Francis Lax and two of his Le Muppet Show roles
Francis Lax (1930-2013) was a French actor who was a staple of the earliest French Muppet dubs and albums. He often dubbed characters originated by Frank Oz, notably Grover (the Sesame Street co-production 1, Rue Sesame) and Fozzie Bear and Sam the Eagle (both Le Muppet Show and the French dub of Muppets Tonight). Like the other voice actors on Le Muppet Show, he dubbed many other characters as well, including Scooter, Dr. Teeth, the Newsman, and various incidentals.
Lax had a long career in film and TV, from the 1950s until the 2000s, but most of it was spent as a dubbing actor. He was the French voice of Harrison Ford in the Star Wars and Indiana Jones films and the primary voice of Tom Selleck (including Magnum, P.I., Friends, and guest spots). Other actors dubbed by Lax include Michael Caine in The Man Who Would Be King and other films, Gene Hackman in the first two Christopher Reeve Superman movies, Jimmy Dean in Diamonds Are Forever, and Peter Lorre in the 1970s re-dub of Casablanca. For TV, he lent his voice to Gavin MacLeod on The Love Boat, guest stars on Columbo, and the Cryptkeeper on Tales from the Crypt.
In animation, Lax dubbed Shaggy on Scooby-Doo, George Jetson on The Jetsons, Ranger Smith on Yogi Bear, Brainy and Clumsy on The Smurfs, Snarf on Thundercats, many villains on George of the Jungle, and various characters in Terrytoons and Famous Studios shorts.
Muppet/Creature Shop voice credits[]
- 1, Rue Sesame: Grover
- Le Muppet Show: Fozzie l'Ours, Scooter, Sam l'Aigle, Le Reporter, Docteur Dent, others
- Les Muppets: Fozzie, Sam
- Gulliver's Travels: Farmer Grultrud
- Farscape (French dub): Teurac ("PK Tech Girl")
External links[]
- Allodoublage.com- Voice credits (French)