Jim MacGeorge, R.I.P.
He was not on the list.
He was an actor, both on-camera and doing cartoon voices. He was a puppeteer and a stand-up comedian. He was a writer and perhaps the best Stan Laurel impersonator ever. He was Jim MacGeorge and he passed away peacefully this A.M. in his sleep at the age of 92. Oh — and he was also one of the best joke-tellers I ever heard.
Most of his on-camera acting was as Mr. Laurel, often with his pal Chuck McCann playing Mr. Hardy…though each was known to occasionally cheat on the other with a different Oliver or Stan. He also supplied the voice, not of Stan but of Ollie in the sixties Hanna-Barbera Laurel & Hardy cartoon series. (He should have done both but the Executive Producer insisted on playing Stan himself.) Jim was also a friend of Stan Laurel's — that's who put him and Chuck together — and an expert on The Boys and their work.
His puppeteering was mainly for Beany and Cecil. The original Time for Beany puppet show starred Daws Butler and Stan Freberg and when they quit, Jim was part of the team that replaced them, usually performing as Cap'n Huffenpuff, along with many of the supporting cast members and often, Beany. Later when Beany & Cecil became an animated series, Jim spoke for Beany, Cap'n Huffenpuff and many of the supporting cast members.
He was also heard in dozens of other cartoon shows including Kwicky Koala, Yogi's Space Race, The Flintstones, Duck Tales, The Bionic Six and many others. And he worked for a time as a writer for Jay Ward, mainly on Fractured Flickers and the Super Chicken cartoons.
He has even appeared on camera in shows including Get Smart as Stan Laurel, Semi-Tough, Happy Days and the feature film Teenagers from Outer Space.
And he did an awful lot of stand-up comedy work..usually, the last few decades, in a seated position. Just a few months ago, he was still performing, mostly for senior citizens' groups that adored him. Here's thirteen minutes of Jim MacGeorge that very much remind me what it was like to be around this lovely, funny man…
Filmography
Animated Roles
A Laurel and Hardy Cartoon - Oliver Hardy
Beany and Cecil - Beany Boy, Crowy, Uncle Captain Horatio K. Huffenpuff
Bionic Six - Dr. Wilmer Scarab, Mrs. Scarab
Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels - Additional Voices
Casper and the Angels - Additional Voices
Clue Club - Wimper
DuckTales - Genghis Khan
Foofur - Additional Voices
Galaxy Goof-Ups - Additional Voices
Random! Cartoons - Giovanni
Richie Rich - Additional Voices
Scooby Doo, Where Are You? - Additional Voices
Speed Buggy - Additional Voices
TaleSpin - Dissident
The Buford Files - Additional Voices
The Flintstones' New Neighbors - Stubby Frankenstone
The Flintstones: Wind-Up Wilma - Additional Voices
The Funky Phantom - Additional Voices
The Jetsons (Second Series; 1985) - Additional Voices
The Kwicky Koala Show - Crazy Claws
The Mighty Orbots - Bort
The New Adventures of Beany and Cecil - Uncle Captain Horatio K. Huffenpuff
The New Casper Cartoon Show - Additional Voices
The New Fred and Barney Show - Additional Voices
The New Scooby Doo Movies - Oliver Hardy/Additional Voices
The New Shmoo - Additional Voices
The Skatebirds - Wimper
The Smurfs - Additional Voices
The Three Robonic Stooges - Wimper
The World of Hans Christian Andersen - Governor, Hans' Father, Kasper Kat
Thunderbolt the Wondercolt - Additional Voices
Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - Additional Voices
Yogi's Gang - Additional Voices
Yogi's Space Race - Additional Voices
Live-Action Roles
Dom DeLuise and Friends - Himself
Get Smart - Stan Laurel
Happy Days - Guest Star
Laurel & Hardy: Their Lives and Magic - TV Movie documentary - Himself (2011)
Semi-Tough - Purlie
Sesame Street - Several Characters (animated segments)
Star Wars - Several Characters
Film Roles
Teenagers from Outer Space - Mac
Writer
Fractured Flickers
George of the Jungle
Rocky and His Friends
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