Matt Groening, creator of The Simpsons, has been honoured with a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame.

The man behind the long-running hit TV show featuring Bart, Homer, Marge, Maggie and Lisa Simpson was presented with the honour in the same week that the 500th episode of the cartoon aired.

Matt was joined by the stars who voice the characters on the show, including Hank Azaria, Yeardley Smith and Nancy Cartwright, who voices Bart Simpson.

Matt said: "I want to thank Nancy Cartwright, who channelled a ten-year-old, troubled boy, the day I met her in 1987 and here's a secret about the show, whenever we run into a spot of trouble, a moment of silence, we just throw in an off screen voice of Bart Simpson saying 'Aye Carumba' and it fixes the joke."

While the 57-year-old cartoonist is only just receiving his own star, The Simpsons characters - who he named after his own family - were honoured on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2005.

The first full-length episode of The Simpsons aired on December 17, 1989, although the characters had previously featured in the Tracey Ullman Show in 1987.

It has been on air for 23 years, holding the record for the longest-running comedy show.

Matt has just donated 500,000 dollars to UCLA's School of Theatre, Film and Television, creating the Matt Groening Chair in Animation at the school.

He already gives 50,000 dollars a year to the school, but this latest donation will help set up classes from visiting master artists and "bring working professionals with wide-ranging expertise", The New York Times reports.