Paul Frees
Solomon Hersh Frees (June 22, 1920 – November 2, 1986), better known as Paul Frees, was an American actor, voice actor, impressionist, comedian and vaudevillian. He was best known for his work with MGM, Walter Lantz, and Walt Disney theatrical cartoons in the 1950s through the 1980s[1] and for providing the voice of Boris Badenov in The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.[1] He became known as "The Man of a Thousand Voices."[2] He is also known for being the original voice of Ludwig Von Drake from 1961 until his death in 1986.
Paul Frees | |
|---|---|
| Born | Solomon Hersh Frees June 22, 1920 |
| Died | November 2, 1986 (aged 66) Tiburon, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Heart failure |
| Resting place | Pacific Ocean |
| Nationality | American |
| Other names |
|
| Occupation |
|
| Years active | 1942–1986 |
| Spouse(s) | Anelle McCloud (m. ?–1945, her death) Kleda June Hansen (m. 1947–1950, divorced) Jeri J. Cole (m. 1967–1969, divorced) Beverly T. Marlow (m. 1971–1986, his death) |
| Children | 2 |
Filmography
| Radio | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Original Air Date | Program | Role | Episode |
| 1945 | The Lux Radio Theatre | Multiple Characters | |
| 1945–47 | A Man Named Jordan | Digger Slade | |
| 1946 | Rogue's Gallery | ||
| 1946 | The Whistler | ||
| 1946 | The Alan Young Show | ||
| 1946–52 | Suspense | Announcer / Passerby / Earl White / Frankenstein's Monster / Hubbard | |
| 1947 | Ellery Queen | ||
| 1947–48 | Escape | Doctor Dubosk / /Finnie Morner /John Woolfolk /Sanger Rainsford | "The Fourth Man" "Snake Doctor" "Wild Oranges" "The Most Dangerous Game" |
| 1948 | Your Movietown Radio Theatre | Multiple Characters | |
| 1948 | The First Nighter Program | Additional voices | |
| 1949 | The Green Lama | Jethro Dumont / Green Lama | |
| 1949 | Rocky Jordan | ||
| 1949 | Four Star Playhouse | ||
| 1951 | The Silent Men | ||
| 1951 | Mr. Aladdin | Robert Aladdin | |
| 1951 | Broadway Is My Beat | ||
| 1951 | The Thing from Another World | Dr. Voorhees | |
| 1952–53 | Gunsmoke | Sut Grider / Gallagher / Doc Charles Adams (1 episode) | "Heat Spell" "The Soldier" "The Cast" |
| 1953 | Crime Classics | Charles McManus / Charley Ford / Charles Drew, Sr. / Pub Man | "The Axe and the Droot Family- How They Fared" "The Death of a Picture Hanger" "The Shrapnelled Body of Charles Drew, Sr." |
| 1953 | Mr. President | Additional Voices | |
| 1953 | On Stage | Chauffeur | "Skin Deep" |
| 1954 | Fibber McGee and Molly | ||
| 1956 | Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar | Bert Parker | "The Jolly Roger Fraud" (Part 1) |
| 1957 | The CBS Radio Workshop | Captain Vesey / Ogden the Messenger | "Sweet Cherries in Charleston" |
| 1984 | Bradbury 13 | Narrator | |
| Film | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Film | Role | Notes | |
| 1947 | Crazy with the Heat | Oasis Soda Fountain Proprietor | Uncredited | |
| 1949 | The Adventures of Sir Galahad | The Black Knight | Voice Uncredited | |
| 1950 | Jerry and the Lion | Radio Announcer | ||
| 1950 | Primitive Pluto | Primo | Pluto Short | |
| 1951 | A Place in the Sun | Rev. Morrison | Live-Action | |
| 1951 | Jerry's Cousin | Cousin Muscles | ||
| 1951 | His Mouse Friday | Jerry / Cannibals | Uncredited | |
| 1951 | The Thing From Another World | Dr. Voorhees | Live-Action | |
| 1951 | His Kind of Woman | Corley | Live-Action | |
| 1952 | The Star | Richard Stanley | Live-Action | |
| 1952 | Cruise Cat | Ship's Captain | ||
| 1952 | Busybody Bear | Bear | ||
| 1953 | Life with Tom | Radio Announcer | ||
| 1953 | The Missing Mouse | Radio Announcer | ||
| 1953 | Wee Willy Wildcat | Barney Bear | ||
| 1953 | The War of the Worlds | Radio Reporter | Live-Action | |
| 1953 | Buccaneer Woodpecker | Wally Walrus | ||
| 1953 | T.V. of Tomorrow | Narrator | ||
| 1954 | Homesteader Droopy | Narrator | ||
| 1954 | Baby Butch | Butch | ||
| 1954 | The Farm of Tomorrow | Narrator | ||
| 1954 | Suddenly | Benny | Live-Action | |
| 1955 | Cellbound | Prisoner / Warden / Little Wife | ||
| 1956 | Down Beat Bear | First Radio Announcer | ||
| 1956 | Blue Cat Blues | Jerry Mouse | ||
| 1956 | Francis in the Haunted House | Francis | ||
| 1956 | The Harder They Fall | Priest | Live-action | |
| 1957 | The 27th Day | Ward Mason / Newscaster | Live-Action Uncredited | |
| 1957 | Jet Pilot | Lt. Tiompkin | Uncredited | |
| 1957 | The Cyclops | Cyclops | ||
| 1957 | The Snow Queen | Ol Dreamy / the Raven | English Voice Only Uncredited | |
| 1958 | Space Master X-7 | Dr. Charles T. Pommer | ||
| 1959 | Some Like It Hot | Tony Curtis as Josephine | ||
| 1959 | The Shaggy Dog | Narrator / J. W. Galvin | ||
| 1960 | Loopy De Loop | Watchdog | "Tale of a Wolf" | |
| 1961 | One Hundred and One Dalmatians | Dirty Dawson | Uncredited | |
| 1961 | The Absent-Minded Professor | Loudspeaker Voice / Air Force Dispatcher | Voice Uncredited | |
| 1961 | Clash and Carry | Wally Walrus | Wally Walrus Short | |
| 1962-72 | The Beary Family | Charlie Beary /Junior Beary | ||
| 1962 | A Symposium on Popular Songs | Ludwig Von Drake / Al Jolson | ||
| 1962 | Gay Purr-ee | Meowrice | ||
| 1963 | Stowaway Woody | Unknown | Woody Woodpecker Short | |
| 1964 | Robin and the 7 Hoods | Radio News Announcer | ||
| 1964 | The Disorderly Orderly | Narrator | ||
| 1964 | The Carpetbaggers | Narrator | Uncredited | |
| 1964 | The Brass Bottle | Lawyer Jennings | Voice Uncredited | |
| 1964 | Mary Poppins | Barnyard Horse | Voice Uncredited | |
| 1965 | The Great Race | Automobiles | ||
| 1965 | Goofy's Freeway Troubles | Narrator | Voice Uncredited Goofy Short | |
| 1965 | The Outlaws Is Coming | Narrator / The Magic Talking Mirror | Voice Uncredited | |
| 1965 | Sink Pink | Hunter / Native Bearer | Pink Panther Short | |
| 1965 | Pink Panzer | Neighbor / Devil | Pink Panther Short | |
| 1966 | The Man Called Flintstone | Green Goose / Agent Triple X / Mario / Rock Slag / Ali / Bobo | ||
| 1967 | King Kong Escapes | Dr. Hu | Voice Uncredited English Voice Only | |
| 1967 | The St. Valentine's Day Massacre | Narrator | Voice Uncredited | |
| 1970 | Tora! Tora! Tora! | Japanese Ambassador Kichisaburo Nomura | Uncredited | |
| 1970 | Beneath the Planet of the Apes | Ending Voiceover | Voice Uncredited | |
| 1970 | Patton | War Correspondent / Member of the Staff of Patton / Sheik | ||
| 1975 | Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze | Narrator | Uncredited | |
| 1976 | Midway | Adm. Yamamoto | Voice Uncredited | |
| 1982 | The Flight of Dragons | Antiquity | Uncredited | |
| 1982 | The Last Unicorn | Mabruk | ||
| 1983 | Twice Upon a Time | Narrator / Chief of State / Judges in The Pantry of Pomp / Bailiff | ||
| 1985 | The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal | Narrator | Documentary about George Pal | |
| 1987 | The Puppetoon Movie | Voice of Arnie the Dinosaur and Pillsbury Doughboy | Released posthumously; 7 months after his death. This movie was dedicated to Paul Frees. | |
| Television | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1953 | The Jack Benny Program | Narrator | "The Honolulu Trip" |
| 1955 | Meet Mr. McNutley | Husband | Live-Action "Jury Duty" |
| 1955–56 | The Bob Cummings Show | Television announcer | |
| 1955–60 | The Millionaire | John Beresford Tipton | Voice |
| 1956 | Jane Wyman Presents | Emcee | Live-Action "Ten Percent" |
| 1956–58 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Announcer / Swanson / Mary's Father | Voice |
| 1957 | The Adventures of Jim Bowie | Etienne | Live-Action "German George" |
| 1957–68, 1976 | Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color | Ludwig Von Drake (16 episodes) / Narrator / Donald Duck (1 episode)/ Moby Duck (1 episode) | Voice |
| 1957–1961 | The Woody Woodpecker Show | Wally Walrus / Charlie / Doc / Various | |
| 1958–59 | Steve Canyon | Narrator | |
| 1959–64 | The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show | Boris / Inspector Fenwick / Captain Peter "Wrong Way" Peachfuzz / Additional Voices | 163 Episodes / 326 Segments |
| 1960 | Mister Magoo | Various | 13 Episodes |
| 1960–62 | The Flintstones | Mr. Granite / Rockenschpeel / TV Announcer / Ed Bedrock | "The Babysitters" "The Happy Household" |
| 1961 | Top Cat | Tony / Additional Voices | "The Maharajah of Pookajee" "All That Jazz" "The $1,000,000 Derby" "The Con Men" "Dibble's Double" |
| 1961 | The Dick Tracy Show | Go-Go Gomez | Uncredited |
| 1961–62 | Calvin and the Colonel | Judge Oliver Wendell Clutch | |
| 1962 | Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol | Stage Director / Charity Man / Fezziwig / Old Joe / Undertaker | TV Special |
| 1963 | Krazy Kat | Ignatz Mouse | |
| 1962–64 | Fractured Flickers | Narrator / Various | 26 episodes |
| 1964–65 | The Famous Adventures of Mr. Magoo | Sherlock Holmes / Various | 5 episodes |
| 1961–66 | Hoppity Hooper | Narrator / Additional Voices | 52 Episodes / 104 Segments |
| 1965 | The New Three Stooges | Sarge / Von Vonce / Bomb Maker | Voice "That Little Old Bomb Maker" |
| 1965 | I Dream of Jeannie | Narrator | Voice "My Hero?" "Guess What Happened on the Way to the Moon?" |
| 1965–66 | The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show | Squiddly Diddly / Morocco Mole / Double-Q / Yellow Pinkie /Claude Hopper | 26 episodes |
| 1965–69 | The Beatles | John Lennon / George Harrison | |
| 1966 | The Impossibles | Fluid-Man / Professor Stretch / Captain Kid / Puzzler / Infamous Mr. Instant / Artful Archer / Dr. Futuro | 26 episodes |
| 1966 | Laurel and Hardy | Additional Characters | |
| 1966 | Get Smart | Greenstreet Character / Lorre Character | "Casablanca" |
| 1966–67 | The Super 6 | Dispatcher "Super Chief" / Brother Matzoriley #1 and #3 / Captain Whammo | |
| 1966–68 | Space Ghost | Brago / Zeron | 20 Episodes |
| 1967 | Cricket on the Hearth | Sea Captain / Caw / Others | TV special |
| 1967–70 | George of the Jungle | Ape / Weevil / Baron Otto Matic / Various | 17 episodes |
| 1967 | Shazzan | Various | 6 episodes |
| 1967 | The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure | Kobarah / Evil Star | Voice "Hawkman: Peril from Pluto" "Green Lantern: Evil Is as Evil Does" |
| 1967–68 | Super President | James Norcross / Narrator | |
| 1967–68 | The Fantastic 4 | Ben Grimm / The Thing | 20 episodes |
| 1968 | The Mouse on the Mayflower | Captain Christopher Jones | TV Special |
| 1968 | Arabian Knights | Vangore | 18 episodes |
| 1968 | The Little Drummer Boy | Ali / Aaron's Father/ The Three Wise Men / Meshaw / Jamilie / Various other Male roles | TV Special |
| 1969 | The Pink Panther Show | Man Talking to the Pink Panther / Texan Hunter / The Pink Panther (1 episode) | |
| 1969 | The Banana Splits Adventure Hour | Evil Vangore / Sazoom | 8 episodes |
| 1969 | Frosty the Snowman | Santa Claus \ Traffic Cop | TV Special |
| 1970 | The Mad, Mad, Mad Comedians | W. C. Fields / Zeppo Marx / Harpo Marx / Traffic Cop | TV Special |
| 1970 | Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town | Burgermeister Meisterburger / Newsreel Announcer / Grimsby / Topper / Additional Voices / Ebenezer Scrooge / Ringle, Dingle, Zingle, Tingle, & Wingle Kringle | TV Special |
| 1971 | Hawaii Five O | Goro Shibata | Voice "Odd Man In" |
| 1971 | Here Comes Peter Cottontail | Santa Claus / Man at Thanksgiving Table / Colonel Bunny's assistant / Fireman / Ben the Rooster | TV special |
| 1971–72 | The Jackson 5ive | Additional Voices | |
| 1972 | Alias Smith and Jones | Hannibal Heyes | Voice "The Men That Corrupted Hadleyburg" |
| 1972 | Hawaii Five O | Steve McGarrett Imposter | Voice "The Ninety-Second War: Part I" |
| 1972 | The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie | Iguana | Voice "Willie Mays and the Say-Hey Kid" |
| 1974–76 | Run, Joe, Run | Narrator | |
| 1975 | Wonder Woman | Prologue Narrator / Franklin D. Roosevelt | Voice "The New Original Wonder Woman" |
| 1976 | The First Easter Rabbit | Santa Claus / Zero / Spats | TV Special |
| 1976 | Frosty's Winter Wonderland | Jack Frost / Traffic Cop | TV Special |
| 1976 | Rudolph's Shiny New Year | Aeon the Terrible / Santa Claus / General Ticker / Humpty Dumpty | TV Special |
| 1976 | The Pink Panther Laugh-and-a-Half Hour-and-a-Half Show | Additional Voices | |
| 1977 | The Hobbit | Bombur / Troll #1 | TV Movie |
| 1977 | Nestor, The Long-Eared Christmas Donkey | Olaf / Donkey Dealer | TV Special |
| 1977 | Fantastic Animation Festival | Opening Narrator | TV special, uncredited |
| 1978 | The Stingiest Man in Town | Ghost of Christmas Past / Ghost of Christmas Present | TV Special |
| 1979 | Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July | Jack Frost / Officer Kelly / Winterbolt / Genie of the Ice Scepter / Keeper of the Cave of Lost Rejections | TV Movie |
| 1979 | Jack Frost | Father Winter / Kubla Klaus | TV Special |
| 1980 | The Return of the King | Elrond / Orc / Uruk-hai / Goblin | TV movie |
| 1982 | Woody Woodpecker and His Friends | Himself / Various | Video Documentary |
| 1984 | Knight Rider | KARR | Voice "K.I.T.T. vs K.A.R.R." |
| 1986 | DTV Valentine | Ludwig Von Drake / Announcer | TV movie |
| 1987 | The Wind in the Willows | Wayfarer | Released 8 months after Frees' death |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Paul Frees". The New York Times. November 5, 1986.
- ↑ Reinehr, Robert C.; Swartz, John D. (2008), The A to Z of Old Time Radio, Rowman & Littlefield, p. 104, ISBN 978-0-8108-7616-3
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