Wayne Allwine
Wayne Anthony Allwine (February 7, 1947 – May 18, 2009)[1] was an American voice actor, sound editor and Foley artist. He was best remembered as the third official voice of Mickey Mouse in English (following Walt Disney and Jimmy MacDonald) and the first official casting following the establishment of Disney Character Voices International in 1988.[2][3] To date, he holds the record for the longest-running voice actor to play Mickey Mouse, having performed the role for 32 years. He was notably married to Russi Taylor, who voiced Minnie Mouse.[2][3]
Wayne Allwine
May 18, 2009 (aged 62)
- Voice actor
- sound effects editor
- Foley artist
1966–2009
4
Early life[edit]
Wayne Anthony Allwine was born in Glendale, California, on February 7, 1947.[2] He is a graduate of John Burroughs High School, where he was particularly active in the school's musical theater department.[2] His father was a barbershop quartet singer.[2]
While in high school, he formed his own acoustic music group, The International Singers, which performed in clubs and colleges throughout the state.[2] After graduating, he briefly toured with the instrumental rock band Davie Allan & the Arrows. In addition to playing rhythm guitar, he can also be heard on harmonica and sax mouthpiece on the 1968 track "Cycle-Delic".[4] He later became an accomplished Dixieland jazz drummer, occasionally sitting in with Firehouse Five Plus Two alumni George Probert's Monrovia Old Style Jazz Band.[5]
Personal life[edit]
In 1991, he married Russi Taylor, who voiced Minnie Mouse from 1986 to 2019, and they were named Disney Legends in 2008, they remained married up until his death in 2009.[3][2][6] Allwine fathered three biological children and one adopted child from previous marriages.[2][3]
Death[edit]
Allwine died of hypertensive crisis caused by complications from acute diabetes at the age of 62 on May 18, 2009, at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles. His prospective understudy, Bret Iwan, assumed the role of voicing Mickey Mouse.[2][7][8] Allwine is now interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.[2]