Thurl Ravenscroft
| Thurl Ravenscroft | |
|---|---|
Ravenscroft in 1967
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| Born |
Thurl Arthur Ravenscroft February 6, 1914 Norfolk, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Died | May 22, 2005 (aged 91) Fullerton, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Prostate cancer |
| Resting place | Crystal Cathedral Memorial Gardens, Garden Grove, California |
| Alma mater | Otis College of Art and Design |
| Occupation | Voice actor, singer |
| Years active | 1940–1998 |
| Spouse(s) | June Seamans (m. 1946; d. 1999) |
| Children | 2 |
Thurl Arthur Ravenscroft (/ˈθɜːrl ˈreɪvənzkrɒft/; February 6, 1914 – May 22, 2005) was an American voice actor and bass singer known as the booming voice behind Tony the Tiger's "They're grrreat!" in Kellogg's Frosted Flakes television commercials for more than five decades. Ravenscroft was also known, albeit uncredited, as the vocalist for the song "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" from the classic Christmas television special, Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
Ravenscroft did some voice-over work and singing for Disney in both the films and the attractions at Disneyland (which were later featured at Walt Disney World). The best known of these attractions are The Haunted Mansion, Country Bear Jamboree, The Mark Twain Riverboat, Pirates of the Caribbean, Disneyland Railroad, and Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room. His voice acting career began in 1940 and lasted until his death in 2005 at age 91.
Ravenscroft left his native Norfolk, Nebraska, in 1933 for California, where he studied at Otis Art Institute. He achieved early success as part of a singing group called The Mellomen. The Mellomen can be heard on many popular recordings of the Big Band Era, including backup for Bing Crosby, Frankie Laine, Spike Jones, Jo Stafford, and Rosemary Clooney. Their earliest contribution to a Disney film was for Pinocchio (1940), to which they contributed the song "Honest John." This was deleted from the film but can still be heard in the supplements on the 2009 DVD. Despite the song being cut off, Ravenscroft lend his voice to Monstro the whale in the film. They also contributed to other Disney films, such as Alice in Wonderland and Lady and the Tramp. The group appeared on camera in a few episodes of the Disney anthology television series; in one instance recording a canine chorus for Lady and the Tramp and in another as a barbershop quartet that reminds Walt Disney of the name of the young newspaper reporter Gallegher. Ravenscroft is also heard with the quartet on some of the Merrie Melodies and Looney Tunes with Mel Blanc at Warner Bros. as well as on radio "driving Jack Benny crazy" on The Jack Benny Program. During World War II, Ravenscroft served as a civilian navigator contracted to the U.S. Air Transport Command, spending five years flying courier missions across the north and south Atlantic. Among the notables carried on board his flights were Winston Churchill and Bob Hope. As he told an interviewer: "I flew Winston Churchill to a conference in Algiers and flew Bob Hope to the troops a couple of times. So it was fun."
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