June Foray, the voice of Rocky the Flying Squirrel, dies at 99
You might not have known actress June Foray by name, but if you grew up watching classic cartoons from the 1960s, you almost certainly know her voice. Foray, who died overnight at age 99, was the voice of Rocky the Flying Squirrel and his Cold War enemy Natasha Fatale on “The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.”
“We are mourning the passing of animation’s best friend,” said Jerry Beck, the president of the animation trade group ASIFA-Hollywood, of which Foray was a founding member. “She has touched so many lives: with her voice of so many classic cartoon characters, her efforts to create ASIFA, to maintain the Academy’s Oscar for Best Animated Short and her leadership in crafting the category of Best Animated Feature. She was one of a kind. A trailblazer, a great talent and a truly wonderful person. We will never forget her.”
Foray was also a part of one of the most beloved holiday specials of all time, playing Cindy Lou Who in “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” for which she won a Grammy in 1968. She also brought life to Granny from “The Bugs Bunny Show,” creepy doll Talky Tina of “The Twilight Zone” and Jokey from “The Smurfs.”
Foray is also credited with coming up with the idea for the Annies, the awards show for the animation industry, a tradition that began in 1972. She won four Annies herself, including two consecutive trophies for her work on “The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries” in 1997 and 1998.