Les Lye, the legendary Candian comic actor and best known to most of you reading this blog as Quellor in “The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin” passed away a couple of weeks ago at age 84. He was a very talented voice and on-screen actor and had more credits to his resume than can be mentioned here. I remember him most not only for Quellor but also for his role in the tween sketch-comedy show “You Can’t Do That On Television” which ran on Nickelodeon in the 80’s and early 90’s. “You Can’t Do That On Television” introduced the sliming segments that Nickelodeon became famous for in the 80’s, and all of us now in our 20’s who enjoyed that era of television owe Les Lye and the other cast and crew of YCDTOTV a debt of gratitude for the era they helped to usher in. I had always had a pipe dream, albeit a dwindling one in these last few years, of a complete cast reunion for the next big Teddy project, with both storybook and animated series actors involved, now that Mr. Lye is gone there is nobody to voice Quellor, (we have lost Tony Pope as well, the storybook Gimmick) and the absence of that classic voice will no doubt resonate with all of us when the next project rolls around. To very busy and talented men like Mr. Lye, Teddy Ruxpin may have just been another project to keep the bills paid and add to a very lengthy resume, but for us his association with our favorite show created him an instant fan base, and his loss is like losing a member of the family. Quellor was, with very little argument, the more ‘classic’ style of villain in the series, and he had a voice to match. From everybody in the Teddy Ruxpin fan community, our thoughts and prayers are with Mr. Lye’s family.
