Charles Martinet

Charles Andre Martinet (/ˈmɑːrtɪn/;[1] French: [maʁtinɛ]; born September 17, 1955) is an American actor and voice actor. He is best known for voicing Mario in the Super Mario video game series. Martinet has voiced this title character of Nintendo's flagship video game franchise since 1990, and he also voices related characters such as Baby Mario, Luigi, Baby Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, and Toadsworth.

Charles Martinet
Martinet at the 2020 GalaxyCon Richmond
Born
Charles Andre Martinet

(1955-09-17) September 17, 1955
Alma materUniversity of California, Berkeley
OccupationActor
Voice actor
Years active1986–present
Known forThe voice of Mario and Luigi
Notable work
Mario series, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
WebsiteCharlesMartinet.com
Signature

Early life

Martinet is of French descent and speaks fluent French[2] and Spanish. His family moved to Barcelona when he was 12 years old, and later to Paris.[3] He attended the American School of Paris and graduated in 1974.[4]

Martinet attended the University of California, Berkeley, where he originally intended to study international law. In his senior year he decided to discontinue his studies after a tutor told him to "regurgitate information he'd written in his book, chapter-by-chapter". A friend suggested to him to take acting classes to combat his fear of public speaking. His first role was a monologue from the Spoon River Anthology.[3] Eventually, Martinet earned an apprenticeship at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre. After training with the Berkeley Rep for several years, Martinet went to London to attend the Drama Studio London, where among other skills, he discovered his talent for accents and dialects.[3] Upon returning to California he joined the Berkeley Repertory Theatre. He went on to become a founding member of the San Jose Repertory Theatre for four years.[3]

Career

Working for Nintendo since 1990, Martinet started voicing Mario at video game trade shows in which attendees would walk up to a TV screen displaying a 3-D Mario head that moved around the screen and talked.[5] This system was called Mario in Real-Time or MIRT and was developed by Pasadena based SimGraphics.[5] Martinet could see the attendees by means of a hidden camera setup, and a facial motion capture rig recorded his mouth movements in order to synchronize Martinet's mouth movement with the on-screen Mario mouth movement. This digital puppetry, with Martinet's comic performance, was a novelty at the time.

Martinet earned the job when, one day, he was told by his friend that there was going to be an audition at a trade show in which auditioneers "talk to people as a plumber". He went to the audition at the last minute as the casting directors were already putting away their equipment. Charles Martinet walked in and asked, "Can I please read for this?". The directors let him audition and told him, "You're an Italian plumber from Brooklyn". At first Martinet planned to talk like a stereotypical Italian American with a deep, raspy voice (which is how Mario sounded in the Super Mario Bros. Super Show, Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World cartoons). He then thought to himself that it would be too harsh for children to hear, so he made it more soft-hearted and friendly, resulting in what Mario's voice is today. Martinet has also stated that he kept on talking with his Mario voice until the audition tape ran out.[6] He says that Petruchio from William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew was an inspiration for his portrayal of Mario.[5]

Martinet's video game voice over debut was as Mario in the 1995 Windows release of Interplay's game Mario's FUNdamentals. However, most were first exposed to Mario's voice in the landmark 1996 game Super Mario 64. During the recording session, he and a few developers wondered what Mario would do when the player leaves him alone. In the end, Martinet came up with the idea that Mario would dream of pasta during his sleep and Mario says "night nighty. Ahhh spaghetti, ahhh ravioli, ahhh mamma mia."[7] when Mario is in his second sleeping position.[8] He has voiced Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Toadsworth, Metal Mario, Shadow Mario,[9] Piantas (Male), Mini-Mario Toys, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi and Baby Wario in most games wherein these characters speak. He also voiced the enemies Wart, Mouser, Tryclyde, and Clawgrip in Super Mario Advance. His voice work appears in the English and Japanese language versions of the games. With his work as Mario in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, the Guinness Book of World Records recognized Martinet for having performed the same character in one hundred different titles, the most of any video game voice actor.[10]

Martinet at SacAnime 2014

Martinet provided voiceover acting for the boxers and the announcer in the Super NES title Super Punch-Out!!. He voiced the character Vigoro in Sega's Dreamcast and Nintendo GameCube role-playing video game, Skies of Arcadia. He did the voice of Homunculus in the Konami PlayStation 2, Xbox and Windows game Shadow of Destiny, and provided voices for Reader Rabbit and The ClueFinders games. In 2009, Martinet told That Gaming Site that he wanted to voice Link in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, but Shigeru Miyamoto told him that Link would remain without a voice. However Link's grunts have been voiced by various Japanese voice actors.[11][12]

In addition to video game voice overs, Martinet has worked as a voice actor in commercials, cartoons, and promotions. At the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) trade show in 2005, Martinet remotely interacted with players from his New York apartment in a playable demo of Animal Crossing: Wild World.[13] Martinet did Mario's voice as the announcer for Pac-Man Vs. on the Nintendo GameCube.[14]

Other than the Mario series, Martinet has also done work for the video game Cel Damage as the voice of Fowl Mouth, as well as the primary voice work in several educational game series such as LeapFrog.[9] He also voiced the dragon Paarthurnax in the 2011 video game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Orvus in 2009's Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time, and narrated the cutscenes and menus for the 2013 video game Runner2[15] and Runner3, appearing as a hidden playable character in the latter. Martinet also narrated for the 2020 Netflix docuseries High Score.[16]

Public appearances

As the voice of Mario, Martinet has become a well-known personality and has made public appearances at several video game related events where he meets fans for chat, photographs, and autographs. He has made regular appearances at game events such as Electronic Entertainment Expo, Gamescom, and the Eurogamer Expo, and at launch events of games like Super Mario Galaxy and its sequel.

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
1986Hard TravelingDist. Atty. Cobb
1988The Dead PoolPolice Station Reporter #1[17]
1991MomMr. HernandezCredited as Charles Martinez
1995Nine MonthsArnie[18] Credited as Charles A. Martinet
1996Criminal HeartsJuanCredited as Charles Martinez
1996The Disappearance of Garcia LorcaGravediggerCredited as Charles Martinez
1997Beauty and the BeastRed-Suited Ghost (voice)Direct-to-video
1997AnastasiaYellow Bird / Pierre / General / Rasputin's Dog (voice)Direct-to-video
(uncredited)
Also screenplay
1997The GameNicholas' Father[18]
1998Sheer PassionLouCredited as Charles Martinez
2004Little Angels: The Brightest Christmas(Voice)Direct-to-video
2005The CaliforniansCity Councilman

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1986Brotherhood of JusticeDeputy[17] TV Movie
1989MatlockBo EdmundsEpisode: "The Captain"
Credited as Charles Martinez
1989Midnight CallerMark Heller[18] Episode: "Blood Red"
1992The Last of His TribeAssistant Museum Director[18] TV Movie
1992Reasonable DoubtsBartenderEpisode: "Lifelines: Part 1"
1992Bay City StoryArt RonstadtTV Movie
1995Compromising SituationsSalEpisode: "Vegas"Credited as Charles Martinez
1996–1998Nash BridgesJean-Yves / Tony / Hermsdorf[18] 3 Episodes
1997A Thousand Men and a BabySeattle cab driverTV Movie as Charles Martinez
1998Air AmericaDavid DixonEpisode: "Fever"
2004JoJo's Bizarre AdventureSenator Wilson Philips, Speedwagon Foundation Pilot2 episodes
2020High ScoreNarrator6 episodes

Video games

Year Series Role Notes Source
1992Mario Teaches TypingMarioCD-ROM version only
1993Police Quest: Open SeasonProstitute, Billy Bob, Janitor[19]
1994Super Punch-Out!!Announcer, Referee, Boxers
1995Mario's Game GalleryMario
Solar EclipseSpinner
Space Quest 6Pa Conshohocken, Ray Trace, PiTooie
1996Super Mario 64Mario, Metal Mario[20]
Mario Teaches Typing 2MarioUncredited
Mario Kart 64Mario, Luigi, WarioEnglish Dub
Credited as Charles Martinee
1998Mario PartyMarioCredited as Charles Martinee
1999The ClueFinders Math AdventuresThe Guide
Super Smash Bros.Mario, LuigiCredited as Charles Martinee
Mario GolfMario, Luigi, Baby Mario, Wario, Metal Mario
Carmen Sandiego's Great Chase Through TimeWilliam Shakespeare, Ludwig van Beethoven
Slave ZeroOld One, Sangonar
Mario Party 2Mario
Star Wars: X-Wing AllianceAdmiral Holtz, Rebel Pilot[20]
Rising Zan: The Samurai GunmanMaster Suzuki
2000Mario TennisMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Baby Mario (voice)
Skies of ArcadiaVigoro (voice)English Dub[20]
Mario Party 3Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi (voice)
2001Super Mario AdvanceMario, Luigi, Clawgrip, Triclyde, Mouser, Fryguy, Wart (voice)Uncredited
Dr. Mario 64Dr. Mario/Metal Mario, Wario/Vampire Wario (voice)
Forever KingdomDarsulEnglish Dub
Wario Land 4Wario
Luigi's MansionLuigi, Mario
Cel DamageVarious
Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds2-1B , AT-AT Driver, OOM-9
Mad Dash Racing
Super Smash Bros. MeleeMario, Luigi, Dr. Mario
Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2Mario, LuigiUncredited
The ClueFinders: The Incredible Toy Store Adventure!Pericles Lear
Shadow of MemoriesHomunculus (voice)[20]
2002Jet Set Radio FutureGouji Rokkaku (voice)[21]
Star Wars: Jedi Knight II: Jedi OutcastBespin Cop 2 / Civilian Male / Imperial Officer 2 / Rebel Shock Troop 3 (voice)
Super Mario SunshineMario, Toadsworth, Isle Delfino Commercial, Male Piantas, Pianta Attorney (voice)
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3Baby MarioUncredited
Mario Party 4 Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
ShinobiAdditional voicesEnglish Dub[20]
2003WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgames!WarioUncredited
Wario World
Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3Mario, LuigiUncredited
Mario Golf: Toadstool TourMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Shadow Mario
GladiusAdditional Voices
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Games!Wario
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the KingEasterlings
Mario Kart: Double DashMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi
Pac-Man Vs.Mario[22]
Mario Party 5Mario, Luigi, Wario, WaluigiUncredited
Mario & Luigi: Superstar SagaMario, Luigi
2004Mario Golf: Advance TourMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Mario vs. Donkey KongMario, Mini Mario[20]
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year DoorMario, Doopliss
Mario Pinball LandMario[20]
WarioWare: Twisted!Wario
Mario Power TennisMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Toadsworth
The Lord of the Rings: The Third AgeEaoden, Gimli
Mario Party 6Mario, Luigi, Wario, WaluigiUncredited
Super Mario 64 DSMario, Luigi, Wario
WarioWare: Touched!Wario (voice)
2005Virtua QuestAnnouncer, Snake Eyes, Lau Chan, Shun Di (voice)English Dub[23]
Yoshi Touch & GoBaby Mario
Dance Dance Revolution Mario MixMario, Luigi, Waluigi, WarioUncredited
Mario Superstar BaseballMario, Luigi, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Toadsworth, Piantas
Mario Tennis Advance Mario, Luigi, Waluigi
SSX on TourMario
Super Princess Peach
Mario Party 7Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, ToadsworthUncredited
Mario Kart DS Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Mario Kart Arcade GP
Mario & Luigi: Partners in TimeMario / Luigi / Baby Mario / Baby Luigi
Super Mario StrikersMario / Luigi / Wario / Waluigi (voice)
2006New Super Mario Bros.Mario / Luigi (voice)
Mario Hoops 3-on-3Mario / Luigi / Wario / Waluigi (voice)
Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the MinisMario / Mini Mario (voice)Uncredited
Yoshi's Island DSBaby Mario / Baby Wario (voice)
WarioWare: Smooth MovesWario (voice)
2007Mario Kart Arcade GP 2Mario (voice)Uncredited
Wario: Master of DisguiseWario (voice)
Super Paper MarioMario, Luigi
Mario Strikers ChargedMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Mario Party 8Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Big Top, Piantas
World in Conflict
Super Mario GalaxyMario, Luigi
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic GamesMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Mario Party DS
Kane & Lynch: Dead MenThe Elder Brother / Vaultbreaker (voice)
2008Super Smash Bros. BrawlMario / Luigi / Wario / Waluigi (voice)
Mario Kart WiiMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi
Mario Super SluggersMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, Toadsworth. Piantas
Hellboy: The Science of EvilAdditional Voices
Wario Land: Shake It! Wario
Aion: The Tower of Eternity
WarioWare: Snapped!Wario
2009Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside StoryMario, Luigi
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!Mario, Mini MarioUncredited
Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in TimeOrvus[20]
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter GamesMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
New Super Mario Bros. WiiMario, Luigi
2010Resonance of FateCardinal LagerfeldEnglish Dub[20]
Super Mario Galaxy 2Mario, Luigi
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem!Mario, Mini MarioUncredited
Mario Sports MixMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
WarioWare D.I.Y.Wario
2011Super Mario 3D LandMario, LuigiUncredited
The Elder Scrolls V: SkyrimPaarthurnax[20]
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic GamesMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Mario Kart 7Mario, Luigi, Wario, Metal MarioUncredited
Fortune StreetMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
2012Mario Party 9Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Pianta
Mario Tennis OpenMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Baby Mario
New Super Mario Bros. 2MarioUncredited
New Super Mario Bros. UMario, Luigi
2013Luigi's Mansion: Dark MoonLuigi, Mario
Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the MoveMario, Mini MarioUncredited
New Super Luigi ULuigi
Mario & Luigi: Dream Team Bros.Mario, Luigi
Mario Kart Arcade GP DXMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games
Super Mario 3D World Mario, Luigi (voice)
Mario Party: Island TourMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Yoshi's New IslandBaby Mario (voice)Uncredited
Runner2Narrator
2014Mario Golf: World TourMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Gold Mario
Mario Kart 8Mario, Luigi, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Metal MarioUncredited
Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii UMario, Luigi, Dr. Mario, Wario, Waluigi
2015Mario Party 10Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Luigi's Mansion ArcadeLuigi
Super Mario MakerMario, Luigi, Waluigi[20]
Mario Tennis: Ultra SmashMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Mario & Luigi: Paper JamMario, Luigi
2016Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic GamesMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Paper Mario: Color SplashMario, Luigi
Mario Party: Star RushMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DSMario
2017Mario Sports SuperstarsMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi
Mario Kart 8 DeluxeMario, Luigi, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Metal Mario, Gold Mario
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom BattleMario, Luigi[20]
Super Mario Odyssey[20]
2018Runner3Narrator, playable character[24]
WarioWare GoldWario
Super Mario PartyMario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Super Smash Bros. UltimateMario, Luigi, Dr. Mario, Wario, Waluigi[20]
2019Super Mario Maker 2Mario, Luigi[20]
Dr. Mario WorldDr. Mario, Dr. Luigi, Dr. Wario, Dr. Waluigi
Mario Kart TourMario, Luigi, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, Wario, Waluigi
Luigi's Mansion 3Mario, Luigi[20]
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi

References

  1. "It's-a Me, Mario!" on YouTube
  2. Interview in French for Express magazine on YouTube
  3. "CHARLES MARTINET". SacAnime. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  4. "American School of Paris Aspire". 1974.
  5. Savage, Mark (30 September 2012). "The actors hiding inside your video games". BBC. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  6. The Voice of Mario - Charles Martinet Interview on YouTube (at 2:20 mark)
  7. Super Mario 64: Mario Sleeping, retrieved 2019-09-15
  8. "Mario 64 - Mario Sleeping". YouTube. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  9. "Charles Martinet--Voice Over". www.charlesmartinet.com.
  10. Barsanti, Sam (December 15, 2018). "Charles Martinet now holds a Guinness record for voicing Super Mario 100 times". The A.V. Club. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
  11. Worthington, Thomas (November 20, 2009). "An Interview with Charles Martinet". That Gaming Site. p. 2. Archived from the original on November 20, 2009. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  12. Bramwell, Tom (November 17, 2009). "Martinet wanted to voice Link". Eurogamer. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  13. Theobald, Phil (May 18, 2005). "GameSpy: Animal Crossing DS". ds.gamespy.com. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  14. "Pac-Man Vs". IGN. November 13, 2003. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  15. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-01-22. Retrieved 2013-03-15.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  16. Friscia, John (August 6, 2020). "High Score Netflix documentary about games is narrated by Charles Martinet". Nintendo Enthusiast. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  17. "Charles Martinet--Resume". charlesmartinet.com.
  18. "Charles Martinet--Actor". charlesmartinet.com.
  19. "The Sierra Chest - Charles Martinet: Biography". sierrachest.com.
  20. "Behind The Voice Actors – Charles Martinet". Behind The Voice Actors. – green check mark indicates roles that have been verified by BTVA through closing credits
  21. Smilebit (February 25, 2002). Jet Set Radio Future (Xbox). Sega. Level/area: Credits.
  22. Harris, Craig (9 December 2003). "Pac-Man Vs. - GameCube Review". IGN. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
  23. "Virtua Quest voice cast". Album on Imgur. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
  24. "Charles Martinet on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2018-05-04.
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