JoBe Cerny, voice of the Pillsbury Doughboy, dies at 78
Cerny also worked steadily as a character actor in films
Generations of TV viewers knew his voice without ever learning his name. Every time a finger pressed into Poppin’ Fresh’s doughy belly and the little chef let out his trademark squeal, it was JoBe Cerny doing the giggling.
Cerny, who voiced the Pillsbury mascot for decades, died on October 30 at his home in Grayslake, Illinois, according to his family. He was 78 and had been living with Alzheimer’s disease.
Carrying on a famous voice
Cerny was not the first performer to give the Doughboy a voice. Paul Frees and Jeff Bergman had held the role before him. Cerny kept it far longer, however, and stayed with the character until he retired from the part in 2020.
The mascot’s place in Pillsbury’s advertising was not always secure. Speaking in 2007, Cerny described how the character’s fortunes rose and fell as leadership at the company changed. One executive tried to drop the voice altogether, he recalled, but the Doughboy came back afterward and ended up appearing even more often.
A career in commercials
The Doughboy was only part of Cerny’s advertising work. For Procter & Gamble’s Cheer detergent, he played the “Cheer Man,” a role with no lines. He also lent his voice to ads for Raid bug spray and Dow Bathroom Cleaner.
Running the studio
Much of Cerny’s work happened behind the microphone rather than in front of it. For over three decades he ran Cerny/American Creative Recording Studio in Chicago’s River North district. Over that time it turned out thousands of commercials, films and audiobooks.
His largest project as a director was The Word of Promise, a fully dramatized audio production of the New King James Bible that runs to 98 hours. The cast numbered more than 500 performers. Jim Caviezel voiced Jesus, Richard Dreyfuss played Moses, Gary Sinise took the role of David and Marisa Tomei appeared as Mary Magdalene.
Cerny also had a long-running interest in The Twilight Zone. He turned episodes of the CBS series into radio dramas and later wrote original stories for a podcast version.
On screen
Cerny also worked steadily as a character actor in film, usually in small parts alongside major stars:
Somewhere in Time (1980)
Rent-a-Cop (1987)
Mo’ Money (1992)
My Best Friend’s Wedding (1997), as a tailor
Novocaine (2001)
Road to Perdition (2002), as a banker
Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde (2003)
“Somebody different every day”
Cerny saw his work as a chance to keep reinventing himself. He once said he was lucky to get to be “somebody different every day.” He also joked that choosing a life of fun had been an irresponsible decision, and one he was glad he never reversed.
He leaves behind Eileen, his wife of 56 years; his sons, Tim and Patrick; his daughters-in-law, Andrea and Lily; and his grandchildren, Archer and Cleo.
