Few voice-over performances have had the impact of Meryl Street's brief forays into two of Fox's animated mainstays, The Simpsons and King of the Hill. It's safe to say that both of these shows would have been content to fade away into mediocrity if not for Street's brilliant performances. Instead, with Herculean acting might, Street single-handedly changed the courses of these two shows.
The Simpsons was in just its sixth season when Street lent her talent to the struggling animated situation comedy. Nobody could say for sure what was plaguing the show at the time. It seemed to be wandering aimlessly and nobody knew why. That's when the show's creator, Matt Groening, thought of Street. "Meryl and I used to party at a lot of the same night clubs," Groening recalls, "Whisky A Go Go, Gazzari's, all the most famous spots on the strip.Anyway, I ran into Meryl and asked if she was interested and she agreed on the spot.cocaine's a helluva drug."
When Street's voice graced The Simpsons as Jessica Lovejoy, Reverend Lovejoy's daughter, it was clear what had been missing all along - a love interest for young Bart. And so, for some 20-odd minutes, Street took Springfield by storm as a young, rebellious, four-fingered femme fatale.
Nancy Cartwright, the voice of Bart, recalls the experience of acting alongside Street as a bit of a whirlwind experience. "She's just the consummate professional, but at the same time, she just oozes sexuality. Trying to read your lines alongside her, you couldn't help but be drawn in by her sensuality. Sometimes I got so flustered we would have to do six, seven takes." The extra work clearly paid off though. The Simpsons was back on track and has lasted another 12 seasons so far.
It would be another four years before Street would return to Fox and once again save a show from impending obscurity. King of the Hill was in its fourth season when Street contributed the voice of Aunt Esme Dauterive in the now timeless episode, "A Beer Can Named Desire."
Mike Judge describes Street's influence on the show as indelible. "She was every bit the matron to all the actors and sound staff as her character. I remember at one point we were stuck on this one bit of dialogue between Hank [Hill] and Aunt Esme and I just broke down in tears. I expected her to scream at me or worse, but instead she just pulled me in for a bear hug and didn't let go until I calmed down."
The experience Street brought to her role as Aunt Esme outshone the limited skills of her peers on Hill, and elevated the episode to the pantheon of great moments in television alongside events including the birth of Lucy's baby on I Love Lucy, the launch of MTV and the season finale of M*A*S*H.
Street's time with The Simpsons and King of the Hill was brief, but her legacy has endured. Street's efforts lifted both shows from their slumps, and propelled them to greater heights.
"It all comes down to one word," Groening explains, "Pathos. Meryl connected with her character in a way that just sucked audiences in. After Meryl, things were never the same"
