MOVIE NEWS – Earl Boen, the veteran character and voice actor best known for his role as Dr. Peter Silberman in the Terminator films, died Thursday in Hawaii at the age of 81. Boen and a friend of his family said the actor was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer in the fall of 2022.

The new year has barely begun and we already have to report a celebrity’s death. At the age of 81, Earl Boen, known to most of our readers as Dr. Peter Silberman, the cantankerous psychiatrist who called the harbingers of the apocalypse mad, has died. But it’s worth remembering that he’s also worked on several video games, including World of Warcraft, where he lent his voice to the murdered father of the fallen Arthas, King Terenas Menethil II (World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King), and several Monkey Island games as the voice of LeChuck, the evil pirate captain. The character and voice actor was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer in the autumn of 2022, and doctors could not save his health and life. Boen passed away on January 5, 2023, in Hawaii. He is survived by his wife, daughter, and two grandchildren.

Born in 1941, Earl Boen was known as a character actor, having appeared on stage, on television, and film since the mid-1950s. In addition to the Terminator films, he has appeared in Kojak, the 1975-1979 Wonder Woman series starring Lynda Carter, the sitcom Mama’s Family, M*A*S*H, the 1970s war satire series based on the Robert Altman film, Don’t Wait for a Miracle! The Bare Pistol 33 1/3: The Last Assassination, the horror Dr Death, the comedy The Philosopher’s Stone 2, and many more comedies, adventure and action films. Plus, he lent his voice to Star Trek: The Next Generation (and other Star Trek games).

Perhaps it would not offend him to say that his work as a voice actor has been even more significant. Boen provided the voice for the 1987 film G.I. Joe – The Motion Picture, the animated series Pryde of the X-Men as Magneto, the animated series Batman: The Animated Movie (1992-1993), the 1994 Spider-Man series, several episodes of the Clifford the Big Red Dog franchise, Dexter’s Laboratory, Boci and Pipi, Johnny Bravo and the animated series The Justice League (2001-2004), also on Cartoon Network.

Earl Boen was also very active on the video game front. He’s also dubbed for Baldur’s Gate, the legendary Monkey Island series, Soldier of Fortune, Black & White, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sony of Liberty, the vampire-themed Blood Omen 2, Icewind Dale II, Call of Duty, EverQuest II, Psychonauts and Blizzard’s card game Hearthstone. His characterful, raspy voice made him perfect for voicing characters in fantasy and military-themed games. His most famous roles include the zombie pirate captain LeChuck in Monkey Island and World of Warcraft. He has been a regular narrator in WoW and its supplements, videos and trailers, and has voiced Magtheridon, the Outland Demon Lord and the troll priest Hekima the Wise, alongside King Terenas. Earl Boen worked for Blizzard until Legion in 2016. Originally, Ted Whitney was the voice actor for Terenas in WarCraft 3, but he passed away shortly after completing his work, so a new voice actor had to be found.

Rest in peace! As you can see from our very sketchy overview of his life’s work, there is plenty of material to remember him by!

Source: Variety