Don LaFontaine, the ‘voice’ of Hollywood passes away

The busiest actor in Hollywood has passed away, Donald LaFontaine ‘the voice’ was famous for recording over 5,000 movie trailers, commercials, network promotions and video game trailers.

Born in Duluth, Minnesota, he began his career as a recording engineer at the National Recording Studios, where he had the opportunity to work with Floyd Peterson producing promo spots for Dr. Strangelove. Peterson incorporated many of LaFontaine’s ideas for the spots, and not long after, they went into business together. While working on the 1964 western Gunfighters of Casa Grande, LaFontaine had to fill in for an unavailable voice actor to finish a client’s presentation. Not long after, the client bought the spots, and LaFontaine’s career as a voice actor had been sealed. Prior and into the 1970s, LaFontaine developed his signature style of a strong narrative approach, and heavy melodramatic coloration of his voice work.

LaFontaine’s signature voice commanded a busy schedule. He is said to have voiced about 60 promotions a week, and sometimes as many as 35 in a single day. It has been said that his voice-over added prestige and excitement to what might otherwise have been a “snoozer” movie. Most studios were willing to pay a high fee for his service, thanks in no small part to his rigorous efforts and golden voice. His income was reportedly in the millions.

Famous for being driven to voice-over jobs in a personalized limo with a full time driver, so as not to waste time parking and going from job to job, he began recording many promotions from his own palatial estate in the Hollywood Hills, saving the time from traveling to many high-profile recording studios.

LaFontaine stated that his favorite work in a movie trailer was for the hit biopic film The Elephant Man.

LaFontaine was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California with a blood clot in his lungs on August 22, 2008, and was reported as being in critical condition the following Tuesday. His family made a public appeal on the Mediabistro.com site. LaFontaine died September 1, 2008 following complications from pneumothorax. He was survived by his wife, singer and actress Nita Whitaker, and three children.

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