Actor Kirk Baily, who was sometimes credited under the stage name Bo Williams, has passed away.
As reported by Deadline, Baily died at age 59, six months after he was diagnosed with lung cancer. Baily played the role of Kevin "Ug" Lee in Nickelodeon's cult-classic live-action comedy series, Salute Your Shorts. Baily also enjoyed a prolific career as a voice actor, where he was part of the cast of many of the most popular animated series, films and English anime dubs of the last 40 years.
While Salute Your Shorts only ran for two seasons on Nickelodeon, the series has had an outsized impact on the generation of kids who grew up watching it. The series has been referenced in American Dad, has been recognized by the Paley Center of Media as being a work of "historical significance," and is the subject of an upcoming documentary. Baily participated in the cast reunions for the show that were held in 2015 and 2019. Millenials may always remember Baily for his role as Camp Anawanna's put-upon counselor, but he also appeared in a number of other popular TV series throughout the 90s and 2000s, including guest spots on NYPD Blue, Star Trek: Voyager and Felicity.
Anime fans may be more familiar with Baily's voice acting work. Under the name Bo Williams, he lent his voice to many of the 1990s' biggest English dubs, including Trigun, where he voiced Vash the Stampede's murderous brother, Millions Knives, and Cowboy Bebop, where he played the role of Shin, a crime syndicate enforcer who played a key role in the events leading up to that series' finale. He also starred in the English dub of the classic shojo anime Fushigi Yugi, and was part of the cast in the English dubs for multiple entries in the Gundam franchise, including the critically acclaimed Mobile Suit Gundam: 08th MS Team. Baily's last anime credit was in Studio Ghibli's 2011 film From Up on Poppy Hill.
Baily's voice work extended beyond the world of anime as well. His voice was featured in numerous video games, including the original entry in the Xenosaga franchise and in the Star Trek: Voyager video game, Elite Force. Baily also contributed to a number of American animated films, and is credited as part of the cast in movies such as Big Hero 6, Hotel Transylvania and Disney's smash hit Frozen. He also provided the voice of the Autobot Brawn in the 2018 live-action movie Bumblebee. His last credited role is in 2021's Night of the Animated Dead, an animated zombie film that was written by genre pioneer George Romero.
Source: Deadline
