Editing Matt Groening (section)

===''Life in Hell''===
{{Main|Life in Hell}}
[[File:Life-in-Hell-No-4.jpg|thumb|right |alt=A book with black and white pencil drawings, with a large title on top, and a drawing of an anthropomorphic bunny kneeling before a dead anthropomorphic bunny|Cover of ''Life in Hell'' No. 4, published in 1978]]
Groening described life in Los Angeles to his friends in the form of the self-published comic book ''[[Life in Hell]]'', which was loosely inspired by the chapter "How to Go to Hell" in [[Walter Kaufmann (philosopher)|Walter Kaufmann]]'s book ''Critique of Religion and Philosophy''.<ref name="mygeneration">{{cite web |title=Matt Groening |date=May–June 2001 |last=McKenna |first=Kristine |work=My Generation |url=http://www.snpp.com/other/interviews/groening01a.html |access-date=February 3, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010430043724/http://www.snpp.com/other/interviews/groening01a.html |archive-date=April 30, 2001}}</ref> Groening distributed the comic book in the book corner of [[Licorice Pizza (store)|Licorice Pizza]], a [[record store]] in which he worked. He made his first professional cartoon sale to the avant-garde ''Wet'' magazine in 1978.<ref name=mygeneration/> The strip, titled "Forbidden Words", appeared in the September/October issue of that year.{{sfnp|Morgenstern|1990}}<ref name="wet">{{cite web |title=World Wide WET—early |work=Wunderland.com |url=http://www.wunderland.com/WTS/Rash/misc/wet/wet1.htm |access-date=September 4, 2007 |archive-date=October 13, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013173041/http://wunderland.com/WTS/Rash/misc/wet/wet1.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

Groening had gained employment at the ''[[Los Angeles Reader]]'', a newly formed [[alternative newspaper]], delivering papers,{{sfnp|Groth|1991}} typesetting, editing and answering phones.{{sfnp|Von Busack|2001}} He showed his cartoons to the editor, James Vowell, who was impressed and eventually gave him a spot in the paper.{{sfnp|Groth|1991}} ''Life in Hell'' made its official debut as a comic strip in the ''Reader'' on April 25, 1980.{{sfnp|Morgenstern|1990}}<ref name="aan">{{cite web |url=http://www.aan.org/gyrobase/Aan/viewCompany?oid=1157 |title=Acme Features Syndicate |access-date=August 30, 2007 |work=Association of Alternative Newsweeklies |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100902011029/http://www.altweeklies.com/aan/acme-features-syndicate/Company?oid=1157 |archive-date=September 2, 2010}}</ref> Vowell also gave Groening his own weekly music column, "Sound Mix", in 1982. However, the column would rarely actually be about music, as he would often write about his "various enthusiasms, obsessions, [[pet peeves]] and problems" instead.{{sfnp|Lloyd|1999}} In an effort to add more music to the column, he "just made stuff up,"<ref name="playboy"/> concocting and reviewing fictional bands and nonexistent records. In the following week's column, he would confess to fabricating everything in the previous column and swear that everything in the new column was true. Eventually, he was finally asked to give up the "music" column.{{sfnp|Groening|2001a |pp=92–93}} Among the fans of the column was [[Harry Shearer]], who would later become a voice actor on ''The Simpsons''.<ref name="ign3">{{cite web |title=Interview with Harry Shearer (Part 3 of 4) |url=http://movies.ign.com/articles/035/035862p1.html |author=Plume, Kenneth |website=IGN |date=February 10, 2000 |access-date=April 30, 2009 |archive-date=May 22, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110522141427/http://movies.ign.com/articles/035/035862p1.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

''Life in Hell'' became popular almost immediately.{{sfnp|Ortved|2007 |p=71}} In November 1984, Deborah Caplan, Groening's then-girlfriend and co-worker at the ''Reader'', offered to publish "Love Is Hell", a series of relationship-themed ''Life in Hell'' strips, in book form.{{sfnp|Groening|1994}} Released a month later, the book was an underground success, selling 22,000 copies in its first two printings. ''Work Is Hell'' soon followed, also published by Caplan.{{sfnp|Groth|1991}} Soon afterward, Caplan and Groening left and put together the Life in Hell Co., which handled merchandising for ''Life in Hell''.{{sfnp|Morgenstern|1990}} Groening also started Acme Features Syndicate, which initially syndicated ''Life in Hell'' as well as work by [[Lynda Barry]] and [[John Callahan (cartoonist)|John Callahan]], but would eventually only syndicate ''Life in Hell''.{{sfnp|Groth|1991}} At the end of its run, ''Life in Hell'' was carried in 250 weekly newspapers and has been anthologized in a series of books, including ''School Is Hell'', ''Childhood Is Hell'', ''The Big Book of Hell'', and ''The Huge Book of Hell''.<ref name=officialsite/> Although Groening previously stated, "I'll never give up the comic strip. It's my foundation,"<ref name="tvhost">{{cite web|title=Prime time is heaven for 'Life in Hell' Artist |work=TV Host |url=http://www.snpp.com/other/interviews/groening89.html |last=Bergman |first=Erik H. |date=December 16, 1989 |access-date=March 23, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070102171637/http://snpp.com/other/interviews/groening89.html |archive-date=January 2, 2007}}</ref>  the June 16, 2012, strip marked ''Life in Hell''{{'}}s conclusion.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/life/comics/story/2012-06-19/matt-groening-life-in-hell/55698336/1 |title='Life in Hell' is over for cartoonist Matt Groening |author=Graham, Jefferson |work=[[USA Today]] |access-date=June 20, 2012 |date=June 19, 2012 |archive-date=June 20, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120620061419/http://www.usatoday.com/life/comics/story/2012-06-19/matt-groening-life-in-hell/55698336/1 |url-status=live }}</ref> After Groening ended the strip, the Center for Cartoon Studies commissioned a poster that was presented to Groening in honor of his work. The poster contained tribute cartoons by 22 of Groening's cartoonist friends who were influenced by ''Life in Hell''.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2012/10/matt_groening_s_life_in_hell_a_tribute_in_comics_by_alison_bechdel_tom_tomorrow_and_others_.html |title=To Hell With You, Matt Groening |author=Sturm, James |work=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]] |access-date=October 11, 2012 |date=October 10, 2012 |archive-date=October 11, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121011004524/http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2012/10/matt_groening_s_life_in_hell_a_tribute_in_comics_by_alison_bechdel_tom_tomorrow_and_others_.html |url-status=live }}</ref>