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Woody, star of the animated features 'Toy Story' and 'Toy Story II' yesterday said that he would be unhappy to do any more voiceover work until a new solo star vehicle was in the offing. Woody, for many years better known as the voice behind the hugely successful 'Tom Hanks' character, made the shock announcement only an hour after Pixar revealed that it would not be going ahead with a $100M animated feature of 'Woody's Round-Up', the fifties TV series in which Woody first found fame.

The news of Woody's refusal to do any more voiceovers sent Neil Thraang, the chief puppeteer behind the marvellously entertaining 'Tom Hanks' animatronic, into a fury. 'Woody can't quit doing the 'Hanks' thing' exclaimed Thraang, whose expert manipulation of the Hanks puppet has won he and Woody two joint Oscars in recent years, 'we've spent decades building up the franchise, and turning an ordinary puppet into something closely resembling a human.'

Woody's agent denied the news was nothing more than a contractural lever, and assured fans that Woody would honour his commiment to voiceover two more 'Hanks' movies. The news will come, not only as a relief to 'Toms' many fans, but also to the thirty or so uncreditted puppeteers whose job it is to work the massively complex 'Hanks' puppet. Readers will recall the famous 'Tom eyebrow freeze' of 1988, when half his facial puppeteers went out on strike, resulting in the 'deadpan' look on Forrest Gump.

Wendell Hatchett, reporting for The Toad, Los Angeles

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Next Article Previous Article The Daily Toad: Proudly disseminating sensationalised rubbish since 1645. Issue 31,371 1st October 2006.
Woody threatens to halt 'Hanks' voice-overs.
Woody (right) with former co-star Buzz Lightyear.	Woody, star of the animated features 'Toy Story' and 'Toy Story II' yesterday said that he would be unhappy to do any more voiceover work until a new solo star vehicle was in the offing. Woody, for many years better known as the voice behind the hugely successful 'Tom Hanks' character, made the shock announcement only an hour after Pixar revealed that it would not be going ahead with a $100M animated feature of 'Woody's Round-Up', the fifties TV series in which Woody first found fame. The news of Woody's refusal to do any more voiceovers sent Neil Thraang, the chief puppeteer behind the marvellously entertaining 'Tom Hanks' animatronic, into a fury. 'Woody can't quit doing the 'Hanks' thing' exclaimed Thraang, whose expert manipulation of the Hanks puppet has won he and Woody two joint Oscars in recent years, 'we've spent decades building up the franchise, and turning an ordinary puppet into something closely resembling a human.' Woody's agent denied the news was nothing more than a contractural lever, and assured fans that Woody would honour his commiment to voiceover two more 'Hanks' movies. The news will come, not only as a relief to 'Toms' many fans, but also to the thirty or so uncreditted puppeteers whose job it is to work the massively complex 'Hanks' puppet. Readers will recall the famous 'Tom eyebrow freeze' of 1988, when half his facial puppeteers went out on strike, resulting in the 'deadpan' look on Forrest Gump. *Wendell Hatchett, reporting for The Toad,* Los Angeles**

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