Richard Steven Horvitz (born July 29, 1966) is an American actor and comedian, best known for his voice work in animation and video games. His voice credits include the original Alpha 5 on ''

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers ''Mighty Power Rangers'' (''MMPR'') is an American superhero television series that premiered on August 28, 1993, on the Fox Kids programming block. It is the first entry of the ''Power Rangers'' franchise, and became a 1990s popular culture, ...

'', ''

Power Rangers Zeo ''Power Rangers Zeo'' is a television series and the fourth season of the ''Power Rangers'' franchise, based on the 19th Super Sentai series ''Chouriki Sentai Ohranger''. It is the continuation of ''Mighty Morphin Power Rangers'' and aired in 19 ...

'' and ''

Power Rangers Turbo ''Power Rangers Turbo'' is a television series and the fifth season of the Power Rangers franchise that aired in 1997. The show was prefaced with the franchise's second film, '' Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie''. As with its predecessors, ''Powe ...

'', Razputin Aquato in ''

Psychonauts ''Psychonauts'' is a 2005 platformer, platform game developed by Double Fine Productions and published by Majesco Entertainment for Microsoft Windows, Xbox (console), Xbox and PlayStation 2. Set in a Retrofuturism, retro-futuristic version of t ...

'', Kaos in ''

Skylanders ''Skylanders'' is a toys-to-life action-adventure video game franchise published by Activision. ''Skylanders'' games are played by placing a character's figure on the "Portal of Power", a device that reads its tag using NFC and "imports" them ...

'', Billy and his father Harold in '' Grim & Evil'' and ''

The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy ''The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy'' is an American Animated series, animated television series created by Maxwell Atoms for Cartoon Network. It follows Billy, a dimwitted, happy-go-lucky boy, and Mandy, a cynical, remorseless girl, who, aft ...

'', Grey Matter in ''

Ben 10 ''Ben 10'' is an American media franchise conceived by Man of Action and owned by The Cartoon Network, Inc. The franchise, mainly consisting of animated series produced by Cartoon Network Studios, revolves around a young boy named Ben Tennys ...

'', Rodney in ''

Squirrel Boy ''Squirrel Boy'' is an American animated television series created by Everett Peck for Cartoon Network. Before the show, Peck was known for creating ''Duckman'', which aired on USA Network from 1994 to 1997. The show premiered on May 29, 2006, ...

'', Daggett in ''

The Angry Beavers ''The Angry Beavers'' is an American animated sitcom created by Mitch Schauer for Nickelodeon. The series revolves around the zany hijinks of Norbert and Daggett Beaver, two young beaver brothers who have moved out of their parents' home to bec ...

'', Zim in ''

Invader Zim ''Invader Zim'' is an American animated science fiction horror comedy television series created by comic book writer and cartoonist Jhonen Vasquez for Nickelodeon. The series centers on the titular character Zim (voiced by Richard Steven Ho ...

'', Orthopox in ''

Destroy All Humans! ''Destroy All Humans!'' is an open world action-adventure video game franchise that is designed as a parody of Cold War-era alien invasion films. '' Destroy All Humans!'' and '' Destroy All Humans! 2'' were released for the PlayStation 2 and X ...

'', the Zoni in ''

Ratchet & Clank ''Ratchet & Clank'' is a series of Action-adventure game, action-adventure Platform game, platform and third-person shooter video games created and developed by Insomniac Games and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. High Impact Games ...

'', Bumble in '' Kinectimals'', the Space Weaver in '' Broken Age'', Kanchomé in ''

Zatch Bell! ''Zatch Bell!'', known in Japan as , is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Makoto Raiku. It was serialized in Shogakukan's Shōnen manga, manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Sunday'' between January 2001 and December 2007, ...

'', and

Moxxie ''Hazbin Hotel'' and ''Helluva Boss'' are two American animated series created, directed, written, and produced by Vivienne Medrano, Vivienne "VivziePop" Medrano, animated primarily by SpindleHorse Toons, and set in Hell. Some of the characters ...

in ''

Helluva Boss ''Helluva Boss'' is an American adult animated musical black comedy web series created by Vivienne "VivziePop" Medrano. It revolves around the misadventures of the employees of I.M.P., a company in Hell that offers hitman services in the real ...

''.

Early life

Horvitz was born on July 29, 1966, in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. His father Louie was a planning engineer for

Rocketdyne Rocketdyne is an American rocket engine design and production company headquartered in Canoga Park, California, Canoga Park, in the western San Fernando Valley of suburban Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles, in southern California. Rocketdyne ...

for over 35 years. His maternal grandfather was born in

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

, and his mother's family is from Madera, Mexico. His older brother, Louis J. Horvitz, is a television director and producer. As a child, Horvitz was inspired by

Flip Wilson Clerow "Flip" Wilson Jr. (December 8, 1933 – November 25, 1998) was an American comedian and actor best known for his television appearances during the late 1960s and 1970s. From 1970 to 1974, Wilson hosted his own weekly variety series '' The ...

Tom Jones Tom Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer *Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist *''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in 1 ...

, and

Don Adams Donald James Yarmy (April 13, 1923 – September 25, 2005), known professionally as Don Adams, was an American actor. In his five decades on television, he was best known as bumbling Maxwell Smart (Secret Agent 86) in the television situa ...

, doing impressions of them.

Career

Acting

Richard Horvitz JACON 2009 Orlando Florida

Horvitz first appeared in a 1976 Freshen Up gum commercial, which led to other commercial appearances and several

hand model A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each "hand ...

ing jobs. After a brief stint in an off-Broadway production of ''

Oliver! ''Oliver!'' is a stage musical, with book, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the 1838 novel ''Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens. It premiered at the Wimbledon Theatre, southwest London in 1960 before opening in the W ...

'' he went on to make appearances on television series such as ''

Kids Incorporated ''Kids Incorporated'' (also known as ''Kids Inc.'') is an American children's television program that began production in the mid-1980s and continued airing into the mid-1990s. It was largely a youth-oriented program with musical performances as ...

'' and '' Safe at Home'', and films such as ''

Summer School Summer school (or summer university) is a school, or a program generally sponsored by a school or a school district, or provided by a private company, that provides lessons and activities during the summer vacation. Participation in summer school ...

'', ''

How I Got into College ''How I Got Into College'' is a 1989 American romantic comedy film directed by Savage Steve Holland, starring Anthony Edwards, Corey Parker and Lara Flynn Boyle, and produced and released by 20th Century Fox. This is the film debut of eventual ...

'', and ''

Deadly Weapon A deadly weapon, sometimes dangerous weapon (although some jurisdictions differentiate between the two) or lethal weapon, is an item that can inflict mortal or great bodily harm. By statutory definition, certain items, especially firearms, are d ...

''. From 1988 to 1991, he starred as Howie for two seasons in the syndicated television sitcom ''

The Munsters Today ''The Munsters Today'' is an American sitcom and a revival of the original 1964–66 sitcom ''The Munsters'' that aired in syndication from October 8, 1988, to June 8, 1991. Plot The series concerns the day-to-day life of a family of benign m ...

''.

Voice acting

Starting in 1993, Horvitz changed the focus of his career to voice acting, starting with the voices of Alpha 5 and Alpha 4 in the live-action series ''

''. From there, he had several other voice roles in such animated series as ''

'' (as Daggett), ''

'' (as Zim), ''

Kim Possible ''Kim Possible'' is an American animated Action comedy TV series, action comedy television series created by Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle for Disney Channel. The Kim Possible (character), title character is a teenage girl tasked with saving ...

'', ''

Dave the Barbarian ''Dave the Barbarian'' is an American animated television series created by Doug Langdale for Disney Channel. It follows a barbarian, and his friends and family, on surreal comedy Medieval-themed adventures. The series premiered on January 2 ...

'' (as Ned Frischman), ''

'' (as Kanchomé), ''

'' (as Billy and his father Harold), ''

'' (as Grey Matter), ''

'' (as Rodney), and ''

Shorty McShorts' Shorts ''Shorty McShorts' Shorts'' is an American animated anthology short series, which consisted of 4-/5-minute shorts. It aired from July 28, 2006, to May 25, 2007. Summary Initially conceived as a short pilot program for Disney TV Animation, prod ...

'' (as Dudley). He also co-wrote the ''Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy'' episode "Keeper of the Reaper" alongside his wife Kristen Lazarian. After his stint as Alpha 5 ended, Horvitz went on to voice a few monsters in other ''

Power Rangers ''Power Rangers'' is an American media franchise created by Haim Saban, Shuki Levy and Shotaro Ishinomori built around a live-action superhero television series, based on the Japanese tokusatsu franchise ''Super Sentai''. It is currently ow ...

'' series and was also the voice of Alpha 7 in the ''

Power Rangers Wild Force ''Power Rangers Wild Force'' is a television series and the tenth season of Power Rangers. It is also the anniversary season of the ''Power Rangers'' franchise, based on the 25th Super Sentai series ''Hyakujuu Sentai Gaoranger'', which itself ...

'' episode "Forever Red". He voiced the main characters of Raz in the ''

'' series and Orthopox in the ''

'' series. He has also voiced various

NPCs A non-player character (NPC) is a character in a game that is not controlled by a player. The term originated in traditional tabletop role-playing games where it applies to characters controlled by the gamemaster (or referee) rather than by a ...

in ''

EverQuest II ''EverQuest II'' is a 3D fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) originally developed and published by Sony Online Entertainment for Microsoft Windows PCs and released in November 2004. It is the sequel to the original ...

'', the Berserker Darklings in '' The Darkness'', Bumble in '' Kinectimals'', and Kaos in '' Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure''. Horvitz voiced "Green Grapes" in the

Fruit of the Loom Fruit of the Loom is an American company that manufactures clothing, particularly casual wear and undergarment, underwear. The company's world headquarters are located in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Since 2002, it has been a wholly owned subsidiary ...

commercials and has acted on stage, including in

Jeffrey Hatcher Jeffrey Hatcher is a much-produced American playwright and screenwriter. He wrote the stage play ''Compleat Female Stage Beauty'', which he later adapted into a screenplay, shortened to just '' Stage Beauty'' (2004). He also co-wrote the stage a ...

's ''Mrs. Mannerly''. Horvitz also voiced Moxxie and served as a voice director in the adult animated web series ''

''. He also played the roles of Alpha 8 and Alpha 9 in the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

special '' Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always'', which celebrated the 30th anniversary of the ''Power Rangers'' franchise.

Comedy

In 2001, Horvitz was in the

sketch comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches" or, "skits", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. While the form developed and became popular in ...

group The MoHos with

Fred Willard Frederick Charles Willard Jr. (September 18, 1933 May 15, 2020) was an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his work with Christopher Guest in his mockumentary films ''This Is Spinal Tap'' (1984), ''Waiting for Guffman'' (1996), ''Be ...

, created by Fred's wife Mary Lovell. He and Fred would sometimes perform on various talk shows including ''

Jimmy Kimmel Live! ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'', sometimes shortened to ''JKL'', is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, and broadcast on ABC. The nightly hour-long show tapes and is based out of the Hollywood Masonic Temple in Hollywo ...

'' and ''

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the fourth and sixth installment of ''The Tonight Show''. Hosted by Jay Leno, it aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009, replacing ''The Ton ...

''. Horvitz also appeared in an episode of ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...

'' in the short segment "Bear City" and briefly appeared on '' Tosh.0''.

Personal life

Horvitz married playwright and screenwriter Kristen Lazarian on February 9, 1996. They currently live in

and have three sons together. He speaks fluent

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Web series

Video games

Audiobooks

* ''

Goosebumps ''Goosebumps'' is a series of children's horror novels written by American author R. L. Stine. The protagonists in these stories are teens or pre-teens who find themselves in frightening circumstances, often involving the supernatural, the p ...

: Attack of the Mutant'' – Skipper Matthews

Theme park attractions

* '' Tower of Terror (Tokyo DisneySea)'' - Shiriki Utundu * ''

The Twilight Zone Tower Of Terror ''The Twilight Zone'' Tower of Terror, or simply Tower of Terror, is a series of similar accelerated drop tower dark rides located at Disney's Hollywood Studios, Tokyo DisneySea, Walt Disney Studios Park, and formerly located at Disney Californ ...

'' ( Walt Disney Studios) - Shaft Creatures

Awards and nominations

* Nominated –

Annie Award The Annie Awards are accolades which the Los Angeles branch of the International Animated Film Association, ASIFA-Hollywood, has presented each year since 1972 to recognize excellence in animation shown in American cinema and television. Origina ...

for Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting by a Male Performer in an Animated Television Production for ''Invader Zim'' – 2001 * Nominated –

for Best Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production for ''Invader Zim: Enter the Florpus'' – 2020

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Horvitz, Richard Steven 1966 births Living people American actors of Mexican descent American entertainers of Cuban descent American male television actors American male video game actors American male voice actors American people of Czech descent American people of Russian descent Cartoon Network people Comedians from Los Angeles Hispanic and Latino American actors Hispanic and Latino American television people Male actors from Los Angeles Nickelodeon people 20th-century American comedians 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American comedians 21st-century American male actors