A Message from Lee Marshall & Tony the Tiger

It was back in 1952 when the Kellogg's Company came up with an advertising character to assist in the promotion of their cereal, Kellogg's Frosted Flakes. They created a friendly tiger named "Tony" but now they needed to find the person to provide the voice, the enthusiasm and the personality that would bring "Tony the Tiger" to life. That man was Thurl Ravenscroft.

Thurl Ravenscroft not only provided the distinctive voice, but he also instilled a warm personality that made Tony the Tiger the most recognized and beloved icon character in the history of advertising.

In the late 1990's, when Thurl was in his mid-80's, Kellogg's and its advertising agency felt it was time to do what many people felt was impossible. They felt it was time to at least try to find the heir apparent to Thurl Ravenscroft . With that, a nationwide search was launched in an effort to find a new Tony. Burbank, California based casting directors Harvey and Cathy Kalmenson were called in to assist in this effort and in 1998, Lee Marshall was summoned into their recording studios.

Although they have almost identical voices, it was ironic that Lee and Thurl had actually worked together on a few projects and even more ironically, Lee had already assumed the voice of another character, "Rug Dr." (Steamin' Mad at Dirt) which was first voiced by Thurl.

Lee's 1998 audition caught the attention of everyone involved with the Tony the Tiger search. Over the next few years, Lee's voice was used on a number of Tony projects and two years later he was signed to a long-term contract to replace the legendary Thurl Ravenscroft as the one and only voice of Tony the Tiger.

Lee has an interesting view on his personal and professional responsibilities associated with his orange, black and white alter-ego, saying, "Thurl created and developed one of the most wonderful characters in the world. It's an honor to follow in his footsteps. I personally promised Thurl that I would love and care for Tony with all my heart and that I would do everything I can to make him, and Tony proud."