Ratzenberger began his entertainment career while living in London in the 1970s. He acted in and wrote film and television through the 1970s and early 1980s before returning to America. At an audition for a role in a new sitcom, Ratzenberger created the character of Cliff Clavin. Cheers (1982–1993) was a success and went on to run for 11 years. After Cheers, he began voicing characters for Pixar; Ratzenberger's first role was Hamm in Pixar's debut feature film Toy Story (1995), and he would continue to voice characters in many subsequent Pixar films. Including voice acting and cameos, he is the third highest-grossing actor of all time.
Early life
John Dezso Ratzenberger was born on Easter Sunday, April 6, 1947,[3] in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the son of Bertha Veronica (née Grochowski), and Dezso Alexander Ratzenberger, a WWII veteran who had been a combat engineer in the Philippines.[4][5] John's father, Dezso, was of Austrian and Hungarian descent, and John's mother was of Polish ancestry.[6] Ratzenberger attended St. Ann's School and Bassick High School in Bridgeport and then Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut.[1] In 1969, Ratzenberger worked at the Woodstock Festival as a heavy equipment operator and as part of the crew building the stage.[7] John moved to London in 1971, where he began his acting, writing, and directing career.[1]
Career
Ratzenberger on the set of the series "Made in America"
Ratzenberger began his career in the performing arts while living in London, England.[1] Through the 1970s, he performed with Ray Hassett as the comedic theatrical duo Sal's Meat Market, which toured throughout Europe for eight years.[8] Sal's Meat Market heavily influenced Peter Richardson and Nigel Planer as a duo in The Outer Limits and in The Comic Strip.[9] His first role in a major feature film was as a patron in The Ritz (1976). Throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s, Ratzenberger appeared in various roles in feature films throughout Europe including: A Bridge Too Far, filmed in Holland, as Lieutenant James Megellas; Superman, as a missile controller; Superman II, as the NASA control man; Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back as Major Derlin; Outland as a doomed mine worker named Tarlow; and Gandhi, filmed in India, playing an American lieutenant.
Cheers
Ratzenberger played mail carrier Cliff Clavin on the sitcom Cheers. As an improv artist, he asked the producers if they had written a bar know-it-all character; the producers decided it was a great idea, and the character of Cliff Clavin was born.[10] Ratzenberger also came up with the idea for Cliff's trademark white socks, which he wore as a tribute to French comedian Jacques Tati.[11] Cliff became known for his outlandish stories, trivia, and his trademarked (and oft repeated), "It's a little known fact..." Cliff and Norm, the primary customer characters of the iconic bar, Cheers, played buddies who met at Cheers to talk about the day or nothing in particular. Ratzenberger was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 1985 and again in 1986.[12][13] Ratzenberger provided the voice for an animated version of Cliff on The Simpsons sixth-season episode "Fear of Flying". He also played the role in the short-lived spin-off The Tortellis and in an episode of Wings, which was made by the same creators.
Voice work
Ratzenberger has contributed voice work for several animated projects, most notably Pixar productions.
Ratzenberger has voiced characters in 23 Pixar films.[14] His roles include:
Juan Ortodoncia the deceased dental patient in Coco (2017)
Fennwick the cyclops construction worker in Onward (2020)
According to Ratzenberger, Pixar's tradition of including him as a good luck charm in every film beginning with the studio's first film, Toy Story, was due to him being good friends with former Pixar filmmaker John Lasseter,[15] who directed or executive-produced each of the first 20 Pixar films. Ratzenberger's tenure at Pixar was parodied during the end credits of Cars, where his character, Mack, watches car-themed versions of Pixar films (Toy Car Story, Monster Trucks, Inc., and A Bug's Life, the latter of which references the Volkswagen Beetle). Mack notes that all the characters that John Ratzenberger has played had excellent voice actors until he realizes that they are performed by the same actor, at which point he remarks, "They're just using the same actor over and over," and asks, "What kind of a cut-rate production is this?!" Ratzenberger stated his favorite Pixar role was Hamm from the Toy Story series,[16] and he has given honorable mention to P.T. Flea from A Bug's Life.[17]
Following Lasseter's exit from Pixar, Ratzenberger revealed he was not a fan of the regime that replaced Lasseter or the studio's subsequent films, claiming "[...] they suck", and disliked the political messaging that he felt was being placed in the films.[15] Pixar's 23rd feature film, Soul (2020), was the first Pixar film that did not involve Ratzenberger himself, though it did instead feature a character animated in his likeness as a cameo according to the film’s co-director Kemp Powers;[18] the cameo was also confirmed by director Pete Docter on the film's audio commentary track. After having voiced a character in every Pixar film from Toy Story (1995) through Onward (2020), Ratzenberger would not have another role in any Pixar film until their 28th feature film, Inside Out 2 (2024).[15][19]
Ratzenberger has continued to work with Lasseter, who produces all feature films and executive-produces all series at Skydance Animation.[20] His roles include:
Rootie the bad luck root in Luck (2022),[21] the studio's first feature film
Caruncle the alien in the first season of WondLa (2024),[22] the studio's first series
Milo the monster handler in Spellbound (2024),[23] the studio's second feature film
Aside from the Pixar and Skydance productions, Ratzenberger voiced Harland the jet tug in Disneytoon Studios' Planes (2013)[24] and Brodi the plane in its sequel, Planes: Fire & Rescue (2014),[25][26] which are spin-offs of Pixar's Cars series and executive-produced by Lasseter.[27] Additionally, Ratzenberger provided the voice for Aniyaku the assistant manager in the English dub version of Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away (2002),[28] which Lasseter also executive-produced.
Ratzenberger lived in London for 10 years.[30] Since 1994, he has lived in Vashon, Washington.[31] Ratzenberger married Georgia Stiny in 1984; during their 20-year marriage they had two children together before divorcing in 2004.[4] He then married Julie Blichfeldt in November 2012.[32]
Ratzenberger developed a packaging-alternatives product made from biodegradable and non-toxic recycled paper as a safe alternative to foam peanuts and plastic bubble wrap. This product, SizzlePak, was manufactured by his company Eco-Pak Industries, which Ratzenberger co-founded in 1989.[33] In 1992, he sold Eco-Pack to Ranpak Corp.[33]
^ abBukro, Casey (November 10, 1992). "Packaging Gets Leaner, 'Greener'At Technology Expo". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 4, 2020. "I jumped on the environmental bandwagon in 1967", says Ratzenberger, who in 1989 co-founded Eco-Pak Industries in Kent, Wash.
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