Rob Paulsen & Bill Farmer (Goof Troop Reunion)

How you doing out there? It's me Tigger Duc Wayne Duck. It's me
Bunkers Deep Bobcat. All right, y'all, is it Ry your favorite firefly
you desire? Hold the old knock guy. My name is Jim Cummings and
welcome to tuned In. Well, everybody, welcome to tuned in with Jim
Cummings. We've got producer Chris here. We've got Brendan. Are you out
there? Brendan? Where is it? There he is? And nothing other
than the world famous Rob Paulson. Hey, Jimmy, I mean, are
you kidding? We got one third of the Animaniacs and Bill Farmer. Okay,
come on down, Thank you man, thanks for having us. Thanks,
this is so great. Yes, well, thanks for you. Were
just in the neighborhood. I slid on down. Yeah, and all officers
right down the road on the way back. Yes, yes, yeah,
he's a nice guy, good guy. I like him. Thank you me
too. We've always gotten alan and we'll welcome to our humble abode, our
humble thanks for you know this thing was here? Yeah, this is this
is a in the treehouse up behind my house. Yeah. So security is
really great because of the pad key pad you got curious if your bill farmer,
he's going you know, that'll keep most people on. Yeah, numbers,
how hard can it be? Yeah, yeah, more than four keep
you out by giving you the right combination. But but but but but yes,
Well, welcome guys, Thanks for being here. Pleasure to be here.
Jim. We usually run into each other at comic cons these days.
Yeah, we don't run each other in the not at not at work,
you know, yeah at work. Oh, Jim was just in. Oh
he's coming in in an hour, and yeah, you never see anybody anymore.
I like all you guys. We're old Hollywood dogs. Man. I
I miss that, ye do, I me too. I was driving into
today thinking, as we've spoken so many times, about how unbelievably fortunate we
are to not only be still working, but the people with whom we've worked,
who are still our best friends in the world. Oh yeah, Tress,
unlike any business in the world. All these people in there, Oh
my god, how did they We're still here? And every time I go
to a con and I go I know every one of those people. I've
been to every one of those persons homes, most of them been to my
home. I would want all these people at my funeral. We're that close?
And how did we we all are? We stuck it out? Well,
I hope we're not at your funeral? Is not right away? Right
away? I know too many people money, but I h yeah that's right.
But yeah, yeah, it's so true. Well, I always upset
it. You know. It's the stuff that used to get me kicked out
of Corya. Amen. That's what you do here. I get to hang
out with these guys. Yeah, sure, be working for a living.
And look, there's there's America in the world. Hello, the world and
the Christopher he America. Yeah. Yeah. By the way, speaking of
America, do you know of any other I'm not going to do I'm not
going to do that. I have a couple of edibles from down the street.
We're just talking United, a bunch of New countries. Yes, yeah,
Rob has this thing, and he I will not embarrass him into doing
it. The most astonishing thing is that I've seen you do it at conventions
and you just stand up and do it. Well, thank you. Does
anybody know what I'm talking about there? I want to make sure everybody knows,
because it's pretty boding. In the animated acts, your character names what
ya goo? Well, he's yeah, he's of the world right, of
the war, world right. But all the countries everyone, I think I've
heard the average States to United States, Canada, Mexico, Panama, hated
your makeup, per rout, Republics, Dominic and Cubica, Raby and greenlandos
habad or two and he goes on and on and on and on. But
we're all good at our jobs, fair enough. But man, we live
in Hollywood. You can throw a dart and hit a good singer. I
mean, Jimmy is a world class sisser. Okay, what you can't do
is throw a dart and hit somebody who writes that shit. And the backstory
to that song is we you know, Randy Roguel, ok our buddy,
Randy Rogual, who wrote The States and the Capitals, Jacko's World. He
wrote, it's a great, big universe, and we're really puny. We're
just tiny little specks about the size of Mickey Rooney. You might think that
you're essential, try and consequential. It's a big universe and you're not all
that stuff. Here's the backstory, though, Randy. I'll make it brief.
But Randy was writing on Batman, the animated series as a young guy,
and he heard across the hall that the people who did Tiny Toon Adventures,
Tom Ruger Steven Spielberg are now doing a show called Animaniacs Clean sheet of
Paper, music, heavy full orchestra. Randy said, well, my background
is musical comedy, and I can I write music. Knocked on the door
to Tom Ruger. Tom said, look, you just want an Emmy for
writing Batman. You know you do that. We're good. We got re
covered finally, Tom the producer said creator. So I tell you what,
Randy, you go home and you write a song in the context of Animaniacs
and bring it in and if we like it, you can write for us.
That was his audition piece. He wrote that yet countries of the world
spec brought it in and said what do you think about this? Tom ddddn't
United States can? And so that was the first song he wrote, and
the first song I recorded for that bar from the beginning was so I love
telling that story because one of the smartest things I think all of us did,
whether it was inadvertently or on purpose, was to surround ourselves with people
who are so freaking talented that they became kind of frighteningly inspirational, you know,
like Phil Hartman. I remember working with Phil where does that come from?
And it terrified me? But all you guys we first time we'd meet
each other and go, Jesus, where did that come from? Or Tress?
You know Nancy. Anyway, thank you for bringing that. That's a
great story. Yeah, unbelievable. And I can't believe that you know them
all. I can't with with lead, you know, sheet music, I
mean it goes away. Well, I couldn't remember. I've done that a
lot. And we also take animacs and concert around the country. Now,
yes you do, so we just did. In fact we should. We
should get a plug in here and where will you be up peering? Can
you tell us? We just finished? We did. The last two shows
were in Malibu Pepperdine and then last Saturday at UCSD. There's a beautiful amphitheater
at the uc San Diego. So we're done now until the fall. So
it's convention time. Luckily all the we get. We all are so fortunate
to meet so many of you at these cons which are springing up. Like
zit's on a twelve year old man and I'm Yeah, that great. Yeah,
get this out of the house. Yeah, no, kid, Yeah,
come see us and please What does the ANIMI x LAT experience entail?
What do you get when you get to Oh, thank you for asking.
Well, what's great about it is we can we can scale the show to
whether it's my Randy Roguelle, myself and a piano. Most of the shows
have Randy me and our mutual buddy Maurice the brain LaMarsh and Randy has written
specific proprietary songs and bits for Pinky in the Brain and when we of course
we've got to deal with Warner Brothers by which we're able to use all the
animation and it's just a blast. But we also can scale it all the
way up. We did it with the eighty eight piece Toronto Symphony three weeks
ago, twenty six hundred people. Oh mys and uh world class symphony.
That's all those If you're the if you're the bassoon player in the Toronto Symphony,
that's all you do. Wow. And it was Moe's birthday and he's
from Toronto and it was spectacular. That is when you have you know,
when you have that many professional players behind you, it's just mind boggling.
So we can do it in a club or a small theater. We did
it at Pepperdine at the Smothers Brothers Theater, the Smothers Theater and Nancy Cartwright
joined us. Oh wow really so it's a blast. We love that you
guys showed us too. Come on out, somebody to sing a song with
the Animaniacs love a ball. Sure. I think I was saying a few.
Oh yeah, you were on the show and out. Yeah, thank
you for asking me. It's un and to the extent people are interested,
and they can go to Animaniacs Live dot com to check out dates which will
be coming up later this year and into next year, or my website which
is Rob Paulson Voice dot com and they get all those dates will be up
there. It's great beats lifting stuff. Wow, very cool. Thank you
you've got your orders out there. Thank you for asking. Yeah, there
you go. Good stuff. Man. We did this movie called Goofy movie,
right turns out come to find out? Do you remember that? Yeah?
I do slightly. Yeah, yeah, that's my impression of you wor
things. So you're you're obviously very safe. Yeah, they know they know
AI happened there. Yeah, Yeah, that's a real damn deal. Thank
god, thank god, you know we're still doing this. Yeah, all
my intelligence is artificial, so it doesn't bother me a bit. Well,
so I don't even have that, so well, Jenny's a drummer. Remember
years ago, well, yeah, when they started making drum machines and emulators
and medes and stuff. And we were both in rock and roll bands.
Yeah, And I remember in the mid seventies traveling around the Midwest doing rock
and roll at you know, cover bands, and I saw so many bumper
stickers that would say drum machines have no soul. Yes, yeah, and
it was true and they don't, right, And that's why we love Jimmy
and Steve Gadd and all these guys who can really nuance the drum. But
to me, and I know that technology has really expanded, but I hesitate
to say this because I'm sure before I check out, they will teach AI
things to act. But I hear stuff, and I can still hear it's
not organic. Yeah, And I don't know if that's wishful thinking or it
really is true that, you know, drum machines have no soul. And
my son is a drummer, a drummer, and yeah, he said,
No, one wants to go see a laptop on us. You know,
it's like there's something organic about it that you want to see a performer.
You want to hear a performer. Yes, you can do it on a
drum track or you know, yeah, loses something, Yeah, really loses
something. Yeah, they're soulless. Well that's what we found. It really
is it is, and that's what we've found doing our concerts. I think
all of us have learned because we're you know, we're old dogs. We've
been around until the advent of all these conventions that we are so impossibly blessed
to attend. We knew people were watching because we were working. You had
an inkling, Yeah, you'd get another. Really didn't understand, Yes,
the depth you guys, Oh my god, Billy and Jimmy and I and
are we honestly never knew the extent to which these characters connect with people,
to their souls. And we all have heard, especially Jimmy with winning the
well all the Disney stuff, the stuff we hear through tears about parents and
their children or very people who had possibly difficult childhoods, and they tell if
it weren't for dot dot Are you hitting me? So? And they know
they know more of my performance than I do. They'll quote stuff that you've
done, you know, twenty years ago, you know, and got Trope
and the third episode you had a dinosaur again. You put the dinosauria in
a closet. Why did you do that? I don't know where my keys
are. I've been wondering, why did you do that? Yeah? Can
we finally put that to rest? Yeah? Wait, I think and wait
a minute. It was Stiggy, wasn't it. I can't believe you remember
that? My god, Yeah, it was me and it was it was
a comic. Yeah, little pieces come back in time. I'll remember that
thirty to Stiggy. That was Stigy in the morning. Yeah yeah, and
he came back like ninety or something like that. Yeah. Okay, geez,
I can't believe got them, my goodness, because I can't remember my
phone number. Yeah yeah, where's my wallet? I don't Yeah. No,
it's very interesting as we the sort of hopefully normal aspects of getting a
bit older. I can remember not only lyrics to the songs I do how
doy, but lyrics to so many rock and roll songs. I grew up
listening to you know, seely Dan song all day long. Oh yeah stuff,
But I can't remember when did it come to the garage for yeah yeah
on the way in here. The ostensible reason for this lovely mini reunion is
the fact that we were all on goof Troop and then it spiled into a
Goofy movie. And I was saying, these two rock stars when I got
here, we were all invited down to D twenty four. Well, you
guys go to D twenty three all the time, your Disney legend. Sure
yet, but I've only been invitedy once. And I went down whatever it
was eight or nine years ago. Your wife called me. Jen said,
hey, Rob, are you available? They're doing this wonderful celebration of the
twentieth anniversion. She called everybody and set that up. Even we were going
to give a ride to Tevin Campbell. Yeah, we didn't have a ride
down there, and so week it was so sweet. I got down and
I thought, well, yeah, that sounds like a blast. I get
to see everybody. Little did I know? Jen set me straight. When
I got there. I said, wow, I hope somebody shows up,
and she said, oh, honey, and she pulled up you two.
Yeah, yeah, and she had either Goofy movie or Tevin Campbell or something.
Yeah, twelve million views, and I said that'll do no idea.
Well, the place held a thousand people and they had to turn a bunch
of people away. There were people outside listening in through the walls. Oh
my god, they had we were like drowning out the the panel net margin
and everything. What's going on over there? Let's go see that one drowning
out the construction site next door. Yeah. Yeah, tell these folks we
were saying about the Star Wars thing that that seemed. Oh they had on
blogs and stuff like that. They listed the top ten panels to go see.
Ours wasn't even listed in the top ten. Wow. But they had
to get a bigger room for us because of all the people wanting to see
it. And ultimately it became number one fan favorite, beating out the Star
Wars panel. And they had George Lucas and Harrison Ford. So yes,
I think people liked it. Yeah about that And yeah, so I was
remember driving home, called my son and said, hey, man, do
you and Basola watch you ever watched a Goofy movie? He there was this
dead air and he said, well, yeah, we watched it probably four
or five times. Yeah, and it does like didn't you know? And
I have since learned after all these conventions people come up all the time with
goofy movie stuff. They and that one Jason Marsden did not get to sing
songs together with me, right, And we did that before we actually started
recording. Yeah, the Open Road and nobody else but you. But since
they had Aaron lor who's freaking of Jason's and Jason was talking to Aaron,
Hey, what's you up to? Yeah, I'm doing this goofy movie thing.
They got some singer they can't sing, and he lost me. It's
me, you know, But no he can. And so we rectified that
at that particular D twenty three and we sang the Open Road together, and
yeah, they should have used Jason because he easily can sing that and did
a great Yeah it's not an opera. Yeah, Jason isn't able to join
us today or who's Max, But man, I have to I know I'm
preaching to the choir out there. But Billy, the acting job that you
and Jason as father and son did hit every fricking in my heart. It
was brilliant. I know Kevin Lima did a great job, but your performances,
you and absolutely the angst that dropped me off here. Dad, I
don't want you to you know I I love my kid, but how do
I get how do it's that beautifully acting that was tough to get in the
beginning because it's emotions that we never really had to explore with that now with
those Jason especially says his favorite scene in the movie is with the Pete and
Goofy in the hot tub, which was so real. I'm thinking that's too
much me, that's that's not enough Goofy. But it worked. It worked
like a charm, and that if everybody I know, including my son and
now he's forty, we've been through a lot of that stuff, right Oh
yeah, So to watch that as a father and going back to with my
dad figure trying to figure stuff out, and kid gets tearful every time he
sees it. And it's beautifully written, beautifully directed. But you and Jason,
it's wonderful work and very kind. Well we did that old true.
I've recorded over a two year period on that. They took their time,
They canceled scenes, characters, redid stuff back and back and back, and
about a two year recording period. It's that off and on, utterly timeless.
And what I love about the fact that you guys and all of us
are lucky to be working, but you guys get to do sort of more
high profile Disney legend stuff, you know, movies and all that. And
because of Winnie the Pooh. I remember about whatever three or four years ago
when Christopher Robbin was coming out, and I remember seeing the trailer and being
with Jimmy and said, Jimmy, that move. You lit that movie up.
Months later, the cover of Vanity Fair magazine, I've had Ewan McGregor
on it, and that the headline was, there is an Oscar winning performance
and Christopher Robinson Christopher Robinson right Robin and it's not Ewan McGregor, it was
Jimmy. And that's what does surprise at all, not a bit. That's
my point. Acting is acting, folks. These two guys light it up
every time they do it, and those two performances with what a pleasure.
I've gotten to know these guys for the last thirty five four years, and
so it's it's absolutely as it should be. You guys are movie stars.
There's never a comic con that I go to that is a lot of people
don't bring that up. It's the number one thing anyone talks about at my
table, and it's it's like, now it's been so long this. I
used to take Max's side of the whole thing, and now I take I
got three kids on my own. I understand what he was talking about.
Yeah, it's not so funny anymore now had my dad, it's just a
big turn to punch. Oh my god, there's not enough weed in the
world from my old man. There's no booklet on how to be your dad
out all right, dad? Oh my god, my dad forged. You
never thought I saw that coming. Yeah, we had so much fun in
that member under your thumb you said, pull the finger. Well that too,
yeah, sage advice, very sage. My mom, your wife was
April Winchell right, Your daughter was Nancy Cartly right, and then well,
actually that's still peached, that's our daughter, your daughter. Yeah, I
just had Max. You just had Max. But I always thought, and
we don't know who he married. Yeah, no, I mean we don't
know. We never know what missus goofy was like. Right, No,
we never know. There was never a backstory. There was. He appeared.
She actually appeared in seven cartoons though really in the fifties when Goofy went
through this change and they made him more of an every man. Uh,
George Geefe didn't need date Clara Belle. There was kind of special Musketeers.
There was a kind of a yeah, they kind of fell in love a
little bit. They had a thing going with Mickey Goofy And yes, absolutely,
and I know you're yeah, it's a small world after all. Yeah,
and Chris o'tsukn't but don't sing it. I don't know, I won't.
But Chris O'tsuki wrote lyrics to the Blue Danube, you know, yeah,
and it was a charming little movie. That was a great movie.
And but I didn't know that you there was actually a Missus Goofy years ago,
right, Yes, there was in some of the George you never saw
her face. Oh she had red hair, but they kind of showed human
human figure and hair and it almost looks like Cinderella from the side and you
just get a glimpse of the face, but they never showed and it's like,
arn'ts go out and you know, get some apples. But Goofy was
always a dog? Yeah right, yeah, well his original name was a
dippy dog. And people come up to me all the time I heard Goofy
was a cow and no, that's Clara Belle. You're thinking of dippy dog.
No, but he makes it with one. Yeah, human wife,
Goofy. You animals never know. It's a strange universe, you know.
And what about Pluto? Okay you might have been have dogs as pets,
I don't know. Yeah, that's that's a weird one. Yeah, you're
talking to him. You're looking at listening to a bunch of guys who make
their living doing essentially we got some trouble in seventh grade. Absolutely, yeah,
yeah, well I always never understood how that was. I remember as
being a little kid going, okay, so Goofy's a dog, right and
Pluto is a dog? And how come Pluto's not talking? And why he
is Goofy? Yeah? And why can't why can't get that question? Every
comment? Yes? Yeah, do you? Yeah? What is? Well?
The way I came up, there's no official thing. Goofy's kind of
an anthropomorphic dog, you know, he's a he's a dog, he's a
man. Dog. Yeah, canus goofuss Maximus? Nice? Canus goofus Maximus?
I like that? They know what? The coolest thing with both these
guys is being having known them for so long and getting to sit next to
them at comic Con after comic Con, and man, the number of people
I see get tearful men and women when Jimmy start, it's riffing as Winnie
the Pooh, It's priceless. And then say with Billy, so that all
Billy has to do is say and people flip out. It is the most
glorious thing to watch. It's just precious. I can't get enough of it.
Well, it's nice because you can see all of a sudden, you
know, this guy's forty five years old, and you say, we would
you press the honey and you can just see I'm five, I'm five.
It's so cool. If it's a interesting you feel they're shaking shaking. Yeah,
but that's the stuff we never to. You guys want to And and
my god, it happened. Maurice and I were at an event in Denver,
Dallas a few years ago and had a nice you know line at an
event, and there was a gentleman who was uh, all tatted out long
ponytail six and six big guy comes up and I said, hey, god,
a big one, don't you And he just he just went and folded
up. He said, I'm sorry, man, I don't know what's happening.
I said, yeah, my god, I'm I'm so sorry, hop
And it turns out it's unusual. He just said, I had to tell
you. I drove a couple of states away. I did three tours of
Dude in Iraq, and my job was to kill the bad guys and I
could kill myself. And then we go back after being on patrol and have
a couple of beers and watch Pinky and there you wow, hitting that's awesome.
And it happens to fans of all the work we've done. How on
earth can you quantify that compliment? You know, it's just I just tell
you as a blessing. You don't get that point of view at you know,
when we're in the studio, No, I mean, because it's basically
just you got a you know, your script, a microphone and a chair
and that's about it, and the director kind of down you do the lines.
You never know where it goes. But the comic cons we get a
chance to hear this from the It's it's really mind blowing. It is,
And all it does is give all of us who are so unbelievably fortunate to
do this. It gives us a perspective that is bigger than our paycheck.
It's bigger than ratings, it's bigger than merchandise. It is about a pure
connection of joy that literally changes people's lives who knew. Yeah, I love
it so much, God, Jim And then you can go back to being
a jerk and you even out. You gotta work hard on that. I
got out there. I gotta really I love to talk some more, but
I got a couple of strippers in the room. Yeahey, matter of fact,
we used to kid each other about Jimmy was on Ninja Turtles. We
still kid each other. But there's gonna be some day when when Cam and
Townshend and Barry and I are going to be at mall openings. You know,
you gotta we gotta date up old fiberglass ship well and green tights.
Okay, yeah, there you go. That's your name, Jimmy? Is
that your Is that your mom? You tell? Pretty good looking's a girl?
Yeah? I mean Oh my god, it's horrible. But now we're
there, We're now yeah, you know anyway, Yeah, it's pretty fun.
It's working for a living, yes, it does. And and then
that reminded me of the Tyson Chronicles, which, oh my god, to
bring it out. But Jimmy, I know this, okay, okay,
allow me. It was the worst thing in the woril is so confusing.
I used to just rip on Mike Tyson for some reason, Jimmy, and
we would go whatever, and I would just I couldn't help it. I
said, Jimmy, what does Mike Tyson think about this? And then he
would go off and it was so wrong. That's all I could do.
I could just I could not hold my breath. He would start ripping is
Mike Tyson, and it was just I forgot about that beautiful you brought it
out of me. Thank you for bringing it up. Well, it's gonna
stay in bed, yo, because Mike, you know what I'm saying.
Mike, it's not probably English up to where he could speak with all these
different he he have a different word for everything. It is confuted, scrutinized
the way. Don't scrutinize with my brain yeah, yeah, I forgot about
Oh my god, Jimmy, that was like twenty five years ago. It
still lights me up. God, bless you. Oh my god. We'll
do that follow this stuff absolutely. And that's what was so great about like
goof Troop is we got to do a song. Yeah, oh I agree,
Oh god, that was fun. Yeah, Frank yeah, yeah,
we get noises and we have little Dana Hill. Yeah. Yeah, Oh
my goodness, that was so much. Oh god, that was so that
was good stuff. You know they uh speaking of that. I mean we're
all still working here and there not a ton, but I miss everybody being
in the studio. Jimmy, me too, because it's all flying solo.
I mean, even if you high five each other in the hall, it's
not the same. We're always asked, look, you know we have a
gig. You know, we know it's convenient for you to record at home
or you can do it here. I said, I'm in I sure,
I don't want to record. Yeah, we know all the recording engineers,
yeah, casting people, and I always I have a blue collar approach to
me too, call her career yeah you know wait wait yeah, I'm a
journeyman and very proud to be. But I love being in the studio.
Yeah, I do quite often, but because my son's an audio engineer and
so him a few bucks and he runs the board and everything, so I
don't after it's no different, really, And I'm still seeing Kelly Ward or
director on zoom basically, and that's kind of what it is. You know.
You can just look through the glass and see him, or you can
see him on a zoom and a lot of the other people are usually on
zoom, so it's not that much different. But I still like the feel
of a studio and in the hallway you get to see people and you just
remember Jimmy and I got to work with Jimmy doing Taz on Tasmania every Friday
at a studio called what was that called? Uh oh, who's out there
in Glendale sound casts? Yeah, every Friday for like two years, I
think, every single Yeah, oh my god, Jimmy Cummings, Maurice LaMarsh,
Dan Kat Homer, Dan Castlen, Miriam Flynn. Miriam was in most
of them. Oh, Debbie dry Berry. Every I left every one of
those sessions unable to speak because I was I laughed. We just had for
four hours. Yeah, and oh my god. It what spectacular memories.
Yeah, yeah, absolutely, and that Tasmania. I guess where would that
be now, I guess I'm there somewhere. Yea, So they're probably all
on Friday somewhere. They're out there, you know, he knows in the
universe some where is it. I'd be on well one about his discovery.
They have their own streaming app now, right, surely? Yeah, it
made it was great and we did that. We all got to do the
oh no you you and Jess did they come? Oh? Yeah, yeah,
yeah you did you? Oh you know what. That's an interesting little
tid bit at the end of the Tasmania theme song, did we me and
you at that? That was the very very very very first thing that ever
came out of my mouth this task because they used the audition and I said,
I said, yeah that he because he was asking me, does that's
some for me? And I got yeah, I think it's me And he
goes, no, no, no, I mean but when was it you?
And I go I don't know. He goes, it's the first thing
you ever did. Holy crap, really no way, he goes, yep,
you know llo the mad genius man talking about nailing it right out of
the chute. Yeah. Yeah, I was really honored. I said,
thanks, And that's a cool story and I should tell it more often.
Moe played your dad Crosby blah blah blah. Yeah that's yeah, Jesus,
it was a snipping Crosby. That's that's genius. Yeah, that was a
good stuff. That was good stuff. They don't make him like that anymore,
No, damn it. Were we lucky to do all that stuff?
Yeah? Yeah, well that we were talking about it earlier. The Princess
and the Frog was the very last hand held or animated and boy do I
sing your praises literally about that character. But justiflys the way it looks,
yeah, well raise good. Oh no, ray Jimmy. Somebody asked me,
I forgot what I was working on, and oh, I know what
it is. I'm doing this show for Hulu called Fright Crew, which is
an animated vampire thing that takes place in Louisiana. Yes, okay, so
somebody said, oh, do you do a cajun? I said no,
I don't have to do it, but if I did, I would just
say don't. I'm not even gonna try. Just call jim because all you
got to do is listen to two minutes of Ray the Firefly and he said,
oh my god, you're so but it's perfect. Jim. Thanks,
and then you sing Randy Newman songs. Yeah, that's fun, like that
beautiful movie. Not as many people know that movie as they should. Beautiful.
It's great. It is beautiful, man. I just watching it for
Ray is worth the pressure. Initially, you thank you. We have it
for the rest of us, will you? Yeah? Yeah, yeah,
right, well I had it was nice. He had a chance to see
Keith David. Yeah, doctor Fasilier, sure, just recently did he do
it? Yeah, he's doing whatever he wants looking good, you know,
styling good for him, you know, doing this thing he was. Uh.
I worked with him on the New Orleans. I worked with him on
Amphibia. He was what was the King? He did? He did one
of the Gargoyles. Oh yes, yeah, he was Goliath. He was
Goliath. Yeah, voice Jesus. Yeah, Rich is a He narrated the
jazz Ken Burns Jazz all that, like eight volume, ten volumes. I
remember that. Yeah, it was wonderful, wonderful stuff. Great guy.
Speaking of Deep, I saw a comic con a couple of months ago,
Frank and Peter are going around doing a lot of them as optimists and really
yeah, and is it ever cool? Yeah, it's so cool. Those
guys es iconic. Forget it. I was I directed the I always thought
Frank was the Beatles. Yeah, that's why I've thought of it. I
think Frank. Yeah. But I directed the last iteration of Ninja Turtles at
Nickelodeon called Rise of the Team and t And there was a point at which
they the producers had these two bad guys and they were they hired Frank and
Peter. So I got a call and they said, Robbie, we're going
to bring the writers in because they're going to lose their minds. That Frank
and Peter thirty five years old. So uh, when they came in,
everybody, all the writers were there, like you know, like just total
thing. They had their transformers, action, everything to sign. You're so
excited. So when uh, before Peter, when I said, Peter,
when we do a mic track, just do Optimists. Yeah, no problem.
So fat Peter, we get another he goes autobots roll out and these
four or five thirty five year old boys, they just go nuts. Yeah.
One of them got tearful. The other ones are like, oh and
that's all all bots roll out. Yeah, that was it. Yeah,
it's incredible to watch that. Yeah, it's just beautiful. It's yeah,
it's so good. Yeah. And Peter's like, he's he was it.
Oh, in fact, I remember when the hell of an e or by
the way, yeah he does, he does. Who's doing John Field the
piglet? Uh, well, it was travel he hasn't haven't done it a
long time, Travis oates, he's you know, he did it any and
he's right there. Uh. And I remember we when when he was auditioning
for some reason, they had me there and I said, okay, this
is fine and and this is this is really silly. But he's he was
doing it. And I said, he sounds really good. Can you speed
that up three percent? I just said that, good for you. I
just said it wor just and and and all of a sudden, piglet popped
up. Rick Dempsey looks at me and he goes, you have to my
job. Good for you, Jim. But but but it was perfect.
You know, Travis was perfect and probably probably sealed the deal for him.
So well, yeah, well he was happy. Yeah, good for you.
I thought they sped it up anyway, But then you meet John Filer
and he you know, well, it's like it's like Lorenzo doing Oh,
Garfield, Garfield, that's how he talked. That's him just speaking that,
Barry Gordon doing Donatello, that's how he spoke. Yeah, you know he's
got Yeah, this guy gets no work. I never done anything with this.
Maybe promos, Yeah, I guess that was it. Yeah, I'm
just yeah, I have to have a mask to hide behind. Well,
you know, we all do. Yeah, yes, it's just kind of
silly that all of us are. I still look around over my shoulder and
think, is somebody gonna tap me on the shoulders? Yeah? Wait a
second, rope it in the junior. Yeah, we've been paying you how
much to do this for how long? Yeah, that's got to be a
total bookkeeping error. I'm just glad the voice has stayed this long. Yeah,
yeah, just doing you know, I'm respecting one of these days.
Well, well, knock on wood. I think a lot of you know,
a lot of those guys, I mean, even Ernie Anderson until he
probably died in his mid seventies, I think, and smoked like a chimney,
but he sounded tonight on Vegas right to the end. You know,
yeah, that's so true. A lot of us. Michael Bell is eighty
five really yah something, Yeah, And I would say that if you were
here, by the way, so yeah, oh it's no, it's just
it's nuts man that we're able to They still do our gig. And I
have nice people out there watch, yeah, and have nice people have our
age come in here and make sure this happens. Right, yeah, that's
right, or third or third. Well, people don't know that I was
the entertainment of the Last Supper. Oh you're yeah, you were. Yeah.
My tough room, the Tough Room a party, I'll tell you,
you know. Yeah. My my stage name was Shy of Aramathea, What
Dessert And we had a ball we started to do I'll tell you that.
Judas so Judah said let's do karaoke. I said, okay, great after
my set, but you know that's said of a bitch. The first song
he did was Backstabbers, and I thought, and I thought, you know,
that's just ports show in a pet taste. But Jesus, it was
a hell of a party. So yeah, the good I'll tell you I'm
all right now, but I'm getting old Johnny. My last birthday cake like
a prairie fire. Yea. My wife's a lousy cook. I never knew
toast head bones. Yeah, over and over. Maurice used to open for
Rodney for like a year and a half, so he's got him all.
He You know, he had a whole stack of my wife's allows. He
cook. All the flies in the neighborhood got together and packed up the screen
door. Oh my god. She's no bargain either. She was voted most
likely to conceive. You know, I think first time I saw Mo was
on a Young Comedians thing. Yeah, way back when he opened for Rodney
for and SI commercial. Yeah. He was the Fuji videotape guy for Wife
Guy. Yeah. Yeah. And now he's half the voices on Futurama Yeah,
and still killing it as the brain and has the best fake burp in
the world. Oh my god, I've heard that I have not. We
did a thing on Animaniacs in fact, in which Jess Harnault's character Wacko the
Great Wakaratei performs at the Hollywood Bowl with the Blue Danube and the Orchestra.
It's or in the movie, the elk Elf. You know when what's drinks
all that, that's mo that That's what I was thinking of. I was
trying to come up with. Oh wow, see now that's when we do
it. When we do it with anima things, you're always the best,
you know, that little obscure thing always the best. Okay, that makes
sense. Whenever we do that with the animaniaction concert, the first thing he
leaves the stage, I said, how does your dad make a living?
You know? Yeah? And he also was the voice of in ed Wood,
which was a great movie, that Tim Burton movie. Yeah, he's
the voice of young Orson. Well it was I think vincetin Oprio who was
the actor. And Tim Burton is a big pinky in the brain fan.
So he said, I'm going to get the guy that does bring you never
know, inside baseball folks. Yeah, little cool stuff there. Yeah,
you can't get this everywhere. Yeah, right, Brendan, he's been mysteriously
quiet. Yes, well he's probably going Rob Paulson hasn't shut up that freaking
out. Sometimes he's going to know where to sit back and to shut up
you guys, just well I have not learned that. Yeah, yeah,
Well, thank God, you haven't. Thank god, none of us have.
I just I think there's a part of me that and I don't mean
to be too modeling, but there's a part of you go, well,
you know, we're we're closer to the end in the beginning, We've had
a remarkable wonder But I don't ever, ever, ever want to take any
of these opportunities. Thank you for granted I couldn't say fast, are you
kidding me? I get to hang out with you guys. I there will
ultimately come a time where you go, man, I want to life change.
I can't do this, you know. And yeah, these characters are
just life changing, they really are. And I get to hang out with
you guys. It's pretty cool. And when we get drunk and yeah,
no you haven't lived he heard goofy after he's drunk a little water, and
yeah, I still saying, oh, I would like another Jane, stop
you what's sound? Everybody looks what's going now? Yeah? Have I brought
this up? I feel like I did before. But the very first time
I met you, Bill was at the premiere of Roger Rabbit, And yeah
that was on the lot. The less Perkins, the better was there was
there the Less Moons. I remember that because my wife spilled a beer on
Bruce Willis. Wow. Yeah, yeah, okay, yeah, I'm so
sorry. Sorry, yeah did I Oh yeah, geez girl like it were
you guys both in Roger Ebbitt that I was? I was? That was
my first. I didn't do you in it, but I did some background
voices and the song at the end smiled, arn you smile, that's me.
And one time through I was doing Goofy by that time, and I
sang it as goofy just get him in there, but it's uncressure and well,
who did you play? Well? I was a bullet number two and
I was a lead weasel yea for as like all tons of me and Bob
Hoskins is my coolest thing man. Got to hang out in Griffith Park all
night all that, and they cut the whole thing ship. It was like
yeah, and I I wanted to steal that. Weel about this tall and
now and they were they were holding it like there and I had to be
off camera wearing a black velvet cloak so I wouldn't reflect any light in it.
And I was doing that. Yeah, yeah, you doing that?
Ready? Well, hey, come on Google, you know, and they
cut it. So I got my three little lines in as bullet number two.
Ullet number two, we had them, Andy Devine, Andy Devine,
you do that perfectly? Yeah, good old he was herb muddlefoot? Is
that right? In Dark One? I didn't know that I stole it.
It was me. Well, hey man, I stole I stole Uh there
you go, and I stole it for the first time. Was we did
it in the Oh God, it was where he played Chief Hound Fox and
Hounds too, And I swear to God, you nail that. We thank
you. I walked into l A Studios and Pat freaking Buttram was there on
another gig, and I know he was probably eighty five. Yeah, mister,
and I said, oh yeah, I said, mister Butcherm, what
a pleasure. I'm such a fan. I have to tell you. I
am. I'm doing you and the BA. Well that's ho, son,
I using my boss much no more. And so I thought, I gotta
I'll never get this chance again. So I said, well, it's such
a pleasure to meet you, mister Butcherm. I love Green Acres like anyone
with a pulse. Thank you, son, how are you? He was
a bud Bill comic and oh yeah, geenoutry sidekick. Right, So,
without missing a beat, how are you mister? But man, I'm great.
I just met me a five dollars hooker who validates. Yeah, I
look at that. Man. He was doing material on. His last movie
was a Goofy movie. Wow is that right? Yes? Yeah he is,
you know, that's all he was doing and the whole thing. And
he went in but he was like doing material. He had a gig that
night and he was doing Jack Palance, a roast for Jack. Oh my
god, and he was yeah, well there was actually the joke he said
was Bill, I'm gonna do this tonight. He says, who was the
Jack Palance? Yeah? Jack? You know you're amazing guy. You was
on the oscars and you just want doing one arm push ups and father time
has been very kind to you. But it looks like Mother Nature done kick
the hell out of your face. Yeah. Yeah, man, he was
doing material. Isn't that great? And he was just on and never stopped.
He passed away about six months after. Yeah We're gonna go Yeah he
uh, and I've done that a few times on some some shows. Yeah,
he lucked out and his autography, Did you really? Yeah? I
had him sign it on. It's in my living room. It's signed up
there, and it says, shoot low, they might be crawling. And
you know, what a great line, What a great line, and it's
right on. You know, it was ambling back then. It wasn't even
dream Works, you know. And he just signed a script. Shoot they
might be calling. It was so cool and I just you know, and
I got to hang out with him all night long. And he goes,
do you know what give me six good men in the board means? And
I said, I have no ideas. God damn, I don't. I
must have said that in forty movies. Oh man. And then and then
I said, so you and Gene Autry were, Oh yeah, down to
the Sportsman's Law. I pack there. I went over the water. I
went over there and I said to the bartender, I said, have you
seen Gene Autry? He said, you're standing? So I thought that was
cool? And how did we get so lucky? Yeah? God, God,
I remember an iconic dude just at l A Studios again. I remember
walking out of studio and coming the other way as Julie andrews, Oh,
same thing. I'm not going to get this chance again. I turn around.
Pardon me, Miss Andrews. Yes, I am so so oh not
at all. What may I help you? I said, well, I
just wanted to tell you, you know, what a pleasure and what all
of that. And it was like the first time she'd ever heard it.
Oh, took my hand with bro. Oh, thank you. What is
your name? Rob? Rob? Thank you? That's so very kind to
you an actress. Yeah, are you saying? I said, well,
yeah, oh, how lovely? Isn't it fun? I mean Mary Poppins
was sitting there telling me, and she could not have been more gracious.
She has to hear it every day. What a pro And it just shows
you, you know what, Junior, if you can cultivate anything resembling celebrity,
that's how you behave a woman who could behave anyway she wanted. Oh
yeah, she came into a recording session at Walt Disney World and we were
doing a big round table thing and was the most gracious person, Like you
say. What I do remember about that particular thing is we were doing a
thing with Mickey and Minnie and Rusie Taylor, who did many By the way,
the excuse me that Minnie and Mickey in real life were married Mary Wayne
on Wine and Corey Burton was there and we were doing a sketch and everything,
and there's a thing where I was doing Pluto and it's like he was
like in pain. And I can't remember why we were doing it. But
and during the show someone called up and said, my daughter's traumatized because someone
is mistreated. Oh it was Cruella Deville was mistreating Pluto and she so Rusie
insisted on saying open the mic I want to say, and and got on
the line with this girl and says, you know, it's just like a
cart tune. It's like a play. It's not real, and we're just
having fun. So right, Pluto Rot rot, you know, got to
do that. And everything was okay. But I mean, Russie, I
mean and Wayne. They were all were and you know, I don't think
I've ever seen two people more in love one another. It was both their
second marriages, and I will never forget. I was working with Rucy at
Last Studios and doing something Mickey Moss Clubhouses. I was toodles and Wayne walks
in from another session and right in the middle she said, oh, there's
my handsome there's at of my dreams, the sort of relationship that everyone would
aspire to. So of course I am cut from the cloth. I am.
And Wayne came in and they were canodling and they were just precious.
And I said, you know, you guys, this this is beautiful.
I would pay pretty much anything to hear what that bedroom sounds like. She
right away, they went right into it. They just they were wicked at
the same time that they were precious. It was fantastic. Well again,
I remember one of my favorite memories of Rucy was she was Mother Goose and
it was it was the talking toy and I did X amount of the things.
Back then there was Teddy, Ruxman and Mother Goose and she was she
was did some of those two, probably, yeah, probably, but you
know we were we were doing this show and she was doing Mother Goose,
and I guess it was I want the Princess of the Frog. I think
no relation to the movie, but but the beautiful Princess leaned over. It
gives the little frog right. I can't say you took like he she couldn't
do it. Everybody had to leave the room. Kissed the little frog right
on the tip of his little head was what it was right, and she
couldn't say she couldn't get to it because she could not get the other thing
out of her head. Oh well, my god. It was because of
mother Garusie is why we quit doing ensemble work. It was in the first
Your Breath. No, there was a show called Doctor Daisy, and so
Tress comes in as Daisy and she's she's also one to and I actually had
this is absolutely true. My line was, Gorsh dais Gorsh Daisy? Would
you blow on my boo boo? Because he'd hurt his knee and so happiest
place. See where we're going with this, Like fifteen minutes, I'm trying
to get this line out without laughing, and Rusie and Wayne are over there,
and then Wayne is like, gosh, what you bowing my booboo out
to that? And Rusie was just she was laughing thing so hard that she
did not make a sound. It was like, yeah, oh got him,
Yes, go facial. I used to call it facial. And it
was about that point. From that point on we started doing solo work.
Yeah, I'm sure we can't afford this last week, ye I want to
separate these on your boo boo, goofy and she can say absolutely, I
don't understand what it means about small world after all. Oh see, oh
god. In fact, we do that. Uh when we do Animaniacs,
we do a song called Yaco's Universe, and at the end it says where
let's see something about yeah we're, yeah, we're It talks about all the
planets and uh in there it's a big Yeah, it's a big universe,
and we were all thinking of our yeah, we're thinking it. So we
do a He says, well, that's not the original, and it's true.
There was another ending that said it goes like this. It goes and
it's part of a vast interplanetary system with everyone revolving around the Sun, with
Earth with mercury in between us, and after that comes Venus, and still
the solar systems just begun past the Earth and towards the stars, where we
find the planet Mars, which is over fifty billion miles away and orbiting,
and sat pattern our Jupiter, and Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto.
So we say, all together, it's a great, big universe and everyone's
a part of it. No one knows just where the understart of it.
We all live here together. It's our home forever. It's a small world
after And when we did that, Stephen's office called, that's a great ending.
Yeah, I can't do that, can't do it. So now we
do that and say we were not allowed to do it, but that with
the original ending. And so if you're going to mess with a mouse in
Burbank, that's not the mouse with whom you want to mess ask Florida.
Yeah, you know, so, oh my god, all this that's fun
this crazy stuff, that's yeah, that's funny, wow, funny. But
you guys, my god, the rest just left here. How you've been
doing thirty five years? Yeah, eighty well, eighty five, nineteen eighty
five, same with forty years almost same with uh tigger right, yeah,
on and off. I was tigger light. I was you know what,
Paul Paul Winchell God rested. So he was going back and forth. He
was, you know, knucklehead Smith. Tigger cured hunger. It's the logical
progression. And how long have you done? Goofy? But next januaryly be
thirty eight years? Good? And what did yoursebody? Sam? For twenty
years? And he did two cans that follow your nose. Oh yes,
it was. He took over for Paul Freeze. I was his nephew,
Is that right? Me and Townsend Coleman, Oh my god, we were.
We were the We were the nephews that is so sold a lot of
fruit loops man. Yeah. Man, Well we do that at our show
where I say, lady John mc close your eyes. You know you're watching
Saturday Morning TV. Yeah, little Ninja turtle jammys. And they cut the
commercial in your here, follow your nose Kellogg's, and so I said,
and they freak out and said, now, I just I do want you
to know that mister LaMarsh is petitioning the folks at Kellogg's too, include a
prescription for a zempic. Yeah, every box of you know, part of
your complete breakfast. But isn't that something that that you guys have done more
than a generation of iconic character and you've literally made them your own. You've
done it longer than Pinto Yeah. Oh yeah much, I would think,
you know. And well he left the studio for a while, and that's
why they did all those how to cartoons. Yeah, because they well the
beauty of skiing and all of those cartoons was that Paul was that Paul Freeze
doing No, I can't remember his name offhand, but it had that he
thought these things were real. He didn't even know they were cartoons. Oh
really, it was excellent the beauty of And Corey Burton does a great talk
of it. Yeah, he sure does. How talented is that guy?
Yeah? He really does. He wears the same clothes, I mean,
the same time every day, and what I cuts down on the Yeah,
I'm wasting the time farting around the safe and you know what I love.
I love about so many of us. But Billy West says, and he's
right, voice actors are fearless because we go into work and we are utterly
un self conscious. Rob I don't know. That doesn't really sound like a
like a talking weasel. Yeah, what's you can't be self conscious? And
he's got to go with it. When I had Corey on my part,
I love him so much, and he's very eccentric, and all these years
people like, well he's single, he's eccentric, he dresses the same check
this out. I had him on my podcast and we're talking about old announcers,
old actors and microphones and the microphones they use and he has encyclopedic knowledge
of microphone minutia. And we got done and I said, Corey, I
have to tell you, I am so impressed. You have an almost savant
like knowledge of this really cool stuff. And he looked at me sober as
a josh. He said, oh, well, I'm on the spectrum.
Yeah I am, I'm you And I said, well, well there you
go. That makes sense. Having known them all these years, it now
fits right now. But he said it on my podcast and I said,
he didn't look at it as being courageous. I said, Corey, you
probably don't know what you've done just by being authentic. I said, because
we know from all these events we go to, how many sweet artistic folks
we meet and their parents, and often we meet parents who, through tears,
will bring us their adult artistic children and say Jim Cummings. But for
my son was nonverbal till he was seven. Then he heard you doing blah
blah blah. He's always going to need help, but we brought him to
meet you. Those parents go to night, go to bed at night,
going we don't have a trust fund. What's going to happen when my thirty
five year old son who knows everything that Jim Cummings has ever done but can't
buy a slurpee on his heard what's going to happen. But at those events,
no one looks sideways at him. No, utterly and clear fans.
They're enjoying it great and they are genuine and they know more I do,
and their parents go, we can bring him or her here and for two
hours, ain't nobody going to mess with him. But when Corey did that
on my podcast, I said, Corey, someone is going to hear you
speaking about your incredible success, that you have your own home, you drive
your own tesla, you do your thing. I know it doesn't sound like
it to you. Sure enough. I was doing a con in Saskatoon,
Saskatchewan, and a woman brought her daughter, who was eighteen years old,
who heard Corey and she was autistic as well. Her mother heard it,
played it for her. She went to call an art college and now she's
working for Warner Brothers in Vancouver. Really as an animate real because Corey Burton
said, oh I'm autistic. Isn't that something? Wow, that's amazing.
It's just the greatest thing that we have this bully pulpit from which we can.
We can say, oh, oh, let me tell you about my
friend Corey. Yeah, you can do this. Yeah, it's Billy West
the same thing. On our very first episode, Billy admitted that he was
also on the spectrum. Is that right? That's why I wear CROs the
can't toe owe shoes. How about that? And I put that clip on
our podcast channel. You wouldn't believe the hundreds of comments of people going,
oh my god, I'm almost it's so important, it is so important.
It changed those people's lives by saying oh yeah, and and well if not,
if you did it, maybe wait a minute, yeah, maybe I
can. I mean, with the advent of social media and the way we
can connect with people like that, Jesus Christ, if we're not here to
help one another, what's the point, because we really can make a difference.
How would you guys do it? All the time, I always tell
the story about you know, I was fortunate enough in Florida to meet Muhammad
all Leave and the first thing he asked me the Beatles. Yeah, it
was it was like that, and I'm Ama'm happy to meet you and everything,
and he says, you got a handle? Like he says the first
thing he said, was do you ever talk to kids in hospitals? That
was the first thing he said. I said, yeah, because you do,
famous phone friends, make a wish foundation, stuff like that, and
says, man, then you're my hero. He understood the the power of
that. And there was one thing with Wayne and Rucie. We did one
call to a kid who had leukemia and was resisting treatment, wasn't really talking
much, and so Wayne and Rusie get on and say, oh, you
know, and you know, Pluto takes his medicine, he feels a lot
better and write Pluto, you know, and doing all that stuff. And
then about three months later we got a call and because of that, because
of talking to Mickey and Minnie and Pluto, that the kid went into remission.
It's because of the willingness to take her medicine and just the mental that,
more than anything else, has solidified in my mind the power that these
characters have. And you can't take it lightly. You cannot take it lightly.
And I get reinforced without every con I go every time, and the
first time I had that experience, it contextualized what a problem is. It
may be a better it may be a better parent. It makes my problems
a little less when you see people and oh, now they're dealing with their
problems, and then I'm going again. It's planned air. Oh I got
and you meet you know, the kids are often they got it, they
can take a punch. The parents are a mess. If that were my
child, I don't even know how i'd put my pants on that. You
know. So you come home and your kids spills chocolate ice cream on the
white couch, Okay, that stain will be a precious memory. Shut up,
Yeah, it's not your kid, going daddy, I can't do this
anymore. I mean, are you kidding me? And we all have healthy
children. Yeah, I just what a privilege we've had anyway, you never
know it does a voice? Shut up? And I agree, No,
well I have. I'll give you the brief version of this. I think
I might have said it before, but I had occasion years and years ago
to meet up with a young man and it was over the phone, and
his dad had found me out through you know, social media such as it
was back then. He called up my agent, Jeff Danis and said,
is uh do you represent Jim Cummings And he goes, yeah, yeah,
yeah, I do. He goes, oh, okay, is there any
chance I can You know, I've got a kid at home and he's on
the spectrum and uh, somehow or another he's found listened to the similarities in
Jim's voice and and and and looked at credits. I would think, you
know, from Disney Afternoon, and said, okay, by process of elimination,
well he was in that one, that one that must be him and
so and he said yeah, sure sure. So he asked me would take
a phone call on Saturday? And I said yeah, so I did.
And uh and he gets on I'll call him Timmy and uh and and the
first thing he goes, are you the Haveleene motor oil guy? Yeah?
Yeah, And he goes, okay, how about uh spackle or whatever it
was? Yeah, that was me. He goes, damn, wow,
he was right. Okay, anyway, here Timmy and and I said,
hey, Timmy, how are you? Uh, my name's my name is
Jimmy goes yes, of course it is. Now I think that you should
do the voice of banker Steve Bobcat, who was, of course the very
first tune detective up to town division chure. How do you buck it?
Good? Now? I think that you should get the voice of Lucky Piquel,
who is, of course hates a human kind of part and he is
a very well good I think now that you should do the voice of Doc
break doctor who's you know. And we did this for about forty five minutes
straight. Forty five minutes straight. Well you know, it gets even from
from humorous to poignant. Yeah, And I said, uh, is it
dad there? Yeah, yeah, right to talk to you, dad,
but you know, and and and he says, uh yeah, and he
goes, oh wow. Uh. You know, I had no idea that,
oh, his mom wants to talk to you and she and she can't
stop balling, she can't get a worried out. She's a mess. She's
a mess. And I said, now, I don't worry about it,
you know, I said, and I said, he's a little chatterbog.
I mean, if I got to talk to somebody like mel blank when I
was his age, you couldn't have shut me up. He goes, no,
no, no, you don't understand. He doesn't speak. That's something.
And I went this chatterbox and that's something because we heard his voice when
he was three and he stopped and he was nine. Yeah. Wow,
So for two thirds of his life. And I know the kid, now,
isn't that something he's an author? Yeah, I mean it's like forty
yeah, he's like, dude, Hi, it's good to you know.
And he's still himself, you know, and it's just sweet as it could
be. And I tell that story and it's just, oh, it kills
you right direction you mentioned Mel Blank. I tell people all the time,
I'm starting to understand the power of joy. As we've talked about nauseum.
But because years ago I was working on the Jetson's project in Gordon, Hunt
said, hey, Rob, Mel's here today. He's mister Spaceley with his
little tank of smoking in the parking lot with oxygen of cigarette her boom,
right, So he said, you want to sit next to Melice? Yeah?
Maybe? So I walked him. He was probably close to the end
of his life and I said, mister Blank, like anyone with a pulse,
I am such well, thank you. It's very kind of young man.
And I thought, again, never get this chance. Nobody else in
there. I said, if it's not too much trouble, he knew exactly.
Whatever takes off his glasses. He looks at me. He says,
what's some Doc? And I thought I needed a seizure. Yeah, I
did this, I just I mean, I almost got tearful myself. It
was like, oh my god. So now, while none of us would
compare ourselves to mister Blank, we fully get if. I if somebody comes
up and says and I say hello, nurse, and the woman starts to
yeah, and you hear over and over again, I'm sorry. I'm not
sure why. I know exactly why. Yeah, I know why, because
your sweet little brain when you were watching this and all, it's as powerful
as your mother's perfume, your grandmother's cooking, and it stays with you for
ever. And man, when you're hit with that, it's just like a
bolt. I was thirty five and he said, yeah, what's up,
doc, And I thought I was gonna have a seizure. Yeah. Yeah,
it was amazing. Yeah, what a beautiful thing right now? And
look what Yeah, to be able to do this, I only met him
once and I got him to sign his autobiography. That's not it. That's
not all, folks, exactly exactly, but I mean just that fifteen twenty
seconds to meet him. Yeah, it stays with you. Those things just
don't go away. Sure they are there. I never got to meet him,
but a friend of mine back when I was in the video depot and
I just just made my first demo tape. Oh I was so proud and
uh, and I handed it to him. And he was a Vietnam but
God rest his soul, and he had a talent agency. He would book
clown acts and balloon you know, magic guys and tumblers and this and that.
And I guess Mel had an office down the hall from him, and
so he saw him walking down the down the hall and goes, mal,
mal, Mal, can you can you come here for a second. And
he says, yeah, yeah, what are you doing? Kid? He
goes here, This is a buddy of mine. He made this tape and
it's he gets, well, he played it for him. He didn't give
it to Oh my god, but he plays it for him and he was
there, no regretfully and and uh and he says, he said, yeah,
sure, sure, go ahead, play it. Play it. And
so he plays it and he says he looked back, and he goes and
he started smiling and it was over like a minute and a half later,
and he goes, tell the kid he's got it, and especially being the
pipe, you know, And he said that, oh my, yeah,
what else he left? Huh? Ship all right, well, you know
he ran away. You ever heard the Bob Bergens story about Mountain Bob Bergen
comes here from Saint Louis's Porky Porky Pig and he looks up in the l
a phone book. Melbourne Blank in Brentwood called him, called him up and
missus Blank and hello, is this the melo? Yes it is, is
mister Blank around. I mean, he was just this precocious youngster. So
he said, yeah, hang on a second, mel Well, and he
says, mister Blank high and blah blah blah voice. So he talks to
mel Blank for half an hour and mel says, Hey, I'm doing a
session blah blah blah. What if you want to meet me at the studio,
you can come in? Really okay? He just found him in the
phone book. She isn't it something? Wow? I don't know what's the
book? Yeah, yeah that with a little disclaimer. Oh my gosh,
oh that's amazing phone book. Yeah. We got all these freaking stories now,
oh my god. Now someday I'll get to tell people I know you.
I knew you was taking a big dirt. He's at that big old
session in the sky. Yeah, but man, we had a good time
until he punched his ticket. Yeah. Yeah, thank god. There's a
lot quieter now since Rob's gone. He hasn't shut up. Trust McNeil used
to say to me if I she was on the other side of the glass
when I was working and she got in later, she'd say, mister Paulson,
Yeah, do you recall that talent you had when we hired you?
Yeah? Could you use it on this next take? Yeah. I've known
her sinceince Waitress, and now she is the most prolific female voice talent in
the history of Hollywood. My goal is to be the male Trust me,
Jesus, right, And how many times you've worked with her and she does
something and you go, I've never where that come from. She is amazing.
Yeah. Well, Jesus, thank you so much for lawing your standards
for me that I'm telling you. I saw Chris when I walked and he
kind of went, yeah, so you knew you were in the right place.
This must be the right places. God, He's just going like this,
what a pleasure to be there. Yeah, well, thank you,
thank you, thank you, my pleasure, thank you. That's one down
to him, my pleasure. Should we play some voice swap Chris before we
wrap up? Oh? Oh, here we go. Yeah, we'll do
a voice swap. So Jim will say a line is Winnie the Pooh,
and then you'll say the same line in one of your characters, and then
Bill, same thing. We'll just go down the line. There we go.
Are you ready? Voice swap? Here we go? Okay. I
am the terror that flaps in the night. I am the terror. It
for apps in the night. I am the terror that flaps in the night.
Damn, it's like I was in the room. How about how about
that? Should we go backwards and then go so it's the heartlessless Sorah.
That's from Kingdom hearts, the heartless, the heartless. It's the heartless.
I play the I play the Grand Duke. Oh, I didn't know.
There's no ambiguity about my sexual preference. I said, do it again,
goofy gor it's the heartless. Hey god, Sah, it's the heartless.
Oh, brother Sorah, it's that stinking heartless again. That wasn't nice.
Oh yeah, you're up all right, let's see United States, Canada,
Mexico, Panama, Haiti, Jamaica, Peru, United States, Canada,
Canada, and then rhymes with Peru. Okay, one more time, the
United States, Canada, Mexico, Panama, Hati, Jamaica, Peru.
You late like the States for animal Peru. Yeah, yes, that's why
he's Goofy's Hey, I'm a fucking I'm a talking dog. I know.
Yeah yeah yeah, pludo taking us home. My god, Well we need
to hear goof with one of Goofy and Winnie quoting Raphael. We need to
hear that one. Okay, okay, Goofy and Winnie quoting Raphael. All
right, so this is Raphael. How about this shredder, you ten face
geek, get back here and taste cold turtle steel. Shredder, you ten
faced geek, get back here and taste was for steel. Yeah, shredder,
you tim faced geek. You're gonna taste some steel wool. Hold on,
I was I was shredded. I was the last right after after James
Avery left fresh I talk low. Yeah that's great. We got Oh my
god, there's a whole lot of cross pollinating. Yeah. Yeah, thank
you so much, everybody out there, in tune land. Thanks right,
Thanks Brendon. What a pleasure that was. M I want to take us
home. Are we done? I think we're done. That's it, folks.
I hope we were fat. Thank you everybody, all right, Thank
you everybody for watching. That was another episode of Tuned In with Jim Cummings,
Rob Paulson and Bill Farmer joined us today. Thank you so much,
once again, our pleasure, our great don't forget to drop alke and subscribe
to us on YouTube and you can find our podcast wherever you find your podcast,
Apple, Spotify, all that good stuff. Thank you so much and
we'll see you in the next one. That was fu