John Kassir
Encyclopedia
John Kassir is an American
actor
, voice artist, and comedian
who is best known as the voice of the Crypt Keeper in HBO's, Tales from the Crypt
franchise. Kassir is also best known for his voice work as Ray "Raymundo" Rocket on Rocket Power
, the mischievous Raccoon
Meeko in Pocahontas
, Jibolba in the Tak and the Power of Juju
video game series, and the current voices of Pete Puma in The Looney Tunes Show
, and Deadpool in X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse
and the Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
series.
, about a fictional football team. His other live action credits include sketch-acting on The Amanda Show
and a portrayal of Shemp Howard in a biopic about 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. John 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 beat out both Michael Winslow
and Charles Fleischer
to become the voice of the Crypt Keeper.
As a standup 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
, and Harry Blackstone
, Jr. among others. John has also appeared on stage performing improvisation with Robin Williams
, though Williams did not realize this was happening.
More recently, John has specialized in voice-over work for animation, video games, and other productions. Notable in this regard has been his acting the roles of Ray "Raymundo" Rocket on Rocket Power
. He also provided the voice for the mercenary Deadpool
in the video games X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse
and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
, 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.
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.
He provided the voice 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
cartoons (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 as Zombozo. He voiced the character Adam MacIntyre and others in the video game Dead Rising
. Recently, his voice is featured in the game Shadows of the Damned
.
In February 2011, Kassir was cast in Bryan Singer
's Jack the Giant Killer
along with Bill Nighy
as Fallon, the two-headed leader of the giants; Nighy will play the big head while Kassir will play the small head.
In 2011, he voiced Crazy Smurf in the film The Smurfs
.
from May 1998 to December 2007. They have both done voice overs in the Xbox
game Halo 2
.
According on a interview about Tales from the Crypt, he collected comic books as a kid growing up.
During Ed McMahon
's original Star Search
Kassir had beaten Rosie O'Donnell
and Sinbad in the talent competition, winning the $100,000.00 Grand Prize.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, voice artist, and comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
who is best known as the voice of the Crypt Keeper in HBO's, Tales from the Crypt
Tales from the Crypt (TV series)
Tales from the Crypt, sometimes titled HBO's Tales from the Crypt, is an American horror anthology television series that ran from 1989 to 1996 on the premium cable channel HBO...
franchise. Kassir is also best known for his voice work as Ray "Raymundo" Rocket on Rocket Power
Rocket Power
Rocket Power is an American animated television series that aired on Nickelodeon.-Premise:Rocket Power involves the daily situations of a group of best friends named Oswald "Otto" Rocket, Regina "Reggie" Rocket, Maurice "Twister" Rodriguez, and Sam "Squid" Dullard, as they live in the fictional...
, the mischievous Raccoon
Raccoon
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
Meeko in Pocahontas
Pocahontas (1995 film)
Pocahontas is the 33rd animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. It was produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and was originally released to selected theaters on June 16, 1995 by Walt Disney Pictures...
, Jibolba in the Tak and the Power of Juju
Tak and the Power of Juju
Tak and the Power of Juju is an action-adventure video game developed by Avalanche Software for the PlayStation 2, GameCube, and Game Boy Advance....
video game series, and the current voices of Pete Puma in The Looney Tunes Show
The Looney Tunes Show
The Looney Tunes Show is a packaged show, created for Cartoon Network, and broadcast from 2002 to 2005. It was produced by Warner Bros. Animation. The show featured cartoon shorts from the original Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies theatrical cartoon series produced from 1930 to 1969.-External links:...
, and Deadpool in X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse
X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse
X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse is an action role-playing game released in 2005 for the Xbox, PlayStation 2, N-Gage, PlayStation Portable, and GameCube video game consoles as well as the PC...
and the Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance is an action role-playing game developed for PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox and Xbox 360 by Raven Software and published by Activision. The game was simultaneously ported to the PlayStation Portable and Wii by Vicarious Visions, and to Microsoft Windows by Beenox...
series.
Early life and background
Kassir, who is of Syrian descent, was born in Baltimore, Maryland.Career
Kassir played the Bulgarian kicker, Zagreb Shkenusky, for 7 years in the HBO comedy series 1st & Ten1st & Ten (TV series)
1st & Ten is an American situation comedy that aired between December 1984 and January 1991 on the cable television network HBO. Featuring series regulars Delta Burke and veteran Reid Shelton, it was one of cable's first attempts to lure the lucrative sit-com audience away from the "Big Three", by...
, about a fictional football team. His other live action credits include sketch-acting on The Amanda Show
The Amanda Show
The Amanda Show is an American live-action sketch comedy and variety show that aired on Nickelodeon from November 6, 1999 to September 21, 2002. It starred Amanda Bynes, Drake Bell, and Nancy Sullivan, along with several performing artists who came and left at different points, such as John Kassir,...
and a portrayal of Shemp Howard in a biopic about The Three Stooges, produced by Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
, and Ralph in Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical. He was also able to get his own Pee-wee Herman
Pee-wee Herman
Pee-wee Herman is a comic fictional character created and portrayed by American comedian Paul Reubens. He is best known for his two television series and film series during the 1980s. The childlike Pee-wee Herman character developed as a stage act that quickly led to an HBO special in 1981...
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. John 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 beat out both Michael Winslow
Michael Winslow
Michael Winslow is an American actor and a comedian billed as the "Man of 10,000 Sound Effects" for his ability to make realistic sound effects using only his voice.-Early life:...
and Charles Fleischer
Charles Fleischer
Charles Fleischer is an American actor, stand-up comedian and voice artist.-Life and career:Fleischer was born in Washington, D.C. As a child, he is reported to have spent several summers at Kamp Kewanee in La Plume, Pennsylvania, where he started practicing his stand-up routine at age nine...
to become the voice of the Crypt Keeper.
As a standup comic, he has opened for the likes of Lou Rawls
Lou Rawls
Louis Allen "Lou" Rawls was an American soul, jazz, and blues singer. He was known for his smooth vocal style: Frank Sinatra once said that Rawls had "the classiest singing and silkiest chops in the singing game"...
, Tom Jones
Tom Jones (singer)
Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...
, The Temptations
The Temptations
The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
and Four Tops
Four Tops
The Four Tops are an American vocal quartet, whose repertoire has included doo-wop, jazz, soul music, R&B, disco, adult contemporary, hard rock, and showtunes...
on their TNT tour, Bobby Vinton
Bobby Vinton
Bobby Vinton is an American pop music singer of Polish origin. In pop music circles, he became known as "The Polish Prince".-Early life:...
, Richard Belzer
Richard Belzer
Richard Jay Belzer is an American stand-up comedian, author, and actor. He is perhaps best known for his role as John Munch, which he has portrayed as a regular cast member on the NBC police drama series Homicide: Life on the Street and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, as well as in guest...
, and Harry Blackstone
Harry Blackstone
Harry Blackstone may refer to:*Harry Blackstone, Sr. , a famous American magician known as "The Great Blackstone" and father of Harry Blackstone, Jr....
, Jr. among others. John has also appeared on stage performing improvisation with Robin Williams
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
, though Williams did not realize this was happening.
More recently, John has specialized in voice-over work for animation, video games, and other productions. Notable in this regard has been his acting the roles of Ray "Raymundo" Rocket on Rocket Power
Rocket Power
Rocket Power is an American animated television series that aired on Nickelodeon.-Premise:Rocket Power involves the daily situations of a group of best friends named Oswald "Otto" Rocket, Regina "Reggie" Rocket, Maurice "Twister" Rodriguez, and Sam "Squid" Dullard, as they live in the fictional...
. He also provided the voice for the mercenary Deadpool
Deadpool (comics)
Deadpool is a fictional character, a mercenary and anti-hero appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by artist Rob Liefeld and writer Fabian Nicieza, Deadpool first appeared in The New Mutants #98 Deadpool (Wade Winston Wilson) is a fictional character, a mercenary and...
in the video games X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse
X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse
X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse is an action role-playing game released in 2005 for the Xbox, PlayStation 2, N-Gage, PlayStation Portable, and GameCube video game consoles as well as the PC...
and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance is an action role-playing game developed for PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox and Xbox 360 by Raven Software and published by Activision. The game was simultaneously ported to the PlayStation Portable and Wii by Vicarious Visions, and to Microsoft Windows by Beenox...
, as well as for Sauron
Sauron (comics)
Sauron is a comic book character, a supervillain in Marvel Comics' main shared universe. An enemy of the X-Men, the character was created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Neal Adams. He first fully appeared as Sauron in X-Men #60 ....
and Pyro
Pyro (comics)
Pyro is a fictional character in Marvel Comics and an enemy of the X-Men. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist/co-writer John Byrne, he first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #141 ....
, two other well-known characters. He was also featured in the very first commercial for the Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
cornerstone video game series The Legend of Zelda in the United States in 1987.
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
Scott Bakula
Scott Stewart Bakula is an American actor, known for his role as Sam Beckett in the television series Quantum Leap, for which he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama in 1991 and was nominated for four Emmy Awards. He also had a prominent role as Captain Jonathan...
), 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
Reefer Madness
Reefer Madness is a well-known 1936 American propaganda exploitation film revolving around the melodramatic events that ensue when high school students are lured by pushers to try "marijuana" — from a hit and run accident, to manslaughter, suicide, attempted rape, and descent into madness...
, on stage and in the film version.
He provided the voice of the mischievous raccoon
Raccoon
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
Meeko in Disney's 1995 animated feature Pocahontas
Pocahontas (1995 film)
Pocahontas is the 33rd animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. It was produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and was originally released to selected theaters on June 16, 1995 by Walt Disney Pictures...
and Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World
Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World
Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World is a 1998 straight-to-video sequel to the 1995 Disney film Pocahontas. The film is inspired by true events in the life of Pocahontas which took place several years after her encounter with John Smith and the founders of Jamestown...
. Also, he provided the voice of Buster Bunny in four Tiny Toon Adventures
Tiny Toon Adventures
Steven Spielberg Presents Tiny Toon Adventures, usually referred to as Tiny Toon Adventures or simply Tiny Toons, is an American animated television series created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Amblin Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation. It began production as a result of Warner Bros....
cartoons (following Charlie Adler's departure from the role). He played the villainous Scuttlebutt in An American Tail: The Treasure of Manhattan Island
An American Tail: The Treasure of Manhattan Island
An American Tail: The Treasure of Manhattan Island, titled in the film as An American Tail III: The Treasure of Manhattan Island was the first direct-to-video and third film in the An American Tail series. This film was first released in the UK in 1998. It was released by Universal Studios Home...
. He also made one voice appearance in an episode of Ben 10 as Zombozo. He voiced the character Adam MacIntyre and others in the video game Dead Rising
Dead Rising
is an action-adventure, survivor horror video game, developed by Capcom and produced by Keiji Inafune. It was released on August 8, 2006 exclusively for the Xbox 360 video game console. The game was a commercial success. It has been introduced into the Xbox 360 "Platinum Hits" lineup, and a cell...
. Recently, his voice is featured in the game Shadows of the Damned
Shadows of the Damned
Shadows of the Damned, officially abbreviated as Damned or DMD, is a 2011 third-person shooter video game developed by Grasshopper Manufacture and published by Electronic Arts for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game consoles. The game follows the story of Garcia Hotspur, a Mexican demon...
.
In February 2011, Kassir was cast in Bryan Singer
Bryan Singer
Bryan Singer is an American film director and film producer. Singer won critical acclaim for his work on The Usual Suspects, and is especially well-known among fans of the science fiction and superhero genres for his work on the X-Men films and Superman Returns.-Early life:Singer was born in New...
's Jack the Giant Killer
Jack the Giant Killer (2012 film)
Jack the Giant Killer is an upcoming fantasy / adventure film based on the fairy tale of the same name. The film is directed by Bryan Singer and stars Nicholas Hoult as the titular hero with a script written by Darren Lemke, Christopher McQuarrie and Dan Studney...
along with Bill Nighy
Bill Nighy
William Francis "Bill" Nighy is an English actor and comedian. He worked in theatre and television before his first cinema role in 1981, and made his name in television with The Men's Room in 1991, in which he played the womanizer Prof...
as Fallon, the two-headed leader of the giants; Nighy will play the big head while Kassir will play the small head.
In 2011, he voiced Crazy Smurf in the film The Smurfs
The Smurfs (film)
The Smurfs is a 2011 American 3D family film based on The Smurfs comic book series created by Peyo and the 1980s animated TV series it spawned. It was directed by Raja Gosnell and stars Neil Patrick Harris, Hank Azaria, Jayma Mays, and Sofía Vergara. It is the first CGI/live-action hybrid film to...
.
Personal life
Kassir was married to actress Julie BenzJulie Benz
Julie M. Benz is an American actress, best known for her roles as Darla on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel and as Rita Bennett on Dexter, for which she won the 2006 Satellite Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television...
from May 1998 to December 2007. They have both done voice overs in the Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
game Halo 2
Halo 2
Halo 2 is a first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie Studios. Released for the Xbox video game console on November 9, 2004, the game is the second installment in the Halo franchise and the sequel to 2001's critically acclaimed Halo: Combat Evolved...
.
According on a interview about Tales from the Crypt, he collected comic books as a kid growing up.
During Ed McMahon
Ed McMahon
Edward Peter "Ed" McMahon, Jr. was an American comedian, game show host and announcer. He is most famous for his work on television as Johnny Carson's sidekick and announcer on The Tonight Show from 1962 to 1992. He also hosted the original version of the talent show Star Search from 1983 to 1995...
's original Star Search
Star Search
Star Search is a television show that was produced from 1983-95, hosted by Ed McMahon, and created by Alfred Masini. A relaunch was produced in 2003-04. The show was originally filmed at the old Earl Carroll Theatre at 6230 Sunset Blvd...
Kassir had beaten Rosie O'Donnell
Rosie O'Donnell
Roseann "Rosie" O'Donnell is an American stand-up comedian, actress, author and television personality. She has also been a magazine editor and continues to be a celebrity blogger, LGBT rights activist, television producer and collaborative partner in the LGBT family vacation company R Family...
and Sinbad in the talent competition, winning the $100,000.00 Grand Prize.