Let's Hear From June Foray

The world loves June Foray.

And because the world loves June Foray, allow me to post two feature newspaper feature stories about her from February 1970.

The Pogo TV special was being rerun that year, so it appears June went out on the publicity trail or the producers lined up interviews with her. The first one concentrates on money, the second from the King Features Syndicate delves more into her career.

By the way, if you check this blog and over at the Yowp blog, you’ll find more Foray fun. Click here, here and here for starters.

June Foray Finds Small Fortune In Doing Voices For TV Cartoons
By MARILYN BECK
TV Time Syndicate
Hollywood
POGO POSSUM and Mademselle Hepzibah have two important things in common. The same man, cartoonist Walt Kelly, created them, and the same woman, June Foray, gave them voices.
June Foray considers it an honor that she was chosen to be the voices of those famous cartoon characters for their transition from cartoon strip to television in "The Pogo Special Birthday Special." Aired last year, the program will be rerun on NBC Sunday, 8:30-9 p.m.
"Actually, I had been hired to narrate the character of Hepzibah, the French skunk. But then Walt Kelly decided he'd like me to handle both roles."
Actually, Walt Kelly and producer Chuck Jones should feel rather honored that June found the time to work on the special. For she's the actress who's discovered in the last 20 years that there's a lot more gold to be panned in Hollywood standing behind the cameras instead of in front of them.
SHE'S the gal that just about everyone hears, but few ever see. She plays Rocky and Natasha on the "Bullwinkle" show, Granny in the "Tweety Pie" series, Jerry in "Tom and Jerry." She has handled countless TV commercial assignments, and has imitated the voices of scores of stars in movies when there are sound track difficulties.
For, as she pointed out, "My end of the business is fantastically lucrative." An actress works all week doing a guest shot on a series, is paid a flat sum, and then gets limited residuals from a maximum of six reruns of that show.

"I, on the other hand, will spend less than two hours taping the voice for a commercial, get paid residuals for 10 reruns of the spot. And, well, it's easy to end up making from $6,000 to $8,000 for that few hours work."
SHE STARTED in the business doing radio voices as a teenager, was signed by Capitol Records to narrate children's records, and was soon hired by Disney Studios to handle the voices for many of their animated characters.
"There were strictly mercenary reasons that made me decide to specialize in behind-the-scenes work," admitted the pint-sized lady who's become a giant-sized talent in the industry.
But, she admits, too, there are some other advantages to staying away from the camera lens.
"I try to keep myself up on fashions, and wear my hair in the latest styles, but only because I want to I don't have to, and believe me, that's a nice difference!
"I don't have to worry about costume changes. I could show up for work in slacks if I liked. And, nicest of all, I'll never have to go through the horrible worries of most actresses: fear that you might grow too old for a part, that a line upon your face means you've aged yourself out of the business."
THE ONLY thing June must worry about is her voice, that remarkable voice that can shift from a Russian accent in the middle of a sentence, to the sexy one which she portrayed on the Bandini commercials, to the twang of a teenage Southern lad which Walt Kelly decided is the proper sound for Pogo Possum.
Among the countless narration chores she's handled has been the squeaky, saccharine-tinted lisp of the Chatty Cathy doll. Millions of children and their parents have grown accustomed to the recitals of charmin' Chatty.

She’s Pogo Miz Bus O' And Cathy
By HARVEY PACK
TV Key Writer
NEW YORK — If you own a TV set you've heard June Foray’s voice. In fact you may have heard June eight or ten times during the same day without ever actually listening to her normal speaking voice.
June Foray is the leading lady in a small clique of Hollywood performers whose vocal characterizations are in constant demand for commercials and cartoons. Her biggest TV hit, “The Pogo Special Birthday Special," starring the familiar Walt Kelly creations and featuring the many voices of June Foray will be telecast again on NBC Sunday.
For one thing June plays the title role—Pogo. But why hire a large staff of actors when Miss Foray manages to come up with just the right tones for Mlle. Hepzihah. Miz Bug and five other assorted roles. She’s a one woman mob scene and her voice has been her fortune ever since she began in radio as a teen-ager in a children’s series entitled “Lady Make Believe."
This big and precious voice belongs to a charming and literate lady. The valuable larynx is housed in a petite 4-foot-11 frame but boasts a range of 6 to 70 plus animal voices capable of satisfying the imagination of youngsters.
A lot of you may even have June’s voice hiding in your youngster's toy closet. She is the voice of the famous Chatty Cathy doll which says “I love you” and other assorted things to little girls who pull its string.
Miss Foray made the master tape for the doll for a flat fee. But when her husband novelist Hobart Donovan caught a TV commercial for the toy which used that master tape to help sell the doll the Donovans went to court and the voice of Chatty Cathy was awarded commercial residuals.
“I’m rather pleased about Chatty Cathy" she says. “Of course I have a special adult version in which Chatty says a few naughty things after she admits she loves you."
For a change of pace and a chance to be a ham, June occasionally accepts roles in TV shows where she is seen, even though wasting a full week on an episode generally costs her in recording fees. She did a Mexican lady on a recent "Green Acres," and has been seen in sketches on the Red Skelton Show.
In addition to the "Pogo" special where she does seven voices, June's cartoon credits include Jerry in "Tom and Jerry," Rocky and Natasha in "Bullwinkle," and starring roles in "Drummer Boy," "Frosty the Snowman" and "How the Grinch Stole Christmas."
Not only does the Hollywood voice clique earn huge fees but they frequently have so much fun they go overtime because of breaking up over dialogue."
With a lot of the animators the job is such a ball you think you're stealing when you get paid. The big problem is turning down jobs when you're overbooked because if they request me and I can't make it they may have to postpone the recording session. I don't know whether I'm that good . . . maybe they're just used to me."
There are times when the schedule can get out of hand. One of June's favorites is Stan Freberg who always uses her talents on his records and commercials. The trouble is that Freberg works weird hours.
"He's a night person. Once I had a day job and his office put in a call for me for 7 p.m. and, for Stan, I accepted. After recording all day I showed up at seven . . . no Stan. He arrived at nine but he hadn't written the script yet. We worked all night which meant I had been recording for almost 24 consecutive hours. That's what happens when you work for a genius."
No matter how many voices she's doing in the same show she always manages to come up with the right one at the right time which is a tribute to her professionalism. Her list of credits attests to her ability. And, as for talking to the real June Foray . . . she's such a nice lady we never even asked her to do one of her voices because we enjoyed her natural one.