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Revision as of 00:58, 23 October 2006 edit68.73.123.212 (talk) Clarified voice credits: Welker didn't take over the role of Scooby-Doo until 2002.← Previous edit Latest revision as of 13:55, 11 January 2025 edit undoSeasider53 (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers76,796 editsm Reverted edit by 12.190.236.44 (talk) to last version by Geraldo PerezTag: Rollback 
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{{Short description|American actor (born 1946)}}
]
{{Use American English|date=November 2024}}
'''Franklin W. Welker''' (born ], ]) is an ] ]. He is responsible for a broad spectrum of character voices, noises, and other vocal effects that have appeared over the last 40 years in American ] and ]. Welker is particularly noted for a wide range of non-verbal vocal effects, i.e., for ] and (non-talking) animals.
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2024}}
{{BLP sources|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Frank Welker
| image = Frank Welker Photo Op GalaxyCon Raleigh 2023.jpg
| alt = <!-- descriptive text for use by speech synthesis (text-to-speech) software -->
| caption = Welker at ] Raleigh in 2023
| birth_name = Franklin Wendell Welker
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1946|3|12}}<!-- Any change, including the addition of a year, MUST be reliably sourced or will be reverted. -->
| birth_place = ], U.S.
| alma_mater = ]
| occupation = Actor
| years_active = 1967–present
| works = ]
| website = {{URL|frankwelker.com}}
}}
'''Franklin Wendell Welker''' (born March 12, 1946)<ref name="About"/><!-- Any change, including the addition of a year, MUST be reliably sourced or will be reverted. --> is an American actor.<ref>{{Cite news|title=You don't know his face. But voice actor Frank Welker likely ruled your childhood|last1=Greiving|first1=Tim|language=en-US|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/scoob-frank-welker-scooby-doo-interview/2020/05/13/9ec23390-93dd-11ea-82b4-c8db161ff6e5_story.html|access-date=2021-06-21|issn=0190-8286|archive-date=January 28, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128130826/https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/scoob-frank-welker-scooby-doo-interview/2020/05/13/9ec23390-93dd-11ea-82b4-c8db161ff6e5_story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2023, making him one of the most prolific voice actors in history. With his films earning a total worldwide box-office gross of $17.4 billion, he is also the fourth-]{{efn|For all roles, including voice acting and cameos.}} as of 2024.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2011-08-09|title=Frank Welker: the most successful Hollywood actor you've never heard of|url=http://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/aug/09/frank-welker|access-date=2021-04-13|last1=Bradshaw|first1=Peter|website=The Guardian|language=en|archive-date=April 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414123435/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/aug/09/frank-welker|url-status=live}}</ref>


Welker is best known for voicing ] from the '']'' franchise since its inception in 1969 and later ] himself since 2002. In 2020, Welker reprised the latter role in the animated film '']'', the only original voice actor from the series in the film's cast. He has also voiced ] in the original ], ] in '']'' and ]; ], ], ] and various characters in the '']'' franchise; ] and ] on '']''; ] and ] in the ]; ] of the '']'' franchise; ] on '']''; ] on '']''; the titular character of '']''; ] for the ''Scooby-Doo'' franchise; ] and ] on the 1980s revival of '']''; and various characters in '']''. Much of his work includes animal and monster vocalizations.
Frank Welker was born in ], ]. Before he began his career as a voice actor, Welker was a live-action character actor, and appeared in such films as ]' '']''. Welker's longest running role is also one of his earliest voice-over roles: as ], the level-headed leader of the mystery-solving team from ]'s '']''. He began the role in ], and Welker has continued to perform it through most of the show's various ]s and versions. This also includes many ] and ] of the character in other cartoons.


In 2016, he received a Lifetime Achievement ]. He was nominated for the ] in 2022.
]
In the 1980s, Welker voiced ], ] and his cassettes, and ] (Season 3) in the '']'' cartoon. In this he formed a team with ], who voiced ], Megatron's second-in-command. In ], Welker did the voice of ] leader ] in the TV-series '']''. In this cartoon he again formed a team with Chris Latta, who (coincidentally?) voiced ], Krulos' second-in-command. In '']'', Welker also teamed with Latta. (Other actors who featured in ''Transformers'', ''Dino-riders'' and ''G.I. Joe'' are ], ] and ].) He also provided the voice of Dr. Ray Stantz and the garbled sounds of Slimer in '']'' and its several later versions.


==Early life==
Welker has been referred to as a "voice acting god" (by ] and ] in the DVD commentary for ]) in ] for the sheer number of voices he has done—over 1,200—ranging from his work on ''Scooby-Doo'' to the present day with his many roles in ] ('']''), films ('']''), and ]s (the ]). In ''The Transformers'', he voiced nearly all of the original Decepticons. With the release of the film, he took on the role of the Autobot Wheelie, and afterwards, took over the role of Galvatron from ]. Having already provided the screams for Nimoy's character ] in '']'', this marked the second time he had inherited a role from Nimoy. Welker did more live action movies during the ]. Among his work includes vocal effects for the character ] in ]'s '']'', the movie being based on ] popular ], and Welker voiced the Devil ] in ]'s '']'', the movie based on the very popular ] ]s. Welker also provided the voice (both speaking and non-speaking) of ] in the cartoon TV series '']''.
Franklin Wendell Welker was born on March 12, 1946, in ].<ref name="About"/> His parents were Merrill Welker, a mining engineer, and Lillian.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.legacy.com/amp/obituaries/denverpost/128915798|title = Merrill Welker Obituary (2009) - Denver, CO - Denver Post|website = ]}}</ref>


==Career==
As of ], Welker is the voice of both Fred Jones and ] in '']'', the latest series-based spinoff to ''Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!''. Recently, Frank has sent in auditions at the director's request to reprise his role as Megatron in the 2007 ] live-action film. If selected, this will be the first time the two original voice actors for the Transformers leaders would be working together since the aborted season four of the series (known as ]).
===Voice-acting career===
]
Welker began his career as a ] and ] in 1967,<ref name="About">{{cite web | url=https://www.frankwelker.com/about-me | title=About Frank }}</ref> before transitioning to on-screen acting and later voice acting.<ref name="Kinane, Ruth">{{cite web|author=Kinane, Ruth|date=August 22, 2018|title=From Scooby-Doo's Fred to Garfield: How legendary voice actor Frank Welker brought the characters to life|url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/from-scooby-doo%E2%80%99s-fred-to-garfield-how-legendary-voice-actor-frank-welker-brought-the-characters-to-life/ar-BBMhTUn|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200731200601/https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/from-scooby-doo%E2%80%99s-fred-to-garfield-how-legendary-voice-actor-frank-welker-brought-the-characters-to-life/ar-BBMhTUn|archive-date=July 31, 2020|access-date=April 18, 2020|publisher=MSN}}</ref> His first major voice role came in 1969 as ] in the '']'' franchise. Welker has voiced Fred in almost every series and incarnation of the ''Scooby-Doo'' animated franchise (with the exceptions of ''],'' ''], and ]'', the latter in which he portrayed Fred’s father) and has also provided the voice of ] since 2002. With the death of ] in 2014, Welker is the only original voice actor still in the '']'' franchise.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://scoobyaddicts.com/Interviews.aspx?id=2&name=Frank|title=Frank Welker|website=scoobyaddicts.com|access-date=2016-12-14|archive-date=March 17, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160317101136/http://scoobyaddicts.com/Interviews.aspx?id=2&name=Frank|url-status=live}}</ref>


His next major character voice was for ] (which was inspired by Scooby-Doo) and ] on the 1973 series '']'' (also produced by Hanna-Barbera). That same year, he played Pudge and Gabby on ]' animated series '']''. Welker continued to provide voices for many characters for Hanna-Barbera for several years, which include '']'', '']'', and the Shmoo in '']'' and its spin-off, '']''. Frank Welker described the voice he used for the Shmoo as "a bubble voice" (one he later used for ] in '']'').
As of August 2nd, 2006, Frank Welker has surpassed Samuel L. Jackson as motion picture's all-time box office draw. Bringing in a total gross of $4.690 Billion at the box office. Source: http://www.the-numbers.com/people/records/index.php .


In 1978, he played the title character on '']'' and later in its spin-off, ''Fangface and Fangpuss'', and also voiced ] and ] on '']'', and ], ], ], ] and ] on '']''.
==Partial filmography==
* '']'' - The Frog
*'']'' - Thunderbolt, Steven, Scorch, Cynde
*'']'' - Goddard
*'']'', '']'' and '']'' - Abu
*] - Abu, Xerxes, additional voices
*'']'' - ], ], ], ], ], and ]
*'']'' - Regular Cast Member
*'']'' - Game Boy (Seasons 2 & 3)
*'']'' - Blob, Icky Bod Clay, Lockjaw Pooch and the Zappa Yow Yow Boyz
*'']'' - Gogg, Bobb, Earle, Big Red
*'']'' - voice of Curious George
*'']'' - Regular Cast Member
*'']'' - ] (Season 2)
*'']'' - Uni and Tiamat
*'']'' - Monkey, The Infraggible Krunk and Mr. Luzinsky
*'']'' - Dynomutt, the dog wonder
*'']'' - ], both talking and non-talking versions, and numerous other animal and humanoid voices
*'']'' - Copperhead, Flash, Freedom, Junkyard, Polly, Short-Fuse, Timber, Torch, and Wild Bill
*'']'' - Booker, Sheldon, Bo, and Mort
*'']'' - Bronx and Baby Alex
*'']'' - Baby Godzillas
*'']'' - Stripe and other Mogwai and Gremlins
*'']'' - Mohawk, Daffy, Lenny, George, and other Gremlins.
*'']'' - Waffles and Chainsaw
*'']'' - Pegasus
*'']'' - ], ], and Mad Cat
*'']'' - Tchang Zu and Dai Gui
*'']'' - Orbity (Seasons 2 & 3, 1984-1987)
*'']'' - Kermit, Beaker, and Skeeter
*'']'' -Bowser
*'']''- Voice Horror
*'']'' - Ray Stantz and ]
*'']'' - Shag
*'']'' (1985) - Bront, Terragar, Tyrannix
*'']'' - voice of Darwin the dolphin
*'']'' - ] (1969-present) and Scooby-Doo (for the 2002 series ])
*'']'' - Phurba (Tibetan ritual dagger)
*'']'' - ] and ], among others
*'']'' - Azrael, Clockwork Smurf, Hefty Smurf, Peewit, Poet Smurf, Puppy
*'']'' - Occy, Tooter
*'']'' - Cosmo and Blip
*'']''~ ]
*'']'' - Alien Sil's vocal effects
*'']'' - ], ], Ms. Lion (]'s pet Dog)
*'']'' - mastadge pack animal
*'']'' - ]
*'']'' - ], ], ], and ]
*'']'' - ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and many others
*'']'' - Wheelie and Chopper


During the 1980s and 1990s, Welker became a very busy voice actor, providing the voice for many popular cartoon characters in multiple TV series, including Uni on '']''; Brain, Doctor Claw, and M.A.D. Cat on '']''; ], ], and ] on '']''; ] & various characters on '']''; ], ] and various other characters on ]; ], ], and various '']'' heroes and villains; Scooter on ]; ] and ] in '']''; the villainous Dr. Jeremiah Surd on '']''; ] and two of the ] (Bigtime & Baggie) on '']''; multiple voices on '']'', including Hefty Smurf, Poet Smurf, and Peewit; and various characters on '']''.
==External links==
* {{imdb name|id=0919798|name=Frank Welker}}
* {{voice actor|id=1059|name=Frank Welker}}
* {{memoryalpha}}


He also voiced various characters on '']'', such as ], ], and various other animals from 1991 to his departure from the show in 2002. Welker provided both the speaking voice and animal sounds for ] on Matt Groening's '']''. He provided the voices for Mr. Plotz, Runt, Ralph the Guard, Buttons, and other characters on '']'', Gogo Dodo, Furball, Beeper, and others on '']'', ] on '']'', and ], ], and McWolf, the main antagonist to Droopy and his nephew Dripple on '']'' and '']''.
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{{succession box |
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years=July ] &mdash;<br>(programs only, ] does Barney for commercials) |
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He also voiced ], ], ], ] from '']'', ] the Monkey from ''Aladdin'', "]" & Cri-Kee from ''Mulan'' in the '']'' from 2001 to 2003.


Welker has also created the vocal effects for many animals and creatures in films, including ], ], and ] in '']'' (1992), its two sequels, ], and the ] (2019), ] in the television film '']'' (1990), the whales in '']'', ] and ] in the ] (1995), the Martians in ]'s '']'' (1996), and the penguins in '']'' (2011). He performed ]'s screams in '']'' (1984) and voiced The Thing in '']'' (1986), Jinx the robot in '']'' (1986), Totoro in the 2005 English version of ]'s film '']'' (1988), Alien Sil in '']'' (1995), ] in '']'' (1997), and ]'s cat Azrael in ]'s ].
]

]
In 2006, he began voicing ] in the popular children's series '']''. He also voiced George in ] that same year. In 2007, Welker became the new voice of ], following ]'s departure from the role, and succeeding the original actor ], who died in 2001 (Welker and Music had previously worked together on '']'' and the original '']''). Welker voiced Garfield in '']'' (2007), '']'' (2008), '']'' (2009), and on the series '']'', which ran from 2008 to 2016. In 2011, he provided the voice of ] in a '']'' crossover segment of the '']'' episode, "Bat-Mite Presents: Batman's Strangest Cases!". In the same episode, he also voiced Batboy, the classic ] Batman spoof, originally created by ].
]

]
Welker did the meowing of ], including in '']''.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-08-01 |title=Small Screen: Voice-over acting nice work if you can get it |url=https://www.timescolonist.com/entertainment/small-screen-voice-over-acting-nice-work-if-you-can-get-it-4664534 |access-date=2024-12-09 |website=Times Colonist |language=en}}</ref>
]

]
Welker has also provided voices for many video game characters, most notably ]'s ] and ] in '']'' and its sequel '']'',<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150128132422/http://www.gametrailers.com/videos/ua2qi8/epic-mickey-2--the-power-of-two-warren-spector-extended-cut |date=January 28, 2015 }}, Game Trailers TV, March 26, 2012</ref> as well as Zurvan, also called the Ancient One, on '']''. He also provided the voice of the mad mage ] for the '']'' video game series, and reprised his role from '']'' as ] for '']''.
]

]
In 2016, Welker received a Lifetime Achievement ] at the ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://thelosangelesbeat.com/2016/04/frank-welker-best-known-as-voice-of-scooby-doo-and-curious-george-to-receive-lifetime-achievement-award-at-the-43rd-annual-daytime-creative-emmy-awards/|title=Frank Welker, Best Known as Voice of Scooby-Doo and Curious George, to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award at The 43rd Annual Daytime Creative Emmy Awards!|first=Jennifer K.|last=Hugus|date=April 27, 2016}}</ref>
]

]
===Live-action acting career===
]
] 2020]]
]
Welker's first on-camera film role was as a college kid from ] who befriends ] in '']'' (1969). His next film role was in the ] film '']'' (1969), which starred ] (he also appeared in the film's sequel, '']'', in 1972). He later co-starred with ] in ]'s '']'' (1971), appeared in '']'' (1972), and on '']'' (1972).<ref name="awn">{{cite web|url=http://www.awn.com/mag/issue5.01/5.01pages/millerwelker.php3|title=Frank Welker: Master of Many Voices, Bob Miller, ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE, ISSUE 5.01|date=April 2000|access-date=March 4, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304174100/http://www.awn.com/mag/issue5.01/5.01pages/millerwelker.php3|archive-date=March 4, 2012|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>
]

]
On-camera television appearances included roles on '']'', '']'', '']'', and '']''. He played a prosecutor in the highly acclaimed ] special ''The Trial of General Yamashita'' and as Captain Pace beside ]' ] in ] pilot '']''. He also appeared on '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', ''The Burns and Schreiber Comedy Hour'', ''Laugh Trax'', and as one of the cast members in the special of ''That Was the Year That Was'' (1985) with ].
]

]
Welker also played an on-camera role as a voice actor in a 1984 episode of '']''. In '']'', he played a rival actor trying to steal the role of Dippy Duck from fellow voice actor Wally Wooster (]). In later years, he appeared in ]'s film '']'' (2009) as ]'s father.
]

]
In 1978, Welker appeared on '']'' to ]. While saluting Burns, he showed his abilities as an impressionist by honoring George Burns with the voices of ], ], ], ], and ]. In 1987, he performed stand-up comedy on an episode of the short lived TV show ''Keep On Cruisin'''.
]

]
===''Transformers''===
]
In the 1980s, Welker voiced many recurring characters in the original '']'' animated series. He voiced several ]s, including the leader ], ], ], ], Rumble, Frenzy, Ravage, and ], as well as ]s ], ], and Sludge. He took on the role of ] in '']'' (1986), and in the post-movie episodes took over the role of ] (from his '']'' castmate ]) and also voiced ] and ].
]

]
In 2010, Welker reprised the roles of Megatron and Soundwave in the series '']'' (retitled ''Transformers: Prime – Beast Hunters'' for its third season) and the Transformers: Generation 1 video game '']''.<ref name="botcon2010hasbro">{{cite web |title=BotCon 2010 Hasbro panel |url=http://mobile.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=ec64a5dd5f/start=2 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100706061046/http://mobile.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=ec64a5dd5f/start=2 |archive-date=July 6, 2010 |access-date=October 20, 2014 |website=mobile.coveritlive.com}}</ref> In ''Prime'', Welker significantly altered Megatron's voice from his Generation 1 portrayal to sound more sinister. In the 2015 follow-up series '']'', Welker once again reprised his role as Soundwave, who has broken his vow of silence since the events of ''Prime''.
]

]
Welker returned to two of his ''Transformers'' roles when he portrayed Megatron and Soundwave as part of a spoof in a third-season episode of '']'', which aired shortly after the release of the first installment of ]. In the second installment film, '']'' (2009), he joined the voice cast and reprised the roles of Soundwave and Ravage, and also provided the voices for Grindor, Devastator, and Reedman. He again reprised his role as Soundwave, and took on the roles of ] and Barricade, in the third film, '']'' (2011). In '']'' (2014), he reprised his role as Galvatron, albeit with a voice similar to his portrayal of Megatron in ''Transformers: Prime''.
]

]
Welker does not voice Megatron in the first three live-action films (] was chosen for the role instead). However, he did voice Megatron in the two video games based on the first two films, as well as the theme park attractions at ], ], and ], '']''. In the fifth installment of the film series, '']'' (2017), he finally reprised the voice of Megatron, once again utilizing his ''Transformers: Prime'' version of the character's voice.
]

As of 2019, Welker continues to occasionally voice Megatron for various ''Transformers'' media, alternating between his Generation 1 and his ''Prime'' portrayals.

== Personal life ==
Welker claims to have dated actress ] and his '']'' and '']'' co-star ].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Let Me Be Frank |url=https://www.frankwelker.com/letmebefrank |access-date= |website=FrankWelker.com |language=}}</ref> He is a good friend of his longtime ''Transformers'' co-star and fellow voice actor ], in contrast to the rivalry of their respective characters.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Frank-Welker/|title=Frank Welker|website=Behind The Voice Actors}}</ref>

A licensed pilot since 2010, Welker flies a ] B36T from a local general aviation airport in ].<ref></ref>

==Filmography==
{{main|Frank Welker filmography}}{{clear}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Sister project links|auto=yes}}
*
* {{IMDb name|id=0919798|name=Frank Welker}}
* {{Tcmdb name}}
* {{Ann|people|14813}}

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| years = 1979, 2002-present
| after = None
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Latest revision as of 13:55, 11 January 2025

American actor (born 1946)

This biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately from the article and its talk page, especially if potentially libelous.
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Frank Welker
Welker at GalaxyCon Raleigh in 2023
BornFranklin Wendell Welker
(1946-03-12) March 12, 1946 (age 78)
Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Alma materSanta Monica College
OccupationActor
Years active1967–present
WorksFull list
Websitefrankwelker.com

Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2023, making him one of the most prolific voice actors in history. With his films earning a total worldwide box-office gross of $17.4 billion, he is also the fourth-highest-grossing actor as of 2024.

Welker is best known for voicing Fred Jones from the Scooby-Doo franchise since its inception in 1969 and later the titular character himself since 2002. In 2020, Welker reprised the latter role in the animated film Scoob!, the only original voice actor from the series in the film's cast. He has also voiced Baby Kermit in the original Muppet Babies, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit in Epic Mickey and its sequel; Megatron, Galvatron, Soundwave and various characters in the Transformers franchise; Santa's Little Helper and Snowball II on The Simpsons; Shao Kahn and Reptile in the 1995's Mortal Kombat film adaptation; the titular protagonist of the Curious George franchise; Garfield on The Garfield Show; Nibbler on Futurama; the titular character of Jabberjaw; Speed Buggy for the Scooby-Doo franchise; Astro and Orbitty on the 1980s revival of The Jetsons; and various characters in The Smurfs. Much of his work includes animal and monster vocalizations.

In 2016, he received a Lifetime Achievement Emmy Award. He was nominated for the Children's and Family Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice Performance in an Animated Program in 2022.

Early life

Franklin Wendell Welker was born on March 12, 1946, in Denver, Colorado. His parents were Merrill Welker, a mining engineer, and Lillian.

Career

Voice-acting career

Welker in 2016

Welker began his career as a stand-up comedian and impressionist in 1967, before transitioning to on-screen acting and later voice acting. His first major voice role came in 1969 as Fred Jones in the Scooby-Doo franchise. Welker has voiced Fred in almost every series and incarnation of the Scooby-Doo animated franchise (with the exceptions of A Pup Named Scooby-Doo, Scoob!, and Velma, the latter in which he portrayed Fred’s father) and has also provided the voice of Scooby-Doo since 2002. With the death of Casey Kasem in 2014, Welker is the only original voice actor still in the Scooby-Doo franchise.

His next major character voice was for Wonder Dog (which was inspired by Scooby-Doo) and Marvin White on the 1973 series Super Friends (also produced by Hanna-Barbera). That same year, he played Pudge and Gabby on DePatie-Freleng Enterprises' animated series Bailey's Comets. Welker continued to provide voices for many characters for Hanna-Barbera for several years, which include Jabberjaw, Dynomutt, Dog Wonder, and the Shmoo in The New Fred and Barney Show and its spin-off, The Flintstones Comedy Show. Frank Welker described the voice he used for the Shmoo as "a bubble voice" (one he later used for Gogo Dodo in Tiny Toon Adventures).

In 1978, he played the title character on Fangface and later in its spin-off, Fangface and Fangpuss, and also voiced Heckle and Jeckle and Quacula on The New Adventures of Mighty Mouse and Heckle & Jeckle, and Spike, Tyke, Droopy, Slick Wolf and Barney Bear on The Tom and Jerry Comedy Show.

During the 1980s and 1990s, Welker became a very busy voice actor, providing the voice for many popular cartoon characters in multiple TV series, including Uni on Dungeons & Dragons; Brain, Doctor Claw, and M.A.D. Cat on Inspector Gadget; Mister Mxyzptlk, Darkseid, and Kalibak on Super Friends: The Legendary Super Powers Show; Iceman & various characters on Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends; Baby Kermit, Baby Beaker and various other characters on Muppet Babies; Wild Bill, Dreadnok Torch, and various G.I. Joe heroes and villains; Scooter on Challenge of the GoBots; Ray Stantz and Slimer in The Real Ghostbusters; the villainous Dr. Jeremiah Surd on The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest; Bubba the Caveduck and two of the Beagle Boys (Bigtime & Baggie) on DuckTales; multiple voices on The Smurfs, including Hefty Smurf, Poet Smurf, and Peewit; and various characters on Captain Planet and the Planeteers.

He also voiced various characters on The Simpsons, such as Santa's Little Helper, Snowball II, and various other animals from 1991 to his departure from the show in 2002. Welker provided both the speaking voice and animal sounds for Nibbler on Matt Groening's Futurama. He provided the voices for Mr. Plotz, Runt, Ralph the Guard, Buttons, and other characters on Animaniacs, Gogo Dodo, Furball, Beeper, and others on Tiny Toon Adventures, Hector the Bulldog on The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries, and Tom Cat, Jerry Mouse, and McWolf, the main antagonist to Droopy and his nephew Dripple on Tom & Jerry Kids Show and Droopy, Master Detective.

He also voiced Gus Goose, Salty the Seal, Figaro, Pegasus from Hercules, Abu the Monkey from Aladdin, "Aracuan Bird" & Cri-Kee from Mulan in the House of Mouse from 2001 to 2003.

Welker has also created the vocal effects for many animals and creatures in films, including Abu the monkey, Rajah the tiger, and the Cave of Wonders in Aladdin (1992), its two sequels, the television series, and the remake (2019), Arnold the Pig in the television film Return to Green Acres (1990), the whales in Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home, Shao Kahn and Reptile in the Mortal Kombat movie (1995), the Martians in Tim Burton's Mars Attacks! (1996), and the penguins in Mr. Popper's Penguins (2011). He performed Spock's screams in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984) and voiced The Thing in The Golden Child (1986), Jinx the robot in SpaceCamp (1986), Totoro in the 2005 English version of Studio Ghibli's film My Neighbor Totoro (1988), Alien Sil in Species (1995), Malebolgia in Spawn (1997), and Gargamel's cat Azrael in Sony Pictures Animation's live action/animated film versions of The Smurfs.

In 2006, he began voicing George in the popular children's series Curious George. He also voiced George in the animated film of the same name that same year. In 2007, Welker became the new voice of Garfield, following Bill Murray's departure from the role, and succeeding the original actor Lorenzo Music, who died in 2001 (Welker and Music had previously worked together on The Real Ghostbusters and the original Garfield and Friends). Welker voiced Garfield in Garfield Gets Real (2007), Garfield's Fun Fest (2008), Garfield's Pet Force (2009), and on the series The Garfield Show, which ran from 2008 to 2016. In 2011, he provided the voice of Batman in a Scooby-Doo crossover segment of the Batman: The Brave and the Bold episode, "Bat-Mite Presents: Batman's Strangest Cases!". In the same episode, he also voiced Batboy, the classic Mad Magazine Batman spoof, originally created by Wally Wood.

Welker did the meowing of Puss in Boots, including in Shrek 2.

Welker has also provided voices for many video game characters, most notably Disney's Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and The Shadow Blot in Epic Mickey and its sequel Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two, as well as Zurvan, also called the Ancient One, on StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm. He also provided the voice of the mad mage Xzar for the Baldur's Gate video game series, and reprised his role from Avengers Assemble as Odin for Lego Marvel's Avengers.

In 2016, Welker received a Lifetime Achievement Emmy Award at the 43rd Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Awards.

Live-action acting career

Welker at GalaxyCon 2020

Welker's first on-camera film role was as a college kid from Rutgers University who befriends Elvis Presley in The Trouble with Girls (1969). His next film role was in the Disney film The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969), which starred Kurt Russell (he also appeared in the film's sequel, Now You See Him, Now You Don't, in 1972). He later co-starred with Don Knotts in Universal's How to Frame a Figg (1971), appeared in Dirty Little Billy (1972), and on The Paul Lynde Show (1972).

On-camera television appearances included roles on Laugh-In, Love, American Style, The Partridge Family, and The Don Knotts Show. He played a prosecutor in the highly acclaimed ABC special The Trial of General Yamashita and as Captain Pace beside Richard Dreyfuss' Yossarian in Paramount Television's pilot Catch-22. He also appeared on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, The Mike Douglas Show, The Tonight Show, The Merv Griffin Show, The Smothers Brothers Show, The Burns and Schreiber Comedy Hour, Laugh Trax, and as one of the cast members in the special of That Was the Year That Was (1985) with David Frost.

Welker also played an on-camera role as a voice actor in a 1984 episode of Simon & Simon. In The Duck Factory, he played a rival actor trying to steal the role of Dippy Duck from fellow voice actor Wally Wooster (Don Messick). In later years, he appeared in Steven Soderbergh's film The Informant! (2009) as Matt Damon's father.

In 1978, Welker appeared on The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast to George Burns. While saluting Burns, he showed his abilities as an impressionist by honoring George Burns with the voices of Walter Cronkite, Henry Kissinger, Muhammad Ali, David Frost, and Jimmy Carter. In 1987, he performed stand-up comedy on an episode of the short lived TV show Keep On Cruisin'.

Transformers

In the 1980s, Welker voiced many recurring characters in the original Transformers animated series. He voiced several Decepticons, including the leader Megatron, Soundwave, Skywarp, Mixmaster, Rumble, Frenzy, Ravage, and Ratbat, as well as Autobots Mirage, Trailbreaker, and Sludge. He took on the role of Wheelie in The Transformers: The Movie (1986), and in the post-movie episodes took over the role of Galvatron (from his Star Trek III castmate Leonard Nimoy) and also voiced Chromedome and Pinpointer.

In 2010, Welker reprised the roles of Megatron and Soundwave in the series Transformers: Prime (retitled Transformers: Prime – Beast Hunters for its third season) and the Transformers: Generation 1 video game Transformers: Devastation. In Prime, Welker significantly altered Megatron's voice from his Generation 1 portrayal to sound more sinister. In the 2015 follow-up series Transformers: Robots in Disguise, Welker once again reprised his role as Soundwave, who has broken his vow of silence since the events of Prime.

Welker returned to two of his Transformers roles when he portrayed Megatron and Soundwave as part of a spoof in a third-season episode of Robot Chicken, which aired shortly after the release of the first installment of the live-action film series. In the second installment film, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009), he joined the voice cast and reprised the roles of Soundwave and Ravage, and also provided the voices for Grindor, Devastator, and Reedman. He again reprised his role as Soundwave, and took on the roles of Shockwave and Barricade, in the third film, Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011). In Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014), he reprised his role as Galvatron, albeit with a voice similar to his portrayal of Megatron in Transformers: Prime.

Welker does not voice Megatron in the first three live-action films (Hugo Weaving was chosen for the role instead). However, he did voice Megatron in the two video games based on the first two films, as well as the theme park attractions at Universal Studios Singapore, Universal Studios Hollywood, and Universal Studios Florida, Transformers: The Ride. In the fifth installment of the film series, Transformers: The Last Knight (2017), he finally reprised the voice of Megatron, once again utilizing his Transformers: Prime version of the character's voice.

As of 2019, Welker continues to occasionally voice Megatron for various Transformers media, alternating between his Generation 1 and his Prime portrayals.

Personal life

Welker claims to have dated actress Pamela Sue Martin and his Tom and Jerry Kids and Droopy, Master Detective co-star Teresa Ganzel. He is a good friend of his longtime Transformers co-star and fellow voice actor Peter Cullen, in contrast to the rivalry of their respective characters.

A licensed pilot since 2010, Welker flies a Beechcraft Bonanza B36T from a local general aviation airport in Los Angeles County, California.

Filmography

Main article: Frank Welker filmography

Notes

  1. For all roles, including voice acting and cameos.

References

  1. ^ "About Frank".
  2. Greiving, Tim. "You don't know his face. But voice actor Frank Welker likely ruled your childhood". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  3. Bradshaw, Peter (August 9, 2011). "Frank Welker: the most successful Hollywood actor you've never heard of". The Guardian. Archived from the original on April 14, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  4. "Merrill Welker Obituary (2009) - Denver, CO - Denver Post". Legacy.com.
  5. Kinane, Ruth (August 22, 2018). "From Scooby-Doo's Fred to Garfield: How legendary voice actor Frank Welker brought the characters to life". MSN. Archived from the original on July 31, 2020. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
  6. "Frank Welker". scoobyaddicts.com. Archived from the original on March 17, 2016. Retrieved December 14, 2016.
  7. "Small Screen: Voice-over acting nice work if you can get it". Times Colonist. August 1, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2024.
  8. Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two - Warren Spector Extended Cut Archived January 28, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, Game Trailers TV, March 26, 2012
  9. Hugus, Jennifer K. (April 27, 2016). "Frank Welker, Best Known as Voice of Scooby-Doo and Curious George, to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award at The 43rd Annual Daytime Creative Emmy Awards!".
  10. "Frank Welker: Master of Many Voices, Bob Miller, ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE, ISSUE 5.01". April 2000. Archived from the original on March 4, 2012. Retrieved March 4, 2012.
  11. "BotCon 2010 Hasbro panel". mobile.coveritlive.com. Archived from the original on July 6, 2010. Retrieved October 20, 2014.
  12. "Let Me Be Frank". FrankWelker.com.
  13. "Frank Welker". Behind The Voice Actors.
  14. FlightAware information for N500WP owned by Frank Welker

External links

Preceded byNone Voice of Fred Jones
1969-present 		Succeeded byNone
Preceded byNeil Fanning Voice of Scooby-Doo
1979, 2002-present 		Succeeded byNone
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