Bob Holt

St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Biography

Robert John Holthaus (December 28, 1928 – August 2, 1985), better known as Bob Holt, was an American actor, best known for his voice work. Holt's first film role came in 1950, acting as Octavius Caesar in Julius Caesar. His career as a voice artist began with the 1968 short film Johnny Learns His Manners, for which he provided all of the voices. He later appeared in such works as Bedknobs and Broomsticks, several animated television specials with Dr. Seuss, for example, The Lorax (1972), Dr. Seuss on the Loose (1973), The Hoober-Bloob Highway (1975) and The Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat (1982) and the animated film version of Charlotte's Web as Homer Zuckerman. Holt appeared in a variety of different works, including animated films for both adults (the 1974 sequel The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat) and for children, as well as voice and acting work in live-action films (for the blaxploitation film Abby, Holt provided the voice of the Demon). In 1975, he was the voice of Grape Ape on The New Tom and Jerry Show. The same year, Holt provided the voice of Avatar in Ralph Bakshi's film Wizards. Avatar's voice was an imitation of actor Peter Falk. In 1982, Bob Holt played the title role in Marvel Productions' animated The Incredible Hulk (1982 TV series), also in the process creating a library of stock roars that would be used for many years afterwards.

Movies

The New Adventures of Flash Gordon, also known as The Adventures of Flash Gordon, is an animated television series. The series is actually called Flash Gordon but the expanded title is used in official records to distinguish it from previous versions. Filmation produced the series in 1979, partly as a reaction to the mammoth success of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope in 1977. The series was a homage to the original Flash Gordon comic strip and featured most of the original characters, including Flash's girlfriend Dale Arden, and the scientist Hans Zarkov. The series is still regarded as one of the most faithful adaptations, and one of Filmation's finest overall efforts. The basic story follows Flash and his companions as they travel to Mongo, where they are forced into battle by its ruler, Ming the Merciless, his daughter Princess Aura, and his army of Metal Men. To help their cause the heroes lead the formation of an alliance beginning with King Thun, leader of the Lion People; Prince Barin, ruler of Arboria; and King Vultan, leader of the Hawkmen. The original project was produced as a made-for-television feature film. When NBC saw the finished work, it was decided to turn the work into an animated TV series. The change in format resulted in the story being significantly expanded with a subplot of Ming secretly giving military technology to Hitler being dropped, as well as being set in the present day rather during World War II. When the series was cancelled after its 2nd season, the original footage was reassembled with the original soundtrack, including the final role of Ted Cassidy, and aired on primetime in 1982 as a TV movie, Flash Gordon: The Greatest Adventure of All.

More info
The New Adventures of Flash Gordon
1979