by James Coulter
Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? SpongeBob SquarePants! And who voices that happy-go-lucky sponge? Tom Kenny. The famous cartoon sponge’s voice actor made a special guest appearance at this year’s Central Florida Comic Con (CFCC), hosted last weekend at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland.
Kenny has voiced many other cartoon characters. Aside from SpongeBob, his favorite performance was as Simon, a character from Adventure Time who was cursed to become the series’ villain Ice King.
“He started as this standard burlesque-kind of villain; and then through Fionna and Cake, which dropped this past year, they made him a much more intense, internally sad character,” Kenny said. “So, that is something a little different to take him in a different direction.”
CFCC 2024 was the first time in a long time Kenny visited Florida. He loved the convention, especially since its size and crowd were just right for the famous voice actor.
“I am having a great time,” he said. “This is the perfect-sized con for me. The really huge ones? They get a little bit too crazy. They get way too out of hand. They’re kind of sprawling. And so, I like a nice, solid, medium-to-large con like this that is not gigantic.”
Kenny was one of the many celebrities who appeared at CFCC 2024 in Lakeland. The annual fan convention is hosted by Ben Penrod, a local comic book fan who has experience running similar conventions since 2011.
This year’s convention featured hundreds of vendors selling merchandise related to comic books, video games, movies, and other geek-related media. It also hosted various panels and a cosplay costume contest. Attendees were encouraged to dress as their favorite characters from their favorite media.
Also attending this year’s convention were several dozen celebrities including Tom Kenny. Other notable guests included Casper Van Dien, an actor from movies like Starship Troopers, and A.J. Francise, otherwise known as the wrestler Top Dolla.
Two other notable voice actors included Dan Green and Eric Stuart, who voiced the main characters Yami Yugi and Seto Kaiba from the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime. Though both actors have performed other roles in other media, their roles in Yu-Gi-Oh! prove to be their most beloved.
“I like Kaiba because of the dimensions of his character,” Stuart said. “It is an honor that people actually enjoyed my work and connected with those characters. I have been doing this for a very long time. Most of the time, we work in a booth by ourselves. So, it is really nice to see fans who enjoy our work.”
“The characters I owe the most to are Yami and Yugi because if I had not done that show [Yu-Gi-Oh!], I would not have met the woman who became my wife and we wouldn’t have the kids that we have today,” Green said. “I am very fortunate to have participated in things that many people have loved as much as they do. And I couldn’t be more stunned that something [that was made] 20 years ago is still meaningful to people today.”
Stuart and Green enjoyed being able to attend CFCC 2024. Both of them appreciated being able to meet with adoring fans of their work and being able to participate in such a well-organized event.
“I learned a little bit about Lakeland,” Stuart said. “I didn’t realize there was a fun town like this. You guys are a real hidden little gem.”
“I am having a wonderful time,” Green said. “The people are wonderful. Everybody is friendly. So, it is wonderful getting to know the people here.”
Anyone who grew up watching Warner Bos. animated series like Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs, and Pinky and the Brain would have been excited to meet two other guests: Tom Ruegger, the shows’ creator, and Paul Rugg, who worked as a writer and voice actor on those shows, as well as the creator Freakazoid and the voice actor of its titular character.
When asked which he preferred, being a voice actor or a creator, Rugg replied that the answer was two-fold, as each job had its own unique perks.
“To get the job done quickly, it is being a voice actor,” he said. “You can just go in, you can wear your pajamas, and then you’re done. But what’s more satisfying is creating the show, working on all your lines, and coming up with all the ideas. So that is what I would say [is best].”
And when asked how he felt about being a part of the childhood of many millennials, he replied that he appreciated, “[being] beloved by so many fans. It makes me so very happy. A lot of people come up and say ‘I’m introducing my kid to this weirdness.’ So it is awesome.”
Ruegger, meanwhile, appreciated being able to attend the convention. He would have loved it even more if it were three days rather than just two.
“It has been a great experience,” he said. “I have been here for both days. The crowd is a beautiful group of people, and they come from all over Florida. So we had a great time.”
Currently, Rugger has worked on a documentary about the art director of the 1973 horror film, The Exorcist. As for being a creator of many popular animated television shows in the 1990s, he appreciated how his work was appreciated even to this day.
“I am very gratified that the shows have meant a great deal to a great number of people, and that the shows continue to reverberate in their memories and their lives,” he said. “It is a truly positive experience to meet with them and to find that these shows have had a really nice impact on their lives.”
