# Bill Thompson (voice actor)
**Bill Thompson** (William Henry Thompson Jr.; July 8, 1913 – July 15, 1971) was an American radio personality and voice actor whose career ran from the 1930s until his death. He played multiple comedic roles on the NBC radio series *Fibber McGee and Molly*, most famously the timid birdwatcher Wallace Wimple, and was the voice of the MGM cartoon dog [Droopy](https://www.edgepedia.org/droopy) in most of that studio's theatrical shorts from 1943 to 1958[1](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/bill-thompson/umc.cpc.gpx48it888idg6s6zdwrddhh). At Walt Disney Productions he voiced the [White Rabbit](https://www.edgepedia.org/white-rabbit) and the Dodo in *[Alice in Wonderland](https://www.edgepedia.org/alice-in-wonderland-1951-film)*, Mr. Smee in *Peter Pan*, King Hubert in *Sleeping Beauty*, and Uncle Waldo in *The Aristocats*, among many other parts[2](https://d23.com/a-to-z/thompson-bill/).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born / died | July 8, 1913, Terre Haute, Indiana; July 15, 1971, Los Angeles, California (septic shock)[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0859892/bio/) |
| Signature radio character | Wallace Wimple, a henpecked bird fancier introduced on *Fibber McGee and Molly* on April 15, 1941[4](https://www.radioarchives.com/ProductDetails.php?ProductCode=RA066) |
| Droopy | Voice of Droopy in most MGM theatrical cartoons, 1943–1958; the character was built around his Wimple voice[1](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/bill-thompson/umc.cpc.gpx48it888idg6s6zdwrddhh) • [5](https://walkoffame.com/bill-thompson/) |
| Disney roles | White Rabbit and Dodo (*Alice in Wonderland*), Mr. Smee (*Peter Pan*), Jock, Bull, Dachsie, and Joe (*Lady and the Tramp*), King Hubert (*Sleeping Beauty*), Uncle Waldo (*The Aristocats*), Professor Owl, Ranger J. Audubon Woodlore[2](https://d23.com/a-to-z/thompson-bill/) |
| Other firsts | First actor to voice Scrooge McDuck, in the theatrical featurette *Scrooge McDuck and Money*; original voice of Touché Turtle[6](https://www.indianabroadcasters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Pioneers-Newsletter-2017-August.pdf) • [7](https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Bill_Thompson) |
| Walk of Fame | Star for radio at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard, ceremony February 8, 1960[5](https://walkoffame.com/bill-thompson/) |
| Final role | Uncle Waldo in *The Aristocats* (1970), released shortly before his death[8](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/bill-thompson/bio/3030102657/) |
## Radio career
Born to vaudevillian parents in [Terre Haute, Indiana](https://www.edgepedia.org/terre-haute-indiana), Thompson began in Chicago radio. He was a regular on Don McNeill's morning variety series *The Breakfast Club* in 1934 and a choir member on *The Sinclair Weiner Minstrels* around 1937. On *The Breakfast Club* he originated a meek, mush-mouthed character that publicity sometimes called Mr. Wimple[5](https://walkoffame.com/bill-thompson/).
**Fibber McGee and Molly.** Thompson joined the cast of *Fibber McGee and Molly*, one of the top-rated radio comedies of the 1940s, around 1936[5](https://walkoffame.com/bill-thompson/) • [9](https://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/447.html). On April 15, 1941 he recycled his *Breakfast Club* character under the new name Wallace Wimple, a milquetoast who avoided his overbearing spouse "Sweety Face" and loved bird watching[4](https://www.radioarchives.com/ProductDetails.php?ProductCode=RA066). The character's greeting, a mild "Hello, folks," became a national catchphrase that even surfaced in Warner Bros. cartoons[5](https://walkoffame.com/bill-thompson/). His other recurring roles on the show included Horatio K. Boomer, Nick Depopoulous, the Old-Timer, Vodka, and Uncle Dennis[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0859892/bio/). His best-regarded role, by one account, was the Old-Timer[6](https://www.indianabroadcasters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Pioneers-Newsletter-2017-August.pdf).
He took a break from radio to serve in the [United States Navy](https://www.edgepedia.org/united-states-navy) during World War II[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0859892/bio/), returned to *Fibber McGee* full-time in 1946, and also became a semi-regular on [Edgar Bergen](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgar-bergen)'s radio series as "Professor" Thompson[10](https://american.fandom.com/wiki/Bill_Thompson_%28voice_actor%29). He continued in radio into the late 1950s, including episodes of the *CBS Radio Workshop*[10](https://american.fandom.com/wiki/Bill_Thompson_%28voice_actor%29).
## MGM and Droopy
At the [Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer](https://www.edgepedia.org/metro-goldwyn-mayer) cartoon studio, animation director [Tex Avery](https://www.edgepedia.org/tex-avery) built the dog character Droopy around Thompson's Wimple voice, and Thompson voiced Droopy in most of the studio's theatrical shorts from 1943 to 1958[1](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/bill-thompson/umc.cpc.gpx48it888idg6s6zdwrddhh) • [5](https://walkoffame.com/bill-thompson/). He also played Droopy's recurring bulldog nemesis Spike (later known as Butch) after Avery left MGM, and recycled the Wimple/Droopy voice for other characters, including Tom's lookalike cousin George in the 1957 Tom and Jerry short *Timid Tabby*[10](https://american.fandom.com/wiki/Bill_Thompson_%28voice_actor%29).
## Disney and Hanna-Barbera
His MGM work brought him to [Walt Disney](https://www.edgepedia.org/walt-disney)'s attention, and Disney gave him prominent roles in feature films[4](https://www.radioarchives.com/ProductDetails.php?ProductCode=RA066). He was heard in Disney shorts and features from 1951 onward, often in dialect parts or variations of the Wimple/Droopy voice[10](https://american.fandom.com/wiki/Bill_Thompson_%28voice_actor%29). His feature credits included the White Rabbit and the Dodo in *Alice in Wonderland* (1951), Mr. Smee in *Peter Pan* (1953), Jock, Bull, Dachsie, and Joe in *Lady and the Tramp* (1955), King Hubert in *Sleeping Beauty* (1959), and Uncle Waldo in *The Aristocats* (1970)[2](https://d23.com/a-to-z/thompson-bill/). He also voiced Professor Owl in the 1953 shorts *Melody* and *Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom*, Ranger J. Audubon Woodlore in several 1950s shorts[2](https://d23.com/a-to-z/thompson-bill/) • [11](https://thetvdb.com/people/349543-bill-thompson), and was the first actor to voice [Scrooge McDuck](https://www.edgepedia.org/scrooge-mcduck) in the featurette *Scrooge McDuck and Money*[6](https://www.indianabroadcasters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Pioneers-Newsletter-2017-August.pdf).
For [Hanna-Barbera](https://www.edgepedia.org/hanna-barbera) he was the original voice of Touché Turtle in *Touché Turtle and Dum Dum* (1962)[7](https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Bill_Thompson). According to one account, he was originally cast as [Fred Flintstone](https://www.edgepedia.org/fred-flintstone) in *The Flintstones*, but [William Hanna](https://www.edgepedia.org/william-hanna) and Joseph Barbera recast the role with Alan Reed, who redubbed episodes Thompson had already recorded; Thompson can still be heard in bit roles in some early episodes[10](https://american.fandom.com/wiki/Bill_Thompson_%28voice_actor%29).
## Later years and death
In 1957 Thompson joined the Los Angeles branch of Union Oil as an executive in community relations, though he continued to take occasional voice work[8](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/bill-thompson/bio/3030102657/). *The Aristocats*, his final role, was released in 1970, and he died suddenly of acute septic shock on July 15, 1971, a week after his 58th birthday[6](https://www.indianabroadcasters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Pioneers-Newsletter-2017-August.pdf) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0859892/bio/).
His personal life is inconsistently documented: IMDb records a marriage to Mary Elizabeth McBride from February 1950 to January 1952, ending in divorce[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0859892/bio/), while [TV Guide](https://www.edgepedia.org/tv-guide) and the Disney Wiki identify his wife as Mary Margaret McBride, with a [Hollywood Walk of Fame](https://www.edgepedia.org/hollywood-walk-of-fame) star across the street from his[8](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/bill-thompson/bio/3030102657/) • [7](https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Bill_Thompson).
## References
1. [Bill Thompson – Movies and Music, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/bill-thompson/umc.cpc.gpx48it888idg6s6zdwrddhh)
2. [Thompson, Bill – D23: The Official Disney Fan Club](https://d23.com/a-to-z/thompson-bill/)
3. [Bill Thompson – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0859892/bio/)
4. [Fibber McGee and Molly – The Lost Episodes, Volume 3, Radio Archives](https://www.radioarchives.com/ProductDetails.php?ProductCode=RA066)
5. [Bill Thompson – Hollywood Walk of Fame](https://walkoffame.com/bill-thompson/)
6. [Four Hoosier Broadcasting Pioneers, Indiana Broadcast Pioneers Newsletter (August 2017)](https://www.indianabroadcasters.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Pioneers-Newsletter-2017-August.pdf)
7. [Bill Thompson – Disney Wiki (Fandom)](https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Bill_Thompson)
8. [Bill Thompson Biography, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/bill-thompson/bio/3030102657/)
9. [Fibber McGee and Molly, Encyclopedia of Chicago](https://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/447.html)
10. [Bill Thompson (voice actor) – The American Wiki (Fandom)](https://american.fandom.com/wiki/Bill_Thompson_%28voice_actor%29)
11. [Bill Thompson – TheTVDB.com](https://thetvdb.com/people/349543-bill-thompson)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Voice performers › American voice performers › Animation and cartoon voice actors › Classic cartoon and radio era voice actors*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license