Todd Hanson is an American writer and voice actor, notable for his work as a writer and editor at the parody newspaper ''

The Onion ''The Onion'' is an American digital media company and newspaper organization that publishes satire, satirical articles on international, national, and local news. The company is based in Chicago but originated as a weekly print publication on ...

''. He also voices the character Dan Halen on the

Adult Swim Adult Swim (AS; stylized as dult swim'' and often abbreviated as s'') is an American adult-oriented night-time cable television channel that shares channel space with the basic cable network Cartoon Network and is programmed by its in-house ...

program ''

Squidbillies ''Squidbillies'' is an American animated television series created by Jim Fortier and Dave Willis for Cartoon Network's late night programming block, Adult Swim. An unofficial pilot for the series aired on April 1, 2005. The series later made ...

''.

Career

As writer

Todd Hanson briefly attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1986 and soon dropped out. He remained in Madison and began working a series of menial jobs. Eventually Hanson began drawing a semi-autobiographical cartoon entitled 'Badgers and Other Animals' which was published regularly in the Daily Cardinal, a university student newspaper. Hanson was working as a dishwasher when he first started as a writer and cartoonist at ''The Onion''. He wrote an article in ''The Onion'' that was optioned as a movie by

DreamWorks DreamWorks may refer to: * DreamWorks Pictures, an American film production company of Amblin ** DreamWorks Television, an American television production company and division of the film studio ** DreamWorks Records, an American record label and f ...

and co-wrote the

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

The Onion Movie ''The Onion Movie'' (released in some countries as ''News Movie'') is a 2008 American comedy film written by ''The Onion'' writers Robert D. Siegel and Todd Hanson. It was filmed in 2003 and released on June 3, 2008 direct-to-video. The film was ...

'' (2008), which he has since disowned.

As actor

Todd was an ensemble member in the Ark Improvisational Theater in Madison, Wisconsin from 1987–88. He voices the character Dan Halen on ''

''. He made three guest appearances in the episodes of ''

Aqua Teen Hunger Force ''Aqua Teen Hunger Force'' (also known by various alternative titles), sometimes abbreviated as ''ATHF'' or ''Aqua Teen'', is an American adult animated television series created by Dave Willis and Matt Maiellaro for Cartoon Network's late ni ...

'' called Interfection, Hypno-Germ and Last Dance for Napkin Lad. He is also on the commentary for ''

Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters ''Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters'' (also known as ''Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Movie Film for Theaters'') is a 2007 American adult animated surreal black comedy film based on the Adult Swim animated series ''Aqua Teen Hunger Fo ...

'' in which he stated that he is a big fan of the show. The commentary also states that he came up with the Chicken Bittle character which was rejected to be an Aqua Teen for several years.

Personal life

Hanson has lived in

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, New York. During a storytelling segment on Public Radio International's ''

The Moth The Moth is a non-profit group based in New York City dedicated to the art and craft of storytelling. Founded in 1997, the organization presents a wide range of theme-based storytelling events across the United States and abroad, often featuring ...

'', Hanson credited his mother for him being "a douchebag". Hanson spoke candidly about his long history of depression on the July 7, 2011 episode of ''

WTF with Marc Maron ''WTF with Marc Maron'' is a weekly podcast and radio show hosted by stand-up comedian Marc Maron. The show was launched in September 2009. The show is produced by Maron's former Air America co-worker Brendan McDonald. Background The show's ti ...

''.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hanson, Todd Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) 20th-century American male actors 20th-century births 20th-century American writers 21st-century American male actors 21st-century American writers American comedy writers American cartoonists American male screenwriters American television writers American male voice actors Living people The Onion people Writers from Brooklyn American male television writers 20th-century American male writers Screenwriters from Wisconsin Writers from Wisconsin