Disney Legend and Official Voice of Minnie Mouse Russi Taylor Passes Away at the Age of 75
Acclaimed voice actor and Disney Legend Russi Taylor passed away in Glendale, California yesterday at the age of 75. Russi is best known as the official voice for Minnie Mouse. She first took on the role more than 30 years ago and has voiced Minnie in hundreds of Disney projects from television shows to theme park experiences.
Bob Iger said this of her passing, “Minnie Mouse lost her voice with the passing of Russi Taylor. For more than 30 years, Minnie and Russi worked together to entertain millions around the world—a partnership that made Minnie a global icon and Russi a Disney Legend beloved by fans everywhere.” Iger added, “We’re so grateful for Russi’s talent as well as the tremendous spirit and great joy she brought to everything she did. It was a privilege to have known her and an honor to have worked with her, and we take comfort in the knowledge that her work will continue to entertain and inspire for generations to come. Russi will be sorely missed and our hearts go out to her family and friends, along with our deepest condolences.”
Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on May 4, 1944, Russi had always dreamed of working for Disney: “When I was a little girl, I was with my mom and my brother, and it was late at night at Disneyland. We had just come off the Mark Twain Riverboat and were getting some popcorn. I looked over and saw Walt sitting on a bench, so we introduced ourselves and shared our popcorn with him. At one point during our chat, he asked me what I wanted to do when I grow up, and I said, ‘I want to work for you!’ So he said, ‘Okay!’—and now I do!”
In 1986 Russi beat out 200 other hopefuls during the audition for the coveted role of Minnie Mouse. She would go on to voice Minnie in the films: Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Runaway Brain, Get a Horse!, and Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers, as well as several television series, including Mickey MouseWorks, House of Mouse, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Mickey and the Roadster Racers, and the award-winning Mickey Mouse shorts series for Disney Channel from Disney Television Animation which debuted in 2013.
In what has to be one of Disney’s greatest Fairy Tale, Russi met her real-life Mickey in the mid-1980’s in the form of Wayne Allwine who has been the voice of Mickey since 1977. The pair eventually married in 1991 and were as inseparable as their animated counterparts until Wayne’s passing in 2009.
Russi’s other Disney voices have included Nurse Mouse in The Rescuers Down Under, as well as Donald’s mischievous nephews, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, and their friend Webbigail Vanderquack in the original DuckTales animated series. She also lent her voice to roles like TaleSpin, The Little Mermaid, Buzz Lightyear of Star Command, and Kim Possible; as well as modern favorites like Sofia the First, The Lion Guard, and Tangled: The Series.
In addition to her work with Disney, Russi also voiced other incredible characters including Strawberry Shortcake, Baby Gonzo (of Muppet Babies fame), Pebbles Flintstone, Duchess the Cat in the film Babe, and Ferny Toro in Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks. She also provided the voice of Martin Prince and the twins, Sherri and Terri, on more than 100 episodes of The Simpsons, as well as the blockbuster feature The Simpsons Movie.
It is with a heavy heart that we here at MickeyBlog share the news of Russi’s passing and our most heartfelt condolences go out to her family, Disney and all of the lives she’s touched with her amazing work.