“One of them’s a genius, the other is insane…”
When it comes to Pinky and the Brain, those adorably deranged mice who began life on Animaniacs before getting their own world domination-themed cartoon, everyone knows how to sound like the brilliant Brain. Maurice LaMarche has made no secret of the fact that he was basically doing Orson Welles’ voice the entire time, with some episodes being particularly specific parodies of the actor/auteur’s not-so-great moments:
But how do you do Pinky? He’s a little less obvious in inspiration; a blend of lispy, panicky, and Cockney. For an upcoming episode of Mothership on Alpha, however, Jessica Chobot and Hector Navarro were able to pin down voice-actor Rob Paulsen on just how he manages to pull off all of that in one voice. And if you pay close attention, you might be able to follow his instructions to Pinky perfection:
Mothership airs Thursdays at 5:30pm PDT on Geek & Sundry Twitch, Nerdist’s YouTube, and Alpha. But if you’re a fan of Paulsen, you’ll also want to check out Talkin’ Toons, our new show all about animation voice-over actors, hosted by Paulsen himself and airing Fridays, with guests like LaMarche and Kevin Conroy. Make sure you’re signed up for Alpha — either online or our iOS app — to get full access. If you sign up today, use the promo code SHIPMATES to extend your 30-day free trial to 60 days, so you have plenty of time to check out everything Alpha has to offer. (Promo offer ends Friday, June 30 at 11:59p PDT.)
If we’ve improved your ability to channel a deranged English mouse today, well, you already know that this will make your life better. Now get out there and take over the world! And remember to let us know how well your impersonation was received, in our comments section.
Image: Warner Bros.
