June Foray

by Mark Evanier

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED 8/11/00
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Today is July 7. Actually, it's quarter to Midnight, so it's almost July 8. I'm dead-tired and my feet feel like it'll take the Jaws of Life to get them out of my shoes. Oughta be in bed, but I had to write about today while it was still whirling around my cranium. What a terrific day today was. Today was June Foray Day.

It was, it really was. Don't take my word for it: Ask the Los Angeles City Council. It was their proclamation to honor the woman someone once called "The female Mel Blanc."

That prompted her friend (and frequent employer) Chuck Jones to correct folks. "June Foray is not the female Mel Blanc," he proclaimed. "Mel Blanc was the male June Foray."

One can readily make the case either way. Less arguable though is that June is one of a select group of voice legends that once included not only the immortal Mr. Blanc but two of her other frequent co-stars — Daws Butler and Paul Frees — as well. Put any of them in a room with a microphone and you had a cast of hundreds…

But put June and any of those men (or Stan Freberg or Don Messick, etc.) in that studio and the possibilities were infinite.

The impressive thing about June is not quantity but quality; the way every personality bursts forth, not as a funny voice but as a fully-rounded, well-delineated characterization. The folks she becomes breathe and laugh and cry and span the gantlet of emotions. They're also — when they're supposed to be — very funny. There's a reason she has worked so much…ever since age 12, to be precise.

That was when she first stepped in front of a microphone in her native Springfield, Massachusetts, performing in a radio play. Before long, she was a regular in the rep company of WBZA in Springfield, and not long after, she was in Hollywood, working steadily. She was heard in all the top radio programs of the day — everything from The Jimmy Durante Show to the prestigious Lux Radio Theatre. She even had her own kids' show, telling stories as Lady Makebelieve.

Then it was on to cartoons.

In the forties, a popular series of shorts was the "Speaking of Animals" series, which featured live-action nature footage with cartoon mouths superimposed onto the critters — like a penguin proclaiming, "I don't care what anyone says. I'm cold." June was one of the actors engaged to dub in such silly dialogue. One of the writers was Bill Scott, who would later play Bullwinkle to her Rocky.

Doing that series, she met and formed lasting relationships with two other voice performers — Stan Freberg and Daws Butler. Not long after, June became part of a stock company heard on high-budget kids' records for Capitol — a crew that included Stan, Daws, Pinto "Goofy" Colvig and Mel Blanc, among others. Soon, she was the most in-demand female in the cartoon voice business.

As a result of her work on the records, she was called in to create the sounds of Lucifer the Cat in Cinderella. (Disney's next animated feature was Peter Pan and, for it, June provided the movements but not the voice of a mermaid. She was filmed in a bathing suit, performing actions to serve as reference for the animation department.)

But she was heard — loud 'n' clear — in dozens of cartoons for Tex Avery at MGM, for Walter Lantz in the cartoons he produced in his studio and, perhaps most enduringly, for Warner Brothers. She took over (from Bea Benaderet) as Granny, the energetic owner of Tweety and Sylvester. She performed in many others, including the Honeymousers series, wherein she played Alice to the Gleason-like mouse voiced by Daws Butler.

Ask her to name her favorite role and the answer is easy: "I started playing witches…for Disney in Trick or Treat and then Chuck Jones had me play a witch for him. I've been playing witches every since."

The witch she did for Jones was Witch Hazel — another role inherited from Bea Benaderet, but one which June made her own. Her witch voice, in fact, became State of the Art, incessantly-imitated, even today. There are few voice actresses around whose demo tapes are minus some approximation of a June Foray witch.

If that was all she'd done in her career…if she'd retired then and there, she'd still be deserving of a star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Truth is, we haven't even gotten to her real achievements.

When the aforementioned Freberg became a top comedy recording artist, June was heard on many of his best-sellers, including "St. George and the Dragonet" and "Sh-Boom.." As Stan says, "She was, quite simply, the best in the business. I could write anything, confident in the knowledge that whatever the age, whatever the accent, June could do it." She was a valuable member of the rep company on his legendary radio program, The Stan Freberg Show, the complete, too-short run of which is now available on tape and CD.

For a time, she dabbled in on-camera acting, appearing on TV shows and in movies. Want to see a short lady wince? Just tell her you have a tape of her role as the sexy High Priestess in the film, Sabaka. Or that you caught her last — to date — on-screen role as a Hispanic telephone operator on Green Acres.

Most of the time though, she preferred to remain at the mike, far from all lenses. She was fine on-camera but so are a lot of actresses. In voiceovers though, she was what crossword puzzle makers call a "oner." It means someone who is one of a kind — and that, June was and still is.

This, she proved handily with her best-known work, providing almost all the female roles — and the occasional male — for Jay Ward's cartoons. She was Rocky and the sultry Natasha on Rocky and His Friends (soon redubbed The Bullwinkle Show). She played the prim Nell Fenwick on Dudley Do-Right. She provided an array of fairies, princesses and — of course — witches for Fractured Fairy Tales and portrayed Ursula on George of the Jungle. She was on almost every Jay Ward program — shows which featured animation that ranged from Rotten to Barely Acceptable. It was due to brilliant writing and voice work that they've captivated several generations.

Some have called the Jay Ward stock company the Gold Standard of Cartoon Voice Acting. In addition to June, there was writer-producer Bill Scott, Paul Frees and — at times — William Conrad, Daws Butler or Hans Conried, among others. Daws used to say, "Working in that company was like getting to play for the Yankees at the top of their game. And June was Mickey Mantle, only cuter."

June has performed for hundreds of commercials, countless other animated shows, and dozens of movies, dubbing in off-camera voices or replacing dialogue for other actresses…or even actors. Just the other day, I was watching the underrated Dick Van Dyke film, The Comic. There's a little boy in there, about age six, whose voice is supplied by the ubiquitous Ms. Foray. Her voice has been heard in dolls (the original Chatty Cathy) and around Disneyland (The Pirates of the Caribbean).

She still does cartoons. Just a few years ago, she brought Granny back to life on The Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries and has been heard on The Smurfs, Garfield and Friends, and many more. And, as we all know, she recently voiced Rocket J. Squirrel in the new, big-budget feature, The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle — sounding not a week older than when she first played the part in 1959.

June has also been a staunch supporter of the film and animation community, including service as a Governor of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, and also the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. She has been so valuable to A.S.I.F.A. — The International Animated Film Society — that they even named their Lifetime Achievement award after her.

So the big question is: Why did it take until today to get her a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame?


The Hollywood Walk of Fame lines both sides of Hollywood Boulevard between La Brea and Gower, plus both sides of Vine Street, from Yucca to Sunset. In the years 1960 and 1961, slightly more than 1500 charcoal terrazzo squares were embedded in the sidewalk, each honoring a great from the worlds of Motion Pictures, Television, Radio, Recording, or Live Theatre. Since then, around another thousand have been installed and they continue to be added at the rate of one or two per month. The selections are made by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, based on nominations submitted during an announced two-month period each year.

Nominations come from publicists, studios, fan clubs and occasionally from the performer himself/herself. The committee looks at professional achievement for five years or more, as well as community service. And except for the occasional posthumous honor, they require that the honoree commit to show up for the dedication ceremony. This last prerequisite has kept the names of a few biggies off the pavement — David Letterman, for instance. And Robert Redford.

Also, someone also has to pay the installation fee, which is currently close to ten grand. The "someone" is usually the star's current employer — like the studio releasing their new movie or the company putting out their new CD. It comes under the general category of Promotion.

June Foray was nominated for the Walk of Fame when the great animation director Chuck Jones, suddenly realized she wasn't already there. June has been a favored voice performer in Chuck's cartoons and, rumor has it, he called up the appropriate folks at Warner Brothers and said something like, "It's a travesty that June isn't already there. Do something about it!"

They did — though by the time it was arranged, Universal Studios was about to release the recent Rocky and Bullwinkle movie. So Universal wound up paying for it.

If they hadn't, you could have raised the dough just by passing the hat amongst the crowd this morning. TV Legend Steve Allen, who was one of those who spoke before the unveiling, remarked, "I've been to a few dozen of these and this is the biggest turnout I've ever seen." Someone else suggested that if it wasn't, it was certainly the most loving, knowledgeable-about-the-honoree crowd.

The ceremonies take place on the sidewalk at 11:30 AM. A speakers' platform is erected right near where the plaque will be unveiled and traffic is diverted so fans have an area to mass and view the festivities. Usually, I'm told, they get tourists who just happen to be wandering the boulevard and who crowd up in the hope of seeing someone famous. Today though, the audience contained primarily folks who came purposefully to cheer the First Lady of Animation Voicing.

Mr. Allen spoke, Stan Freberg spoke, Gary Owens spoke. Chuck Jones was unfortunately under the weather and unable to attend, but dozens of June's other friends and associates were there: film maven Leonard Maltin, voice actress Nancy "Bart Simpson" Cartwright, actress Kathy Bates, Ramona Ward (widow of Jay), director Arthur Hiller, local radio reporter Tom Hatten, San Diego Con founder Shel Dorf, much of the Women in Animation group, cartoonists Sergio Aragonés, Phil Ortiz, Scott Shaw! and Stan Sakai, Des McAnuff (who directed the Rocky and Bullwinkle movie), Keith Scott (who voiced Bullwinkle in it)…I can't remember all the names…

What I do remember — what I will never forget — is the ovation June received when she stepped up to the podium. I've been around show biz long enough to evaluate applause. There's obligatory applause, perfunctory applause, relieved applause, delighted applause…

This was better than any of those. This was real applause. Loving applause.

Later on, most of us trucked over to a reception in her honor. June seemed a bit stunned by it all. I guess you don't get into voiceover work and then expect this kind of recognition.

I first met June Foray at some animation event in the early seventies. She was at all of them, for her devotion to cartoons did not stop when they finished recording the voice track. I could not believe how giving and generous she was with her time.

Later on, I had the pleasure of working with her several times. She was an absolute professional and an honor just to be around.

I'd say I directed her but that's only true on a technicality. Let me tell you how you "direct" June Foray. You say, "June, you're doing this part and this part and this part." And then you roll tape and shut the hell up…because she always does it right and anything you say can only make things worse.

That's how you "direct" June Foray. It's kinda like telling Tiger Woods how to putt.

All of this explains why today was June Foray Day in Hollywood. If you ask me, every day should be June Foray Day. And they should close the schools, so all the kids can go home and watch old Bullwinkle cartoons.


Before we go, I have to share with you all, another in the ongoing series of incredible coincidences that permeate my silly life.

Recently, I wrote — with the help of my pal, Earl Kress — the script for a Scooby Doo Video Game that will be released in a few months. This week, we had to record the voices. The voice of Scooby, by the way, is now being done by Scott Innes, a radio personality from Baton Rouge. He does an uncanny replica of the late Don Messick's Scooby mumbling.

I asked the producers not to schedule the recording session on Friday because I wanted to be — no, make that "had to be" — at the dedication ceremony. Well, based on when the talent was available, they decided it "had to be" on Friday. That meant I "had to be" in two places at once.

I sighed and asked them where the voice track was being recorded. They said Soundesign Studios. I asked where that was. They said it was located at 7080 Hollywood Boulevard.

Synchronicity: June Foray's star was being installed in front of the building at 7080 Hollywood Boulevard.

If I didn't know better, I'd swear there was some magical force at work here…like someone waved a magic wand or something.

Hey…maybe there's a reason June's so good at playing witches…