Although Thurl Ravenscroft’s name may not be familiar to Disney fans, his voice is. Probably best known to television audiences as the voice of Kellog’s Tony the Tiger, a character he’s played since 1952, Thurl is a favorite among Disney vocal performers. His voice has been featured in Disney theme park attractions, such as Country Bear Jamboree, on television programs, such as “Zorro,” and animated films including “Lady and the Tramp.” In fact, Walt Disney selected Thurl and his quartet, The Mellomen, to croon, as well as bark, whine and howl like canines in the delightful 1955 classic.
Thurl later recalled, "The most fun we (The Mellomen) ever had was singing barbershop for Tramp and the other dogs. “Walt wanted the dogs to sing ‘Home Sweet Home’ from their prison cell – a kennel. But we had to sound like dogs, not people singing like dogs.”
Born in Norfolk, Nebraska in 1914, Thurl headed for Hollywood in 1933 to attend the Otis Art Institute. In 1937, he joined The… read more
Although Thurl Ravenscroft’s name may not be familiar to Disney fans, his voice is. Probably best known to television audiences as the voice of Kellog’s Tony the Tiger, a character he’s played since 1952, Thurl is a favorite among Disney vocal performers. His voice has been featured in Disney theme park attractions, such as Country Bear Jamboree, on television programs, such as “Zorro,” and animated films including “Lady and the Tramp.” In fact, Walt Disney selected Thurl and his quartet, The Mellomen, to croon, as well as bark, whine and howl like canines in the delightful 1955 classic.
Thurl later recalled, "The most fun we (The Mellomen) ever had was singing barbershop for Tramp and the other dogs. “Walt wanted the dogs to sing ‘Home Sweet Home’ from their prison cell – a kennel. But we had to sound like dogs, not people singing like dogs.”
Born in Norfolk, Nebraska in 1914, Thurl headed for Hollywood in 1933 to attend the Otis Art Institute. In 1937, he joined The Sportsmen Quartet, performing on the popular Jack Benny radio show. He later formed The Mellomen, which appeared with such popular artists as Elvis Presley, and in such films as “The Glenn Miller Story,” starring James Stewart.
The Walt Disney Studios often hired Thurl and his quartet to sing in its animated films including “Alice in Wonderland” and “Cinderella,” and television programs including “Cavalcade of Songs” and “The Legend of Elfego Baca.”
Other Disney classic films that Thurl lent his voice to include “101 Dalmatians,” “The Sword and the Stone,” “Mary Poppins,” “The Jungle Book,” “Pete’s Dragon,” “The Fox and the Hound,” and more.
At Disneyland, his resonant voice can be heard singing vocals in It’s a Small World, Pirates of the Caribbean and Splash Mountain, while in the Enchanted Tiki Room, he performs the voice of Fritz the German Audio-Animatronics parrot. Thurl is not just heard, but seen in the Haunted Mansion. Guests often mistake his mustachioed face, which is featured on a broken bust in the graveyard scene, for that of Walt Disney.
Thurl also performs on such Disneyland Records as “Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day,” and in 1990, he sang a version of the Haunted Mansion’s whimsical theme song “Grim Grinning Ghosts” on “Disney’s Sing Along Songs – Disneyland Fun.”
Among Thurl’s non-Disney credits, his voice can be heard in several Dr. Seuss television specials, including “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” in which he sang the memorable “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch.” He also played the voice of Kirby, the vacuum, in “The Brave Little Toaster,” which is often aired on The Disney Channel.
Thurl Ravenscroft died on May 22, 2005, in Fullerton, California. —Disney Legends
