Voice actor John Erwin died of natural causes in late December 2024. His PR firm, Celebworx, just announced his passing. He was 88 years old.
Erwin was known for voicing the hero He-Man in the 1980s animated series, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. He also voiced the arrogant Reggie Mantle, Archie Andrews’ frenemy, in the Archie cartoons.
He was born on December 5, 1936, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Before he primarily became a voice actor, Erwin had a recurring role on Rawhide and was in 13 Fighting Men. During the late 1960s and ‘70s, Erwin voiced Morris the Cat, the picky orange tabby who starred in 9Lives cat food commercials.
Erwin first voiced Reggie on The Archie Show, then continued voicing the character on Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and other Archie shows. On the Masters of the Universe series, he also voiced Beast Man, and continued voicing He-Man in She-Ra: Princess of Power.
His other roles included voicing characters in Groovie Goolies, Spacecats, and Babe, and he came out of retirement to voice He-Man for an episode of Family Guy. Erwin also worked as an announcer/narrator on Here’s Lucy, Malcom & Eddie, Back to the Future Part II, and Remember the Titans.