Kent Rogers
Kent Byron Rogers (July 31, 1923 – July 9, 1944) was an American actor who appeared in several live-action features and shorts, and a voice actor for Warner Bros. Cartoons and Walter Lantz Productions.
Kent Rogers | |
---|---|
Born | Kent Byron Rogers July 31, 1923 Virginia Beach, Virginia, U.S. |
Died | July 9, 1944 20) Pensacola, Florida, U.S. | (aged
Cause of death | Killed in a training flight accident during World War II |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1937–1944 |
Career
For Warner Bros. Cartoons, Rogers portrayed several Hollywood stars in Hollywood Steps Out, and lent his voice to The Heckling Hare, Porky's Pastry Pirates, Horton Hatches the Egg, The Squawkin' Hawk and Super-Rabbit. Rogers also provided the original voice of Beaky Buzzard in Bugs Bunny Gets the Boid and The Bashful Buzzard. He also provided the voice of Junior Bear in Bugs Bunny and the Three Bears, the initial 1944 entry of Chuck Jones' The Three Bears series. He also appeared occasionally on radio sitcoms, generally doing one-off characters.
In 1941, he had a rare on-camera role as Henry, a boy who had a talent for doing impressions, in the film All-American Co-Ed.
For Walter Lantz Productions he voiced Woody Woodpecker in five theatrical cartoon shorts released from 1942 to 1943.[1]
Rogers' career ended upon his enlistment in the Navy in late 1943.
Death
Rogers was killed in the crash of a training flight at Pensacola, Florida, while he was an Ensign in the United States Navy during World War II, on July 9, 1944, 22 days before his 21st birthday. Stan Freberg then replaced Rogers as the voice of Junior Bear, while Mel Blanc took over as the voice of Beaky Buzzard, though that character's appearances were limited after Rogers' death.[2]
Rogers is buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1937 | Make a Wish | Summer Camp Kid | Film debut, uncredited |
Boy of the Streets | Gang Member 'Red' | Uncredited | |
Headin' East | Boy in Gym | Uncredited | |
1938 | Reformatory | Inmate | Uncredited |
Boys Town | Tailor | Uncredited | |
The Storm | Boy in Gym | Uncredited | |
1939 | Wanted: No Master | Justice of the Peace[3] | Voice, uncredited |
Streets of New York | Gang Member | Uncredited | |
1940 | Northwest Passage | Odiorne Towne | Uncredited |
Adventures of Tom Thumb Jr. | Grasshopper[3] | Uncredited | |
Those Were the Days! | Jimmy Skelton | Uncredited | |
The Bookworm Turns | Mr. Hyde[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Military Academy | Billings | Uncredited | |
Syncopated Sioux | Punchy / Cowboy / Indians[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
1941 | Goofy Groceries | Henry Gorilla / Crab | Voice, uncredited |
Farm Frolics | Henry Ant[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Hollywood Steps Out | Mickey Rooney / James Cagney / James Stewart / J. Edgar Hoover / Henry Fonda / Cary Grant / Edward G. Robinson / Clark Gable / Bing Crosby / Lewis Stone / Ned Sparks / Peter Lorre / Groucho Marx / Kay Kyser[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
The Heckling Hare | Willoughby[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Life Begins for Andy Hardy | Tough Boy | Uncredited | |
Speaking of Animals Down on the Farm | Various | Voice, uncredited | |
Speaking of Animals in the Zoo | Monkey / Elephant / Lion / Stork / Fox / Tortoise | Voice, uncredited | |
All-American Co-ed | Henry | ||
1942 | Porky's Pastry Pirates | James Cagney Bee[3] | Voice, uncredited |
The Hollywood Matador | Woody Woodpecker / Oxnard the Terribull / Elevator Hick[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
The Hams That Couldn't Be Cured | Algernon Wolf / Pigs / Sheriff[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Horton Hatches the Egg | Horton the Elephant / Peter Lorre Fish / Giraffe / Rosebud[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Nutty Pine Cabin | Beavers[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Hobby Horse-Laffs | Strongfort / Giggleswick / Potts[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Speaking of Animals and Their Families | Hippo Baby | Voice, uncredited | |
Ace in the Hole | Woody Woodpecker / GI Sergeant[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Wacky Blackout | Woodpecker / Baby Bird[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Bugs Bunny Gets the Boid | Beaky Buzzard[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Pigeon Patrol | Homer Pigeon / Carrier Pigeon / Induction Officer[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
The Squawkin' Hawk | Henery Hawk[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Blitz Wolf | Devils[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
The Early Bird Dood It! | Worm[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Andy Panda's Victory Garden | Caterpillar[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
The Hep Cat | Rosebud[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
The Loan Stranger | Woody Woodpecker / Hudson C. Dann[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Road to Morocco | Male Camel | Voice, uncredited | |
Speaking of Animals in South America | Spider Monkey / Male Parrot / Monkey #2 / Stork #1 / Condor / Anteater / Barnacle Goose | Voice, uncredited | |
1943 | The Screwball | Woody Woodpecker / Policeman / "Ouches" / Man in Seat / Vendor / Ballplayer / Batter / Worm / Umpire / Catcher[3] | Voice, uncredited |
Tortoise Wins by a Hare | Dumb Rabbit with Telescope[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Super-Rabbit | Professor Canafrazz[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Swing Your Partner | Homer Pigeon / Hank / Laughter[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Red Hot Riding Hood | Wolf (some lines)[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
The Dizzy Acrobat | Woody Woodpecker[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Who Killed Who? | Victim / Red Skeleton / Falling Body / Santa Claus[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
One Ham's Family | Narrator / Junior / Wolf[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
What's Buzzin' Buzzard | Joe Buzzard / Jimmy Durante Vulture's Stomach / Rabbit[3] | Voice, uncredited | |
Speaking of Animals Tails of the Border | Voice, uncredited | ||
Speaking of Animals at the Cage Door Carteen | Parrot / Polar Bear / Monkey / Moron / Buzzard / Stork / Eagle | Voice, uncredited | |
1944 | Bugs Bunny and the Three Bears | Junyer Bear[3] | Voice, uncredited |
Who's Who in Animal Land | Fox / Llama / Donkey / Singing Bull | Voice, uncredited | |
Speaking of Animals as Babies | Monkey / Henry Ostrich talking / Baboon Baby / Papa Goat / Goat Kid / Lion Cubs / Cat Father / Giraffe | Voice, uncredited | |
Speaking of Animals: Monkey Business | Monkeys | Voice, uncredited | |
Speaking of Animals in a Harem | Tiny Tim | Voice, uncredited | |
1945 | The Bashful Buzzard | Beaky Buzzard / Farmer[3] | Voice, uncredited, released posthumously |
Speaking of Animals from A to Zoo | Monkey / Fox / Tortoise / Lion / Stork / Buffalo | Voice, uncredited, final film role, released posthumously |
References
- "The Walter Lantz Cartune Encyclopedia: Cartune Profiles: Woody Woodpecker". Archived from the original on December 5, 2015. Retrieved December 5, 2015.
- Animation Anecdotes #134
- Scott, Keith (October 3, 2022). Cartoon Voices of the Golden Age, Vol. 2. BearManor Media.