Maddie Blaustein

Madeleine Joan Blaustein (born Adam Blaustein, October 9, 1960 – December 11, 2008), also known as Kendra Bancroft, was an American voice actress and comic writer who was known for her voice acting work for 4Kids Entertainment, DuArt Film and Video and NYAV Post, for her reprising role as the character Meowth from the Pokémon anime series and for comics written for Milestone Comics, in which she introduced one of superhero comics' first transgender female characters. She was the first intersex and transgender voice artist for many of her respective agencies.[1]

Maddie Blaustein
A middle-aged Caucasian woman with medium-to-short black hair and glasses peers at the camera.
Born
Adam Blaustein

October 9, 1960 (1960-10-09)
Long Island, New York, U.S.
DiedDecember 11, 2008(2008-12-11) (aged 48)
Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S.
Resting placeCongregation B'nai Israel Cemetery
Occupation(s)Voice actress, comic writer
Years active1985–2008
Notable creditPokémon as Meowth
RelativesJeremy Blaustein (brother)

Career

In the late 1980s, Blaustein worked for Marvel Comics, as an editor (several issues each of Web of Spider-Man, Marvel Tales, and Marvel Saga) as a writer (several issues of Conan the King), and penciling a one-shot of Power Pachyderms.[2][3] She wrote assorted comics published by DC Comics in the early 1990s, including a few for the Impact Comics imprint and TSR line.[2]

In 1994 she went to work for Milestone Media as production manager and writer.[4] With assistance from her partner Yves Fezzani[5] – sometimes billed together as "Adam & Yves"[6] – she wrote issues of flagship titles Hardware and Static (in which she co-created the character Rubber-Band Man).[7] She also wrote (with Fezzani) Milestone's first limited series Deathwish,[2][8] which featured as its central character transgender female police officer Marisa Rahm, one of the first trans heroes featured in mainstream superhero comics.[9] During this time she was sometimes referred to in editorial copy in the comics as "Addie Blaustein".[10]

After leaving Milestone, she served as Creative Director for Weekly World News.[11][12]

Blaustein was a voice actress at 4Kids Entertainment, where she worked on the English dub version of the Pokémon anime. She provided "filler" voices for various characters until episode #31, when she took over from Nathan Price in the role of Meowth, which she played through season 8.[13] During the 2004 Democratic Party primaries, she voiced Sméagol on the Mike Malloy Show, announcing a satirical presidential bid.[14]

Beginning in 2004 under the pseudonym Kendra Bancroft, Blaustein was a content creator on the Second Life platform,[15] earning a reputation as an innovative, competent, and reliable 3-D modeller in the communities where she participated.[16]

Personal life

Blaustein was born the second oldest of five children in Long Island, New York. She was intersex, and was assigned male at birth before transitioning to female.[17] Her experience as an activist in the transgender community helped her to organize and support groups of people in Second Life.[18]

Video game localization coordinator and translator Jeremy Blaustein is her brother.

Death

Blaustein died on December 11, 2008, at age 48 in Christ Hospital of Jersey City, New Jersey from an untreated stomach virus (possibly gastroenteritis) that she had been suffering from a couple of weeks prior.[11][19] She is buried at the Congregation B'nai Israel Cemetery in Northampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts.

Work

Voice roles

Video games

Writing
  • Web of Spider-Man #45 (Marvel Comics)
  • Deathwish #1-4 (Milestone Comics, 4-issue miniseries, with Yves Fezzani)
  • Hardware #20-21, 24, 26-28, 33 (Milestone Comics, The Hunt for Deathwish with Yves Fezzani)
  • Static #30-34 (Milestone Comics, with Yves Fezzani)
  • Icon #18 (Milestone Comics)

Art

References
  1. Darato. "Q&A with Maddie Blaustein". Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  2. "Madeleine S. Blaustein - 'Adam S. Blaustein' - Comic Book DB". www.comicbookdb.com. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  3. "GCD :: Issue :: Power Pachyderms #1". Comics.org. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  4. "The Company Line". Hardware. No. 20. November 1994. p. 21.
  5. "Return of the Cool, and a Fallen Hero". CBR. October 27, 2014. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  6. "Static (1993) #30 - Comic Book DB". comicbookdb.com. Archived from the original on March 16, 2016. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  7. Anthony (August 11, 2011). "Minorities in comics and animation: Maddie Blaustein". Diverse Tech Geek. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  8. "MILES AHEAD OF THE REST: THE 15 BEST MILESTONE COMICS". Milestone Media. January 17, 2017. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  9. Johnston, Rich (April 10, 2013). "So Who Was The First Transgender Character In Mainstream Superhero Comics Anyway?". Bleeding Cool News And Rumors. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  10. "The Company Line". Hardware. No. 27. May 1995. p. 13.
  11. Levesley, David (February 27, 2019). "The Inspiring Story of the Trans Actress Behind Your Favorite Pokémon's Voice". them. Retrieved March 3, 2019.
  12. "Maddie Blaustein, 1960-2008". ComicMix. December 18, 2008. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  13. "Ask Maddie Blaustein - Q&A with Meowth". www.serebiiforums.com. Archived from the original on August 10, 2017. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
  14. Smeagle.mp3 Archived December 14, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
  15. "The Inspiring Story of the Trans Actress Behind Your Favorite Pokémon's Voice". them. February 27, 2019. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  16. "New World Notes". Nwn.blogs.com. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  17. "Workshop Presenter Bios". William Paterson University Women's Center. Archived from the original on September 28, 2005. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  18. Greenberger, Robert (December 18, 2008). "Maddie Blaustein, 1960-2008". ComicMix. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
  19. "United States Social Security Death Index". Familysearch.org. Retrieved February 21, 2013. Adam Blaustein, 11 December 2008; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing)
  20. "Maddie Blaustein (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 2, 2021. 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 opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  21. Ambrella. Pokémon Channel. Nintendo. Scene: Ending credits, 7:13 in, Cast.
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