RIP Rachael Lillis (1969-2024)

[Surreal Kangaroo]

RIP
She was really talented and it’s a shame that she’s gone so young. The original episodes of Pokemon are one of my favorite childhood shows.

 

[Rick Jones]

I don't think I was in the loop on any of this. Much condolences

It's really sad to hear about

 

[wonderfly]

From the front page of AnimeSuperhero.com:

"Underappreciated VA Rachael Lillis Dies Way Too Young"​

"Earlier this year the news broke that anime voice actress Rachael Lillis had come down with breast cancer, and not only that, but a pretty aggressive case of it. A GoFundMe was set up and over $100,000 came in from fans to get her into a better care facility. We had hoped she’d pull through, but….the word came this morning that Lillis died Saturday evening, “peacefully and without pain” according to her sister.

Lillis was not even 20 when she was hired fresh out of high school as part of the trifecta of VAs that made up the Pokemon anime’s English dub. Veronica Taylor was Ash, Eric Stuart was Brock, and Lillis was Misty — in fact she pulled double duty as both Misty and Jessie, an impressive display of range. Most people would probably not guess they were the same person.

Since there were over 100 Pokemon and only so many voice actors, Lillis had to play many of the Pokemon as well — she was Jigglypuff, Vulpix, Venonat, Goldeen and even Pikachu on rare occasions when Ikue Ohtani’s track could not be isolated. At the anime’s peak, Lillis was one of the most familiar voices in the country — until the day The Pokemon Company moved the US dub away from 4Kids and the entire English cast was reset."

Read the full article here.

 

[Classic Speedy]

Great write-up Peter, though I'm surprised you didn't mention her lead role in Revolutionary Girl Utena. To me, that's the role I associate with her- her voice of Utena exuded a down-to-earth sweetness (read: not saccharine) but when something got Utena's dander up she could deliver those passionate inflections too. Re-watching the series finale of that show, where she had to emote with great intensity, might be a lot harder now that Lillis is gone.

 

[JMTV]

Aww that’s really sad.

She may Rest In Peace.

 

[Shiloh Otter]

It turns out that she was actually 55 years old. The NY Times interviewed her sister Laurie, who confirmed some of Rachael's personal details.

Rachael Lillis, Who Voiced Popular ‘Pokémon’ Characters, Dies at 55

Ms. Lillis voiced the characters of Misty and Jessie in the animated series based on a video game. She was diagnosed with breast cancer this year.

www.nytimes.com

 

[Otaku-sempai]

She voiced Utena Tenjō in Revolutionary Girl Utena. That was a starring role worth mentioning.

 

[pacman000]

Goodbye Misty, Jigglypuff.

 

[wonderfly]

It turns out that she was actually 55 years old. The NY Times interviewed her sister Laurie, who confirmed some of Rachael's personal details.

Rachael Lillis, Who Voiced Popular ‘Pokémon’ Characters, Dies at 55

Ms. Lillis voiced the characters of Misty and Jessie in the animated series based on a video game. She was diagnosed with breast cancer this year.

www.nytimes.com

How is there such a descepency in her age? I thought I saw she was born in 1978....

 

[Shiloh Otter]

How is there such a descepency in her age? I thought I saw she was born in 1978....

some sites (Anime News Network, Behind the Voice Actors, etc) have what I (and obviously others as well) thought was accurate info, considering the high reputations of such websites. Other sites (IMDb for example) did have her age as 55 but since IMDb can be freely edited, there is a lot of false info on it. So... yeah. But if her own sister says she was 55 and born in Niagara Falls, I will believe her.

 

[Asa]

Rachel Lillis did voice Faragonda in the 4kids dub of Winx Club.

 

[Classic Speedy]

Even 55 is too young to die.

On a related topic, I read an article stating that cancer is on the rise for millennials and Gen X'ers. Be proactive about watching for any changes in your body and take care of your physical and mental health, because nobody else will. (not saying Rachael didn't, you could be as proactive as can be and still get bad luck; this is just a general PSA)

 

[Peter Paltridge]

It turns out that she was actually 55 years old. The NY Times interviewed her sister Laurie, who confirmed some of Rachael's personal details.

Rachael Lillis, Who Voiced Popular ‘Pokémon’ Characters, Dies at 55

Ms. Lillis voiced the characters of Misty and Jessie in the animated series based on a video game. She was diagnosed with breast cancer this year.

www.nytimes.com

Most sources at the time of posting said 46. NYT is the only one I've heard of that says 55.

How is there such a descepency in her age? I thought I saw she was born in 1978....

I saw this with Judy Tenuta last year. Some people prefer to hide their age, or lie about it, and it causes confusion upon passing. There were several ages listed for Judy and now there are two for Rachael.

 

[Bluebaron]

She was 55.

 

[Mejo]

I’ve always loved her as Misty. Shame to know she’s gone now.

 

[the_joker]

I didn't know Misty and Jessie's voices were from the same person, but it was pretty fun to hear them shout, and Rachel Lillis did well in her deliveries.

As for her age, I'm also definitely believing 55 over 46 as her own sister would definitely know her age. The supposed birth year of 1978 had to come from somewhere, so I wonder how that started, but that's neither here nor there. And 55 years is still too young.

R.I.P. Rachel Lillis

 

[ThePharaohZ]

I am deeply saddened by this news and my condolences to her loved ones. 45 is too young. May she R.I.P.

 

[Bluebaron]

RIP Rachael. I wish she was in so much more stuff. She in alot of early 4kids and then not too much the past decade.

 

[Eurbane]

Let’s not forgot her work on the voice trumpets in the us version of Teletubbies.

 

[Vuxovich]

I wish she was in the cross-regional Los Angeles-Vancouver voice acting projects.