This is a Retro Rebellion Special Report
From the world of voice acting and in music, Samuel E. Wright, who was one of many voices of our childhood, has died on May 24th of this year. He was 74 years old.
Wright, for the longest part of his life and career, was best known for being the voice of Horatio Thelonious Ignacious Crustaceous Sebastian , or just simply Sebastian, from Disney's classic, The Little Mermaid. Sebastian, for the longest part, was the court musician to Ariel's father, King Triton, who provided all the concerts he conducts (which mostly ends in disaster due to Ariel's disappearance). He also watches over Ariel, to make sure she doesn't get into trouble (which eventually caused more trouble, but that's another story). Personality-wise, Sebastian may be a hard crab to reason with, being Triton's royal advisor besides being a court musician, but he is carefree spirit, who has a love for music. Sebastian became so popular, he even appeared in other Disney media, including Raw Toonage and Marsupilami (which originated in Raw Toonage). The song, Under the Sea, which won one of two Oscars around 1989, became one of the anthems for summertime.
Wright's other roles include John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie in the biopic, Bird, which tells the life of Jazz musician, Charlie "Bird" Parker, and Kron from the CGI movie, Dinosaur.
Being a stage performer, he has also appeared in many musicals from the 70s to the late 90s, such as Jesus Christ Superstar, and as Mufasa from the Broadway version of The Lion King.
Wright died of prostate cancer. He was survived by his wife and 3 kids.
In short, for years I have avoided The Little Mermaid due to personal reasons until 2006 and I have since embraced it. Now, looking back on the movie itself, it was truly magical, especially with Sebastian putting on a show.
Godspeed, Mr. Wright. Thank you for all the memories, Calypso and all and making Under the Sea one of the anthems for summer. We will never forget you.
(TAPS play)
Samuel Edward Wright
(November 20, 1946 – May 24, 2021)
This has been a Retro Rebellion Special Report
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