Canned Air: A Tribute to Pop Culture · Evergreen Podcasts

Canned Air #544 A Conversation with Phil Baron (Voice of Teddy Ruxpin)

·1 hr 4 min·4 clips

Phil Baron became Teddy Ruxpin after reading a few lines and replacing the original voice.

1. Canned Air: A Tribute to Pop Culture focuses on Phil Baron’s route from Cleveland music scenes to Teddy Ruxpin and synagogue work. 2. Jeremy Colley, Jack Doherty, Randy Hardenbrook, and guest Phil Baron guide the conversation, and Baron is the voice of Teddy Ruxpin plus a singer, songwriter, puppeteer, and cantor. 3. The episode asks how a Cleveland performer moved from local clubs and comedy duos into Disney, Teddy Ruxpin, and Valley Beth Shalom. 4. Baron says his father was a violinist who also led a rumba band in the 1940s and had a Sunday-night radio show. 5. He says he sang from about age three, played violin because his father played it, and performed in musicals through drama camp. 6. He names his first band as the Night Raiders, says he formed it at 16, and says the drummer joined because Baron had a car. 7. Baron says he switched from violin to guitar in the 1960s to meet girls and then played clubs on High Street at Ohio State. 8. He says Cleveland State led him to Wood Smoke, The Birds at the Cleveland Playhouse, and an early outside-New-York production of Godspell. 9. Baron and Will Ryan formed Willio and Filio, a fast-paced act he compares to the Smothers Brothers, Marx Brothers, and Simon and Garfunkel. 10. He says the duo wrote material like "I Hate People," "I Like People," and "It Sure Feels Like Love," and their Cleveland single got airplay. 11. Baron says PM Magazine sent Willio and Filio to cover Cleveland locations such as a blacksmith shop, the lake, and the air show. 12. He says Disney heard the act as a novelty duo, then brought them into Goin' Quackers and three albums recorded in Nashville in one week. 13. Baron recounts a call from Disney’s Frank Brandt and Caroline Hay about trying out for Piglet on Welcome to Pooh Corner. 14. He says he used a reel-to-reel recorder, an air check from a Winnie the Pooh movie, a razor blade, and a splicing block to build his Piglet audition. 15. Baron says the show produced about 120 episodes over 13 years, and he and Will Ryan also worked on Dumbo Circus. 16. He says George Wilkins called late at night about a toy project, asked him to sing, then asked him to read dialogue, which became Teddy Ruxpin. 17. Baron says he replaced the original voice, worked on book-and-tape material and a TV series, and later heard about the toy’s scale through Time, Newsweek, Smith Barney commercials, and celebrity gifts. 18. The tone stays conversational and specific, with Baron speaking plainly, correcting details, and answering follow-up questions with long career stories. 19. People who like Disney history, 1980s toys, and voice acting will get the most from this episode. 20. People who want a short, tightly focused interview with no detours may skip it.

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