Paul Winchell, 82, TV Host and Film Voice of Pooh's Tigger, Dies
By JULIE SALAMON
Paul Winchell, the ventriloquist creator of the puppet Jerry Mahoney, who later became famous as the animated voice of Tigger, Winnie-the-Pooh's exuberant friend, died on Friday at his home in Moorpark, Calif. He was 82.

His death was announced by a family friend, Burt Dubrow, a television producer.

Mr. Winchell not only gave Tigger a voice to match his bounce in the animated versions of A. A. Milne's classic, but also his signature phrase, "Ta-ta for now."

Paul Wilchin was born in New York City on Dec. 21, 1922. He was a master ventriloquist and an early star of television; in 1950, he had his own show, featuring Jerry Mahoney. He later built another dummy sidekick, the dimwitted Knucklehead Smiff, who appeared with him and Jerry Mahoney on various shows in the 1950's and 1960's.

His creativity was not limited to show business, however. He studied hypnotism, acupuncture and theology and was fascinated by the ways things worked. He was an enthusiastic inventor and developed 30 patents. These included one for an early artificial heart, which he built in 1963 and then donated to the University of Utah for research.

Mr. Winchell also claimed credit for a wide variety of other inventions, including a flameless cigarette lighter, battery-heated gloves and an invisible garter belt.

He was classically quixotic in many ways. In the 1980's, he testified before a Congressional committee with other celebrities, including Ed Asner and Richard Dreyfuss, trying to obtain financing for the Tilapia Project, a plan to cultivate production of the tilapia fish, which thrives in brackish water, as a source of protein for undernourished people in sub-Saharan Africa. The project failed to interest Congress.

Becoming a performer was not an obvious path for Mr. Winchell: his own Web site, paulwinchell.com, describes him as a shy child with a stutter, whose parents were opposed to his career. But at 13, he made a radio appearance on "Major Bowes' Original Amateur Hour" doing imitations of Edgar Bergen and his dummy, Charlie McCarthy. He made his television debut in 1947.

Ed Sullivan gave him a significant boost and national exposure by inviting him to appear on his show from time to time. His long television career covered variety and children's shows, as well as on-camera guest appearances on series like "The Beverly Hillbillies," "The Lucy Show," and "The Brady Bunch."

Mr. Winchell's distinctive voice became popular in numerous animated roles for film and television cartoons. He began playing Tigger in 1968, in the Walt Disney's "Winnie-the-Pooh and the Blustery Day," which earned an Academy Award for best animated short film. In 1974 he, Sebastian Cabot and Sterling Holloway won a Grammy for the best children's recording of the year for "Winnie-the-Pooh and Tigger Too."

He continued playing the Pooh's bouncing buddy on television and in movies until 1999, when Jim Cummings, the current voice of Pooh, took on Tigger's part as well.

Mr. Winchell also supplied voices for Boomer in "The Fox and the Hound," for the Siamese cat in Disney's "Aristocats," and also for many Hanna-Barbera characters, including the evil Gargamel of "The Smurfs."

He was married three times, and is survived by his wife of 31 years, the former Jean Freeman, as well as five children. Mr. Winchell gave his wife Jean, who was British by birth, credit for Tigger's "Ta-ta for now" line. He wrote an autobiography, called "Winch," after his nickname.

Though the book describes the emotional traumas in his life, Mr. Winchell had a sense of humor. Describing the ill-fated Tilapia Project on his Web site, he tells of stopping in Manhattan after the hearings in Washington with Mr. Dreyfuss and Mr. Asner. They bumped into the comedian Alan King, who was walking on 49th Street carrying a tuxedo over his shoulder.

"When he saw us he did a triple take," Mr. Winchell wrote. "We asked him where he was going. 'I got a club date at the Waldorf tonight,' he grinned, 'and thought I'd walk.' We broke up and laughed like a bunch of kids and not a soul passing by recognized any of us. So go ahead and be a celebrity.' "

and then:

June 27, 2005
John Fiedler, 80, Stage Actor and Film Voice of Pooh's Piglet, Dies
By MICHELLE O'DONNELL
John Fiedler, who played character roles in celebrated dramas on Broadway and in Hollywood but gained lasting fame among young audiences as the voice of Piglet in Walt Disney's Winnie-the-Pooh films, died on Saturday. He was 80.

His death was confirmed by his brother, James.

Mr. Fiedler had appeared in the Broadway production of "A Raisin in the Sun" and had played a juror on film in the drama "Twelve Angry Men" when, in the 1960's, his voice earned him the role of Piglet, the kind-hearted worrier who is Winnie-the-Pooh's best friend.

"Walt Disney heard it on a program and said, 'That's Piglet,' " James Fiedler recalled.

John Fiedler's natural speaking voice was higher than most men's, his brother said, but he still had to raise it considerably to achieve the high-pitch of the little pink pig. Mr. Fiedler continued to play this part in later life, most recently this year in "Pooh's Heffalump Movie"; last year, he did "Winnie-the-Pooh: Springtime with Roo," and in 2003, "Piglet's Big Movie."

John Donald Fiedler was born Feb. 3, 1925 in Platteville, a small town in southwestern Wisconsin, and was the oldest of three children born to Donald and Margaret Fiedler. When he was 5, his father, a salesman, moved the family to Shorewood, a suburb of Milwaukee.

There, John's love of acting bloomed, his brother said. He staged productions in the family's garage and cast them with neighborhood children.

He graduated from Shorewood High School in 1943 and enlisted in the United States Navy, serving stateside until World War II's end. He made his way to New York City the following year, his brother said, and joined the Neighborhood Playhouse.

In 1954, he landed the part of Medvedenko in "The Sea Gull" starring Montgomery Clift and Judith Evelyn Off Broadway at the Phoenix Theater. That was followed by the Broadway productions of "A Raisin in the Sun" with Sidney Poitier and "The Odd Couple" starring Walter Matthau and Art Carney. Many of his characters had meek demeanors that were belied by a tough, even mean streak.

He landed character parts in movies, including "True Grit" with John Wayne and "A Touch of Mink" with Cary Grant. In addition, he played parts on television series, including "Star Trek" and "The Bob Newhart Show," in which he was Mr. Peterson, the bashful patient who was always henpecked by his wife.

Mr. Fiedler said that his brother approached the part of Piglet with as much enthusiasm as his other roles, as it was simply a chance to act.

In addition to his brother, who lives in Madison, Wis., Mr. Fiedler is survived by a sister, Mary Dean of Milwaukee, and numerous nieces and nephews.

Aww I love pooh!

Tiggers voice was the bees knees

"hello Iam tigger"

Remember the tigger song "the wonderful thing about tiggers". Awesome lil' song. Me my sis and bro use to play that clip out.



The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers
The wonderful thing about Tiggers
Is Tiggers are wonderful things
Their tops are made out of rubber
Their bottoms are made out of springs
They're bouncy, trouncy, flouncy, pouncy
Fun, fun, fun, fun, FUN!
But the most wonderful thing about Tiggers
Is I'm the only one


The wonderful thing about Tiggers
Is tiggers are wonderful chaps
They're loaded with vim and vigor
They love to leap in your laps
They're bouncy, trouncy, flouncy, pouncy
Fun, fun, fun, fun, FUN!
But the most wonderful thing about Tiggers
Is I'm the only one


Tiggers are wonderful fellahs
Tiggers are awfully sweet
Everyone else is jealous,
And that's why I repeat...


The wonderful thing about Tiggers
Is Tiggers are wonderful things
Their tops are made out of rubber
Their bottoms are made out of springs
They're bouncy, trouncy, flouncy, pouncy
Fun, fun, fun, fun, FUN!
But the most wonderful thing about Tiggers
Is I'm the only one
(Grrrrr...) ooOOooOOOoooOOOoo!!!
Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman




(whoa! The sherman brothers wrote that song? I had no idea? They wrote mary poppins etc right- thats pretty cool)

Wow. This is sad. Ive always loved those characters. They will be missed.

R.I.P. both of them...

yes really sad news,,,,im a bigg tigger fan myself,,,always happy and bounceing

damn,,,no wonder y i get on peoples nerves

nooooo.....RIP both of them.....

Paul winchell was also the voice of Dick Dastardly

NOOOOO!!!













OH d-d-d dearz!