Marty Ingels

Marty Ingels (born March 9, 1936) was an actor, comedian, theatrical agent, and, by many, best known as the voice of many cartoon characters and commercials. Born Martin Ingerman in Brooklyn, New York, he was the son of Jacob and Minnie (née: Crown) Ingerman.

His voice-overs and commercials include those for Paul Masson wines, with his uniquely raspy voice. He played AutoCat in the Autocat and Motormouse cartoons featured first on The Cattanooga Cats and then in a series of their own, and was Beegle Beagle in The Great Grape Ape Show. His latest role was in Pac-Man (1982) as the title character. He previously acted in motion pictures and short-lived television series, such as the sitcom I'm Dickens, He's Fenster (1962–1963) with John Astin, which lasted one season of 31 episodes.

Ingels' acting career dates back to the early '60s and programs such as The Dick Van Dyke Show, on which he had a recurring role as an Army buddy of Rob Petrie, and has continued as recently as a 2010 episode of CSI. In 1960, he appeared twice as himself in NBC's short-lived crime drama Dan Raven, starring Skip Homeier and set on the Sunset Strip of West Hollywood. In the late 1990s, he had a short stint as the voice of "Garfield", which was previously voiced by Lorenzo Music.

But in recent decades, Ingels had worked less as an actor than as an agent, specializing in representing actors in celebrity endorsement ads. A deal for his contract to read for voice of Pac-Man in the cartoon was to be granted a Pac-Man arcade cabinet, which was delivered by truck to his home.

He had been married since 1977 to the actress and singer Shirley Jones until his death in 2015.

Legal troubles
In 1982, Ingels (along with wife Jones) sued editor Iain Calder and the National Enquirer for an October 9, 1979 article that claimed the couple had been having marital problems and that Jones was becoming an alcoholic as a result. In the late 1980s, Ingels was part of a real estate investment partnerships with then attorney Alan David Harris. Harris later was sentenced to a 71 month prison sentence for defrauding Ingels and other investors. Harris's challenge to Ingels's March 1993 civil lawsuit ended with a decision against Harris on June 28, 1996. When the Harris suit was decided in Ingels' favor, he celebrated by buying Shirley Jones a car with the license plate "BBDO", standing for "Big Bad Deposition Over".

In 1993, Ingels publicly charged actress June Allyson with not paying his large agency commission for obtaining her a job as spokesperson for Depend adult incontinence products. Allyson denied owing any money and in August 1993, she and husband David Ashrow filed a lawsuit against Ingels for slander and emotional distress. The suit said Ingels had harassed and threatened them, including 138 phone calls during a single eight-hour period. In February of that year, Ingels had pleaded no contest to making annoying phone calls.

Hugh Duff Robertson sued Ingels in August 1993. For different reasons, Ingels sued Hillside Prod. Inc. in December 1993 and KXTV in May 1994.

In the 2000s, Ingels sued Marisol Hedge (February 2000) and then sued Shirley Jones for divorce in March 2002. In 2003, Ingel called the talk show of radio personality Tom Leykis under an assumed name, Paul Russo. Asserting that Leykis' actions of disparaging Ingels' age violated California's Unruh Civil Rights Act (which prohibits individuals discrimination in business), Ingels sued Westwood One and Tom Leykis in July 2003 for age discrimination. In June 2005, Ingels's lawsuit against Westwood One and Leykis was thrown out in a California court and Ingels was ordered to pay Leykis's $25,000 in legal fees.

In November 2007, Ingels sued Ventura county attorney Scott B. Whitenack on behalf of Fawn Park, a park created by Ingels and Shirley Jones in downtown Fawnskin, California to prevent development. In May 2008, Ingels appeared on Judge Joe Brown as a plaintiff. He won $2500.

In December 2008, Ingels came under investigation for allegedly shoplifting a $500 hat from a custom hat store. No charges have been filed.

Death
Ingels died from a massive stroke at Tarzana Medical Center in Tarzana, California, on October 21, 2015, at the age of 79. He was survived by his wife, Shirley Jones, and his stepsons. After Ingels' death, Jones stated "He often drove me crazy, but there's not a day I won’t miss him and love him to my core."