One of animation's most iconic voices has passed away. Russi Taylor, who voiced notable characters on The Simpsons and served as the iconic voice of Minnie Mouse for over three decades, has died. Taylor passed away Friday at her home in Glendale, California at the age of 75. Since the news of her death, Taylor's life has been celebrated and mourned by friends, family, fans, and even Disney's boss Bob Iger.
Disney released an official statement from Bob Iger, which drove home what a staple she's been to the Disney family. In his words, Minnie Mouse lost her voice with Russi Taylor's passing.
Minnie Mouse lost her voice with the passing of Russi Taylor. For more than 30 years, Minnie and Russi worked together to entertain millions around the world — a partnership that made Minnie a global icon and Russi a Disney Legend beloved by fans everywhere. We’re so grateful for Russi’s talent as well as the tremendous spirit and great joy she brought to everything she did. It was a privilege to have known her and an honor to have worked with her, and we take comfort in the knowledge that her work will continue to entertain and inspire for generations to come. Russi will be sorely missed and our hearts go out to her family and friends, along with our deepest condolences.
Russi Taylor's gig as Minnie Mouse was significant at the time, as her start in 1986 was the first time since 1974 someone would voice the character. From that point on, Taylor would grow into the staple voice of Minnie, and at her time of death, is the longest running voice actress for the character to date. Taylor's voice acting credits list she's voiced Minnie as recent as this year via episodes of Mickey and the Roadster Racers and Mickey Mouse shorts.
Though she may have been known best as Minnie Mouse, Russi Taylor was also an iconic voice of a very popular (and now Disney-owned) television series, The Simpsons. Taylor voiced the nerdy Martin Prince, and the purple-haired twins Sherri and Terri. Taylor was honored by The Simpsons' executive producer Al Jean on Twitter, and Entertainment Weekly reported the show will honor her in tonight's episode.
Russi Taylor's voice acting career began when she voiced Strawberry Shortcake throughout the '80s. Taylor also voiced Pebbles Flintstone in The Flintstone Comedy Show, Pac-Baby in Pac-Man, and was the voice of Gonzo in the original Muppet Babies. For Disney she was also the original voice of Donald Duck's nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie, and voiced them up until the recent rebooted Ducktales series. Of course, those are just a few of the bullet points on the very long list of characters she's voiced, and there are many more.
Russi Taylor was married to Wayne Allwine, who out of all the others that have come before and after him, remains the longest-running voice of Mickey Mouse. Allwine passed away in 2009 due to complications from diabetes. The two met on the job, and married in 1991. Taylor once said she hoped future voice actors who took the job would be aware of the history of the role, and love Mickey and Minnie as much as they did.
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We here at CinemaBlend send our condolences to the friends and family of Russi Taylor, and wish them well during this time.
