Born Name:  William Ryan

Born Date:  May 21, 1949

Born Place:  Cleveland, Ohio

Died Date:  November 19, 2021

Died Place:  Santa Monica, California

Occupations:  Voice actor, musician, singer, comedian

Brief Biography:  Will Ryan is best remembered for his iconic vocal roles, including Petrie in The Land Before Time and Eugene Meltsner in the radio drama Adventures in Odyssey. He frequently collaborated with Disney, notably voicing Willie the Giant and various Winnie the Pooh characters.

Early Life and Musical Comedy:
He started his career performing music in high school. He later teamed up with Phil Baron to form the musical comedy duo "Willio and Phillio". They played clubs and universities across the U.S. and gained attention for their comedy songs on the Dr. Demento radio show.

Career Highlights:
After moving to Los Angeles, Ryan began working with Disneyland Records, writing and recording novelty songs, which eventually led to his legendary voice-acting career:
Disney Roles: He voiced Willie the Giant in Mickey's Christmas Carol, a seahorse in The Little Mermaid, and occasionally filled in for iconic characters like Goofy and
Rabbit. Voice Acting: Beyond Disney, he voiced Petrie in the 1988 film The Land Before Time and Grubby the Octopede in The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin.
Adventures in Odyssey: For more than three decades, he voiced Eugene Meltsner and various other characters on Focus on the Family's radio program.
Independent Work: Ryan created the internet animated series Elmo Aardvark and occasionally performed as part of the vaudeville comedy duo Biffle & Shooster.

Legacy:
Outside of acting, Ryan was a prolific songwriter whose tracks were recorded by artists like Patti LaBelle and The Pointer Sisters.