PAUL FREES

Volume One: Narrator, Peter Tishman

Born June 22, 1920, Paul Frees was certainly one of the most prolific vocal talents in the industry.  He passed away on November 4, 1986.  Best known as the voice of arch-villain Boris Badenov in the Rocky and Bullwinkle cartoons, he was additionally respected in commercial circles as the voice of the Pillsbury Doughboy.

Frees' appearances in movies were little more than walk-ons in mysteries and westerns. His voices, however, were put to good if uncredited use very often. In "The Time Machine," he was the voice of the spinning rings that held the only knowledge of the planet's history. His cartoon characterizations are legend as well: Morocco Mole on "The Secret Squirrel Show," Inspector Fenwick from "Dudley Do-Right of the Mounties," Wally Walrus on "The Woody Woodpecker Show," Ben Grimm of "The Fantastic Four," and both John and George on the animated "Beatles" show.

Frees could put a backspin on impersonations that zeroed in on a personality's peculiarities with dead aim. Spike Jones allowed him room to ad-lib, in a demented parody of Peter Lorre anguish, to "My Old Flame" ("...my new lovers all seem so tame...THEY WON'T EVEN LET ME STRANGLE THEM!!)* Stan Freberg's "History of the United States" features a very sly dig by Mr. Frees at the longer-winded narrations of Orson Welles. In his own album "Paul Frees and the Poster People", his Sydney Greenstreet gobbles the lyrics to "Sugar Sugar" with a mania.