Lunch with June Foray

Heads up this holiday season: In case you weren't aware of new DVD releases for your wish list, be sure to add these beauties: Looney Tunes Golden Collection vol.3, Rocky and Bullwinkle vol.3, Ducktales vol.1 and Disney's Cinderella -- Special Edition. Now here's a pop quiz for you: What do all these bits of animation have in common? The answer, of course, is June Foray. Her unmistakable voice, which you probably know better than your own mother's, has played a part in these and many other animated projects since the golden age. And not only was she prolific, but when you watch Magica DeSpell cast her sorcery on Scrooge McDuck, you can see the kind of acting skills that have kept directors coming back to June for more. Observing a June Foray character, from Witch Hazel to Ma Beagle, is seeing the best efforts of an actress getting the character across with nothing more than her vocal chords. Just listen to the energy in the

acting. The experience in radio children's records all comes through, and you can hear someone who has worked hard since childhood to be great at what she does. Her tale is better told as chapters in Makin' Toons by Allen Neuwirth, and The Magic Behind the Voices by Tim Lawson and Alisa Persons. Me, I'm no historian. But I did have lunch with a living legend.

Setting: The San Fernando Valley. June (she let me call her June) and I drove around strip malls and outdoor eateries looking for a good place to do a quiet interview. Finally we found a Mexican place that looked promising. We each ordered a burrito and sat outside under a parasol in the California air. I ran my tape recorder as we chewed the fat, taken aback by how comfortable June seemed to be in front of the device. Most people become self-conscious and awkward when there's a tape-recorder mike in their face, but of course June spent her entire career in front of a microphone. As we talked, the parking lot behind us became a venue for frequent cars and rather large trucks, which overrode the salsa music blasting from the restaurant outdoor speakers.