Walker Boone, one of the original voice actors for Mario in the 1990s, has passed away in January. He was 76.
Boone, whose real name was Theodore Nicoloff, died towards the end of January of this year, but news of his passing wasn't made public until yesterday, as reported by Nintendo Life.
Born on May 4th, 1944, Boone attended law school in Montreal, Quebec before moving on to teach in London and Toronto. In the 1980s, he left his teaching career behind and went on to star in multiple American shows, including Star Trek: The Next Generation as Lieutenant Commander Leland T. Lynch.
Related: One Mario Kart 64 Speedrunner Now Holds The World Record On Every Single Course
After Peter Cullen and Lou Albano voiced Mario in 1983's Saturday Supercade and 1989's The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! respectively, Boone lent his voice talents to the red plumber in The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World between 1990 and 1991. You can hear Boone giving Mario's voice some New York-style Italian flair in a clip from the beloved "Mama Luigi" episode above.
If you're a well-seasoned animation enthusiast, Boone is also known for voicing Peppy Wolfman in the English dub of the Totally Spies prequel film Totally Spies! The Movie.
Although Charles Martinet currently voices Mario, there is no word on who will voice Nintendo's mascot in the upcoming Super Mario animated movie by Illumination. However, stand-up comedian Sebastian Maniscalco has been reportedly cast to voice the Foreman Spike. As the movie is set to be released next year, whether they will cast Charles Martinet to voice Mario or another Hollywood actor remains a mystery.
We at TheGamer send our condolences to Boone's friends and family.
Next: Ryan Reynolds Is Mario, Doomguy, And Minecraft Steve In New Free Guy Posters
