John Kassir

John Edward Kassir (born October 24, 1957) is an American actor, voice actor, and stand-up comedian. He is known for his work as the voice of the Crypt Keeper in HBO's Tales from the Crypt franchise.[1] Kassir is also known for his role as Ralph in the Off-Broadway show Reefer Madness, as well as its film adaptation, as well as his voice over work as Buster Bunny (taking over from Charlie Adler late in the final season of Tiny Toon Adventures), Ray "Raymundo" Rocket on Rocket Power, the mischievous raccoon Meeko in Pocahontas and its direct-to-video sequel, Jibolba in the Tak and the Power of Juju video game series, Pete Puma in The Looney Tunes Show, and Deadpool in X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse and the Marvel: Ultimate Alliance series. He has also done the voice of Rizzo for the Spyro game, Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, and voiced Ghost Roaster in Skylanders: Giants, as well as Short Cut in Skylanders: Trap Team and Pit Boss in Skylanders: Imaginators. He is also known for his various roles in season 1 of The Amanda Show. He voiced the Ice King in the original Adventure Time pilot, but was replaced by Tom Kenny for the series. He also provided additional voice over work for Sonic the Hedgehog, Eek! The Cat, The Brothers Flub, Dead Rising, Casper's Scare School, Spider-Man 3, Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey!, Diablo III, Monsters University, The Prophet, Halo 5: Guardians and The Secret Life of Pets.

John Kassir
Kassir holding a picture of the Crypt Keeper on November 11, 2006
Born
John Edward Kassir

(1957-10-24) October 24, 1957
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Occupation
  • Actor
  • voice actor
  • stand-up comedian
Years active1983–present
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1998; div. 2007)​

Early life

Kassir was born in Baltimore, Maryland to an Iraqi father from Mosul and a Syrian mother.[2]

Career

Kassir first became known in 1985, when he defeated Sinbad for best stand-up comic on Star Search.[3]

As a stand-up comic, he has opened for the likes of Lou Rawls, Tom Jones, The Temptations and Four Tops on their TNT Tour, Bobby Vinton, Richard Belzer, U2, and Harry Blackstone, Jr. among others. John has also appeared on stage performing improvisation with Robin Williams.[4]

He then played the Bulgarian kicker, Zagreb Shkenusky, for 7 years in the HBO comedy series 1st & Ten, about a fictional football team. His other live-action credits include sketch-acting on The Amanda Show and a portrayal of Shemp Howard in the 2000 TV biopic The Three Stooges, produced by Mel Gibson, and Ralph in Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical. He was also able to get his own Pee-wee Herman style show in 1997 called Johnnytime, which aired for two seasons on the USA network. He also appeared as The Atom in the Justice League of America pilot episode, which, despite not being picked up, was released as a film in some markets. Kassir has appeared in over a dozen feature films, starred in eight TV pilots (six of which went to series and two of which lasted on air for over six years each) and guest starred in dozens of TV series in both comic and dramatic roles.

Kassir has specialized in voice-over work for animation, video games, and other productions, most notably as the voice of Crypt Keeper in Tales from the Crypt. He would later voiced Ray "Raymundo" Rocket in Rocket Power. He also provided the voice for the mercenary Deadpool in the video games X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, and Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2, as well as for Sauron and Pyro, two other well-known characters. He was also featured in the very first commercial for the Nintendo cornerstone video game series The Legend of Zelda in the United States in 1987.[5]

A few of his many theater credits include: originating the role of Kenny in Three Guys Naked From The Waist Down (also starring Scott Bakula), for which he was nominated for both a Drama Desk and an Outer Critics Circle award. John also originated the role of Ralph in the musical Reefer Madness, on stage and in the film version.

Kassir provided the vocal effects of the mischievous raccoon Meeko in Disney's 1995 animated feature Pocahontas and Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World. Also, he provided the voice of Buster Bunny in four Tiny Toon Adventures episodes (following Charlie Adler's departure from the role). He played the villainous Scuttlebutt in An American Tail: The Treasure of Manhattan Island. He also made one voice appearance in an episode of Ben 10, (Last Laugh) as Zombozo. He voiced the character Adam MacIntyre and provided Additional voice over work in the video game Dead Rising.[6] His voice is featured in the games Shadows of the Damned and Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance as Hell demons and Desperado Enforcement captain Monsoon, respectively.

In 2011, he voiced Crazy Smurf in the live-action/animated film The Smurfs, and in 2012, he voiced Jealousy as well as Gumball, Penny, Leslie, Carrie & Darwin when he possesses them in The Amazing World of Gumball episode "The Flower". Kassir appeared in Bryan Singer's Jack the Giant Slayer (2013), along with Bill Nighy, as Fallon, the two-headed leader of the giants; Nighy played the big head while Kassir played the small head.[7]

Personal life

He married actress Julie Benz on May 30, 1998, the marriage lasted for nine years until Benz filed for divorce in December 2007.[8][9]

Filmography

Live-action

Animation

Film

Video games

Documentary
  • American Scary – Himself – Crypt Keeper
  • New Wave Comedy – Himself

Documentary shorts
  • Reefer Madness: Grass Roots – Himself

References
  1. John Kassir + More join the TRINITY OF TERRORS!
  2. https://www.staufferfuneralhome.com/notices/Albert-Kassir
  3. "John Kassir". Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  4. https://www.starburstmagazine.com/features/interview-john-kassir-smothered-a-tales-from-the-crypt
  5. "John Kassir in the Legend of Zelda commercial". YouTube.com. 2006-05-18. Retrieved 2015-01-26.
  6. John Kassir: Demo reel at voicebank.net Archived 2008-12-18 at the Wayback Machine
  7. Kit, Borys (2011-02-09). "Stanley Tucci Set for Villain in 'Jack the Giant Killer'". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2011-03-03. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  8. "Angel – Interviews – Julie Benz and John Kassir". BBC Online.
  9. "Julie Benz engaged to Rich Orosco". KABC-TV. Retrieved 12 November 2014. She obtained Bamboo when he was a puppy just after she and actor John Kassir split four years ago. He and Benz were married between 1998 and 2007. The two have no children...
  10. "Behind The Voice Actors – John Kassir". Retrieved March 21, 2015.
  11. "Viking Ducks/Birthday Bread". Breadwinners. Season 2. Episode 5. May 24, 2015. Nickelodeon.
  12. "Trash Bandit/Eat at Pumpers". Breadwinners. Season 2. Episode 8. November 15, 2015. Nickelodeon.
  13. "In Dreams". Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Season 3. Episode 5. November 14, 2014. Nickelodeon.
  14. "Time Squad (2001, Animated Series) Voice Cast". Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  15. Ehrlich, David. "Pete's Dragon Review: An Old Disney Movie Becomes A New Disney Classic – IndieWire". Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  16. "Batman: Arkham Origins (2013, Video Game) Voice Cast". Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  17. 343 Industries. Halo 5: Guardians. Scene: Closing credits, 7:01 in Additional Voices.
  18. Vicarious Visions. Skylanders: SuperChargers. Activision. Scene: Closing credits, 7:13 in, Voice Actors.
  19. Toys for Bob. Skylanders: Trap Team. Activision. Scene: Closing credits, 8:40 in, Voice Actors.
  20. "Skylanders: Trap Team (2014, Video Game) Voice Cast". Retrieved 13 December 2016.
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