Noel Barton Blanc (born October 19, 1938) is an American commercial producer and retired voice actor. He is the son of cartoon voice actor Mel Blanc.
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Early life and career
Blanc was born on October 19, 1938, in Los Angeles, California. He is the only child of voice actor Mel Blanc. Throughout Noel's childhood, adolescence and early adulthood, he worked with his father on the Looney Tunes cartoons, with Mel training him in the field of voice characterization. In 1961, Noel performed some of Mel's voices, uncredited, when Mel was injured in a car crash. On January 29, 1962, they formed Blanc Communications Corporation, a media company which remains in operation. Together, they produced over 5,000 public service announcements and commercials, appearing with Kirk Douglas, Lucille Ball, Vincent Price, Phyllis Diller, Liberace, and The Who. Kirk Douglas' son, Joel, served as one of the executives at Blanc Communications Corporation and helped to develop and produce commercials until the late 1980s.
Following Mel Blanc's death in 1989, Noel voiced Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd (a character that was originally Arthur Q. Bryan's role that Mel occasionally performed during Bryan's lifetime and inherited after Bryan's death), the Tasmanian Devil, Porky Pig, Tweety and other characters in Tiny Toon Adventures and a series of You Rang? answering machine messages; he was one of several successors to his father in the immediate aftermath of Mel's death, with others including Jeff Bergman, Joe Alaskey, Bob Bergen, Greg Burson, Maurice LaMarche, Billy West and most recently Eric Bauza. Warner Bros. had been splitting up the various voice-acting roles to prevent any one of them from being a singular successor. He later contributed voice work to Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story.
Personal life
Relationships and marriages
Blanc has been married three times; he first married Larraine Zax in 1967; they divorced in 1972. Blanc then married actress Martha Smith in 1977; the marriage lasted for nine years, until they divorced in 1986. Blanc married his third wife, Katherine Hushaw, at the Warner Bros. Studios on June 3, 1998.
Helicopter incident
In February 1991, Blanc was injured in his personal helicopter when the aircraft collided with a small plane above Santa Paula Airport. Two other people were also injured, including Kirk Douglas, and two people in the plane were killed. Blanc suffered multiple fractures to his right leg, five broken ribs, a bruised lung, and a bruised kidney. He was taken to the intensive care unit at Santa Paula Hospital.
Filmography
Video games
Bugs Bunny's Birthday Ball – Bugs Bunny (vocal effects), Daffy Duck (saying "Happy Birthday, Bugs!"), Yosemite Sam, Sylvester ("oofs" and "ows"), Speedy Gonzales, Barnyard Dawg, Chickens
Documentaries
This Is Your Life – Himself
Roger Rabbit and the Secrets of Toontown – Himself
50 Years of Bugs Bunny in 31/2 Minutes – Porky Pig
Happy Birthday, Bugs!: 50 Looney Years – Himself, Porky Pig
What's Up Doc? A Salut/refe to Bugs Bunny – Himself
Entertaining the Troops – Himself
Behind the Tunes – Himself
100 Greatest Cartoons – Himself
The Chuck Woolery Show – Himself
Vicki! – Himself
Friz on Film – Himself
Mel Blanc: The Man of a Thousand Voices – Himself
King-Size Comedy: Tex Avery and the Looney Tunes Revolution – Himself
I Know That Voice – Himself
Theme park attractions
Tomorrowland – Radio Personalities
Carousel of Progress – Cuckoo Clock, Radio Personalities
The Looney Tunes Revue – Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Pepé Le Pew, Yosemite Sam, Sylvester, Sylvester Jr., Tweety, Speedy Gonzales, Foghorn Leghorn, Henery Hawk, Tasmanian Devil
Rabbit-cadabbra – Bugs Bunny (one line)
Looney Tunes River Ride – Marc Antony
Discography
Looney Tunes: Love Songs for My Valentine – Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig
You Rang?: Bugs Bunny – Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Tasmanian Devil, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Pepé Le Pew, Yosemite Sam, Speedy Gonzales
You Rang?: Daffy Duck – Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Yosemite Sam, Pepé Le Pew, Tasmanian Devil, Speedy Gonzales
You Rang?: Porky Pig – Porky Pig, Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Yosemite Sam, Pepé Le Pew, Speedy Gonzales, Foghorn Leghorn, Chicken Little
You Rang?: Sylvester and Tweety – Sylvester, Tweety, Porky Pig, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Yosemite Sam, Foghorn Leghorn, Speedy Gonzales, Pepé Le Pew
You Rang?: Holidays and Special Occasions – Porky Pig, Daffy Duck, Foghorn Leghorn, Elmer Fudd, Yosemite Sam, Bugs Bunny, Sylvester, Tweety, Speedy Gonzales
Bugs Bunny and the Pink Flamingos – Porky Pig
Bugs Bunny at the Symphony – Porky Pig
