Wolfgang Draeger

Wolfgang Draeger (b. 1928) is a German actor and voice artist who has dubbed Big Bird on Sesamstrasse. Along with Andreas von der Mden, he is the only dub actor to stay with the show from its inception in 1972 to the present.

Draeger studied at the Berlin-Reinickendorf Conservatory for Music and Art. Beginning 1953, he established himself as a familiar radio voice, and became the regular dubbing voice of such varied actors as Woody Allen, James Cagney, and Dudley Moore. He also dubbed Gene Wilder (in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and Trans-American Express), Eric Idle (as Sir Robin in Monty Python and the Holy Grail), George Harrison, and Roman Polanski in Chinatown. In animation, he voiced Inspector Gadget and various characters in the Asterix films.