Danny Wells

[Xerus]

XERUS’S VOICE ARTIST FOCUS:

Today’s V/A focus is actor Danny Wells. You might’ve seen him as Charlie from The Jeffersons and as Luigi from the Super Mario Bros. Super Show playing both the live action and animated Luigi. Danny does voicework for both U.S. and Canadian cartoons.

ADVENTURES IN ODYSSEY(ANIMATED): Additional voices
BATMAN, THE ANIMATED SERIES: The Guard
CRASHBOX: Poop or Scoop Announcer
DA BOOM CREW: Additional voices
DESCENT 3: Additional voices
GROSSOLOGY: Detective
HEATHCLIFF AND THE CATILLAC CATS: Bush, Raul
POTATOES AND DRAGONS: King Hugo III
A RAT’S TALE: Mr. Dollart
SPLINTER CELL, CHAOS THEORY: Captain Arthur Partridge
THE SUPER MARIO BROS. SUPER SHOW: Luigi
WILLA’S WILD LIFE: Gus the Alligator
WIZARDRY 8: Additional voices

 

[Drtooth]

I swear I heard his voice on the Canadian Dub of the New Adventures of Lucky Luke. And I could swear he was in one episode of Arthur... the one where Binky had trouble with the clarinet and tried to destroy music (as one of the judges). But swearing isn't solid fact, and I don't know where to find out more.


And he was the Wizard on the "Princess, I Shrunk the Marios" episode of Super Mario Brothers Super Show. Shame they didn't keep him on as the voice of Luigi for the other 2 Super Mario cartoons. The other voice actor came across as whiny, and not the reluctant brother that I always envision.

To me, Lou Albano and Danny Wells WERE Mario and Luigi. Everyone else just played them. Even the video game voice actors (I actually grew to respect them. Search Mario Teaches Typing 2 on Youtube for the reason why. Very off the cuff, playful jokes).

 

[Yorick]

Maybe IMDB.com will show you. I agree on Danny and Lou being the Mario brothers...as much as I liked the cartoon itself, is was their live action bits that really made my day!

 

[BuddyBoy600alt]

R.I.P. Danny Wells (1941-2013). You will be missed. I have bad news, He just recently passed away.

 

[mr3urious]

R.I.P. Danny Wells (1941-2013). You will be missed. I have bad news, He just recently passed away.

And all as the Year of Luigi comes to a close.

 

[Drtooth]

And all as the Year of Luigi comes to a close.

Well, that's thoroughly depressing.

Danny Wells was Luigi to me. Not because I have a nostalgic bias to the Super Mario bros Super Show, but because I really think he played the character better than anyone else. I never liked the weird, whiny Yogi Bear sound from Tony Rosato in Super Mario 3 and World, John Leguizamo was too young to be the character, and while I can enjoy Charles's voice of Mario and Luigi, I tend to think of Mario and Luigi as Italian American descendants that lived in Brooklyn, not direct Italian immigrants. They are a little caricatured with Nintendo's official voices.

Anyway, the joy of the SMBSS wasn't the cartoon segments (though they were fun), but the chemistry that Danny and Captain Lou had. You knew they were two different actors, but you could swear they were close brothers. You can tell they had a blast doing that part of the series. So much better than that forced, lousy, Club Mario crap that replaced it unjustly.

I'm really going to miss Danny.