Jodi Marie Benson (née Marzorati; born October 10, 1961) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for providing the voice of

Ariel Ariel may refer to: Film and television *Ariel Award, a Mexican Academy of Film award * ''Ariel'' (film), a 1988 Finnish film by Aki Kaurismäki * ''ARIEL Visual'' and ''ARIEL Deluxe'', 1989 and 1991 anime video series based on the novel series ...

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

's 1989 animated film ''

The Little Mermaid "The Little Mermaid" ( da, Den lille havfrue) is a literary fairy tale written by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. The story follows the journey of a young mermaid who is willing to give up her life in the sea as a mermaid to gain a ...

'' and throughout other films, including its sequel, prequel, and

television series 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 be ...

spinoff, as well as many other Disney works going up to the present day of the 2020s. Benson also filled in for

Paige O'Hara Paige O'Hara (born Donna Paige Helmintoller; May 10, 1956) is an American actress, singer, and painter. O'Hara began her career as a Broadway actress in 1983 when she portrayed Ellie May Chipley in the musical ''Showboat''. In 1991, she made her m ...

as the voice of Belle in ''

House of Mouse ''Disney's House of Mouse'' (or simply ''House of Mouse'') is an American animated television series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation that originally aired for three seasons on ABC and Toon Disney from January 13, 2001, to its final ...

'' and voiced the character

Barbie Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by American toy company Mattel, Inc. and launched on March 9, 1959. American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration. ...

in the second and third films of the ''Toy Story'' franchise (1999–2010), and in the ''

Toy Story Toons ''Toy Story Toons'' is an American computer-animated series of short films based on the ''Toy Story'' franchise. The storylines of the series begin after ''Toy Story 3''. The films are set at Bonnie's house, the new home of Andy's toys. Three sh ...

'' short ''

Hawaiian Vacation ''Toy Story Toons: Hawaiian Vacation'' is a 2011 American computer-animated short film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and directed by Gary Rydstrom. The first entry in the ''Toy Story Toons'' series, the short features characters from th ...

'' (2011). For her contributions to Disney, Benson was named a

Disney Legend The Disney Legends Awards is a Hall of Fame program that recognizes individuals who have made an extraordinary and integral contribution to The Walt Disney Company. Established in 1987, the honor was traditionally awarded annually during a speci ...

in 2011. She also gave voice to the spirited "Weebo" in Disney's live action '' Flubber'', starring

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and come ...

. For Warner Bros., she did the voice of the title character in ''

Thumbelina Thumbelina (; da, Tommelise) is a literary fairy tale written by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen first published by C. A. Reitzel on 16 December 1835 in Copenhagen, Denmark, with "The Naughty Boy" and "The Travelling Companion" in ...

'' in 1994, a

Don Bluth Donald Virgil Bluth (; born September 13, 1937) is an American film director, animator, production designer, and animation instructor, best known for his animated films, including ''The Secret of NIMH'' (1982), ''An American Tail'' (1986), ''Th ...

animated feature film with songs by

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...

. Her other projects include ''

Secret of the Wings ''Secret of the Wings'' (originally titled as ''Tinker Bell and the Mysterious Winter Woods'' or alternatively ''Tinker Bell and the Secret of the Wings'') is a 2012 American computer-animated fantasy film, and the fourth installment in the '' Disn ...

'', '' Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure'', '' 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure'', '' Balto: Wolf Quest'', and '' Balto III: Wings of Change''. She appeared as

Patrick Dempsey Patrick Galen Dempsey (born January 13, 1966) is an American actor and race car driver. He is best known for his role as neurosurgeon Derek "McDreamy" Shepherd in ''Grey's Anatomy''. He had early success as an actor, starring in a number of fi ...

's assistant Sam in Disney's live-action feature film '' Enchanted''. While being a Disney Legend, she also voiced Jane Doe and Patsy Smiles in Cartoon Network's '' Camp Lazlo''. She also voiced the character Tula in Hanna-Barbera's animated series ''

The Pirates of Dark Water ''The Pirates of Dark Water'' is an American fantasy animated television series created by David Kirschner and produced by Hanna-Barbera. The series premiered as a five-part miniseries on Fox Kids early 1991. The first season, consisting of 13 ...

''.

Personal life

Benson was born and raised in a Catholic environment, graduating from Boylan Central Catholic High School in Rockford, Illinois, and

Millikin University Millikin University is a private university in Decatur, Illinois. It was founded in 1901 by prominent Decatur businessman James Millikin and is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Media Decaturian The ''Decaturian'', also known as ...

in Decatur, Illinois. She experienced a

religious conversion Religious conversion is the adoption of a set of beliefs identified with one particular religious denomination to the exclusion of others. Thus "religious conversion" would describe the abandoning of adherence to one denomination and affiliatin ...

while dating actor/singer Ray Benson (not to be confused with frontman

Ray Benson Ray Benson (born Ray Benson Seifert, March 16, 1951 - October 31st 2022) i Western swing band Asleep at the Wheel as well as an actor and voice actor. He Death In Car Crash Accident Biography In 1970, Benson, a native of Philadelphia, formed ...

of Asleep at the Wheel). The two of them later married in 1984. They have two children, McKinley and Delaney. An article originally published in 2013 by the

Billy Graham Evangelistic Association The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) is a non-profit Christian outreach organization that promotes multimedia evangelism, conducts evangelistic crusades, and engages in disaster response. The BGEA operates the Billy Graham Trainin ...

said the couple "live north of Atlanta, GA."

Career

Benson made her debut in the 1983

Kenny Ortega Kenneth John Ortega (born April 18, 1950) is an American filmmaker, touring manager, and choreographer. He is known for directing the films '' Newsies'', '' Hocus Pocus'', ''The Cheetah Girls 2'', ''High School Musical'', '' Michael Jackson's T ...

-directed " Marilyn: An American Fable". Other Broadway credits include a starring role in the 1986 Broadway musical ''

Smile A smile is a facial expression formed primarily by flexing the muscles at the sides of the mouth. Some smiles include a contraction of the muscles at the corner of the eyes, an action known as a Duchenne smile. Among humans, a smile expresses ...

'', where she introduced a song called "Disneyland". In 1987,

Howard Ashman Howard is an English-language given name originating from Old French Huard (or Houard) from a Germanic source similar to Old High German ''*Hugihard'' "heart-brave", or ''*Hoh-ward'', literally "high defender; chief guardian". It is also probabl ...

, the lyricist of ''Smile'', would go on to write the lyrics for ''The Little Mermaid''. She describes the song "Disneyland" at the "Smile" Reunion concert held on September 22, 2014, "This is the first piece of the puzzle of my life, the first step of the journey, so to speak". Benson also sings "Disneyland" on a compilation CD called ''Unsung Musicals''. In 1989, Benson appeared in the Broadway musical, '' Welcome to the Club'', alongside Samuel E. Wright, who performed the voice for Sebastian the Crab in ''The Little Mermaid''. In 1992, Benson received a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

nomination for Best Actress in a Musical for her role as Polly Baker in '' Crazy For You''. She played the narrator in '' Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' in 1998. In 2004-06, Benson became the host and narrator of the children's Christian home video series called "Baby Faith", created by Integrity Publishers & FamilyTreeMedia. Benson also played the Queen in a one-night concert version of

Rodgers & Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their popular ...

s ''

Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...

'' at the

Nashville Symphony Orchestra The Nashville Symphony is an American symphony orchestra, based in Nashville, Tennessee. The orchestra is resident at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center. History In 1920, prior to the 1946 founding of the Nashville Symphony, a group of amateur and ...

in May 2010. She was at the 2012 SYTA conference singing her signature song "Part of Your World" on August 27, 2012. Benson has been the guest artist for the Candlelight Processional for five years at Walt Disney World including December 10–13, 2012. She joined the "2013 Spring Pops" on May 14–15, 2013 as a guest soloist with the

Boston Pops The Boston Pops Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart. Founded in 1885 as an offshoot of the Boston Sym ...

. Benson can be heard on over a dozen recordings. Her animated TV series include the Emmy Award-winning '' Camp Lazlo'' for the Cartoon Network, ''

'', ''

Batman Beyond ''Batman Beyond'' (known as ''Batman of the Future'' outside the United States) is an American superhero animated television series developed by Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, and Alan Burnett. It was produced by Warner Bros. Animation in collaborati ...

'', ''

The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy ''The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy'' is an American animated television series created by Maxwell Atoms for Cartoon Network and distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Television. It follows Billy, an extremely dimwitted, happy-go-lucky boy, an ...

'', ''

The Wild Thornberrys ''The Wild Thornberrys'' is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, Steve Pepoon, David Silverman, and Stephen Sustarsic for Nickelodeon. The series portrays an American family of wildlife documentary ...

'', ''Barbie'', '' Hercules: Zero to Hero'', '' P. J. Sparkles'', and the series ''

Sofia the First ''Sofia the First'' is an American animated fantasy children's television series. The show follows a young peasant girl named Sofia (Ariel Winter), who becomes a princess after her mother marries the king of Enchancia. Episodes focus on her adv ...

'' for Disney. On the concert stage, Benson has performed as a concert soloist with symphonies all over the world, including The Boston Pops, The Philly Pops (conductor: Peter Nero), The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra (conductor: John Mauceri), The National Symphony (conductor: Marvin Hamlisch), Cleveland, Dallas, Tokyo, and the San Francisco and Chicago Symphonies. She starred in the Kennedy Center Honors for Ginger Rogers, and in ''Disney's Premiere in Central Park with Pocahontas'', ''The Walt Disney World 25th Anniversary Spectacular'' and ''Disney's 100 Years of Magic''. Benson is the resident guest soloist for the Walt Disney Company/Disney Cruise Line and ambassador for feature animation. On June 6, 2016, Benson performed the role of Ariel at the Hollywood Bowl's concert performance of ''The Little Mermaid''. She also made a special appearance in ABC's 2019 live musical spectacular '' The Little Mermaid Live!''

''The Little Mermaid''

In late 1986, Benson first heard of the audition for ''The Little Mermaid'' through lyricist and playwright

. The two had just worked together in the Broadway show ''

'' until its run ended early. He knew she would be the perfect fit for the role and that she would be a great replica of Ariel. After hearing the demo for "Part of Your World", she sang a small part of it on tape where it was later sent to Disney executives. Before her audition for ''The Little Mermaid'', she was primarily a stage actress. It was Ashman's first Disney project. In early 1988, Benson won the role of Ariel.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Theme parks

Stage

Discography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * *
Jodi Benson at the Disney Legends Website

Performance
''Working in the Theatre'' seminar video at

American Theatre Wing The American Theatre Wing (the Wing for short) is a New York City–based non-profit organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre", according to its mission statement. Originally known as the Stage Women's War Relief ...

.org, April 1992 {{DEFAULTSORT:Benson, Jodi 1961 births Actresses from Illinois Musicians from Rockford, Illinois American Christians American musical theatre actresses American voice actresses American film actresses American sopranos American video game actresses Audiobook narrators Living people Actors from Rockford, Illinois 20th-century American actresses 20th-century Christians 21st-century American actresses 21st-century Christians 20th-century American singers 21st-century American singers Traditional pop music singers 20th-century American women singers 21st-century American women singers Hanna-Barbera people Disney people