Mark Dodson — who voiced Gremlins, zombies, and Star Wars critter Salacious Crumb — has died. He was 64. According to TMZ, Dodson suffered a heart attack in Evansville, Indiana, the night before he was to attend Horror Con. Reps told TMZ “his unique voice and sound to each character and script he touched.â€
Dodson got his first VO break playing Salacious Crumb in Return of the Jedi. The lackey of Jabba the Hutt is a fan favorite little weirdo. According to Wookiepedia, Crumb stowed away on Jabba’s ship and was discovered by Bib Fortuna. Jabba spared Crumb’s life, as long as he could make the Hutt laugh. He became the unofficial court jester of Jabba’s operation.
From Jedi, Dodson went on to voice the gremlins of Gremlins and zombies in George A. Romero’s Day of the Dead. Dodson also worked extensively in the video game world, adding voice to games like Star Trek Online and the Nancy Drew CD-ROMs. He returned to the Star Wars universe in The Force Awakens as a niima scavenger. His daughter, Ciara, said he “never ceased making me proud.†Dodson is survived by his daughter and grandchildren.