Two Prominent Voice Actors “Billy Kametz” and “Jim White” Passed Away!

Voice actor Jim White, who played Lao G in the English dub of One Piece, passed away at the age of 73 on June 4 due to lung cancer. According to The Dallas Morning News, White was diagnosed with cancer on April 20 and was hospitalized shortly after.

For those who don’t know White by name, you may recognize his voice from some of your favorite anime series. The actor most notably voiced Igneel and the narrator of Fairy Tail starting with season two. He also appeared in series like Attack on Titan: The Final Season, One Piece, Black Clover, Star Blazers 2202, and more.

White worked as a morning news anchor on KEGL-FM in 1995 and KRLD-AM 1080 from 1995 to 2004. He and his wife traveled the world and produced the The Restaurant Show with Jim White radio program. He was nominated for a James Beard award in 1999 for his radio show.

Additionally, he received an Associated Press Broadcasters award in 1997 and was inducted into the Texas Radio Hall of Fame in 2010. He also had radio experience in Chicago and San Francisco.

Billy Kametz, a voice actor who worked on popular anime and games such as Attack on Titan and Fire Emblem: Three Houses, passed away last week after losing his battle to stage IV colon cancer, according to an obituary posted over the weekend, and he was only 35 years old.

He started in the entertainment industry as part of the Disney cruise line staff, before moving to California and playing Aladdin in Disneyland’s Musical Spectacular in 2016. He began voice acting around this same time, landing roles in series like the fantasy shounen anime Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable as Josuke Higashikata, and the 2D crossover fighter BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle as Naoto Kurogane.

Ever since, he appeared in many anime and games, from Boruto: Naruto Next Generations and Promare to Persona 5 Royal and 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim.

In lieu of flowers, fans who want to make memorial contributions to Billy Kametz can donate money in his name to the Colon Cancer Coalition. You can also donate to his GoFundMe, which will go toward funding his funeral.

“We at Anime Ukiyo would like to extend our heartfelt condolences to Billy Kametz and Jim White’s loved ones and their admirers. Our thoughts are with them in these difficult times. The voice acting world has truly lost pure and kind-hearted souls, but their talents will surely be cherished and immortalized by the community. May they rest in peace.”

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