Eric Cartman

Eric Theodore Cartman (commonly referred to simply by his surname Cartman), is one of the four main fictional characters on the animated television series South Park, along with fellow protagonists Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, and Kenny McCormick, though he is often portrayed as the series' main antagonist in opposition of his friends. Cartman is an obese, foul-mouthed, mean-spirited, selfish, and ill-tempered fourth-grader living with his mother in the fictional town of South Park, Colorado. He is voiced by series co-creator Trey Parker, and is partially both named after and based on Matt Karpman, a friend of both Parker and series co-creator Matt Stone. Stone and Parker have said that, in addition to his namesake, Cartman is largely inspired by All in the Family patriarch Archie Bunker, and creating him as a "little eight-year-old fat kid" made it easier for the two to portray a Bunker-like character after the introduction of political correctness to late-20th century television. As a result of his popularity amongst the show's fans, his many catchphrases regularly appear in South Park-related merchandise, and, in 2005, Comedy Central ran a three-night marathon of episodes showcasing what voters had deemed to be his "25 greatest moments". He ranked 10th on TV Guide's "Top 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters", 198th on VH1's "200 Greatest Pop Culture Icons", and 19th on Bravo's "100 Greatest TV Characters".