WILSON, Lionel 1924-2003

(Peter Blackton, Herbert Ellis, L. E. Salzer)

OBITUARY NOTICE—See index for CA sketch: Born Lionel Lazarus Salzer March 22, 1924, in New York, NY; died of pneumonia April 30, 2003, in New York, NY. Actor and author. Although he had a diverse career on stage and in television, Wilson is likely best remembered for doing the voices of cartoon characters, especially those in the "Tom Terrific" cartoons that aired on the Captain Kangaroo show from 1957 to 1959. His acting career began when he was just fourteen years old when he won a role in the Broadway play Dodsworth. Later, he attended New York University for a year before going back to Broadway in 1942. He then devoted time to his acting talents, from voicing characters from "Tom Terrific" in the 1950s to providing the voice of Eustace in the Courage the Cowardly Dog series airing on the Cartoon Network beginning in 1999. Wilson always felt it is important to inspire children, and toward this end he penned a number of fiction and nonfiction children's books, sometimes pseudonymously, including The Mule Who Refused to Budge (1975), The Mystery of the Human Wolves (1979), and The King Who Never Was (1982). In addition, he read numerous children's books for audio recordings, including Louis Sachar's "Wayside School" series. At the time of his death, Wilson had just completed his memoirs, … and Also in the Cast.

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Los Angeles Times, May 27, 2003, p. B11.

New York Times, May 24, 2003, p. A30.