Thurl Arthur Ravenscroft was an American voice actor and singer, best known for as the original voice of Tony the Tiger in the Kellogg's Frosted Flakes commercials for more than five decades.
History[]
Ravenscroft was born in Norfolk, Nebraska on February 6, 1914. He served as a navigator in the WWII Air Transport Command before settling in Hollywood.
An accomplished singer, Ravenscroft performed with The Sportsmen, The Mellomen, The Johnny Mann Singers, and many major stars, including Jim Nabors and Elvis Presley. He is best known, however, for his booming bass voice and mellifluous voice-overs, particularly as the voice of Tony the Tiger in both English and Spanish commercials for Kellogg's Frosted Flakes cereal from 1953 to 2004. He also sang "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" in the 1966 Chuck Jones holiday special, How the Grinch Stole Christmas. In 1996, he and his wife June retired in Southern California, although he still did occasional voice-over work as Tony the Tiger until his death.
His voice can be heard in several Disney theme park attractions, including The Haunted Mansion (as the lead singing bust), Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room (as Fritz, Tangaroa and some of the Tiki Masks), Country Bear Jamboree (as Buff), Pirates of the Caribbean (as several singing pirates), and as a former narrator on the Disneyland Railroad. He also voiced the herald declaring Sleeping Beauty Castle open during Disneyland's opening day.
In 1995, Ravenscroft was honored as a Disney Legend.
Ravenscroft died in his home in Fullerton, California on May 22, 2005.
Disney Film and TV Roles[]
- Pinocchio (1940) - Monstro
- Dumbo (1941) - Singer
- The Nifty Nineties (1941) - Singer
- Springtime for Pluto (1944) - The deep-voiced Singing Caterpillar before it transforms
- Make Mine Music (1946) - Singer
- Cinderella (1950) - Additional voices
- Alice in Wonderland (1951) - Card Painter (as The Mellomen)
- Trick or Treat (1952) - Witch Hazel's jack-o-lantern
- Peter Pan (1953) - Chorus Singer
- Pigs Is Pigs (1954) - Singer
- 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954) - Sailor (singing voice)
- Lady and the Tramp (1955) - Al the Alligator
- The Story of Anyburg, U.S.A. (1957) - Cyrus P. Sliderule
- Paul Bunyan (1958) - Paul Bunyan
- Sleeping Beauty (1959) - Singer
- One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) - Captain
- The Sword in the Stone (1963) - Sir Bart
- The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh (1963) - Singer
- The MazPots (1964) - Hog
- Mary Poppins (1964) - Andrew's whimper
- Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966) - Singer
- The Jungle Book (1967) - Colonel Hathi's crew
- Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (1968) - Black Honeypot
- Story and Song from The Haunted Mansion (1969) - Narrator; Lead Singing Bust
- The Aristocats (1970) - Billy Boss
- Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971) - Singer
- Disney on Parade (1971) - Stromboli, Baloo
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977) - Black Honeypot/Singer
- The Small One (1978) - The Potter
- The Brave Little Toaster (1987) - Kirby
- Disneyland Fun (1990) - "Grim Grinning Ghosts" singer
- The Brave Little Toaster Goes to Mars (1998) - Kirby
- The Brave Little Toaster to the Rescue (1999) - Kirby
Disney Parks roles[]
- Sailing Ship Columbia - Sea chantey singer
- Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room - Fritz, Tangaroa, singing tiki masks
- It's a Small World - Finale singer
- Adventure Thru Inner Space - "Miracles From Molecules" singer
- Pirates of the Caribbean - Singing pirates, singing dog
- The Haunted Mansion - Lead Singing Bust
- Country Bear Jamboree - Buff, Big Al's laugh
- Country Bear Christmas Special - Buff
- Country Bear Vacation Hoedown - Buff
- Pan Galactic Pizza Port - Pan Galactic Pizza Port commercial spokesman.
- Disneyland Railroad - Narrator
- Mark Twain Riverboat - First Mate
- Splash Mountain - Singing Bullfrogs
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh - Singer
Disney Roles[]
(Alice in Wonderland)
(record release)
(Lady and the Tramp)
(Paul Bunyan)
(record releases)
(The Small One)
(The Enchanted Tiki Room)
External links[]
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