Buster Jones, Black Vulcan voice actor, 1943-2014

Buster Jones, popular cartoon voice actor of the 1970s-80s, passed away on 9/16/14. I learned of this because his neighbor kindly notified his Facebook friends list one at a time. Buster was not married and had no children.

In 2011, I had the privilege of interviewing him for my Super Friends blog series. It was the first interview he gave about his animation voiceover work. His interview was one of the most candid of that (or any of my) series—in fact, one of his stories in particular is flat-out ribald. Buster had been out of the VO business for a while and was desperate for work. That interview got him invited to a cartoon convention in Texas, for which he got paid—and the royal treatment.

When talking conversationally, Buster had a stutter. However, when he recorded, it went away.

A radio and on-air TV personality as well, Buster interviewed everyone from Bill Withers to Rosey Grier to Gladys Knight:

Earlier this year, my good friend Mike Fox kindly went to Buster’s on my behalf (I don’t live in Los Angeles) to take a photo of Buster with the action figure I’d sent him. It was his Super Friends character, Black Vulcan.

You were electric, Buster. RIP.

Addendum: Because Buster was not married and had no kids, I feared no one would submit an obituary to the media. (Sensitive issue for me; Bill Finger never got one.)

But thanks to my friend Jonathan Taylor, I reached the right person at Variety and results happened:

See the voices of Black Vulcan and Samurai

In 2011, I had the privilege of interviewing many voice actors and other talent behind my favorite cartoon of my youth (okay, who am I kidding—of my all time): Super Friends.

Around the same time, the first-ever figures of Black Vulcan and Apache Chief came out as part of the Justice League Unlimited line, packaged together with Samurai, who’d had a figure in the Super Powers line of the 1980s.

I bought two sets of the three figures—one for me (no shame) and one to divvy up and send to the men whose voices lent life to these characters: Buster Jones (Black Vulcan), Jack Angel (Samurai), and Michael Rye (Apache Chief).

The first two gamely gave me their addresses, but Michael was considerably older and in poor health so I didn’t want to trouble him. 

Off went the Black Vulcan and Samurai figures (while their cartoon inspirations had the natural ability of flight, these versions flew via USPS).

But it was only recently that I went back to Buster and Black Vulcan and Jack and Samurai to ask for them to pose like this:

Obviously not only good actors but also good sports.

Huge thanks to my longtime friend Mike Fox for sparing Buster the awkward task of taking a selfie while holding a toy. [9/16/14 addendum: Only a few months after Mike took Buster’s photo, Buster passed away.]

(Oh, and Michael Rye died 9/21/12. RIP Apache Lantern.)

Buster Jones, AKA Black Vulcan

I interviewed voice actor Buster Jones for the Super ‘70s and ‘80s series.

More images Buster sent:

Buster recently in Los Angeles

Buster Jones is bustin' loose

Last year, I ran a series called “Super ‘70s and ‘80s”; it comprised original interviews with 100 “lost” stars of superhero/cartoon entertainment of the 1970s and 1980s.

One of my fervent hopes was that this series would lead to some of the 100 being invited to comic book conventions as paid guests to meet fans, in many cases for the first time. (Remember, they were “lost.”)

So far, it’s happened twice to my knowledge. The first time: I helped Michael Bell (Zan the Wonder Twin) get booked at an Ohio convention (though he was one of the few on my list who had already done cons and was still active in the business).

The second time was especially sweet because it was Buster Jones, who portrayed Black Vulcan on Super Friends, as well as beloved characters on other shows. In Buster’s interview, he openly discussed how things had been tough. He has a pension but after Hanna and Barbera died (2001 and 2006, respectively), he had not gotten any voice work. From his mother he inherited the house in Tennessee that he was born in, and he is holding onto it in case he ever needs a place to live. (He’s currently in Los Angeles.)

After reading the interview, Peter Sinclair, one of the organizers of a Transformers convention called BotCon, contacted me for Buster’s contact information. I asked if Buster would be paid and Peter said yes. So with Buster’s permission, I put the two in touch.

Buster checked with an agent to see if a paid con appearance would be a union violation, and was told no. So in April, BotCon flew Black Vulcan to Dallas for three all-expenses-paid days of baptism by fandom.

It was the first pop culture convention Buster signed at.

But it was not the first he attended. That was one in San Diego mere weeks before Dallas; he went as an observer and did not tell anyone there who he was.

He almost didn’t make to Texas. For several days prior to BotCon, Dallas was vexed by tornadoes (six of them). Once there, Buster saw no signs of damage.

And he’d not been in Dallas since 1967 when he attended college (and experienced racism) there. He said there were streets he as a black man was not allowed to go down.

BotCon was crowded and Buster’s signings lasted three hours a day. He signed the con programs. I wish I could’ve seen it. Buster found the experience fun but exhausting. I asked if he remembered any of his castmates and he said he was excited in particular to see old friend Dan Gilvezan.

A highlight: the cast members who were there did a live reading of a Transformers cartoon script written specially for the convention.

I asked about Buster’s stammer. He said it would go away when he was doing one of two things: drinking (which he no longer does) and voice acting. As for the latter, he thinks it has to do with the fact that he’s reading rather than speaking extemporaneously.

“Fans dug meeting him,” Sinclair said. “He seemed to dig it all.” Buster confirmed that. Sinclair added “He dressed very nicely the whole weekend!”

I realize this is only one convention, one paycheck. But I remain hopeful that Buster, among others, will receive more convention invitations, and I will keep trying to bring that about any chance I get.

Your help would also be appreciated. Buster did so many shows and has more fans than he realized. Booking him with other performers from Super Friends or one of his other shows would make him even more of a draw.

Please share any suggestions in the comments. Do you know a con that pays for voice actors to appear?

Super ‘70s and ‘80s: “Super Friends”—Buster Jones (Black Vulcan)

Introduction to series “Super ‘70s and ‘80s.”

Introduction to subseries "Super Friends" (including a list of interviewees).

Tell me about your life before Super Friends.

I’m from Paris, Tennessee. I’m a single child. I have a half-brother and half-sister because my father remarried. I go back every year to my high school reunion. I was just talking to my first girlfriend who still lives there, has four kids. I’m an old disc jockey. I was doing it before voice acting. Once I was working at a nightclub and my friends threw me surprise for my birthday and hired a [woman with an adult profession] and it was my little sister! I hadn’t seen her since she was 12 and I was six. (My mother and father split when I was six.) This event changed her life. She went back to school and went to Howard University. I got her in. I worked in Washington DC as a disc jockey (rock and roll and jazz) and had influence in Washington. Today she’s in Canada. I got her a job with a band. She’s a very good piano player. I haven’t heard from her now in 4-5 years.

How did you get the job on Super Friends?

I was with a company called Cunningham and Associates, for commercials. They sent me out on an interview.

How familiar with the characters were you before you got the job?

They made them up as they went along. Black Vulcan was Hanna’s project. You just walked into the studio and they told you who they wanted you to play. Scatman Crothers was there, too, part of the same company.

Do you know who created Black Vulcan?

Either Hanna or Barbera.

How did you feel about the character?

I was just glad to get a job, man. I had no idea if it would last for 13 weeks or one day. I was doing about five or six cartoon series. The shows we do are now being done by Japanese people. I still watch cartoons. Andrea Romano—I was going to call her.

Did you feel the character was stereotypical?

(Laughs) Who cares? I was just glad to get a job that lasted more than a day. Those jobs have disappeared completely. I don’t even have a voice acting agent anymore. I have a music agent. I do drums and guitar and saxophone. Last time she sent me out and all I did was clap my hands.

Would you want to get back into voice acting?

I want a job doing anything I can. I’m on pension and trying to live off of that. I’m broke. I’m trying to find a new agent. There’s not much work around. Now I have a studio in my home so I can record from home. And I opened my own record company—Buster Jones Records.

Of the episodes you were on, do you have a favorite?

I did so many. I think the cartoon series was sold to another company and I remember the girl who bought the company moved to Canada. I had to go up there to Saskatchewan and do about three or four Super Friends shows. Three other cast members were there—the bad guys. All the villains were played by two guys—white guy and black guy. Chris had a screechy voice. A bruiser kind of guy—Arthur. [NOTE: I don’t know who he is referring to here and suspect he may be confusing this memory with another.] Frank Welker got rich doing voices.

Do you own any Super Friends DVDs?

No, I had no interest after the show closed. I was too busy trying to find other work. It paid quite well. I lived off it Super Friends and other cartoons for about 3-4 years. I did get some of the cels. I still have them.

Variety 10/17/86

Are they just of Black Vulcan or other characters?

I did Black Vulcan and Mandrake the Magician.

Which voice actors were you most friendly with?

I just saw one of the black guys—Globetrotters. I hung out with Casey Kasem. In fact he hired me to do one of his American Top 40 shows. This was on the radio every Saturday morning. Whenever he went on vacation, he would call me to come in and do it for him. It lasted about two or three years in the middle eighties. It was a lot of fun.

I’ll name other Super Friends actors and please tell me what you remember. 

Danny Dark: I remember Danny. He had a great deep voice.
Jack Angel: He married one of the girls who worked for Cunningham, Arlene Thornton. They now have a cartoon studio. The Arlene Thornton Agency—I was with them for a while. He was a good friend and he got sick and I lost contact.Olan Soule: (didn’t remember)
Mike Rye: (didn’t remember)
Shannon Farnon: I remember her. I was in love with one of the women but don’t remember which one. [MTN: I believe he meant Sarah Partridge, with whom he worked on Defenders of the Earth and who is now a jazz singer.]
Wally Burr: He’s a good guy. He got me all these jobs.

Do you have any fan letters from the 1970s or 1980s?

It went through the agent. There were a few letters that I got from kids back east. There was one kid from Connecticut who always wrote me when I was doing Super Friends. I always answered him.

Do you still have those?

Some of them I do. I used to answer the ones that got through to me. I’ve lived in three houses since then, always in LA.

Do you have any other photos of the cast, either at work or play?

I do. I have a photo of the whole cast. I have [a picture/possibly a cel] of Black Vulcan. Mandrake was on Super Friends, too. [NOTE: Mandrake was on Defenders of the Earth.] I’ve got a placard here. “Marvel Productions Inc.” It’s a collector’s item. The studio sent me this and I kept it because it was so impressive. Hanna and Barbera were good friends of mine. We talked all the time on the telephone. They always called me to ask if I wanted to participate. They got so big because they were cartoonists. They could draw their butts off.

Did you attend any of the parties at Danny Dark’s house?

No, [Danny and I] had the same agent. Cunningham. I’m still getting checks from them—but it’s run down to 13 and 14 cents.

How do you look back on your time on SF?

Very good. I wish it was still running. It was quite lucrative. I was up to 287 pounds during Super Friends. Now I’m 167 pounds.

[He then brought up the love of his life but said “I can’t remember her name to save my life.”]

What do your children and grandchildren (if applicable) think of your time as a superhero?

Never married. No children. My parents have passed away. I have three cousins in Chicago. I have a girlfriend now in Palm Springs.

Has anyone else interviewed you about SF?

[No.] A long time ago, in the 1960s, a girl from England did an article about my radio work. I don’t know what publication.

Can you elaborate?

I lived in North London for almost a year when I was 11-12 years old. I graduated Central High School in Paris, Tennessee. All through high school I had a band called the Thunderbirds. I got out of Paris by playing music. I went to Lane College in Jackson, Tennessee. I got into a band and then got a job with WJAK in Jackson as a disc jockey. The second year working in Jackson I got hired by Louis Brooks and the Hightoppers to go to London to play drums. They’d heard about me working in Jackson and brought me to London. After a week, they left me in London with all the bills. I was about 18 or 19. I never saw them again. I had to find a way to get back to America. I was in London about two years. During the week I paid for the hotel I was living in by washing dishes at a club. I was working in a boat on the Thames on the weekends.

[He explained that he was one of the DJs on the boat like in the movie Pirate Radio.]

I flew back from London to east coast and then took Joe Cocker’s bus to LA but I don’t think I even met him. I wasn’t doing music. I was taking care of uniforms. Working for the band was my way of getting back to America. A guy whose name I can’t remember really helped me, hooked me up with the band. [He really wanted to remember this man’s name as he felt indebted to him.]

Have you ever participated (i.e. signed autographs) at a comic convention? If not, would you be willing to (if the convention paid your way)?

Yes, I would.

Anything else about the experience that you’d like to add?

You got me all fired up reliving all this old crap.

NOTE: When I returned the photos he kindly mailed me to scan, I also included the first-ever Black Vulcan action figure, which came out in 2009. He called to thank me for sending his stuff back. When I asked about the figure, he said “Who is that, Flash?”

9/16/14 addendum: Buster Jones passed away today.

Next: Fernando Escandon (El Dorado).