Jan Rabson (June 14, 1954 – October 13, 2022) was an American actor. During his four-decade career, he appeared in over 100 titles. He frequently worked in voice over, including as Tetsuo Shima in the Streamline Pictures dub of the anime film Akira (1988) and Larry Laffer in the Leisure Suit Larry video game series (1993–2004; 2013–2020).
Jan Rabson | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 14, 1954 East Meadow, New York, U.S. |
| Died | October 13, 2022 (aged 68) |
| Other names | Stanley Gurd, Jr. |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1982–2022 |
| Spouse | Cindy Akers |
Life and career
editRabson was born in East Meadow, New York, on June 14, 1954.[1] Rabson's voice was in thousands of commercials, films, TV shows, and animated films and series. For many years, Jan was a member of Johnny Carson's "Mighty Carson Art Players", performing in on-camera sketches as well as providing the voices for answering machines, cash registers and other inanimate objects for Johnny's sketches. One of his more famous roles included providing the voice for Larry Laffer in Leisure Suit Larry 6: Shape Up or Slip Out!, Leisure Suit Larry: Love for Sail!, Leisure Suit Larry's Casino, Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude, Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded and Leisure Suit Larry: Wet Dreams Don't Dry.
Rabson performed in all of the Pixar Cars Toons shorts as well as Toy Story 3, Up, WALL-E and many more. In some of his anime dubbing and on-camera work, he used the name Stanley Gurd, Jr., and is best known for voicing Tetsuo Shima from the first English dub of Akira under that name. He is also the voice of Horse from the preschool series Slim Pig.
In 1988, Rabson was the first contestant and champion on Blackout.
In 2013, he reprised his role of Tetsuo Shima for AficionadosChris' review of Akira.[2]
Personal life and death
editRabson resided in Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, Canada and divided work between Vancouver and Los Angeles productions. He died of a heart attack on October 13, 2022, at the age of 68.[1][3][4]
Partial filmography
editTelevision
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | One Day at a Time | Charlie | Episode: "Stick 'Em Up" |
| 1982 | The Facts of Life | Waiter | Episode: "New York, New York" |
| 1982 | Knight Rider | Charlie | Episode: "Not a Drop to Drink" |
| 1983 | Cheers | Director | Episode: "Now Pitching, Sam Malone" |
| 1985 | Hunter | Reporter | Episode: "The Big Fall" |
| 1986 | What's Happening Now!! | Murray | Episode: "Mr. First Nighter" |
| 1987 | G-Force: Guardians of Space | Hooty, Dr. Brighthead, Computer (voice) | English dub |
| 1987, 1990 | Night Court | Laughton, Mr. Borelli | 2 episodes |
| 1989 | Designing Women | Man | Episode: "Manhunt" |
| 1989 | Just the Ten of Us | Rod Serling Lookalike | Episode: "Highway to Heaven" |
| 1990 | Growing Pains | Rod Serling | Episode: "Happy Halloween" |
| 1991 | James Bond Jr. | Gordon Leiter, Goldfinger, Jaws, Skullcap, The Worm, Snuffer (voice) | 65 episodes |
| 1991 | Parker Lewis Can't Lose | Future Jerry | Episode: "Jerry's First Date" |
| 1991–1993 | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | Kerma (voice) | 4 episodes |
| 1993 | Animaniacs | Papa (voice) | Episode: "Hollywoodchuck"[5] |
| 1996 | The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest | Avery, Donaldson (voice) | Episode: "Alligators and Okeechobee Vikings"[5] |
| 1996 | Babylon 5 | Vendor | Episode: "Interludes and Examinations" |
| 1996 | Baywatch | Frank | Episode: "Shark Fever" |
| 1997 | Pinky and the Brain | Farmer, Referee (voice) | 2 episodes[5] |
| 1997 | Almost Perfect | Man in Line | Episode: "Gimme Shelter" |
| 1999 | Batman Beyond | Rocketeer Leader (voice) | Episode: "Heroes"[5] |
| 1999 | Beverly Hills, 90210 | Sal | Episode: "Local Hero" |
| 2002 | Rugrats | Steve Malone, Weatherman (voice) | Episode: "Silent Angelica"[5] |
| 2002 | Justice League | Professor Erlich (voice) | Episode: "Paradise Lost"[5] |
| 2008 | Bratz | Principal Affleck (voice) | 3 episodes[5] |
| 2011–2020 | Superbook | Professor Quantum (voice) | 20 episodes[5] |
| 2015 | My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic | Wind Rider (voice) | Episode: "Rarity Investigates!"[5] |
Film
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Chasing Dreams | Scout | |
| 1987 | Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise | Dormuhot (voice) | English dub |
| 1987 | Fatal Attraction | Party Guest | |
| 1995 | Toy Story | Mr. Mike, Gas Station Attendant (voice) | |
| 1996 | The Hunchback of Notre Dame | Frollo's Soldiers (voice) | |
| 1996 | Theodore Rex | Tina Rex (voice) | [5] |
| 1997 | Hercules | Driver (voice) | |
| 1998 | A Bug's Life | Axel, Grasshopper (voice) | |
| 1998 | Akira | Tetsuo Shima (voice) | Streamline Pictures English dub |
| 1999 | Toy Story 2 | Japanese Businessman (voice) | |
| 2001 | Monsters, Inc. | Sushi Chef (voice) | |
| 2003 | Finding Nemo | Seagulls (voice) | |
| 2004 | Barbie as the Princess and the Pauper | Nack, Midas (voice) | [5] |
| 2005 | A Fairy Tale Christmas | Crofton, Farmer (voice) | [5] |
| 2006 | Cars | T.J. Hummer (voice) | |
| 2007 | Betsy Bubblegum's Journey Through Yummi-Land | Mayor Marshmallow (voice) | [5] |
| 2007 | Bratz Super Babyz | Tuber, Announcer (voice) | [5] |
| 2008 | Horton Hears a Who! | Town Cryer (voice) | [5] |
| 2008 | WALL-E | Axiom Passenger (voice) | |
| 2009 | Up | Construction Worker, Television Announcer (voice) | |
| 2009 | Playmobil: The Secret of Pirate Island | Sea Biscuit, Voodoo Daddy (voice) | [5] |
| 2010 | Toy Story 3 | Sparks (voice) | [5] |
| 2011 | Quest for Zhu | Zhu Fu, Mangawanga (voice) | [5] |
| 2013 | Monsters University | Astronomy Club President (voice) |
Video games
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Leisure Suit Larry 6: Shape Up or Slip Out! | Larry Laffer | [5] |
| 1994 | Freddy Pharkas: Frontier Pharmacist | Sam Andreas, Wheaton Hall, Jim Laffer | [5] |
| 1996 | Leisure Suit Larry: Love for Sail! | Larry Laffer | [5] |
| 1998 | Leisure Suit Larry's Casino | Larry Laffer | [5] |
| 2004 | Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude | Larry Laffer | |
| 2013 | Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded | Larry Laffer, Short Man | |
| 2018 | Leisure Suit Larry: Wet Dreams Don't Dry | Larry Laffer | |
| 2020 | Leisure Suit Larry: Wet Dreams Dry Twice | Larry Laffer |
References
edit- ^ a b Obituary: Jan Rabson
- ^ Video on YouTube
- ^ Mateo, Alex (October 14, 2022). "Voice Actor Jan Rabson Passes Away". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 21, 2022.
- ^ Chalk, Andy (October 17, 2022). "Leisure Suit Larry voice actor Jan Rabson has died". PC Gamer. Retrieved October 21, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v "Jan Rabson (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved July 30, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.