Billy Costello (other)
Billy Costello may refer to: * Billy Costello (actor) (1898–1971), American actor * Billy Costello (boxer) Billy Costello (born William Donald Castiglioni; April 10, 1956 – June 29, 2011) was a professional boxer in the United States. Early life Costello was born in Kingston, New York, on April 10, 1956, to a Sicilian father and a mother of Nativ ...

Billy Costello (actor)
William Arnold Costello (February 2, 1898 – October 9, 1971), commonly known as "Red Pepper Sam", was an American actor and the original voice of ''Popeye the Sailor'' in animated cartoons. Life and career Costello was born on February 2, 1898, in Rhode Island to William E. and Susan B. (née Steere) Costello. In addition to voice acting, he worked as a vaudeville performer under the name "Red Pepper Sam". In the early 1930s, he also played drums with the Fred Waring Orchestra. Costello had worked with the Fleischer Studios as the voice of Gus the Gorilla on the Betty Boop radio show, and they felt that the raspy voice he had used for that character would work for a series of cartoons based on Popeye (created by E.C. Segar) they were planning. He was cast to provide the voice for the first Popeye cartoon, 1933's ''Popeye the Sailor''. Costello then appeared in the next 24 Popeye shorts before he was fired by the Fleischers, allegedly over "bad behavior". Although he neve ...
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