Dee Bradley Baker facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Dee Bradley Baker
|
|
|---|---|
Baker in 2024
|
|
| Born | August 31, 1962 Bloomington, Indiana, U.S.
|
| Alma mater | Colorado College (BA) |
| Occupation | Voice actor |
| Years active | 1989–present |
|
Works
|
Full list |
| Spouse(s) |
Michelle Baker
(m. 1990) |
| Children | 2 |
Dee Bradley Baker (born August 31, 1962) is an American voice actor. He is super talented at making sounds for animals and monsters. You've probably heard his voice in many of your favorite cartoons!
He has voiced characters in popular animated shows like Adventure Time, American Dad!, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Ben 10, Codename: Kids Next Door, Gravity Falls, Milo Murphy's Law, Phineas and Ferb, and SpongeBob SquarePants. He also worked on live-action shows and movies.
Dee Bradley Baker is especially famous for his work in the Star Wars universe. He voices Captain Rex and all the other clone troopers in shows like Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels, and Star Wars: The Bad Batch. He has also lent his voice to characters in video games such as Halo, Gears of War, and Overwatch.
Contents
Early Life and First Steps
Dee Bradley Baker was born in Bloomington, Indiana, on August 31, 1962. He grew up in Greeley, Colorado. He started performing when he was just nine years old. As a kid, he loved musicals, operas, plays, and even stand-up comedy.
He was a big fan of shows like Star Trek and Star Wars. He also loved learning about insects, spiders, and dinosaurs. After high school, he went to Colorado College. There, he studied different subjects like philosophy and biology. He also learned German and even studied in Germany for a year.
After college, he continued to be involved in local theater. He even made a sketch comedy movie that was shown on public television.
Becoming a Voice Actor
In 1989, Baker moved to Orlando, Florida. He worked on improv comedy shows at EPCOT Center and did projects for Disney and Universal Studios.
The Voice of Olmec
His first big national TV job was on the Nickelodeon game show Legends of the Hidden Temple. This was from 1993 to 1995. He was the announcer for the show. But even cooler, he was the voice of Olmec, the giant talking rock-god! He used a "big, booming, loud, god-like voice" for Olmec.
Olmec would tell stories and then ask the kid contestants questions. The show was very popular. In 2016, Baker and the show's host, Kirk Fogg, came back for a movie based on the show. He also voiced Olmec again when the show returned in 2021.
Early Cartoon Roles
After moving to Southern California, Baker started doing more voice-over work. His first major cartoon characters were Cow & Chicken's dad in Cow & Chicken and I Am Weasel. He also voiced Daffy Duck and Taz in the movie Space Jam.
He voiced many characters in cartoons like Johnny Bravo, Dexter's Laboratory, SpongeBob SquarePants, and The Powerpuff Girls. He was also Numbuh 4 in Codename: Kids Next Door.
On live-action TV, he was a co-host and announcer for the game show Shop 'til You Drop. He also played Phil Berg, a journalist, in the Nickelodeon show The Journey of Allen Strange.
The Animal Whisperer
Dee Bradley Baker is especially known for his amazing animal and creature sounds. This became one of his specialties!
He voiced many animal characters in shows like The Wild Thornberrys. He also made animal sounds for Dora the Explorer. In Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, he voiced Boo Boo Chicken.
Famous Creature Voices
In Avatar: The Last Airbender, he voiced the beloved creatures Appa and Momo. He continued to voice many creatures in the sequel, The Legend of Korra, including Naga, Pabu, and Oogi.
He also voiced many alien creatures in the Ben 10 series, like Stinkfly and Wildmutt. He continued these roles in the Ben 10 sequels and even the live-action movies.
In 2007, Baker got the role of Perry the Platypus in the Disney series Phineas and Ferb. When he auditioned, he made three different creature sounds, and one was chosen for Perry's unique chattering sound. Perry became a very popular character. In 2014, Perry was even nominated for an award for Best Animal Sidekick! Another character he voiced, Waddles the pet pig in Gravity Falls, was nominated for the same award.
More Amazing Voice Roles
In 2005, Baker started voicing Klaus Heisler in the cartoon sitcom American Dad!. Klaus is an Olympic ski jumper from Germany who ended up in a goldfish's body! Baker enjoys playing Klaus because he loves the German language and the character is well-written. He was even nominated for an Emmy Award in 2017 for his voice work as Klaus. He also voices other characters on the show, like Rogu.
He also voiced council member Tarrlok in Korra, which earned him an award nomination. Baker has voiced characters in many animated movies, including classic ghost monsters in Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed.
The Voices of Star Wars Clones
Baker was a big part of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars movie in 2008 and its TV series. He voiced not only Captain Rex and Commander Cody, but also all the other clone troopers! This was a huge job, and he even received an award nomination for it in 2012.
He continued to voice Captain Rex in Star Wars Rebels. In 2021, he returned to voice the clones in the Clone Wars spin-off The Bad Batch. He voices the entire group of experimental clones in that show. In 2023, it was announced he would voice Nix, a loyal companion, in the Star Wars Outlaws video game.
Video Game Voices and More
In video games, Baker has voiced characters in many games based on Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon shows. He voiced Gravemind in Halo 2 and Halo 3. He also voiced the main character Joe in the Viewtiful Joe series.
He made creature sounds for the Spore video game, where players create their own creatures. He also voiced two characters for Blizzard Entertainment: Murky in Heroes of the Storm and Hammond, a hamster, in Overwatch. He is also the voice of Atlas and P-body in Portal 2. In 2014, he voiced Reuben the pig in Minecraft: Story Mode.
In 2014, Baker continued his roles in American Dad, Gravity Falls, and The Legend of Korra. He voiced Dopey in The 7D and characters like Fish in The Boxtrolls film, for which he was nominated for an award. He also voiced Brainiac in the Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham video game.
Dee Bradley Baker often appears at conventions like Comic-Con to talk about voice acting. He also created a website called IWantToBeAVoiceActor.com. On this site, he answers common questions and gives advice to people who want to become voice actors. Other voice actors have said his website is a great help!
Personal Life
Dee Bradley Baker met his wife, Michelle, when they were both doing children's theater. They got married in 1990 and have two daughters. They live in Los Angeles.
When he's not voice acting, Baker enjoys photography. He especially likes taking pictures of small flowers and insects. He is also fluent in German.
See also
In Spanish: Dee Bradley Baker para niños
