Jeff “Swampy” Marsh

Although he worked on one of the greatest TV shows of all time as a storyboard writer for "The Simpsons," Jeff "Swampy" Marsh made his own mark in the animated scene with Disney's "Phineas and Ferb." He and series co-creator Dan Povenmire found great success with the animated comedy-musical show, which became the longest running Disney Channel original series.

Jeff Marsh was born on December 9, 1960 in Santa Monica, California. He enjoyed an active and musically-oriented childhood. Marsh learned to play several of the instruments strewn all over his household, and his passion for music would carry over to his later works. Although he had taken architectural drawing courses and participated in a few theater productions, Marsh's first foray into the workforce was not in a creative industry. He became a vice president of sales and marketing at a computer company, but eventually decided to change course by venturing into the animation industry. With the help of a friend, his portfolio was impressive enough to land a job in the prime time animated series "The Simpsons" (Fox 1989-) as a layout artist. As eventful as it might have been working on one of greatest shows in television history, nothing proved to be more fateful than working across from the desk of fellow layout artist Dan Povenmire. The two bonded immediately, as they shared many of the same tastes and particularly the same sense of humor. By 1993, Marsh was also working on Nickelodeon's first in-house animated series, "Rocko's Modern Life" (1993-96). Povenmire was also working on the series as Marsh's writing partner, and the two honed the show's surreal brand of humor, as well as their personal style of storytelling that emphasized musical numbers and wild chase scenes. It was during their time working together on "Rocko's Modern Life" that they began gestating ideas for their own animated show. While eating dinner at a restaurant, Povenmire doodled a sketch of a kid with an overly sized triangular nose on a piece of butcher paper. Excited about the "Phineas" boy he drew, Povenmire quickly contacted Marsh and the two quickly doled out a bevy of character sketches, which included a character named "Ferb" who "owns more tools than anyone in the world." Marsh and Povenmire quickly tried to pitch their show but networks like Cartoon Network and Fox Kids thought the premise was too complex to succeed. Meanwhile, Marsh moved to London to work on other animated shows, while Povenmire stayed behind to continue to pitch their idea while he worked on "Family Guy" (Fox 1999-). Povenmire's persistence paid off when Disney called him back to create an 11-minute pilot. Marsh rushed back to work with Povenmire on the pilot. The Disney executives were impressed with what the two produced and ordered the first 26 episodes of "Phineas and Ferb" (Disney 2008-).

Marsh and Povenmire's "Phineas and Ferb" is about the adventures of two stepbrothers, Phineas and Ferb, whose antics consistently annoyed their older sister, Candace. Each episode featured numerous running gags and a sub-plot that involved the anthropomorphic spy Perry the Platypus saving the world from the machinations of evil scientist Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz. Marsh's childhood spent in a blended family helped shaped the series premise, while the show's signature musical numbers were a natural extension of the co-creators' time working on "Rocko's Modern Life." The show was a massive success, becoming the longest running Disney Channel original series. During its run, it won numerous awards for its animation and was nominated for Outstanding Short-Format Animated Program for the Primetime Emmys in 2009 and 2012. Marsh himself was also nominated for an Emmy for his writing contributions for the show's main title theme song and two of the show's most popular songs, "I Ain't Got Rhythm" and "Come Home Perry."