Tony Jay (193? - 2006)
remembering the voice of Judge Frollo, Galactus, Megabyte
British-born actor Tony Jay's deep, commanding voice often landed him villain and narrator roles in Hunchback of Notre Dame, World of Warcraft and Beauty and the Beast.
(Source: Big Cartoon Database)
Tony Jay, the British-born voice actor, died August 13 of complications from surgery to remove a non-cancerous tumour from his lungs.
Jay's exact age is not known, although he was believed to have been born in 1935. A former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, he had a distinguished theatre career with memorable roles in Nicholas Nickleby, Great Expectations, and The Merchant of Venice.
When it came to Hollywood, Jay's commanding baritone often placed him in villain or narrator roles. He voiced the role of Judge Claude Frollo in the 1996 animated film The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Monsieur D'Arque in 1991's Beauty and the Beast and Shere Khan in 2003's The Jungle Book 2.
Non-Disney roles included Megabyte in Reboot, Chairface Chippendale from The Tick, and Galactus in The Fantastic Four.
He was also in-demand as a narrator, his voice appearing in such films as Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me , Treasure Planet, and the English-language dub of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Winds.
His role as Spiderus in Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends earned him a Daytime Emmy nomination for Oustanding Performer in an Animated Program, and he was up for an Annie for Best Voice Acting in an Animated Television Production for the same role in the episode "A Froggy Day in Sunny Patch."
Computer gamers will also know his voice from World of Warcraft, The Bard's Tale, X-Men Legends (where he voiced Magneto), and in Hunter: The Reckoning.
Tony Jay is survived by his wife Marta and his son Adam, also an actor.
