Kevin Conroy, the voice of Batman, died on Thursday at the age of 66. He suffered from bowel cancer, and his death was confirmed by her husband Vaughn C. Williams. For three decades, the actor has lent his voice to the iconic Batman superhero, whom fans have loved and cherished.
It is devastating news to never hear Conroy’s voice again. He was a television and theater actor who worked hard in the 80s before finally landing the role in Batman: The Animated Series in 1992. Interestingly, he played the character longer than any actor who has played the role in movies.
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Kevin Conroy shared the struggles of gay actors in Hollywood
Conroy was one of the few gay celebrities to work in the superhero industry. He was open about his sexuality but remained professional when it came to work. That’s not to say he never played a gay role because he did early in his career. On Broadway, he played a gay character with AIDS, and another on television.
In his autobiography, Finding Batman, he shared the experiences of a gay actor who dreamed of venturing into an industry that despises gays and refuses to give them lead roles. It’s fun to think of Conroy’s raspy, growling voice, which he used on Batman,”seemed to roar from 30 years of frustration, confusion, denial, love, nostalgia…”
The actor loved voicing Batman, who became the definitive hero persona. In fact, Conroy has worked on nearly 60 different projects Batman projects – 15 films, 15 animated series with almost 400 episodes and a dozen video games.
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He said The New York Times in his 2016 interview:
“I was very lucky to have Batman because he is a character that has just evolved. He’s just a character where you can ride that wave for 24 years. Keeping it alive, keeping it from getting dark and boring and brooding, that’s the challenge.”
Mark Hamill, who starred alongside Conroy as The Joker, admired the actor for his talent and said it was a pleasure to work with him. He said he loved Conroy like a brother.
Kevin Conroy’s success didn’t happen overnight. As a gay actor, he had great difficulty finding a job. In the 80s, he was about to land a starring role on a buddy-cop show until the producer found out he was gay. The worst thing about this incident was that they told the actor that no one would hire him because of his sexuality.
In tribute to Conroy and his unparalleled service, the Empire State Building in New York was illuminated by the Bat Signal. He will always be remembered as the original voice of Batman.
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