A young old girl in Massachusetts asked to be my Myspace Friend yesterday. Her email said she liked my “work”, which is apparently a reference to something I used to do.
I clicked on her page to learn a little more about her, and to see whether or not she
was actually a Furry.
By the way, I’ve actually had a few of those kinds of fans over the years. There was one guy who was hot for Peg, a character I played on Goof Troop. He wrote me unsettling letters about what he wanted to do to my tail. I figured Disney was asking for it by putting a dog in capri pants and earrings.
Anyway, she had a YouTube video on her page that really surprised me. It never occurred to me that this would be on YouTube. And it’s one of the first voice jobs in animation I had as an adult, and I haven’t seen in it a very, very long time.
And on top of everything else, I don’t think I’m very good in it. If they were doing this today, I would have approached it very differently.
Of course, if they were doing this today, my roles would be played by Tina Fey and Ellen Page.
Which brings me to tomorrow.
Zombie Time
I have a job.
A real live, honest to God job. And not temping, either.
No, tomorrow I’m working on a movie called El Superbeasto, directed by Rob Zombie.
I know, huh?
I’m not sure what my character is all about, but I know I’m supposed to sound like Helen Mirren. Hard to believe they didn’t give it to her, but she was probably busy doing the Curious George sequel.
This is the third job I’ve gotten in the last three weeks, and I credit that to MY NEW AGENT. Yes, after years of being completely overlooked by my old agent (who was very busy managing Nicolette Sheridan and Jackie Collins), I finally grew a pair and moved on. It’s a really good thing, and long overdue.
I don’t know if any of them will be there when I am, but Paul “John Adams” Giamatti is in this too, along with Cassandra “Elvira” Petersen and Brian “Sarah Silverman’s Gay Neighbor” Posehn.
And me, April “One More Job And I Keep My Health Benefits” Winchell.
36 responses so far ↓
1 David Caruso // Apr 21, 2008 at 9:00 pm
*puts on sunglasses*
First post.
2 Roger Daltrey // Apr 21, 2008 at 9:11 pm
YEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!
3 bjimba // Apr 21, 2008 at 9:21 pm
I first started following your blog after I stumbled upon it looking for awful mp3’s. Reading your posts, I knew I had found a kindred spirit.
It took a while for the connection to your father to hit me (again, via the mp3’s). Now, I grew up watching Jerry Mahoney and Knucklehead Smif, and whatever-the-fuck the little mouse’s name was. Plus, for some godforsaken reason, I always associate your father with an episode of “Love American Style” where he had an act where his wife would conk him on the head to play music.
It was even later that I made the voice actor connection. It was while I was converting my (legally purchased) VHS copy of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” to DVD. After I had it scanned onto my computer, I was browsing the credits to see who did the voices, besides the obvious Mel Blanc, Clarence Nash, etc. Of course, I see “April Winchell”, and my mind goes into a minor freakout for a moment or two.
I wonder if you are the only two-generation voice actors to work Disney cartoons.
(The closest I get to a Disney connection is that my uncle was in “Charlie the Lonesome Cougar”.)
4 inerror // Apr 21, 2008 at 9:22 pm
Elvira — Mistress of the Dark. Whoever put her between those crappy horror movies owes her a large fortune. Waiting to see her was 90% of the reason I stayed tuned. And a great performance in the 1974 movie “The Working Girls”. Man can she dance! And do they ever.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070927/
5 Speedy Cerviche // Apr 21, 2008 at 9:45 pm
1. Furfags are actually pretty decent people. I mean, this is the internet. In this world of child molesters, “crush” enthusiasts, and other various and sundry deviants, people who like to pretend they’re having sex with anthropomorphic wolves are pretty damn benign. I happen to know a furry on a personal basis, and he’s a great guy. And no, my association with him has nothing t0 do with furfaggotry. We work on a music site together.
2. Excuse me for being so geeky, but if I remember my childhood correctly, Peg didn’t have a tail.
3. April, don’t be ridiculous. Tina Fey could never find the time to play baby Herman. She would be too busy playing a burrito.
4. Rob Zombie had a song called “Superbeast”. It was off his album “Hellbilly Deluxe”. Coincidence? Oh, I doubt it. You neglected to mention, however, that the movie features both both Rob Paulsen and Tom Kenny in addition to your esteemed talent. The trinity of fuckin’ awesome voice actors is complete.
Oh, you also forgot to mention that the actual title of the movie is “The Haunted World of El Superbeasto”. It’s based on a comic book of the same name. Oh, well. Nitpick, nitpick, nitpick.
Cheers on the work, though I sure will miss buying flowers from you on the 405.
6 inerror // Apr 21, 2008 at 10:05 pm
The character in the graphic April put up is reminiscent of Nacho Libre, one of those Mexican cult wrestlers. Nacho used to be a regular caller to the Mister K show you know. Until he began suspecting Mister K was disrespecting him. But then I check IMDB, there’s no mention of April. Get off your asses IMDB and get April Winchell on the cast listing!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0419724/
7 jim // Apr 21, 2008 at 10:59 pm
Congrats on the gig.
Damn Sam, working with BOTH Mr. Zombie & Elvira?!
If you get any cooler you’ll offset global warming.
8 bnaivar // Apr 22, 2008 at 5:26 am
You don’t need to know what your character is, you just need your motivation. ($)
9 JohnnyBoy // Apr 22, 2008 at 6:06 am
All right !
10 eBayEnigma // Apr 22, 2008 at 7:32 am
Kudos to your new agent April, and congrats! I predict this is the first in a long line of jobs for you, although, it probably wasn’t hard for him/her to find jobs for you, given your immense talent and versatility. As they say in show biz…BREAK A LEG! =)
11 socalfrank // Apr 22, 2008 at 8:02 am
Congratulations April….just as long as your work doesn’t interfere with your podcasting.
Oops, too late for that.
12 April // Apr 22, 2008 at 10:03 am
bjimba – The mouse’s name was “Irving”. There was also a crow named “Deauville”, which was the name of my parent’s dry cleaner on Ventura Boulevard.
As far as my dad and I being the only second generation voice actors in Disney cartoons, that’s a really excellent question. I hope you’re right, because that has Trivial Pursuit written all over it.
There must be something unique in the fact that he was in the original Fox and the Hound, and I was in the sequel.
13 inerror // Apr 22, 2008 at 10:08 am
And once again Mister K is left in the lurch. All this build up only to be dashed by some damned “job”. Shadows of Clinton-Louinski. Oh well. Tell Elvira she’s still in my dreams. And give Mister K your agent’s card April.
14 socalfrank // Apr 22, 2008 at 10:17 am
Lewinsky
15 inerror // Apr 22, 2008 at 10:24 am
How do you know so much?
16 pal Jacky // Apr 22, 2008 at 10:31 am
brian poshen was in rob zombie’s ‘devil’s rejects’. It wasn’t as good as ‘house of 1000 corpses’ but it was much better then anything that has won best picture in the last ten years.(’crash’? anybody, no, not the cronenberg). PJ soles was in it too, it would have been nice if he put her in the remake of ‘halloween’.
17 pal Jacky // Apr 22, 2008 at 10:34 am
PJ soles’ was in ‘carrie’, ‘halloween’ and ‘rock and roll high school’. Obviously she never had to work again after that trifecta, so one can only assume that she did the rob zombie film out of ‘love’. Like Karen black in ‘1000 corpses’
18 pal Jacky // Apr 22, 2008 at 10:40 am
doesn’t anyone else remember that elvira(under the alias ‘casandra peterson) had a small part in ‘pee-wee’s big adventure’ as a mean chick in the biker bar where pee wee did the ‘big shoe dance’. Of course not, I’m the only certified trash culture mutant here. I won’t even go into the fact that i’m probably the only one who has seen all three of rob zombies’s film in the theater on opening weekend.
19 DavidinBerkeley // Apr 22, 2008 at 11:07 am
3 comments:
1) Congratulations on getting work, Ms. Winchell!
2) For those of you who have been clicking on http://www.browndoginstitute.com/ for YEARS now, to try to find the Butt Stink dog biscuits that were interviewed on Ms. Winchell’s old show, they can now be found here: http://www.toylounge.com/browdogin.html.
2 questions:
1) Has Ms. Winchell ever heard again from Marita Stolies [sp?]. That was a great interview.
2) Has anyone figured out how to post pictures here? I tried the instructions she left us back in September and they just didn’t work for me.
20 DavidinBerkeley // Apr 22, 2008 at 12:05 pm
I just looked. Brown Dog doesn’t sell vomit anymore.
Nuts.
21 Andre // Apr 22, 2008 at 12:48 pm
Keenan Wynn and Ed Wynn were both in “The Absent Minded Professor”. Does that count?
Also, I’m still waiting for April’s interview with Petrene Soames. That woman knows everything::
http://www.timeismine.com/index.shtml
22 unfallable // Apr 22, 2008 at 2:40 pm
23 unfallable // Apr 22, 2008 at 2:43 pm
Well you know what doesn’t work.
24 unfallable // Apr 22, 2008 at 2:57 pm
Well at least I know what doesn’t work.
25 Speedy Cerviche // Apr 22, 2008 at 4:26 pm
wat
26 unfallable // Apr 22, 2008 at 4:57 pm
I tried various means to post a photo. Apparently Winchell has this option turned off. Or she didn’t like my photo. Or it’s awaiting moderation. Either way it’s probably just as well the forum isn’t turned into flickr of the macbre.
27 Speedy Cerviche // Apr 22, 2008 at 5:20 pm
Okay, let me try.
28 unclemike // Apr 22, 2008 at 5:21 pm
pal jacky, now there are two of us trash culture mutants.
I also remember Cassandra Peterson in “Jekyll & Hyde: Together Again” as a nurse.
29 Speedy Cerviche // Apr 22, 2008 at 5:23 pm
Wow. April turned images off?
<img src=”http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/2642/1188612315408ly8.jpg” alt= “Amidoinitrite?”
Indeed.
30 unfallable // Apr 22, 2008 at 5:31 pm
I can relate to the guy that called Elvira from a pay phone in a dark alley. He called her “El Virus” and had coke-bottle glasses and a zit covered face. What was that guy’s name?
I also recall a news story about Casandra having a moving sale, selling off tons of Elvira memorabilia, from her home I think. Would have been worth showing up just to press flesh with the goddess of 70’s goth – not to mention pick up some eBay warez.
31 SpicyD // Apr 22, 2008 at 9:01 pm
You are out of your head. Your work in Roger Rabbit is great. I fell in love with that movie when I saw it in high school. I think I went back to the theater 6 times to see it. My romance with the Winch started early and continues to this day.
32 PPasquale // Apr 23, 2008 at 4:32 pm
Congratulations! I am so happy for you! I love you and everything you do… going all the way back to the days to you and your best friend Roy (hello) on KFI. (I wish those bastards would hire you back). Peter Pasquale
33 chrisbcritter // Apr 24, 2008 at 1:06 am
Elvira’s phone buddy was just called “Breather” (or as she used to say, “My old friend, Buh-reather”). “Julio from Pacoima” was another character she had.
Thank God you and Cassandra are working again!
And as far as KFI goes, they weren’t good enough to deserve you. (Hey, instead of that Ann Coulter piece, why don’t you put together a compilation of John Kobylt’s stuttering?)
34 Stretch // Apr 24, 2008 at 12:40 pm
Tell Elvira “HI!” and “unplesant dreams – darling”
35 Liyah0807 // Apr 24, 2008 at 1:12 pm
When you didn’t accept my friend request, I cried for days.
36 Shannon // Apr 24, 2008 at 4:20 pm
Wow
I once dated a guy who called me because he had a date with Elvira to go to a pajama party at the Playboy mansion. He wanted me to go with him to find pjs that would look good. I suggested he wear footie pajamas and carry a teddy bear. He liked the idea but I don’t think he could find footie pjs.
What can I say–it was the 80s.
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