The Voice of Batman

Sunday, September 26th, 2010

Kevin Conroy is a classically trained actor and graduate of Juilliard — whose claim to “fame” is providing the voice of Batman in the animated series:

A number of years ago, I was in the Hollywood Post Office parking lot. I left everything in the car, because I was just going straight to the mail drop with the envelope. This guy, who was sitting on the curb, obviously homeless, says to me “Hey, buddy, have you got a quarter?”

And I said, “I’m so sorry. I literally don’t. I have nothing.”

He said, “You’re Kevin Conroy!”

I got really nervous — you just assume that your job is anonymous working on animation — so I asked him how he knew that and he said, “Oh, everybody knows who’s Batman.”

I said, “No, believe me, everyone doesn’t know who’s Batman.”

He said, “Oh, please — please — please — please do the voice.” He said, “Just say it … I am vengeance.” He knew the lines.

I said, “I am vengeance.”

He said, “Oh, my God. Batman’s here! Batman’s here!” He said, “Say it: I am the night.”

I said, “I am the night.”

He said, “Go! Go! Finish! Finish!”

And I said “I am Batman!”

So the two of us are there screaming “I am Batman!” in the parking lot, and he started clapping and clapping, yelling “I can’t believe I have Batman in the parking lot.”

He went on to explain to me that all television monitors at the Circuit City on Hollywood Blvd. showed Batman every day, and he would stand outside and watch the show.

So I said, “Wait, just a second,” and I went running back to the car for some cash.

He said, “Oh, I can’t take Batman’s money.”

I told him he was going to take Batman’s money so he wouldn’t tell anyone that Batman is cheap [laughs]. That whole scene was wild, though — the last place you’d expect for someone to recognize a voice actor is in the parking lot of the post office.

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