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 | |
|---|---|
 Rogers in All-American Co-Ed (1941) | |
| Born | Kent Byron Rogers July 31, 1923 Virginia Beach, Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | July 9, 1944 (aged 20) Pensacola, Florida, U.S. |
| 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.
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 | Streets of New York | Gang Member | Uncredited |
| 1940 | Northwest Passage | Odiorne Towne | Uncredited |
| Good Old Schooldays | Jimmy Skelton | Uncredited | |
| Military Academy | Billings | Uncredited | |
| 1941 | Goofy Groceries | Henry Gorilla | Voice, uncredited |
| Farm Frolics | Henry Ant[2] | Voice, uncredited | |
| Hollywood Steps Out | Mickey Rooney / James Cagney / James Stewart / Kay Kyser / J. Edgar Hoover / Henry Fonda / Cary Grant / Edward G. Robinson / Clark Gable / Bing Crosby / Lewis Stone / Ned Sparks / Peter Lorre / Groucho Marx[3][4] | Voice, uncredited | |
| The Heckling Hare | Willoughby | 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 | Voice, uncredited |
| The Hollywood Matador | Woody Woodpecker / Oxnar the Terrible Bull[5] | Voice, uncredited | |
| The Hams That Couldn't Be Cured | Wolf / Pigs | Voice, uncredited | |
| Horton Hatches the Egg | Horton the Elephant / Peter Lorre Fish / Giraffe[6] | Voice, uncredited | |
| Nutty Pine Cabin | Beavers | Voice, uncredited | |
| Hobby Horse-Laffs | Strongfort / Giggleswick / Potts[7] | Voice, uncredited | |
| Speaking of Animals and Their Families | Hippo Baby | Voice, uncredited | |
| Ace in the Hole | Woody Woodpecker / GI Sergeant[5] | Voice, uncredited | |
| Wacky Blackout | Woodpecker / Baby Bird[8][9] | Voice, uncredited | |
| Bugs Bunny Gets the Boid | Beaky Buzzard | Voice, uncredited | |
| Pigeon Patrol | Homer Pigeon / Carrier Pigeon | Voice, uncredited | |
| The Squawkin' Hawk | Henery Hawk | Voice, uncredited | |
| Blitz Wolf | Devils[10] | Voice, uncredited | |
| The Early Bird Dood It! | Worm[10] | Voice, uncredited | |
| The Hep Cat | Rosebud[11] | Voice, uncredited | |
| The Loan Stranger | Woody Woodpecker / Hudson C. Dann[5] | 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 | |
| Air Raid Warden | Fireflies / Goat / Milltary Guy | Voice, uncredited | |
| 1943 | The Screwball | Woody Woodpecker / Policeman / "Ouches" / Man in Seat / Vendor / Ballplayer / Batter / Worm / Umpire / Catcher[5] | Voice, uncredited |
| Tortoise Wins by a Hare | Dumb Rabbit with Telescope[12] | Voice, uncredited | |
| Super-Rabbit | Professor Canafrazz | Voice, uncredited | |
| Swing Your Partner | Homer Pigeon / Hank / Square Dance Caller | Voice, uncredited | |
| Red Hot Riding Hood | Wolf (some lines)[13] | Voice, uncredited | |
| The Dizzy Acrobat | Woody Woodpecker[5] | Voice, uncredited | |
| Canine Commandos | Skunk / Sheepdog / St. Bernard | Voice, uncredited | |
| Who Killed Who? | Victim / Red Skeleton / Falling Body / Santa Claus[13] | Voice, uncredited | |
| One Ham's Family | Narrator / Junior / Wolf[13] | Voice, uncredited | |
| Pass the Biscuits Mirandy! | Foy #1 / Foy #3 | Voice, uncredited | |
| Andy Panda's Victory Garden | Caterpillar | Voice, uncredited | |
| What's Buzzin' Buzzard | Joe Buzzard / Jimmy Durante Vulture's Stomach[13] | Voice, uncredited | |
| Speaking of Animals Tails of the Border | Voice, uncredited | ||
| Speaking of Animals at the Cage Door Carteen | Voice, uncredited | ||
| 1944 | Bugs Bunny and the Three Bears | Junyer Bear | 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 | Voice, uncredited |
| Speaking of Animals from A to Zoo | Monkey / Fox / Tortoise / Lion / Stork / Buffalo | Voice, uncredited |
References
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on December 5, 2015. Retrieved December 5, 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - Hartley, Steven (April 20, 2014). "Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie: 327. Farm Frolics (1941)". Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
- "The Warner Brothers Cartoon Companion: Q, R". warnercompanion.com. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
- "Classic Cartoons: Who's That Guy? - "Hollywood Steps Out"". classiccartoons.blogspot.com. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
- ""GUESS WHO??" Voice Artists in the Woody Woodpecker Cartoons |". cartoonresearch.com. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
- Hartley, Steven (December 9, 2014). "Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie: 363. Horton Hatches the Egg (1942)". Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
- Hartley, Steven (February 18, 2015). "Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie: 370. Hobby Horse-Laffs (1942)". Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
- Hartley, Steven (April 4, 2015). "Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie: 374. Wacky Blackout (1942)". Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
- "Bob Clampett's "A Tale Of Two Kitties" (1942) |". cartoonresearch.com. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
- ""Pretty Long Wait, Wasn't It?": TEX AVERY'S VOICE ACTORS (Volume 3) |". cartoonresearch.com. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
- Hartley, Steven (August 15, 2015). "Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie: 384. The Hep Cat (1942)". Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
- Hartley, Steven (April 10, 2016). "Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie: 395. Tortoise Wins By a Hare (1943)". Likely Looney, Mostly Merrie. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
- ""Hello All You Happy Tax Payers": Tex Avery's Voice Stock Company |". cartoonresearch.com. Retrieved October 8, 2020.