Bill Ratner
Bill Ratner (born February 25, 1947) is an American voice actor, author and solo performance artist. He is best known as the voice of Flint in Hasbro's syndicated TV cartoon G.I. Joe.
Bill Ratner | |
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Born | |
Occupation | Voice actor, author, performance artist |
Years active | 1982–present |
Career
Ratner is best known as the voice of Flint in Hasbro's syndicated TV cartoon G.I. Joe.[1] His voice was used in numerous movie trailers, including Inside Out, Will Ferrell's Talladega Nights and Blades of Glory, Kung Fu Panda, Mike Myers's The Love Guru, Monsters vs. Aliens, and many more.[2] He narrates documentaries on Discovery Channel, A&E, The Weather Channel, History, and others. His voice is on Kings Quest, Grand Theft Auto IV, Mass Effect, and others, and he is the narrator in episodes of Ben 10 for the Cartoon Network. Ratner is also a voice-over announcer for television stations across the US.[3]
His book, Parenting for the Digital Age: The Truth behind Media's Effect on Children and What To Do About It, winner of the National Indie Excellence Award[4] and a Next Generation Indie Book Award[5] and Eric Hoffer Award[6] finalist, is published by Familius.[7] His personal essays are published in the Baltimore Review,[8] Blue Lake Review[9] and The Missouri Review.[10]
Ratner's performances of his personal essays are featured on KCRW's Strangers[11] and National Public Radio's The Business.[12] and Good Food.[13] He tours nationally for storytelling conferences,[14] and festivals,[15] is a regular competitor in The Moth[16] Story Slams in Los Angeles, is a nine-time Moth StorySLAM Winner, a National Storytelling Festival Story Slam teller-Jonesborough TN, a National Storytelling Network storyteller.[17]
He is a contributing author of the book Secrets of Voiceover Success.[18] He is a two-time winner of "Best of the Hollywood Fringe Festival Extension" - Solo Category for "Bobbywood: Whatever Happened to Bobby the Bellboy?"[19] in 2013 and Voices in my Head: A Life.[20][21] He is a member of Actors Equity Association, and Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of TV & Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) where he teaches voiceover.[22]
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1987 | G.I. Joe: The Movie | Flint | Direct-to-video |
1989 | Lobster Man from Mars | Additional Voices | |
2004 | Fat Albert | Announcer | |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1982 | Meatballs & Spaghetti | Additional Voices | Unknown episodes |
1985–86 | G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero | Flint, Strato-Viper, Chuck, Cobra Officer, Cobra Trooper, Driver | 45 episodes |
1986 | The Transformers | Dashiell R. Faireborn / Flint | Ep. "The Killing Jar" |
1997 | Ah! Real Monsters | Stu Simmons | Ep. "Clockwise/Gromble Soup" |
2005 | Family Guy | Flint | Ep. "North by North Quahog" |
2006, 2008 | Ben 10 | Narrator, Baddie #2 | 2 episodes |
2006, 2009, 2019 | Robot Chicken | Flint, Gomez Addams, Thing's Boss, Game Host, Crime Boss, George Henderson | 3 episodes |
2007 | Back to You | Announcer | 2 episodes |
2008–17 | Air Emergency | Narrator | Documentary 9 episodes |
2010–16 | I (Almost) Got Away With It | Narrator | Documentary 93 episodes |
2011–13 | Behind Mansion Walls | Narrator | Documentary 39 episodes |
2011–16 | Air Disasters | Narrator | 150 episodes |
2014 | Community | Flint (voice) | Ep. "G.I. Jeff" |
Video games
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
1992 | King's Quest VI | Narrator |
2004 | Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance 2 | Additional Voices |
2007 | Mass Effect | Ambassador Donnel Udina, Hollis Blake, Krogan Patron |
2008 | Grand Theft Auto IV | The Men's Room Announcer, Republican Space Rangers Announcer, Split Sides Announcer, Commercial |
2009 | Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned | The Men's Room Announcer, Republican Space Rangers Announcer |
2009 | Grand Theft Auto IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony | The Men's Room Announcer, Republican Space Rangers Announcer |
2010 | Mass Effect 2 | Donnel Udina, Mess Sergeant Rupert Gardner |
2012 | Mass Effect 3 | Donnel Udina, Angry Krogan Vet |
2013 | Grand Theft Auto V | Republican Space Rangers Announcer |
2016 | Final Fantasy XV | Additional Voices |
References
- "International G.I. Joe Collectors' Convention - GIJoeCon 2012!". Gijoecon.com. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "In a World of Trailers, Unseen Stars". The New York Times. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "Bill Ratner". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "Winners of the NIEA 2016 Awards!". Retrieved 23 January 2017.
- Awards, Next Generation Indie Book. "Next Generation Indie Book Awards". Retrieved 23 January 2017.
- "Eric Hoffer Book Award Category Finalists". Retrieved 23 January 2017.
- "Parenting in the Digital Age". Familius. 2014-11-04. Retrieved 2016-01-31.
- "Bill Ratner: Of This Earth". Baltimorereview.org. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "Primal Screaming - Blue Lake Review". Bluelakereview.weebly.com. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "2011 Audio Contest Runner-up: Bill Ratner". Missourireview.com. 2011-12-17. Archived from the original on 2013-11-07. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "Bill Ratner: Screaming with Professionals - Strangers on KCRW 89.9 FM | Internet Public Radio Station Streaming Live Independent Music & NPR News Online from Los Angeles, CA". Kcrw.com. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "The Drama of the TV Drama 'Damages;' The Business@The Moth 4 - The Business on KCRW 89.9 FM | Internet Public Radio Station Streaming Live Independent Music & NPR News Online from Los Angeles, CA". Kcrw.com. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "Crack Pie, Mark Bittman, Good Food at The Moth - Good Food on KCRW 89.9 FM | Internet Public Radio Station Streaming Live Independent Music & NPR News Online from Los Angeles, CA". Kcrw.com. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "Utah Local News - Salt Lake City News, Sports, Archive - The Salt Lake Tribune". Sltrib.com. 2012-02-09. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "Art of the Story Festival: Bill Ratner | Washington County Cooperative Library Services". Wccls.org. Archived from the original on 2014-02-03. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- Archived March 21, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
- "The Boy Who Set Out to Learn What Fear Was | National Storytelling Network Blog". Blog.storynet.org. 2011-09-20. Archived from the original on 2014-02-18. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "Secrets of Voice-Over Success". Sentient Publications. Archived from the original on 2014-02-04. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "Hollywood Fringe - bobbywood: whatever happened to bobby the bellboy?". Hff13.org. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "The Voiceover Actor Finds His Own Voice". La Stage Times. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "voices in my head: a life***". Hollywood Fringe. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
- "Event Details". SAG Foundation. Archived from the original on 2014-02-01. Retrieved 2014-03-02.