Some iconic characters are elevated to a legendary status because their voice acting is just that damn good. When such a artist passes, it is a great opportunity to reflect and appreciate the incredible work they have done.
Earl Boen is one such example, providing his pristine pipes to a respectable number of game characters across so many titles that it would be hard to find someone who hasn’t heard him at least once – with stand out examples being both the dread pirate LeChuck from the Monkey Island series, and King Terenas Menethil (the father of Arthas, the Lich King) from the Warcraft universe.
Throughout the years, I have never forgotten the incredible scene in World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King where the spirit of King Terenas manifests to comfort his son at the time of his defeat – even after his life was taken by that same son:
Passing away at the age of 81, Earl had mostly retired in his later years. He was actually approached to reprise his LeChuck role by Ron Gilbert for the 2022 Return to Monkey Island title, but passed on the opportunity due to his retirement.
Taking even a cursory glance at his IMDb page, incredible titles such as Psychonauts, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, Baldur’s Gate and even Zork: Grand Inquisitor leap out; and that’s without even accounting for his incredible animated series appearances. The dude appeared as Police Chief Kanifky in the Bonkers cartoon, a staple of my Saturday Disney saturated childhood.
On-screen many would know him as Dr. Silberman from the Terminator films, whose greatest achievement was somehow appearing in the three original movies without getting shot to pieces as he bumbled about.
Boen leaves an incredible legacy with his passing, and will not soon be forgotten for all that he has contributed to every form of media, interactive or not. In his own silky-voiced words, No king rules forever – and Earl Boen was indeed voice acting royalty.
Do you have a favourite role or memory of Earl Boen? Let us know in the comments or on social media.
Known throughout the interwebs simply as M0D3Rn, Ash is bad at video games. An old guard gamer who suffers from being generally opinionated, it comes as no surprise that he is both brutally loyal and yet, fiercely whimsical about all things electronic. On occasion will make a youtube video that actually gets views. Follow him on YouTube @Bad at Video Games
