Voice actor opens up about a boy named “Timmy”
Introduction by Puzzle Peace columnist, Linda Lemke Heinz
I’m the mother of a 17-year-old who has autism, regressive autism in fact. Christopher had language and seemed like any regular toddler until one day he started speaking less and less and eventually lost all of the vocabulary he had learned. Soon he started screaming instead of using his words and our means of communication with him were seemingly lost. I’m a music teacher and quickly noticed that music calmed him. I would sing where we were going every day, which lessened his anxiety about leaving the house or visiting new places. I soon found that he had better understanding and comprehension of information that I sung to him than he did of words only spoken. As he got a little older, he became fixated with Disney Pixar films and would often repeat lines he heard from them. I began to wonder if what I had originally perceived as just random echoes or “scripting” from his favorite movies were actually his way of communicating. He still does this, and I’m still trying to break the code. Some lines he says just to make me laugh, but others I believe have other meanings. The documentary, “Life, Animated”, is about a young boy with regressive autism who also loved Disney films. His parents discovered the key that unlocked the door to his world through lines and stories from those movies and speaking to him in character voices. The following article was written by Jim Cummings, who voiced Disney characters like Winnie the Pooh and Darkwing Duck, and how his encounter with a young autistic boy he called “Timmy”, changed both of their lives. Kids on the severe end of the autism spectrum will find other ways to communicate their wants, needs, likes, and dislikes. We just have to be open to interpreting non-verbal communication, body language, as well as “scripting”, as their form of communicating. We can’t expect them to fit into our world. We must find ways to enter theirs. Sometimes, it’s Disney.
With over 500 television and movie credits, I deeply appreciate that my work has been enjoyed by fans of all ages all over the world, especially children. I’ve been blessed to have given voice to such beloved characters such as Darkwing Duck, Taz, Tigger, Dr. Robotnik and of course Winnie The Pooh. But what happens beyond the creative experience? A lot. There’s one story in particular that tells exactly how one little boy changed my life, when in fact he thought that I had changed his.
It was several years ago that I first realized the impact that my work had on young people with autism. It must’ve been 2002 or 2003 and I was very humbled. My agent asked me if I could accept a phone call on Saturday from a father whose son had clearly demonstrated a solid focus on my voice whenever he heard it in any number of character portrayals in cartoons on Disney Afternoon and on Saturdays. He also recognized me as being the guy on the Wheaties commercial, the Havoline motor oil commercial and other ads where my voice was heard on TV.
The father requested a phone call from me to the young boy, who was 11 years old at the time. We’ll call him “Timmy.” His father relayed to me his experience of sitting next to his son while watching the Disney Afternoon. Every now and then, a Wheaties commercial would come on, or motor oil spot. Upon hearing the voice over, the boy would whisper my name! He obviously had been reading the credits in various cartoons and picked up on the fact that the same man was doing TV commercials, radio spots and the cartoons that he enjoyed. His ear was so discerning that he recognized it was me, no matter the accent or context. This is pretty amazing, right?
His father put him on the phone, whereupon he immediately jumped in and said: “Hello, nice to talk with you Jim. I now think that you should do the voice of Bonkers D. Bobcat, the first cartoon detective in Hollywood ever.” Of course, I complied and said a few lines in the Bonkers character voice. He then said: “Good, now do his human counterpart named Lucky.” Of course, I did. He then said, “Okay, now do the Norwegian organ grinder who appeared in the first episode of The Mask only.”
I was amazed by this young boy. He then proceeded for the next 45 minutes to walk me through characters and episodes that I could scarcely remember, but he had an encyclopedic knowledge of every single one! My older daughters were there, and they were getting quite a kick out of it. They watched dad go through his paces on a Saturday morning. As time went on, I simply said: “Well buddy this is great talking with you, but I wonder if I could speak with your dad again?”
His father got on the phone and started apologizing saying; “Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry we were not expecting this. His mother and I, we have been videotaping this for his therapist, and this is just beyond our wildest imagination. He’s not like this believe me!”
He then said; “Oh wait his mother has to talk to you.” The dear woman got on the phone in complete tears. “Oh my God! I can’t believe this. I’m sorry. I’m just overwhelmed at the moment. Tim is not like this. He never does this! This is so unbelievable.” I told her not to worry about it. I thought that she was referring to the time spent on the phone, or how chatty and persistent the little guy had been.
She then said to me. “No that’s not what I mean. What I’m saying is that Timmy does not speak!!” I was flabbergasted. I said: “What do you mean he doesn’t speak? He’s extremely eloquent. He’s quite verbose. He’s amazing.” Through the tears she told me that she has not heard his voice since his third birthday. Timmy was eleven.
Timmy is now in his mid-twenties and living on his own. He even wrote and appeared in his own documentary, which was up for an Academy award for best short film documentary several years ago. So that was the first time that I realized the true impact that my work had on young people with autism.
Since then, I’ve even had an aspiring animator & voiceover artist and her mother spend the weekend with me and my two girls at our home in Southern California. It was for a class project and I’m happy to say that she got an A+. Of course, since then I’ve done a number of animation conventions where hundreds of young people and their parents have expressed a deep appreciation for the characters that I play, and for the many ways in which they have gained comfort and hope.
Autism has been described to me as catching a glimpse of the world through a keyhole, while most folks see the world through a wide-open doorway. I often find myself marveling at these young people’s ability to see so much of this world in unique and surprising ways. Clearly, we still have much to learn.
I know that I am blessed. Over the years I have spoken at various colleges, classrooms and special education facilities. I am inspired by the enthusiasm and joy that these beautiful people have expressed to me. They are so grateful to me, yet I feel that I’m the one who is receiving the greater gift. #IamJimCummings #AModernDayDad with a heart and a voice.
Please share your amazing experiences with autistic and special needs children. We hope to collect many stories each month. I’d love to read them on Jim Cummings Twitter or Facebook page. We’d love to hear from you. https://twitter.com/Jimcummingsacme
