NEW YORK (AP) — Peter Cullen, a prolific voice actor who enlivened scores of TV series, specials and movies, including Optimus Prime in the syndicated 1984 series “Transformers” and Eeyore in the Winnie the Pooh cartoon franchise, has died. He was 85.
His agent, Kevin Motley, said Cullen died Wednesday at his home in Los Angeles. “His family asks that you honor his remarkable legacy by serving your communities and leading others with compassion, integrity, and loyalty and always remember 'be strong enough to be gentle,'" said a family statement.
Cullen's career spanned from being an announcer at the groundbreaking late-1960s comedy and variety series “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour” to “The Smurfs” and multiple G.I. Joe iterations, but he struck a nerve as Optimus Prime.
While the original cartoon ran just a few years, it left an indelible mark on pop culture, with a toy line, spinoff cartoon series and comics produced over the next two decades. That culminated in the launch of a multibillion-dollar, live-action film franchise in 2007 by Michael Bay.
Before his audition, Cullen only knew that he would be reading for the part of a truck, though giving voice to a vehicle didn’t seem that crazy. “You’re always auditioning for something in animation that’s a little off of the norm,” Cullen told the AP in 2019.
When Cullen read about the heroic Autobot leader that turned into a red cabover semitrailer, he thought about his older brother, who had served as a U.S. Marine in the Vietnam War.
“He was my hero, and he certainly was the mainstay behind the character,” Cullen said. “I just did an impression of Larry, and he’s still alive in my mind today because every time I do Prime, there’s my brother Larry.”
Cullen’s authoritative baritone as Optimus Prime also appeared in 2009's “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” through “Dark of the Moon,” “Age of Extinction,” “The Last Knight,” “Bumblebee” and "Rise of the Beasts” in 2023.
His thoughtful, almost operatic lines would be quoted for decades by kids and adults alike: “I am Optimus Prime, and I send this message to any surviving Autobots taking refuge among the stars: We are here. We are waiting,” he said in the first movie. In another, he intoned: “Fate rarely calls upon us at a moment of our choosing.”
Other highlights from Cullen's prolific career include voicing Eeyore across various “Winnie-the-Pooh” projects, including Disney’s “The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh” TV series that aired from 1988-91, as well as voicing the villainous KARR opposite KITT in the 1980s NBC series “Knight Rider,” and lending his pipes to King Kong in the Jeff Bridges-led “King Kong” remake in 1976.
Cullen would attend conventions around the country to meet with fans from multiple generations, often getting teary. He said parents sometimes got more excited than their children meeting him.
“I expect that I will run into a father with his son, and the father will more than likely get choked up,” Cullen said before MegaCon Orlando in 2019. “And then I get choked up, and then the kid is saying ‘What are these two grown men getting choked up about?’”
Cullen is survived by his four children, Angus, Claire, Pilar and Clay.
FILE - Peter Cullen appears at the Comic-Con Fan Expo in Rosemont, Ill., on Aug. 18, 2024. (Photo by Rob Grabowski/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - Peter Cullen attends The Paley Honors: A Gala Tribute to Hasbro's Centennial in New York on Oct. 23, 2023. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
BUNIA, Congo (AP) — Parents and teachers at the epicenter of Congo’s fast-moving Ebola outbreak are urging authorities to delay the reopening of schools as infections continue to outpace efforts to contain the disease.
The Ebola outbreak centered in the eastern Ituri province is the fastest-growing in the disease’s history and remains out of control with 5,713 confirmed cases, including 2,744 deaths, according to Congolese health authorities.
Schools are set to reopen across Congo on Sept. 1, but some teachers and parents in Ituri are urging authorities to delay the return, saying the Ebola outbreak still poses too great a risk to children.
Children aged 4 and below have the highest case-fatality rate of any age group in the outbreak, at 60%, according to available health data.
“We want to resume classes, but not at the cost of our lives,” Fazila Rebecca, a teacher in Ituri’s capital of Bunia, told The Associated Press. “As long as the disease is circulating and protective measures remain inadequate, returning to the classroom means taking a risk we cannot ignore.”
The local Ituri teachers union met Tuesday in Bunia, urging authorities to assess the outbreak before deciding whether to reopen schools.
“We are not opposed to the resumption of classes, but we believe that the health and safety of teachers and students must be a priority,” said Budju Lobo Isaac, a teachers’ union representative.
Authorities in Ituri did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said Thursday that an additional $1.1 billion is urgently needed to fight the outbreak, with the United Nation's $2.13 billion response plan only 48% funded — largely because of a major contribution from the United States.
Guterres said international attention and resources are still lagging behind the reality on the ground, warning that “without additional funding, vital operations will run out of money just when they need to expand.”
The outbreak in eastern Congo is spreading under extremely difficult conditions, fueled by insecurity, displacement, a health workers’ strike and intense population movements. The World Health Organization has said it remains out of control and is on track to surpass the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak, the deadliest on record, which killed more than 11,000 people.
Although the current outbreak was declared in mid-May, officials believe it had been spreading since February. It has spread from three health zones to nearly 60, with most cases and deaths occurring outside the network of monitored contacts and within communities.
A key challenge in fighting the outbreak is that the rare Bundibugyo virus that is causing it has no approved vaccines or treatments, although clinical trials of potential vaccines and treatments have begun in the region.
Efforts to bring the outbreak under control — from limited public gatherings to social distancing and airport closures — have disrupted life in the six affected provinces, particularly Ituri, which has been ravaged by rebel violence.
The government has introduced measures, including installing health and sanitary equipment at some locations, but advocacy groups say more needs to be done to build trust within the community.
“Beyond the practical challenges, community acceptance remains critical,” said Greg Ramm, director for Save the Children in Congo. “The immediate priority is to ensure that every school, teacher and family has the information and resources they need to make the start of the school year as safe as possible for children.”
Espérance Dz’venga was shopping for school supplies Wednesday at Bunia’s central market. She said she wants her children in school, but worries about their safety.
“As a parent, I want to see my children in school, but — like many other parents — what I want most is for them to come home healthy,” she said. “We are afraid that our children might be exposed at school and then bring the illness home.”
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Adetayo reported from London. AP writer Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.
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A parent who came for his child's school resumption washes his hands outside a school in Ituri province, eastern Congo, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Constant Same Bagalwa)
A view of a school in Ituri province, eastern Congo, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Constant Same Bagalwa)
A parent who came for her child's school resumption stands outside the school in Ituri province, eastern Congo, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Constant Same Bagalwa)
Parents who came for their children's school resumption sit inside an office of a school in Ituri province, eastern Congo, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Constant Same Bagalwa)
