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12 Things You Didn't Know About The Voice Of Marge Simpson Julie Kavner
Her voice is one of the most recognizable in pop culture. However, the woman responsible for beloved Simpsons character Marge tends to stay out of the spotlight. Facts about Julie Kavner give fans a fuller picture of her talents, though. Yes, Kavner voices the blue-haired, hilarious Simpson family matriarch, but she has an award-winning acting career separate from her voiceover work. She's a creative force of nature.
Kavner was born in Los Angeles, CA on September 7, 1950. She graduated from Beverly Hills High School and got her degree in drama from San Diego State University. An unsuccessful audition for The Mary Tyler Moore Show led to her career breakthrough in 1974 – and the rest is entertainment history.
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- Alberto E. Rodriguez/Staff
- Getty Images Entertainment
She Is Famously Reclusive
Kavner rarely, if ever, grants interviews, and apparently she doesn't let friends get too close either. "I have had friends for years who have never seen my house," Kavner shared during a New York Times interview. In fact, the actor only reluctantly agreed to that particular meeting if it was conducted far from her home in a non-secluded area.
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She Makes An Estimated $300K Per Episode For 'The Simpsons'
Kavner is one of the highest paid voice actors in the industry. She makes an estimated $300,000 for each episode of The Simpsons. For a few seasons, she made as much as $400,000 per episode, but many voice actors on the Fox show took pay cuts in 2011.
Overall, Kavner's estimated net worth is about $75 million.
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- CBS Television
- Wikimedia Commons
- Public Domain
Her First Professional Acting Job Was On 'Rhoda'
Kavner booked her breakthrough role in 1974, when she was cast as Rhoda Morgenstern's little sister on the TV show Rhoda. She auditioned for the show's producers in 1973 when they wanted someone to fill a guest spot on The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
Though Kavner didn't land that initial role, producers remembered her during the casting process for the spinoff Rhoda. She portrayed Brenda – a lovable, sassy, self-deprecating supporting character.
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Her Work Earned Her Multiple Accolades
Kavner won an Emmy in 1978 for her performance as Brenda Morgenstern on Rhoda. Throughout the run of the series, she received nominations for three more Emmys and four Golden Globes. In 1992, Kavner won her second Emmy; it was for Best Voice-Over Performance on The Simpsons episode "I Married Marge."
The actress also secured Emmy nominations three years in a row for her work on The Tracey Ullman Show.
She Loved Working With Woody Allen
In 1992, before sexual misconduct allegations against Woody Allen circulated widely, Kavner was quite vocal about how much she loved working with the director. Kavner appeared in six of Allen's films, and considered "the idea of retiring, except for doing three days a year for Woody."
The actress played Allen's wife, girlfriend, and mother in various films.
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She Did Around 150 Takes Of The Goodbye Scene In 'The Simpsons Movie'
Those who know her cite Kavner as a consummate professional without ego. She works hard and without pretense. The Simpsons Movie director David Silverman also shared:
We were really trying to get to a woman who is completely broken [for The Simpsons Movie and Kavner] worked so hard at it... The whole goodbye scene, a lot of that was just we were just going to stop doing jokes and do something really emotional and change the rhythm slightly and let the audience really care about this and it worked. [Kavner] did a great job on it but it was probably 100, 150 takes for the scene.
Her Longtime Partner Wrote For 'Rhoda'
Kavner's relationship with David Davis has endured since 1976. Davis wrote material for The Mary Tyler Moore Show, and he developed content for Rhoda. About 13 years older than Kavner, Davis retired from show business. Now he splits time between California and New York with his partner.
Davis also has two adult daughters from a previous relationship, and Kavner formed bonds with both children.
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She Doesn't Do Marge's Voice In Public
Kavner doesn't typically let people photograph her while she does Simpsons voiceover work; she doesn't like to be watched, either. In fact, her contract stipulates she's not required to do Marge's voice in public.
Though Kavner understands why some voice actors like to be public figures, she prefers to remain anonymous. She asks, "Why destroy the illusion for children... Why tell them Bart's a girl?"
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She Made A Memorably Odd Appearance On 'Inside The Actor's Studio'
The Simpsons cast appeared on an episode of Inside the Actor's Studio in 2003. While Julie Kavner performed Marge's voice, the recording crew never caught her on film. Instead, when she voiced Marge's lines, pictures of the animated cartoon appeared in her stead.
However, when the Actor's Studio show returned after a commercial break, Kavner was nowhere to be found. No one even addressed her disappearance.
She's Not A Diva
Kavner is private, but she's no diva. Countless people praise her as a good coworker who doesn't need to be coddled. Penny Marshall, who directed the actress in Awakenings, calls Kavner "a low-maintenance actor."
Several describe her as "egoless." Rhoda and The Simpsons developer James Brooks said there's always "a chorus voicing tremendous approval of Julie."
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Despite Her Fame, She's Only Had One Leading Role In A Live-Action Movie
Despite her $75 million net worth, Kavner only starred in one live-action movie. She was the lead in 1992's This Is My Life, which also happened to be the late Nora Ephron's directorial debut. In it, Kavner played a single mother trying to carve out a career as a standup comedian.
The film wasn't critically successful, but Kavner spoke fondly of the experience. "This is the most talking I've done in a film," she said.
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She Voices Multiple 'Simpsons' Characters
Kavner voices multiple Simpsons characters. Most of her portrayals are of members of Marge's family; she performs Marge's sisters, Patti and Selma, and her mother, Jacqueline Bouvier. Kavner lends her signature rasp to Marge's grandmother and great-aunt as well.
