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Welcome! Voiceover Island.com is your source for outstanding voiceovers delivered same-day via the web for radio and TV commercials, corporate and educational videos, PowerPoint presentations, podcasts, audiobooks, animation and more. Recent
projects have included recording Philadelphia matchmaker Steve Ward
for his VH1 reality show Tough Love, radio spots for advertisers
in the New York City area, plus an audiobook production of Robert
Louis Stevenson's classic story, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,
performed by yours truly Charles ("Chuck") McKibben for
AudioRealms.com. Ask me everything you want to know about starting your own successful voiceover career by phoning... (215) 677-2295 or by e-mailing phillyvo@comcast.net ...but first, please read more about how and why my VO training is the affordable, intelligent choice! I'm
Chuck McKibben, and I've been fascinated by the world of voiceovers
ever since I was a boy. I began my career as a radio announcer in
1963, in my teens; by 1972, I was employed by Hollywood's
legendary "Man of 1,000 Voices," Mel Blanc, to be
his personal recording engineer and audio producer. This was followed by 30 years in New York as the Broadcast Production Director for two major advertising agencies, and also as a successful freelance voiceover artist. I introduced "My First SONY" to the world as that product line's spokesman in 'the '80's (you can view my first spot for SONY on YouTube); I was the senior promo voice for Time Warner Cable of New York City through the '90's; and I was the signature voice of New York's top Lexus dealership, Lexus of Smithtown, for a remarkable run of 15 years, among many credits. I've won numerous broadcast production awards, but more importantly, I've received the friendship, trust and respect of my students. Being thought of as their mentor has become the greatest satisfaction in my life. Recently, I got this email request from a prospective student, very similar to hundreds before. It said: "I am seriously interested in starting a voiceover career, and was researching classes on-line when I found your website. I took a one-day class at a local college, and they said my voice was really good, but the cost of their course seemed very high. That's why I'm looking around. Could you please send me more information about your lessons, so that I can compare and decide who to study with? Also, would you tell me honestly if I don't have what it takes to be in voiceovers?" Here's how I answered that request. I'm hoping it will provide answers to your questions, as well: "Thanks
for your inquiry. Did you by any chance just attend a local 'Introduction
to Voiceovers' presentation from a company that charges about $3,000
for their 'course'? Naturally, they require you to put that whole
amount on your credit card right up-front. Their
so-called 'casting director' probably raved about your great
natural talent, so you're tempted to 'go for it,' in spite of the
huge price tag.
They may seem to be 'endorsed' or approved by a college or
university, because that's where they hold their presentations,
but please know the truth: all they have done is rent a room.
They're not actually connected with any real educational institution
in any way. And you most certainly do not have
to pay anything like $3,000 to train for a career in voiceovers.
You
get completely customized, one-on-one lessons in my world-class
studio by appointment (you set the appointments to fit your schedule).
Come once a week, every other week, or even just once a month, as
you choose. There is no 'one size fits all' cirriculum, because
that doesn't work in voiceovers. You study with me at your pace
until you decide you are ready to end your training, and begin competing
successfully in the voiceover industry. Simple as that. I've helped get many VO careers established through the years, by providing COMPREHENSIVE CAREER TRAINING that includes ALL the skills that are now considered essential to becoming a WORKING VOICE ARTIST. In other words, I don't just teach my students how to read scripts; I teach them how to SUCCEED IN THE VOICEOVER BUSINESS. Let's say you wanted to be the next big singing star. You'd have to know much more than just how to sing. You'd have to learn about the entire recording business...how to get signed by a label, work with agents and managers, get promoted, create albums, get your songs on the radio, go on tours and all the rest. Fortunately, it's not nearly so hard to become a well-trained voiceover artist, but you absolutely WILL want to learn all the things that I teach, including: How to record and edit your own digital voice tracks (even if you're technically challenged!); How to create an inexpensive yet great-sounding home studio; How to market your voice to the world via the internet; plus... How to succeed in traditional auditions with agents and casting directors (I have decades of insight as a producer to share with you!) As my student, you'll RECORD EVERY LESSON in a BROADCAST-QUALITY STUDIO, BUILDING YOUR DEMO IN CLASS! Your best readings are never wasted as "practice." This is the FAST TRACK to producing your completed samples, with no need for a separate, extra-fee demo session at the end of a number of lessons. I always "bank" your in-class readings for later inclusion on your demo...and you'll take home a CD of your work from each lesson, or an mp3 if you prefer. My rates are about HALF of what voiceover teachers charge in New York. This is PRIVATE, ONE-ON-ONE TRAINING that delivers the RESULTS you want in a hurry, yet is AFFORDABLY PRICED. I can't see any reason why voiceover lessons should be priced any higher than music lessons...and I especially can't see why you should pay anyone thousands of dollars in advance for your training! With me, there is NO UP-FRONT FINANCIAL COMMITMENT...no minimum number of required lessons. Simply pay as you go, as you would with a piano or singing teacher. TAKE CLASSES AROUND YOUR SCHEDULE...days, evenings or weekends, every week, every other week, etc. I'm flexible, and will work with you to make lessons fit your budget and your lifestyle. Call me at (215) 677-2295, or e-mail phillyvo@comcast.net for your FREE, no-obligation consultation via phone...and if you don't get a same-day response from me when you leave a message, PLEASE CALL AGAIN! (Please DO NOT send inquiries to my former "Optonline" address in New York, which is no longer in use.) I'm certain you have lots of questions, and I look forward to speaking with you. (If I'm not available, please leave a message and I'll get back to you.) Also, check this site frequently for new information as it becomes available. Thanks! SOME PERSONAL NOTES: WALTER CRONKITE: A PERSONAL MEMORY. With the passing of the greatest news anchorman of the 20th century, I am reminded of the extraordinarily gracious way in which he greeted me and a group of voiceover students from the Mel Blanc School of Voice way back in 1972. The students and I, having ended classes sometime after 11 on a Tuesday night, were having a late snack at a Denny's on Wilshire Boulevard in the Beverly Hills area when two of the world's most recognizable personalities...Walter Cronkite and Lorne Greene, of "Bonanza" fame...walked in, accompanied by their wives. It's hard to describe how surrealistic it is to see "the most trusted man in America" and "Pa Cartwright" together, walking through the door of a hamburger joint, even in a town where celebrity sightings are routine. It was as if the TV had suddenly ceased being just a box with flat pictures on it, and had sprung into living, breathing three-dimensional reality...at Denny's, of all places. (Well, even very famous people go to fast-food restaurants when circumstances dictate.) Apparently, Mr. Cronkite was in LA covering 1972's presidential campaign events, and I'm sure that all he and friend Lorne Greene wanted to do was get a bite to eat after a long work day. My four or five voiceover students (I was the Mel Blanc School's instructor on the subject of demo tape production) were mildly interested in meeting Mr. Greene, and we sat there trying to guess what he had in common with Mr. Cronkite (answer: Greene had been a popular newscaster in Canada before hitting it big as an actor). However, Walter Cronkite was clearly the bigger draw for them. They kept debating, "Should we just go up and tell him how much we admire him? Do you think he'd be annoyed? When are we ever going to have this chance to express our admiration to him personally again?" Nobody mentioned Greene's feelings. ("He's an actor; they're used to fans bugging them," one said.) But Walter Cronkite was a broadcasting icon, a man of enormous reputation, the man who had been our trusted guide through the moon landing and President Kennedy's death. More people trusted what Cronkite had to say about the Vietnam war than what President Johnson or Richard Nixon had to say. Cronkite was that important. So the decision was made: we're going to say "hello," and Chuck will be our spokesman for the group. Approaching their booth, I began by saying, "Mr. Cronkite, Mr. Greene, please forgive us, but we simply had to meet you. My name is Chuck McKibben, and I work for the cartoon voice man, Mel Blanc. These nice people with me are all students of the Mel Blanc School of Commercials and Voice, and we simply couldn't resist this opportunity to express our admiration in person." I thought he would just say "thank you," and that we would then walk back to our table. Instead, Walter Cronkite stood up, smiled broadly, introduced himself (as if we didn't know who he was) and shook hands with every one in the group. He introduced his wife and the Greenes, and began to ask all about Mel's school. Lorne Greene, on the other hand, stayed seated, muttered "hello," and looked peeved at the whole affair, not saying another word (I certainly couldn't blame him; we knew we were being pests). Ever the inquisitive news reporter, Cronkite seemed genuinely interested in learning all he could about Mel and his school. We must have spoken for ten minutes, while Cronkite's meal got cold. The conversation became so extended, thanks to his enthusiastic questioning, that I started to wonder if I should keep standing there or pull up a chair so that he could sit back down and eat. Watching Walter Cronkite on CBS, you just knew that "Uncle Walter" would prove to be a wonderfully friendly, kind and gentle man if you ever had a chance to meet him. And that's the way it was. And now, my regular message about "keeping it green" in PA. Much as I want to see business do incredibly well and bounce back to radiant health in 2009, it is important not to neglect our surviving natural areas, We're all left impoverished when they're taken away. Asphalt parking lots aren't things of beauty, and they don't produce clean, fresh air. My most depressing experience on Long Island, my home for decades, was watching as they "paved paradise and put up a parking lot" (to quote the song Big Yellow Taxi), clear-cutting 10,000-year-old forests for industrial parks and strip malls. It was painful to see the trees go, one last surviving parcel of land at a time. Only when it was basically too late did Long Island's civic leaders begin to demonstrate any environmental awareness. By the time they thought of saving any open space, it was almost all gone. Even a pro-business newspaper on the Island stated that development had gone unchecked for too long. Aside from all the environmental arguments, including the preservation of the world's richest topsoil, that took millions of years to be created and will never be replaced in millions of years to come, there is a business reason to preserve natural areas. If you want to attract the best and brightest employees and businesses to a town, quality of life matters. For this reason, the new Parks Commissioner of Philadelphia has just announced that they intend to add 500 acres to Philly's already great park system. Bravo, Philadelphia! Way to go. For an excellent, eye-opening discussion of what must be done NOW to keep our world (and specifically, Pennsylvania) livable, please visit www.davidhanauer.com/buckscounty/sprawl. I hope you're enjoying a very pleasant, and very green, Summer! Chuck McKibben, July 2009 A LITTLE MORE ABOUT YOUR INSTRUCTOR: You'll find interesting recollections from the Mel Blanc era in Chuck’s background. Following his sojourn in the movie capitol, he became the Broadcast Production Director of two New York ad agencies, writing, producing and directing hundreds of commercials while building his own successful voiceover career. He added private voiceover coaching to his activities in the mid-'80's; years later, he again established new standards in the quality of voiceover training in the "Big Apple" as Dean of the New York Voiceover Academy. Today, Chuck McKibben is a respected national authority on the subject of voiceovers; for example, The Los Angeles Times featured him in an interview on July 26, 2006. Entertainment reporter Deborah Netburn asked him for tips on voiceover career preparation while noting his "perfect, unaccented diction." (Click the LA Times link above to read the article.) Chuck's own long, successful run as a voice artist includes work for "blue chip" advertisers like SONY, RCA, Michelin, Crain’s New York Business, the NY Metro Energy Council, Kirlin Securities, ExecutiveHealth Exams and New York's WLNY-TV; years of imaging and promos for Time Warner Cable of NY; plus countless spots for retailers and automotive clients. His track record in the luxury-car market is highlighted by a remarkable 15 years as the spokesman for New York's premiere Lexus dealership. He's also been the spokesperson for both the Cadillac and Honda dealer groups of the New York region. Please note the link below to Voice123, the biggest voice talent resource. To see just how many job leads are being offered on the web, and what they pay, click on the Voice 123 icon below, and get a free basic membership. Also, as an instructor officially recognized by Voice 123, Chuck McKibben can arrange a FREE Premium Trial Membership for his students. Please ask for details. Producers can use Voice 123 to build a great cast, while letting Voiceover Island handle all the production. Also, you can check out many of Chuck's talented proteges who have demos on the site by typing-in "Chuck McKibben" as a search in the Voice123 talent database (this will locate those who have listed him as their instructor). New voice talents looking for the widest possible exposure are encouraged to click the Voice 123 logo below, as well. Website created by Theresa Landolfi. Entire contents, including the names "Voiceover Island," "Philadelphia Voiceover Arts" and variations including "Philly VO Arts" are Copyrighted © 2006, 2008 by Charles McKibben. All Rights Reserved. <a href="http://voice123.com/">I Am a Voice123.com Voiceover</a> <br><a href="http://www.maploco.com/view.php?id=2309279"><img border=0 src="http://www.maploco.com/vmap/2309279.png" alt="Visitor Map"></a><br><a href="http://www.maploco.com/">Create your own visitor map!</a><br>
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