Did You Grow Up with Me, Too?: The Autobiography of June Foray

by June Foray, Mark Evanier (Primary Contributor), Earl Kress (Primary Contributor)

"Like millions of people, I've been listening to June Foray for most of my life. I remember when I first encountered Rocky and Bullwinkle in their first season on TV, and falling under the spell of Jay Ward's sharply-written, wonderfully performed cartoons. What I can't remember is when I learned that the same woman who provided the voice of Rocky also acted as Natasha, Nell, and a host of other characters on the series, including the gravely-voiced fairy godmother who was patterned after character actress Marjorie Main. But as a diehard cartoon fan, it didn't take me long to memorize the names of the actors in the show's credits (fleeting though they were). "Around the same time I became enamored of Stan Freberg's comedy records, including such hit singles as "St. George and the Dragonet" and classic albums like Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America. The rich, colorful voices on those records became permanently ingrained in my consciousness, and in time I connected the dots and realized that June, Paul Frees, and Daws Butler were the same people I heard on so many cartoon soundtracks." - Leonard Maltin, from his Foreword

Genres: Biography, Memoir, Autobiography, Tv

164 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Koen Crolla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rocky and Bullwinkle is one of those second-tier cartoons that never got shown here, so I never heard Foray in what she clearly considered to be her most prominent role until I looked it up on Youtube while reading this. She did have many other famous parts, of course, so I did immediately recognise her voice—leaving aside what that says about her versatility as a voice actor.
However fondly people remember Foray, as a biography this isn't one of the greats: it meanders tediously and is light on genuinely interesting anecdotes, frequently devolving into a summing up of the jobs she had in roughly chronological order, jumping forward and backward enough to confuse anyone who isn't already familiar with the basic facts (her account of her slightly gross flirtatious exchanges with Chuck Jones in the '80s and '90s coming shortly after her account of her marriage to love-of-her-life Hobart Donavan [sic] reads oddly until you learn considerably later on that "Hobe" died in 1976). There seem to have been no meaningful struggles or moments of growth at any point in her life—she grew up thoroughly middle-class, and when she got the opportunity to become part of "the establishment" (e.g. by joining the Board of Governors of the Motion Picture Academy) she took to it perfectly naturally, without so much as a moment of self-reflection. If she ever faced sexism in the industry, or antisemitism, she seems not to have noticed—her relationship to industry racism does get some time, but only unintentionally (her being cast as a Latina character is just down to her versatility as an actress; the included pictures of her in both kinds of "Indian" dress (American in Andy's Gang, Asian in Sabaka) or in a kimono (for a fancy dress party at her home) don't even get a remark).

Obviously a lot of people did like June Foray, and presumably she was an important part of the lives of some of them. If you're one of those, this book has more pictures than her Wikipedia article does. If you're not, it won't turn you into one.

[Rick Segers · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick but very enjoyable read for anybody who grew up in this country. She started her voice acting on radio and moved into cartoons for tv and theaters. June Foray is about the sole surviving member of a pantheon of great voice actors who seemingly did it all. She is perhaps best known as the voice of Witch Hazel (Both Disney and Warner Brothers), Granny (Warner Brothers) Rocky the flying Squirrel, Natasha Badinov and hundreds of others.
I did not know until reading this that she was the original voice of Mattel's "Chatty Cathy". This led Rod Serling to seek her out as voice of "Talky Tina" in a popular Twilight Zone episode.
If you are a passing fan or devoted lover of classic animation as I am (hey I share a birth date with Chuck Jones) then read this book. You will not be disappointed.
BTW, this was a birthday gift from the center of my universe, a.k.a. my daughter.

[David Macpherson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for these autobiographies and I am always a little bit dissapointed. You can tell this was quickly put together, but June Foray is an awesome character and who doesn't love her witch voices and Natasha and all the others. I love the world of animation, so I knew I was going to like it enough.

[Mediaman · Rating 1 out of 5]

This thin book is almost worthless. Instead of containing interesting stories of a career doing animation, it's merely a catalog of her shows and people she worked with. "Then Warners called me and asked me to do...." Boring.

The small volume is only 160 pages with a lot of white space, and about 35 of those pages are photos. Rocky and Bullwinkle barely gets mentioned. There's quite a bit more on her looping films for other actresses (which is kind of interesting, but again too short). The lengthy early years of radio section doesn't say much and many shows mentioned we've never heard of today.

But the main problem is that there are few actual stories in the book. Just writing about what show you appeared on isn't interesting. And certainly not worth the price that's being charged for the tiny book!

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun book to read. The title says it best "Did You Grow Up with me Too?" June Foray was probably one of the best know voice actors in the business. She started out in radio and quickly got jobs doing voice overs and most of all, cartoon voices. I think anyone who has memories of the cartoons they watched growing up has heard her provide the voice for so many characters. She was best known for voicing Rocky J. Squirrel for Rocky and Bullwinkle. but she was also Natasha Goodenof. and Cindy loo who, witch Hazel. to name a few of the hundreds of voices. She also mentions the other actors, she has worked with such as Daws Butler, Mel Blanc etc. I found this interesting and fun to read.

[Judy Aulik · Rating 4 out of 5]

As soon as Ms. Foray passed earlier this year, I rushed to obtain her biography. Interlibrary loan, however, can be slow in this day of budget cuts. I was disappointed at its lack of length, but found it amusingly so (Foray stood 4'11"). It was padded with eulogies for her friends in the world of animation, which were also well-written.
The illustrations are the real charm here. Several personalized sketches by Chuck Jones are included, as are photos of other voice actors. The book is unfailingly upbeat. Picture a real-life Rocky the Flying Squirrel, and you have her personality pegged!

[Curmudgeon · Rating 3 out of 5]

June Foray tends to overwrite everything, and the book as a whole is less an autobiography than a collection of anecdotes, but some of the stories and details of working in voice acting and radio in the old days are interesting.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charming autobiography of a talented performer who happily drops names and describes the early days of the film and cartoon productions. Her admiration of her coworkers from Stan Freberg to Jay Ward is abundant and engaging.

[Mike Lebow]

Fun to read some of my cousin June’s stories. Miss getting to hear her do the Rocky voice at family gatherings.

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! It's so fun when someone you've heard for much of your life takes you "backstage." Bravo, Mrs. Foray!

[Alesia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable quick read from June Foray about the formative years of Hollywood animation. Highly recommended if you're into cartoons.

[Kathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

very episodic and really not very interesting. I was disappointed.