George O'Hanlon



Born in Brooklyn, New York City on November 23, 1912, George O'Hanlon was an American actor, comedian and writer. He is best known as the voice of George Jetson of the Hanna-Barbera prime-time animated 1962 television series The Jetsons. From the early 1940s, O'Hanlon started out as a character comedian in feature films through the Early Forties, usually playing the hero's streetwise, cynical friend in features for various studios while starring in the "Joe McDoakes" series at Warner Brothers. After the series ended in 1956, he returned to character work, mostly in television, appearing on "The Dennis Day Show" and "I Love Lucy." he also starred in a number of feature films, such as "How to Marry a Millionaire" with Barbera Eden and "The Reporter." From 1962 to 1963, he voiced one of his most prominent characters, George Jetson in the original The Jetsons, a role he would reprise over 20 years later in three movies. Through his career, O'Hanlon stayed busy acting in TV shows like "The Partidge Family," "Petticoat Junction," "The Beverly Hillbillies," "Gilligan's Island," "77 Sunset Strip," "The Odd Couple" and "Adam 12." He wrote episodes for Hanna-Barbera's "The Flintstones." It is interesting to note that he also auditioned for the role of Fred Flintstone but lost to Alan Reed. He also made various appearances on "Love, American Style," a series for which he wrote and directed several episodes. When Hanna-Barbara decided to revive "The Jetsons" in the Eighties, O'Hanlon returned to reprise his role, but by now, he had suffered a stroke and was left blind and suffering from limited mobility. He recorded his dialogue in a separate session from the other cast members by having all lines read to him by the voice director Gordon Hunt and then recited one at a time. He died of a second stroke on February 11, 1989 while recording dialogue for "Jetsons: The Movie." At the time, he could barely see or hear. The film was dedicated to him, along with Jetsons co-star Mel Blanc, who died later the same year. He was interred in Pierce Brothers Valley Oaks Cemetery in Westlake Village, California, survived by his wife and two children.

Episode(s)

 * New Neighbor Sam
 * Ship Ahoax