth child of eight children of Rupert Loebig Hartmann, a salesman specializing in building materials, and Doris Marguerite. His parents were Catholic and they raised their children in that faith.

With so many children in the family, Hartman found it difficult to gain attention and affection from his parent. According to him, “I suppose I didn’t get what I wanted out of my family life,” He also said, “so I started seeking love and attention elsewhere.” He was known to be the class clown at his school.

He studied art at Santa Monica City College, but he dropped out in 1969 to become a roadie with a rock band. In 1970 he married his first wife, Gretchen Lewis, but two years later, the couple had a divorce.

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Reginald Ben-Halliday
Reginald Ben-Halliday

Written by Reginald Ben-Halliday

History through photos| Crimes| personal growth

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