Lou Scheimer

Louis Scheimer (b. October 19, 1928, d. October 17, 2013) was an Emmy and Grammy-award winning American producer, one of the original founders of Filmation, an animation company, and also an executive producer of many of its cartoons (though only by name due to standardized crediting in most cartoons; Norm Prescott received similar treatment).

Career
Early in Filmation's history, Scheimer also contributed a number of guest or secondary voices for the various productions. Amongst these was the voice of N'kima, Tarzan's monkey companion in Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle (1976–1981).

Scheimer (pronounced SHY-mer) was most pro-active in the creation of the cartoon He-Man and the Masters of the Universe and Bravestarr. Aside from being the executive producer, he was also co-credited for the series' musical score under the pseudonym Erika Lane, and became a voice actor for the show (as he had done for many of his company's previous productions), going under the pseudonym Erik Gunden. Scheimer's contribution to the cast was in fact most notable as he singlehandedly voiced nearly all supporting characters, including Orko (and other characters with a similar Smurfs-voice), Stratos, King Randor and others, due to severe budget restrictions. The animated series also pioneered a type of programming known as first-run syndication. Also a first was the storyline being based on an action figure toy; prior to this time, FCC regulations had prohibited any type of children's programming being based on a toy. Scheimer transformed He-Man from a graphically violent version of Conan the Barbarian into a pro-social character, who imparted a life lesson to impressionable viewers in each episode.

Erika Scheimer, Lou's daughter, also did supporting female voices and occasional voice-acting for young boy characters. She would later star in the follow-up series She-Ra, which Scheimer also produced.

Later career
In the late 1990s, Scheimer returned to the field of animation. A Dutch investment company, Dreamweavers, NV., approached Lou with a concept based on an off-kilter Dutchman's renderings of characters aimed at young adults. Scheimer went into production on an animated feature film entitled Robin and the Dreamweavers. Robin, the first human ever born in cyberspace, battled the evil siren "Triple XXX" who desired an earthly body and gained power through mankind's baser carnal desires. The film, however, was never distributed.

Shortly thereafter, Scheimer underwent quadruple bypass surgery and was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. Erika Scheimer quickly took control of her father's company and shut it down.

Other voice roles
Lou Scheimer voiced characters for other Filmation cartoons besides He-Man. Most notably, he provided the voice to "Dumb Donald" on the long running Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids. He was also the voice of Legal Eagle and the Brown Hornet's sidekick Stinger. He likewise served as the voice-over narrator during the opening credits of the majority of Filmation shows and cartoons. In Jason of Star Command and Space Academy, he was consistently heard as generic voices over intercoms. In the live action Ghost Busters series starring Forrest Tucker alongside Larry Storch with Bob Burns, his was the voice of "Zero," the unseen boss of the main characters.

Personal life and death
Scheimer was awarded the Inkpot Award in 2013.
 * Married to Jay Scheimer (died 2009)
 * 1 daughter Erika
 * 1 son Lane

Scheimer underwent quadruple bypass surgery in the late 1990s and was subsequently diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. He died from the disease at his home in Tarzana, California, on October 17, 2013, two days shy of his 85th birthday.

History

 * Guide To Animated Star Trek - Filmation Associates
 * Animated Views - A Fond Look Back At Filmation (Part 1) (October 31, 2004)
 * Animated Views - A Fond Look Back At Filmation (Part 2) (December 10, 2006)
 * LouScheimerProductions.com - My Dad: The Trend Setter (Archive)

Interviews

 * He-Man.org - Playthings Interview (June 1987)
 * The Unofficial Isis Appeciation Page - Interview (July 2002)
 * Newsarama - Interview (Pt. 1) (June 28, 2006)
 * Newsarama - Interview (Pt. 2) (July 5, 2006)
 * Newsarama - Interview (Pt. 3) (July 12, 2006)
 * Newsarama - Interview (Pt. 4) (July 18, 2006)
 * Masters Cast - Comic-Con Interview (Quicktime) (July 30, 2006)
 * Animation World Magazine - Interview (November 7, 2006)
 * Retro Crush - David Teague Interview

Lou Scheimer Lou Scheimer Lou Scheimer Lou Scheimer