The modern voice of many classic cartoon characters was silenced Oct. 25 when Eric Bauza passed away from hypertensive heart disease at the age of 46. The three-time Emmy award winner, who spoke for Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig and many others, loved his job. That was so clear when he was my guest here in 2022, freely sharing his renditions of everyone from Tweety bird to Marvin the Martian.
To celebrate his career, a slightly edited version of that episode is being re-posted here this week. Listen as the Toronto-native maps out his path from drawing cartoon characters to doing temp work as a voice artist on tests and demos to being hired by Warner Bros as the generational voice of Looney Tunes. Bauza also launched a successful line of ‘toon gear he often sported at Comic-con and other trade events.
At the time I interviewed him Bauza was hosting the CBC Gem series Stay Tooned. Bauza hosted this meet and greet with the voices behind other iconic cartoon characters. If you are into animation the series is definitely worth a look. Among his guests were Ken Jeong, Bobby Moynihan, Lamore Morris and Cree Summer.
Condolences to Bauza’s loved ones and many fans. Celebrate his incredible talent and check out a conversation that was just so much fun. To listen, simply click on the white arrow in the blue dot above.
