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Dunmore native, J.P. Karliak lives in Los Angeles and has worked on camera and as a voice over actor for more than a decade. The 34-year-old has just landed his most notable role as the voice of Wile E. Coyote in an upcoming reboot of Looney Tunes where the traditionally silent Wile E. will have a much more frequent speaking part.

“Wabbit: A Looney Tunes Prod” is on the Cartoon Network at 5 p.m. every Thursday.

We caught up with Karliak for a Q&A about his development and career.

What kind of educational background do you have? I went to Dunmore high school, and while I was there we had a really great drama teacher. She inspired me to really pursue and go after my dream. I went to Catholic University for two years in their drama department, and then I transferred out to USC in L.A. and finished out in their school of theater.

How long have you lived in Los Angeles? Fourteen years.

When did you get into voice over? I graduated from USC and still hadn’t given voice over serious consideration, but a couple years after, a friend of mine asked me to help on a project. He knew that I did some character voices for fun, and it was animated and it went over really well. I thought, ‘You know, I like doing voices. It’s a lot of fun,’ but I had never thought of it as a career. So, I spoke to a professor that I’d had in college, and he pointed me in the direction of Bob Bergen, who is Porky Pig, and he offered a class. It was completely eye opening, and he’s been an inspiration and a mentor and a good friend ever since.

Do you find that creating voices for animated characters allows you to create in a way that is different than acting? I think the great freedom about doing voice over, especially animated work but voice over in general, is that it allows you a lot more freedom than you would get doing on camera work where people type cast you very quickly based upon how you look. I’m actually headed to a session right now. There’s this game called ‘Skylanders’ that I work on. It’s a kid’s video game, and I play one of the big villains who is this huge werewolf, Billy Idol-style rocker dude, which if you look at me, I’d never play anything like that in real life. In voice over, I get the opportunity, and it’s a lot of fun.

Was it Bergen that gave you a foothold into getting the Wile E. Coyote gig? No actually. Bob has offered me a lot of encouragement along the way, but getting Wile E. was a series of built relationships. The guy that directs the voice over sessions, his name is Charlie Adler. Charlie, in addition to doing directing, is a voice over actor himself of a lot of classic characters in animation, and he was a big hero of mine. Charlie actually directed me on my very first animation gig, which was this random anime interpretation of ‘Dante’s Inferno.’

That relationship developed and Warner Brothers was looking to do this new interpretation. I auditioned for it and Charlie really went to bat for me and really pulled for me. All along the way Bob has been super encouraging, and we’re going to this New York ComiCon this weekend, and I’ll be sitting right next to him. It’s crazy that in a decade of a journey that I’m in the same company as my mentor.

The original Wile E. rarely spoke, but when he did, he sounded like Frasier Crane, played by Kelsey Grammer. How are you going to handle the voice? When I was drawing my inspiration, obviously I went to some of those shorts that Mel Blank did where he was facing off against Bugs Bunny, but I also drew some inspiration from Disney villains like Scar and Jafar, just trying to build on that very esoteric, very pompous, really full-of-himself sort of guy.

What kind of responsibility is voicing Wile E. Coyote? Huge. On one hand it’s enormous. On the other hand, because he’s known for being silent, there’s a little bit less weight and a little more freedom to play than if I was Yosemite Sam or Elmer Fudd, where people would be able to knit pick every syllable.

Then again, Mel’s the godfather of this, so you don’t want to deviate too far from what he’s done. The blueprint is there.

What does this mean for your career? The way I continue to describe it is I’m on a roller coaster, and I’m just at the crest of that peak. The line has been long, and you’re waiting and waiting, and now the ride is really about to begin. It’s so exciting.

J.P. Karliak will handles the voice over duties of Wile E. Coyote in a new Looney Tunes production called “Wabbit.”
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_Karliak.jpg.optimal.jpgJ.P. Karliak will handles the voice over duties of Wile E. Coyote in a new Looney Tunes production called “Wabbit.” Submitted Photo

J.P. Karliak will handles the voice over duties of Wile E. Coyote in a new Looney Tunes production called “Wabbit.”
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_Karliak2.jpg.optimal.jpgJ.P. Karliak will handles the voice over duties of Wile E. Coyote in a new Looney Tunes production called “Wabbit.” Submitted Photo

By Matt Mattei

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Reach Matt Mattei at 570-991-6651 or [email protected]