Friday, November 6, 2009

Gary Owens

Gary Owens is a well-known voice actor who's had an extensive career on radio and television. His baritone voice is immediately recognizable. His career began in the 1950s, and continues to this day.

Mr. Owens has voiced several cartoon characters, many during the 1960s, such as "Roger Ramjet" and "Space Cadet", but is best remembered for appearing as the announcer on "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In" tv ensemble comedy series in the late 1960s. Further details about his lengthy career can be found on various websites.

In 1974, while I was living in North Hollywood, California, Gary Owens had a radio show on KMPC Los Angeles, on which he'd perform brief comedy skits and monologues, as well as play records. I wrote to him, requesting an autographed photo, and he kindly obliged with this one.

In 2004, Mr. Owens wrote a book, How to Make a Million Dollars With Your Voice, which not only gives advice on how to get into the business, but also has anecdotes about the many people with whom he worked over the years.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

He does have a great voice. I seem to recall reading somewhere that an unknown David Letterman once wrote to Owens seeking advice. Years later, Owens found the letter from Letterman in his files. Perhaps your own letter is in Owens files too!