Obituaries
Janet Waldo, Voice of Judy Jetson, Dies at 96
Janet Waldo, an actress who gave voice to iconic cartoon characters on "The Jetsons," "The Smurfs" and " The Flintstones" died in LA Sunday.
LOS ANGELES, CA - Funeral services were pending today for Janet Waldo, who provided the voice for iconic cartoon characters including Judy Jetson on "The Jetsons" and Josie of "Josie and the Pussycats."
Waldo died Sunday at her Los Angeles home at age 96.
Her daughter, Lucy Lee, told ABC News that Waldo was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor five years ago.
A native of Yakima, Washington, Waldo was discovered by Bing Crosby, leading to a string of bit parts in movies in the 1930s. But Waldo found bigger success on radio, appearing on shows such as "Meet Corliss Archer," "One Man's Family" and "Star Playhouse." She also worked with radio stars such as Art Linkletter and Ozzie Nelson.
It was her later work with Hanna-Barbera that brought her voice into homes across the nation, most notably as boy-crazy teenager Judy Jetson on the futuristic "Jetsons" cartoon. She was also the voice of the always-in-danger Penelope Pitstop in "The Perils of Penelope Pitstop" and "Wacky Races."
She provided a variety of voices for "The Flintstones," including that of Fred Flintstone's mother-in-law, Pearl Slaghoople.
She was bandleader Josie in "Josie and the Pussycats," Princess in "Battle of the Planets" and Hogatha on "The Smurfs."
Her husband, playwright and screenwriter Robert E. Lee, died in 1994.
City News Service; Photo: Wikimedia Commons
