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Donald Earl "Don" Messick (September 7, 1926 – October 24, 1997) was an American voice actor best known for his work for Hanna-Barbera. Perhaps his most well-known voice creations include Scooby-Doo, Papa Smurf, and Dr. Benton Quest. Messick was born in Buffalo, New York, the son of Lena Birch (née Hughes) and Binford Earl Messick, a house painter. He first wanted to be a ventriloquist, and even supported himself as one for a time. His big break came in the mid-1940s. At MGM, Tex Avery was producing the Droopy cartoons. The regular voice actor, radio actor Bill Thompson, was not... MORE

Donald Earl "Don" Messick (September 7, 1926 – October 24, 1997) was an American voice actor best known for his work for Hanna-Barbera. Perhaps his most well-known voice creations include Scooby-Doo, Papa Smurf, and Dr. Benton Quest. Messick was born in Buffalo, New York, the son of Lena Birch (née Hughes) and Binford Earl Messick, a house painter. He first wanted to be a ventriloquist, and even supported himself as one for a time. His big break came in the mid-1940s. At MGM, Tex Avery was producing the Droopy cartoons. The regular voice actor, radio actor Bill Thompson, was not available. Daws Butler, who voiced characters for MGM, suggested that Avery seek out Messick, and so, he was hired to voice Droopy. Later, in the mid-1950s, when Bill Thompson parted ways with MGM, Messick took over the role of Droopy. Messick and Butler became a voice acting team for the Hanna-Barbera unit in 1957 with the arrival of Ruff and Reddy. Don was Ruff the cat and the Droopy-sounding Professor Gizmo. Butler was the southern-speaking dog, Reddy. Messick also narrated the show, which played out like an animated soap opera. From 1957 to 1965, Butler and Messick gave voice to a large number of LESS