Sad news, as voice actor Peter Cullen has died aged 85. The cause of death hasn't been announced.
Known for voicing many iconic characters, none more so than the Transformers Autobot leader Optimus Prime, he was always very kind to fans and giving of himself to the community.
While his work on Winnie the Pooh (Eeyore), Dungeons & Dragons (Venger) and the first ever Western Mario (Saturday Supercade), he also worked in live action, providing the clicking noises for Predator and the voice of KARR in Knight Rider. When a live-action Transformers movie was first announced, it was fan pressure that assured that the veteran and much-loved voice of the original Optimus Prime returned for the big-screen outing.
For anime fans, he was King Alfor and Coran for the English adaptation of Voltron: Defender of the Universe, as well as the series narrator. For Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs he voiced both Commander Eagle as well as the villain Nemesis, and of course he served as the series robot Ramrod. His authoritative tones introduced us to Gundam Wing, Mobile Suit Gundam and Hamtaro on Cartoon Network's advertising blocks, ensuring those of us that grew up with the earliest anime on TV associated him with Japanese animation.
As a child of the 80's and a massive fan of Transformers in particular, this hits particularly hard. I'm sure his family loved him as dearly as we did, our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time.
