For more than 30 years, John DiMaggio has been hiding behind some of the most unforgettable characters in animation and gaming. 🎙️
To millions, he’ll always be Bender from Futurama, a character whose attitude and humor became inseparable from the show itself. But another generation grew up knowing him as the lovable Jake the Dog in Adventure Time, while gamers heard that unmistakable voice commanding battlefields as Marcus Fenix in Gears of War.
Then there’s Dr. Drakken, Rath, Wakka, The Joker, King Zøg, the Scotsman, and Shnitzel, characters that show just how easily DiMaggio can move between comedy, menace, heart, and pure chaos.
That versatility is why fans across completely different fandoms have connected with his work. His characters don’t simply sound memorable. They feel alive.
John DiMaggio didn’t give one generation a defining voice. He gave several generations completely different ones to remember. ❤️
Fun fact from Craig Bartlett: Arnold didn’t have a last name for the first 10 years of his existence because Craig simply couldn’t think of a good one. They even made jokes about it for five seasons — like his bus pass saying “BORN: YES.” Then Tim Parsons suggested that Grandpa had actually been calling Arnold by his last name the entire series, and everyone just assumed it was a nickname: Shortman. By then the series was almost over, so they had to wait until The Jungle Movie in 2017 to finally reveal it: Arnold Shortman.
Despite suffering from stomach cancer, Raul Julia agreed to play M. Bison in the 1994 Street Fighter movie.
His two sons were huge fans of the games, and he wanted them to see their father play the villain.
He pushed through filming while seriously ill and reportedly studied real dictators to help build the character.
He died at age 54 in 1994, two months before the film reached theaters. Universal honored him in the closing credits with one final message, “For Raul. Vaya con Dios.”
Marlon Wayans was recently given his flowers by artist Micheal Crawford, who gifted Marlon Wayans with a custom Loc Dog action figure that came in its own personalized box.
(🎥 iamlilmike/IG)
Disney Channel’s “Pass the Plate” from the mid-2000s was a multicultural short-form series filmed in ten countries aimed at teaching kids about different cultures & foods.
In 1997, during one of his most private and protective periods, Prince specifically asked to appear on Muppets Tonight.
The Muppets cut straight through the mystique and gave us a rare glimpse of a playful Prince.
(Or The Artist Formerly Known as Prince. Or Symbol. Whatever.)
Luca is one of the funniest characters in Shark Tale.
It's very heartbreaking to hear that Vincent Pastore passed away. He brought so much life and charm to the voice of Luca.
Rest in peace, Vincent Pastore.🙏🏾🤍🕊