Billy West facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Billy West
West at Animate! Columbus in 2023
Born	William Richard Werstine 1952 (age 72–73) Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Occupation	Voice actor musician
Years active	1980–present
Spouse(s)	Violet Benny ​ ​ (m. 1992; div. 2009)​

Billy West, whose full name is William Richard Werstine, was born in 1952. He is a super talented American voice actor, comedian, and musician. You've probably heard his voice in many of your favorite cartoons and commercials!

Billy West is famous for voicing iconic characters like Bugs Bunny in the movie Space Jam. He also brought to life the main characters in Doug and The Ren & Stimpy Show. On the popular show Futurama, he voiced several main characters, including Philip J. Fry, Professor Farnsworth, Dr. Zoidberg, and Zapp Brannigan. You might also recognize his voice as the Red M&M and the bee named Buzz from Honey Nut Cheerios commercials. He has also voiced other classic characters like Elmer Fudd, Popeye, Shaggy Rogers, and Woody Woodpecker.

Early Life and Background

Billy West was born in Detroit, Michigan, around 1952. His family has Irish roots. He was born with ADHD and autism. He spent his childhood growing up in both Boston, Massachusetts, and New Jersey. After finishing high school, he studied music for a short time at Berklee College of Music.

Before becoming a voice actor, Billy West played in different bands at night in Boston. During the day, he worked in a guitar shop. He has shared that he was supposed to be drafted for the Vietnam War in 1970, but he was not chosen because of health reasons like hypertension (high blood pressure) and flat feet. Later, he voiced the character of Richard Nixon on Futurama, which he jokingly called his "revenge" against Nixon.

Amazing Career

Billy West's career began in radio in the 1980s. He performed funny routines on a show in Boston. Later, he moved to New York City and became a regular on The Howard Stern Show. On this show, he became well-known for his amazing impressions of famous people. After leaving radio in 1995, he moved to Los Angeles and became a very successful voice actor.

Television Voice Roles

Billy West's first big TV voice roles were on Doug and The Ren & Stimpy Show. These were two of the first ever Nicktoons on Nickelodeon. Throughout his career, he has voiced nearly 120 different characters! He is one of the few voice actors who can perfectly imitate the voices of classic cartoon characters like Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, originally voiced by the legendary Mel Blanc.

Billy West's favorite characters to voice are Philip J. Fry from Futurama and Stimpy from The Ren & Stimpy Show. He has also voiced "Red" in many M&M commercials and was the voice of Zim in the first try-out episode for Invader Zim.

The Ren & Stimpy Show

Billy West voiced Stimpson J. Cat on Nickelodeon's The Ren & Stimpy Show from 1991 to 1996. He also took over the voice of Ren Höek from 1993 to 1996. He voiced other characters on the show too, like Mr. Horse.

Futurama

In Futurama, Billy West voices many main characters. These include Philip J. Fry, Professor Farnsworth, Zapp Brannigan, and Dr. Zoidberg. He voices so many characters that sometimes entire conversations on the show are just between characters he voices!

The role of Zapp Brannigan was originally planned for another actor, but after that actor passed away, Billy West took on the role. He based Zapp's voice on "a couple of big dumb announcers" he knew. Futurama has been very popular and even returned for new episodes in 2023 with the original cast, including Billy West.

Advertising Voice Work

Billy West has lent his voice to many well-known television commercials. Some of his famous advertising roles include:

• Red, the plain milk chocolate M&M (since 1996)
• Buzz, the bee for Honey Nut Cheerios (1990–2004)
• Popeye for Minute Maid
• Characters like Babe Ruth and Bruce Lee for Brisk Iced Tea

Film Voice Roles

In the 1996 movie Space Jam, Billy West voiced both Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd. He continued to voice these characters in other Looney Tunes films. In 1998, he voiced Shaggy Rogers in the movie Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island. He also voiced Muttley in the 2020 Scoob! movie. Other films where you can hear his voice include Cats & Dogs, TMNT, and Dinosaur.

Music Career

Besides voice acting, Billy West is also a talented guitarist and singer-songwriter. He has a band called Billy West and The Grief Counselors, and they released an album called Me-Pod. He has also toured as a guitarist for famous musicians like Roy Orbison and Brian Wilson. He even played the guitar solo on a Beach Boys song on a TV show in the 1990s.

Video Game Voice Roles

Billy West has voiced characters in many video games, including:

• Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd in various Looney Tunes games.
• Stimpy in The Ren & Stimpy Show: Veediots! and Nicktoons Racing.
• Philip J. Fry, Professor Farnsworth, Dr. Zoidberg, and Zapp Brannigan in the Futurama video game.
• Muttley in Wacky Races: Starring Dastardly and Muttley.
• Red in M&M's: The Lost Formulas.
• The Narrator in Minecraft: Story Mode.

Personal Life

Billy West was married to Violet Benny, but they later divorced. He has shared that he experienced difficulties in his childhood and that he developed his impressionist skills as a way to cope.

Billy West has also spoken about his experiences with depression and is a prostate cancer survivor.

Filmography

Film

Animation

Video Games

Live-Action Roles

Discography

• Me-Pod (2004) Label under Universal Records (Philippines)

Images for kids

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  Billy West at the Q&A Galaxy Con Raleigh 2023

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  West in 2006

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  Billy West posing with fans at the Q&A Galaxy Con Raleigh Stage

See also

In Spanish: Billy West para niños