Norma MacMillan (September 15, 1921 – March 16, 2001) was a Canadian actress, best known for voicing numerous characters in animation and claymation, including

Casper the Friendly Ghost Casper the Friendly Ghost is a fictional character who serves as the protagonist of the Famous Studios theatrical animated cartoon series of the same name. He is a translucent ghost who is pleasant and personable, but often criticized by his thr ...

on '' The New Casper Cartoon Show'',

Gumby Gumby and Pokey figures ''Gumby'' is an American cartoon character and associated media franchise created by Art Clokey. He is a blocky green humanoid made of clay. Gumby stars in two television series, '' Gumby: The Movie'', and other medi ...

on '' The Gumby Show'', Sweet Polly Purebred on ''

Underdog An underdog is a person or group in a competition, usually in sports and creative works, who is largely expected to lose. The party, team, or individual expected to win is called the favorite or wikt:top dog, top dog. In the case where an under ...

'', and Davey on ''

Davey and Goliath ''Davey and Goliath'' is an American Christian clay-animated children's television series, whose central characters were created by Art Clokey, Ruth Clokey, and Dick Sutcliffe, and which was produced first by the United Lutheran Church in Am ...

''.

Early life

MacMillan was born on September 15, 1921, in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, Canada, and began her career there as a stage actress. It was in Vancouver that she met, worked with her then husband Thor Arngrim. In 1954, MacMillan, her husband and his business partner Stuart Baker, set out for Toronto where she began landing work voicing children's roles for the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is the Canadian Public broadcasting, public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a Crown corporation that serves as the national public broadcaster, with its E ...

Career

After her husband and she moved to New York, MacMillan lent her voice talents to numerous roles; as "

" on '' The New Casper Cartoon Show'', as "

" on '' The Gumby Show'', as " Sweet Polly Purebred" in the ''

'' cartoons, and as " Davey" on Seasons 4-5 of the claymation series ''

'' among others. In addition to these roles, MacMillan also voiced the roles of John-John and

Caroline Kennedy Caroline Bouvier Kennedy (born November 27, 1957) is an American author, diplomat, and attorney who served as the List of ambassadors of the United States to Australia, United States ambassador to Australia from 2022 to 2024. She previously serv ...

in the world record setting '' The First Family'' album of 1962. In 1991, she provided narration for

Saban Entertainment BVS Entertainment, Inc., previously known as Saban Productions, Saban Entertainment and Saban International, is a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company. Founded on April 24, 1980, as a music production company by Haim Saban and Shuki Levy, it ...

's comedic "Sugar & Spice" subset of '' Funky Fables'' cartoons, which included ''The Ugly Duckling'', ''Thumbelina'', ''Heidi'', ''Alice in Wonderland'', ''The Wizard of Oz'', ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'', ''Cinderella'', and ''The Secret Garden''. In addition to her voice roles, MacMillan also appeared as an on-screen actress in various television and films roles. Her on-screen work included guest-starring roles on such television shows as ''

Columbo ''Columbo'' is an American crime drama television series starring Peter Falk as Columbo (character), Lieutenant Columbo, a homicide detective with the Los Angeles Police Department. After two pilot episodes in 1968 and 1971, the show originall ...

'', '' She's the Sheriff'', '' Webster'' and ''

Thirtysomething ''Thirtysomething'' is an American drama television series created by Edward Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz for United Artists Television (under MGM/UA Television) and aired on ABC from September 29, 1987, to May 28, 1991."The 'don't trust a ...

''. During this time, she also appeared in feature films, including ''Nightmare on the 13th Floor'', ''

Big Business Big business involves large-scale corporate-controlled financial or business activities. As a term, it describes activities that run from "huge transactions" to the more general "doing big things". In corporate jargon, the concept is commonly ...

'', '' Love at Stake'', ''Dangerous Intentions'', '' Big Bully'', and '' Mrs. Delafield Wants to Marry'' with

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress whose Katharine Hepburn on screen and stage, career as a Golden Age of Hollywood, Hollywood leading lady spanned six decades. She was known for her headstrong ...

. MacMillan appeared in numerous television commercials, but perhaps her most visible acting role was the part she played in the 1980s as the sweet, demure, naive "Aunt Martha" opposite Ruth Manning's "Aunt Harriet" for Kraft Foods mayonnaise commercials. Upon returning to Vancouver with her husband in the mid-1990s, MacMillan joined the Co-Op Radio's Sunday show for senior citizens and was a board member of the local 411 Seniors Centre. While in Canada, MacMillan went on to voice characters in a number of later animated series and films such as ''Funky Fables'', ''

Fat Dog Mendoza ''Fat Dog Mendoza'' is an animated television series produced by Sunbow Entertainment, Sony Wonder Television, and TMO-Loonland. The series is loosely based on a Dark Horse one-off comic book of the same name. The first Cartoon Network Europ ...

'', ''

Madeline ''Madeline'' is a media franchise that originated as a series of children's books written and illustrated by Ludwig Bemelmans. The books have been adapted into numerous formats, spawning telefilms, television series and a live action feature fi ...

'', '' Generation O!'', ''Milo's Bug Quest'' and ''The Animated Adventures of Tom Sawyer''.

Personal life

MacMillan and her husband producer/manager Thor Arngrim, were married in 1954, together they have two children, including Stefan Arngrim (born December 23, 1955), who played Barry Lockridge on ''

Land of the Giants ''Land of the Giants'' is a one-hour American science fiction television series that aired on ABC for two seasons, beginning on September 22, 1968, and ending on March 22, 1970. The show was created and produced by Irwin Allen. ''Land of the G ...

'', and Alison Arngrim (born January 18, 1962), who played

Nellie Oleson Nellie Oleson is a fictional character in the Little House series of autobiographical children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. She was portrayed by Alison Arngrim in the NBC television show ''Little House on the Prairie (TV series), Lit ...

on ''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books comprise a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adulthood in the Midwestern United States, Americ ...

''. MacMillan and her husband Thor returned to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

in 1993.

Death

MacMillan died in March 2001, at the age of 79, in

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Macmillan, Norma 1921 births 2001 deaths Actresses from Vancouver Canadian film actresses Canadian television actresses Canadian voice actresses Canadian expatriate actresses in the United States