| Bart
Simpson's alter ego, Nancy Cartwright popped in to Oz last month and only
one mag grabbed her for an interview - TV HITS! Cool, man!
So Nancy, what brings you to Australia? I'm here because of Dianetics. We're kicking off this huge campaign with the volcano in George St. The whole thing is based on this book written by L. Rom Hubbard, Dianetics. But this campaign is for the video, on, like, how to do Dianetics. It really simplifies it and makes it very easy for anybody to learn how to do it. The book was written in 1950. Have you met Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman through Scientology? I've met them, but I'm not really close personal friends with them. Nicole loves Australia, she loves you guys! I met them briefly and just had a little chat with her and she was really a beautiful gal. Same with Tom. The thing that's great about them is they talk to anybody. And I love that about them. A lot of celebrities have a hard time talking to the public, I mean, really one-on-one. Has anyone ever told you that you look like Tina Yothers from that 1980s sitcom Family Ties? Totally! I've been told that before, more what I was a little bit younger, when I had long hair. I've never met her, and I wonder if she gets that "You look like Nancy Cartwright!" What's the strangest Simpsons merchandise you've seen? Well, theres tons of bootleg stuff. I got this T-shirt that had this head of Bart on it that was three-dimensional, it was like a mask, almost. I've never worn it. It sticks out, like, that far (shows a fair distance from chest) and it's like rubber. I think Matt Groening gave it to me. He got it in Mexico. It's really bizzare. Did you know you guys caused a lot of controversy with the "Bart VS Australia" epsiode? I heard about that. I get, like, 50/50: you either like it or you don't like it. We got a little feedback. When we were making it, I thought this will demonstrate the sense of humour that the Aussies have. So, like the episode in question, does the water swirl down the sink in the opposite way here? Yes! (laughs loudly and suddenly goes quiet) And that was the first thing you checket when you got here, wasn't it Nancy? Yes! (laughs hysterically) The coriolis effect, is that what it's called? Yeah, it was the first thing we checked! (adopts Barts voice) "Check the water, man!" What do you have in common with Bart? Our voices are very similar! (laughs) I don't know, I think I have a penchant for getting in a bit of mischief sometimes. It's just a sense of humour about life. Do your young kids understand you're the voice of Bart? Yes, they do, but they discovered it on their own. It's a big concept. We would watch The Simpsons and they would get it. When my son was two, they had a prototype talking Bart doll, and he's pulling the string on it, and looks up and goes, "I don't see you in there, Mom, I don't see you in there!" This is a two year old! My God, it was incredible! And my daughter's like, "Do Bart, Mom, do Bart!" I'm like this big celebrity at school. They really love me to do it. What have you noticed about Australia that you didn't expect? It reminds me very much of home. It's very much like LA. Not in terms of the motion, because LA is crazy, but the weather is similar. It's not freezing cold. it's kind of mild. The people here are friendly. I'm treated like a celebrity, especially when they find out who I am - people, like, bow down! Nobody's asked me to do the voice, but as soon as I do it, they die laughing! Has using your Bart voice ever got you out of a sticky situation? Oh yeah! Unfortunately, I wish I could have talked my way out of getting a speeding ticket, that was funny. He (the police officer) was not impressed. I was driving a pink Miata and the license plate was DNT HVCW - it stands for "Don't have a cow." He's looking at the lisence plate and he's got this look on his face, like, "What's all this about?" I just turned to him and said (in Barts voice) "Don't have a cow, man!" This guy, it was like - whoosh! - over his head. And what did he do? He was like, "Excuse me?" And I said, (in normal voice) "Don't have a cow." And he's still looking at me, like, "What are you talking about, lady?" I said, "Do you know Bart Simpson? Have you ever watched The Simpsons?" He goes, "No." So then I'm like, "Well, theres this show on TV and I do the voice of Bart Simpson..." And then he says, "Yeah, well Nicolas Cage was speeding in his Ferrari and I gave him a ticket...!" |
|