Joseph Francis Alaskey III (April 17, 1952 – February 3, 2016) was an American actor, voice actor, broadcaster, impressionist and stand-up comedian.
Alaskey was one of
Mel Blanc
Melvin Jerome Blanc (born Blank ; May 30, 1908July 10, 1989) was an American voice actor and radio personality whose career spanned over 60 years. During the Golden Age of Radio, he provided character voices and vocal sound effects for comedy ra ...
's successors at the
Warner Bros. Animation
Warner Bros. Animation Inc. is an American animation studio which is part of the Warner Bros. Television Studios division of Warner Bros., a flagship of Warner Bros. Discovery. As the successor to Warner Bros. Cartoons, which was active from 1 ...
studio until his death. He alternated with
Jeff Bergman
Jeffrey Bergman (born July 10, 1960) is an American voice actor and impressionist who has provided the modern-day voices of various classic cartoon characters, most notably with ''Looney Tunes'' and Hanna-Barbera.
Bergman was the first to repla ...
,
Greg Burson
Gregory Lewis Burson (June 29, 1949 – July 22, 2008) was an American voice actor. He was best known as a replacement for voice actors Daws Butler and Mel Blanc following their deaths in 1988 and 1989, respectively.
Career
Burson was trained ...
,
Jim Cummings
James Jonah Cummings (born November 3, 1952) is an American voice actor. Since beginning his career in the 1980s, he has appeared in almost 400 roles. Cummings has frequently worked with The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros., including as th ...
,
Bob Bergen
Robert Bergen (born March 8, 1964) is an American voice actor. He voices Warner Bros. cartoon characters Porky Pig and Tweety and has voiced characters in the English dubs of various anime. He formerly hosted the children's game show '' Jep!'', ...
,
Maurice LaMarche
Maurice LaMarche (born March 30, 1958) is a Canadian voice actor, comedian, and impressionist. He has voiced the Brain in '' Animaniacs'' as well as its spin-off '' Pinky and the Brain'', Big Bob in ''Hey Arnold!'' (1996–2004), and a variety of ...
, and
Billy West
William Richard Werstine (born April 16, 1952), known professionally as Billy West, is an American voice actor. His voice roles include Bugs Bunny in the 1996 film ''Space Jam'' and several subsequent projects, the title characters of '' Doug'' ...
in voicing Warner Bros.
cartoon character
In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life person, i ...
s such as
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring roles in the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' ...
,
Daffy Duck
Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon fictional character, character created for Warner Bros. Cartoons, Leon Schlesinger Productions by animators Tex Avery and Bob Clampett. Styled as an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic American black duck, black ...
,
Porky Pig
Porky Pig is an animated character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons. He was the first character created by the studio to draw audiences based on his celebrity, star power, and the animators created ma ...
,
Sylvester,
Tweety
Tweety is a yellow canary in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of animated cartoons. The name "Tweety" is a play on words, as it originally meant "sweetie", along with "tweet" being an English onomatopoeia for t ...
,
Elmer Fudd,
Yosemite Sam
Yosemite Sam ( /joʊˈsɛmɪti/ ''yoh-SEM-ih-tee'') is a cartoon character in the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of short films produced by Warner Bros. His name is taken from Yosemite National Park. He is an adversary of Bugs ...
,
Foghorn Leghorn
Foghorn Leghorn is a cartoon rooster who appears in ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoons and films from Warner Bros. Animation. He was created by Robert McKimson, and starred in 29 cartoons from 1946 to 1964 in the golden age of A ...
,
Pepé Le Pew
Pepé Le Pew is an animated character from the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons, introduced in 1945. Depicted as a French striped skunk, Pepé is constantly on the quest for love. However, his offensive ...
,
Marvin the Martian
Marvin the Martian is an extraterrestrial character from Warner Bros.' ''Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoons. He frequently appears as a villain in cartoons and video games, and wears a helmet and skirt. The character has been voice ...
,
Speedy Gonzales
Speedy Gonzales is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons. He is portrayed as "The Fastest Mouse in all Mexico" with his major traits being the ability to run extremely fast ...
,
Wile E. Coyote
Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner are a duo of cartoon characters from the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' series of animated cartoons, first appearing in 1949 in the theatrical cartoon short '' Fast and Furry-ous''. In each episod ...
and
Taz Taz or TAZ may refer to:
Geography
*Taz (river), a river in western Siberia, Russia
*Taz Estuary, the estuary of the river Taz in Russia
People
* Taz people, an ethnic group in Russia
** Taz language, a form of Northeastern Mandarin spoken by ...
, among many others. He also voiced
Plucky Duck on ''
Tiny Toon Adventures
''Tiny Toon Adventures'' is an American animated comedy television series that was broadcast from September 14, 1990, to December 6, 1992. It was the first collaborative effort of Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television and Warner Bros. Animation ...
'' from 1990 to 1995. Alaskey was the second actor to voice
Grandpa Lou Pickles on the
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
cartoon ''
Rugrats
''Rugrats'' is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, and Paul Germain for Nickelodeon. The show focuses on a group of toddlers; most prominently— Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica, and twins Phil and Lil, ...
'' (taking over after
David Doyle
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
's death in 1997). He voiced Lou again in the ''Rugrats'' spin-off series ''
All Grown Up!''.
Early life
Alaskey was born in
Troy, New York
Troy is a city in the U.S. state of New York and the county seat of Rensselaer County. The city is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany a ...
, on April 17, 1952 to Joseph Francis Alaskey Jr. and Domenica "Dorothy" De Sorrento De Luca Alaskey.
At age 3, he was looking for a pair of sunglasses or people's cigar butts so that he could portray different characters.
Alaskey was interested in
archeology
Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
at the age of ten.
After archeology, he was interested in becoming a
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...
and an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
teacher
A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching.
''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...
.
Alaskey moved to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
in the 1970s, where he worked in insurance while preparing to become an actor.
Career
After moving to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, Alaskey began his show business career as a stand-up comedian and broadcaster. He was occasionally seen onscreen impersonating
Jackie Gleason
John Herbert Gleason (February 26, 1916June 24, 1987) was an American actor, comedian, writer, composer, and conductor known affectionately as "The Great One." Developing a style and characters from growing up in Brooklyn, New York, he was know ...
, with whom he shared a physical resemblance.
In the 1980s, Gleason personally chose Alaskey to re-record selected dialogue from the "lost episodes" of ''
The Honeymooners
''The Honeymooners'' is an American television sitcom which originally aired from 1955 to 1956, created by and starring Jackie Gleason, and based on a recurring comedy sketch of the same name that had been part of Gleason's variety show. It fol ...
'' found in Gleason's private collection.
After Gleason died in 1987, the project was shelved.
In 1985, Alaskey provided various voices for ''
Galtar and the Golden Lance
''Galtar and the Golden Lance'' is a 30-minute animated sword and sorcery television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, which aired in syndication in 1985–86 as part of ''The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera''. The show ran for 21 e ...
''. Alaskey was in several
television shows
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed betw ...
including ''
Night Court
''Night Court'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from January 4, 1984 to May 31, 1992. The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan municipal court presided over by a young, unorthodox judge, Harold "Harry" T. Stone (portray ...
'', ''
Head of the Class
''Head of the Class'' is an American sitcom television series that ran from 1986 to 1991 on the ABC television network.
The series follows a group of gifted students in the Individualized Honors Program (IHP) at the fictional Millard Fillmor ...
'', ''
Back to the Future
''Back to the Future'' is a 1985 American science fiction film directed by Robert Zemeckis, and written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale. It stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover, and Thomas F. Wilson. Set in 1985, ...
'', and ''
Spitting Image: The 1987 Movie Awards''. His first major film was ''
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'' is a 1988 American live-action/animated comedy mystery film directed by Robert Zemeckis, produced by Frank Marshall and Robert Watts, and loosely adapted by Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman from Gary K. Wolf's 1 ...
'' as Yosemite Sam.
Alaskey provided a vocal Gleason impersonation in the "Mighty's Wedlock Whimsy" episode of
Bakshi-Hyde Ventures
''Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures'' is an American animated television series. It is a revival of the Mighty Mouse cartoon character. Produced by Bakshi-Hyde Ventures (a joint venture of animator Ralph Bakshi and producer John W. Hyde) and Terry ...
' ''
Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures'' in 1988, and a
Cary Grant
Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one o ...
impersonation in "The Bride of Mighty Mouse" episode from the same season.
Although best known for his ability to successfully impersonate ''
Looney Tunes
''Looney Tunes'' is an American Animated cartoon, animated comedy short film series produced by Warner Bros. starting from 1930 to 1969, concurrently with its partner series ''Merrie Melodies'', during the golden age of American animation. '' characters, Alaskey did voice work for non-Warner Bros. characters as well. He has voiced Grandpa Lou Pickles on ''
Rugrats
''Rugrats'' is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, and Paul Germain for Nickelodeon. The show focuses on a group of toddlers; most prominently— Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica, and twins Phil and Lil, ...
'' (inheriting the role after
David Doyle
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
's death in 1997).
He voiced Lou again in the ''Rugrats'' spin-off series, ''
All Grown Up!''. He also created the voice of Thomas Timberwolf for the internet series ''TimberWolf'', created by animation legend
Chuck Jones
Charles Martin Jones (September 21, 1912 – February 22, 2002) was an American animator, director, and painter, best known for his work with Warner Bros. Cartoons on the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of shorts. He wrote, produ ...
. He was heard briefly as a voice-over announcer for the
Toon Disney
Toon Disney was an American multinational pay television channel owned by Disney Channels Worldwide, a subsidiary of Disney-ABC Television Group. The channel's target audience was children ages 2–11, and children ages 6–13 during the Jetix ...
channel (and sometimes Dcom extras on
Disney Channel
Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Compan ...
). He was the voice of
Curt Connors
The Lizard (Dr. Curtis "Curt" Connors) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, he first appeared in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #6 (November 1963) as an enemy of ...
in the ''
Spider-Man 2 video game'' and
Doctor Octopus
Doctor Octopus (Dr. Otto Gunther Octavius), also known as Doc Ock for short, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko and first appeared in ''Th ...
in ''
Spider-Man: Friend or Foe''. Alaskey was in the independent film ''
The Legend of Sasquatch
''The Legend of Sasquatch'' is a 2006 American computer-animated adventure film released by Gorilla Pictures that stars William Hurt and John Rhys-Davies. It was released on September 12, 2006 and was the first computer-animated film released by ...
'' and voiced
Mermaid Man
Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy are a duo of fictional characters in the American animated series, animated television series, ''SpongeBob SquarePants''. They were respectively voiced by List of SpongeBob SquarePants guest stars, guest stars Ernest ...
in the video games ''
SpongeBob SquarePants: Lights, Camera, Pants!'' and ''
SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab''. He voiced Stinkie in ''
Casper
Casper may refer to:
People
* Casper (given name)
* Casper (surname)
* Casper (Maya ruler) (422–487?), ruler of the Mayan city of Palenque
* Tok Casper, first known king of Maya city-state Quiriguá in Guatemala, ruling beginning in 426
* David ...
'' as well as that film's 1996 animated spin-off, ''
The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper
''The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper'' is an animated television spin-off and a sequel of the feature film ''Casper'', which, in turn, was based on the Harvey Comics cartoon character of Casper the Friendly Ghost.
Production
At the time ...
''. Alaskey played Beano Froelich in ''
Out of This World'' but left the show early in its final season, making only infrequent appearances in a few episodes. In the 1980s, he worked as the original announcer on the short-lived game show ''
Couch Potatoes
Sedentary lifestyle is a lifestyle type, in which one is physically inactive and does little or no physical movement and or exercise. A person living a sedentary lifestyle is often sitting or lying down while engaged in an activity like socia ...
'', hosted by
Marc Summers
Marc Summers (born Marc Berkowitz; November 11, 1951) is an American television personality, comedian, game show host, producer, and talk show host. He is best known for hosting '' Double Dare'' for Nickelodeon, and ''Unwrapped'' for Food Networ ...
. Alaskey made several onscreen appearances, portraying the show's "next door neighbor". For the show's final weeks, he was replaced by
Jim McKrell
James MacKrell (October 12, 1937) is a retired American television personality, best known for emceeing television game shows such as '' Celebrity Sweepstakes'' and '' The Game Game''. He was born in Little Rock, Arkansas. Published variations ...
and the "next door neighbor" concept was dropped. During this time, he was also a panelist on ''
The New Hollywood Squares
''Hollywood Squares'' (originally ''The Hollywood Squares'') is an American game show in which two contestants compete in a game of tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The show Television pilot, piloted on NBC in 1965 and the regular series debut ...
'', hosted by
John Davidson.
In 2003, he took over the roles of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck in the film ''
Looney Tunes: Back in Action''.
He also, at times, provided the voices for Sylvester, Tweety, and other Looney Tunes characters.
Alaskey was the primary voice for Plucky Duck on ''
Tiny Toon Adventures
''Tiny Toon Adventures'' is an American animated comedy television series that was broadcast from September 14, 1990, to December 6, 1992. It was the first collaborative effort of Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television and Warner Bros. Animation ...
''.
In 2008, Alaskey participated in a unique interview conducted by
Logan Leistikow
Logan Leistikow (born February 25, 1984 in Nacogdoches, Texas) is an American filmmaker known for his documentary, '' The Comedy Garage''. Leistikow also produced and directed ''Tom Green Live'' and several behind-the-scenes videos and promos fo ...
and released by TheYellowMic.com. He answered questions and told his story, then went out onto Hollywood Boulevard and talked to people on the street who wanted to hear his famous voices. This was the first time Alaskey had performed in public in this manner.
In 2014, Alaskey started narrating the television documentary series ''Murder Comes to Town'', which airs on the
Investigation Discovery Network.
Alaskey's only
leading role
A leading actor, leading actress, or simply lead (), plays the role of the protagonist of a film, television show or play. The word ''lead'' may also refer to the largest role in the piece, and ''leading actor'' may refer to a person who typic ...
in a live-action film was as
lovable loser
The lovable loser is a character archetype portrayed as a sympathetic, likable, or well-meaning person for whom bad luck continually prevents their various efforts from succeeding, and from obtaining the things they feel will bring them happiness,S ...
Ron Douglas in the
black comedy
Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...
''
Lucky Stiff
''Lucky Stiff'' is a musical farce. It was the first collaboration for the team of Lynn Ahrens (book and lyrics) and Stephen Flaherty (music). The show is based on the 1983 novel ''The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo'' by Michael Butt ...
'', directed by
Anthony Perkins
Anthony Perkins (April 4, 1932 – September 12, 1992) was an American actor, director, and singer. Perkins is best remembered for his role as Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock's suspense thriller '' Psycho'', which made him an influential ...
and co-starring
Donna Dixon
Donna Lynn Dixon is an American film and television actress, best known for playing Sonny Lumet in the TV series ''Bosom Buddies'' (1980-1982).
Biography
Dixon was born in Alexandria, Virginia, to Earl Dixon. Her father owned a nightclub in ...
and
Jeff Kober
Jeff Kober (born December 18, 1953) is an American actor, known for his television roles as Dodger in ''China Beach'', Jacob Hale Jr. in ''Sons of Anarchy'', and Joe in the fourth season of '' The Walking Dead''. He is also known his movie rol ...
.
Death
Alaskey died in
Green Island, New York
Green Island is a coterminous town-village in Albany County, New York, United States, some north of Albany. Green Island is one of only five such town-village amalgamations in New York. The population was 2,620 at the 2010 census, and the ZIP ...
, from
cancer
Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...
on February 3, 2016, at the age of 63. Five days later, his wake was held at St Patricks Cemetery in Watervliet.
Filmography
Film
Animation
Video games
Live-action
Theme parks
References
External links
www.joealaskey.com/(archived copy)
*
Joe Alaskeya
TV.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alaskey, Joe
1952 births
2016 deaths
Actors from Troy, New York
American impressionists (entertainers)
American male video game actors
American male voice actors
Audiobook narrators
Comedians from California
Deaths from cancer in New York (state)
Daytime Emmy Award winners
Male actors from New York (state)
People from Encino, Los Angeles