Bill Cunningham, the Original Voice of Ken Doll, Dies at 96

Bill Cunningham, the voice behind Mattel’s original Ken Doll in the early 1960s, died on Saturday, July 15, just six days before the release of the new Barbie movie. He was 96.

Cunningham’s passing was confirmed by CESD Talent Agency, the company he founded more than 50 years ago, who told Deadline that he died at his home in West Hollywood. No other details were provided.

Born on January 2, 1927, in San Francisco, Cunningham got his break in Hollywood after serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II. A talented singer, Cunningham began touring with Fort Emory Drum and Bugle Corp during his service before appearing on NBC’s Voices of Walter Schumann and The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show.

 

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In addition to providing the original voice of Barbie’s boyfriend, Ken, Cunningham sang on several movie soundtracks and commercials throughout the early 1960s. He also released an album of his own, I’m Always Chasing Rainbows, in 1962, which was financed by Fred Astaire.

But Cunningham changed career paths in 1963 when his friend, singer and TV star Peggy Taylor, encouraged him to invest his life savings into Pacifics Artists Agency. According to Deadline, the startup agency began with just 10 voice-over actors, with Cunningham personally delivering their headshots and bios to ad agencies across Los Angeles.

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The company quickly grew in success, becoming Cunningham & Associates by 1967 and opening a second office in New York by 1971, followed by a third in Chicago that same year. Now known as CESD, the company is regarded as the most successful bicoastal commercial/VO talent agency in the industry.

In a statement to People, CESD partners Ken Slevin and Paul Doherty said that Cunningham was “among the great innovators and gentlemen of the talent representation business.”

“Bill set the template for client and customer service, particularly in commercial, voice-over and print,” the statement continued. “He was a warm, gregarious, classy man who made a positive impact on all those he represented and employed. It was our honor to know him and to learn from him.”