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Bob McFadden was born in East Liverpool, Ohio. His first opportunity came while stationed in Puerto Rico with the Navy during World War II, where he sang and performed impersonations on a weekly talent show. After his Navy service, he worked in a Pittsburgh steel mill before entering show business as an opening act for performers such as the McGuire Sisters and Harry Belafonte at hotels and nightclubs.
Though not widely famous, McFadden was content to be part of the entertainment world. In 1950, he met his wife Jeanette in Boston while they worked together; he sang onstage as she and her twin sister performed synchronized swimming in a pool below.
The McFaddens relocated to Queens in the mid-1960s, where Bob became a sought-after voiceover artist for advertising and cartoons. He earned hundreds of thousands of dollars lending his voice to commercials for brands including Ban deodorant, Campbell's soup, Ford, Frankenberry cereal, Geritol, Mountain Dew, and Pepto-Bismol. On one occasion, he was paid $12,000 to create swishing sounds mimicking a jet airplane. His most iconic commercial role was as the parrot in the Wisk laundry detergent ads, delivering lines like "Ring around the collar" and "Nice shirt," a campaign that ran for 25 years. He also provided dog barking sounds for Crest toothpaste commercials.
In 1982, TV Guide described McFadden as "one of the elite of TV commercial voice-overs." His work included ethnic characters for comedy albums such as "The Yiddish Are Coming!" He was a regular voice for Terrytoons and best known for voicing "Pop the Cop" in Cool McCool (1966) for King Features Syndicate, as well as Milton the Monster (1965). After retiring to Delray Beach, Florida, he continued performing in supper clubs, doing impressions of Jack Benny and Ed Sullivan, and singing as Frankie Laine, Billy Eckstine, and The Ink Spots. In 1959, just before Fidel Castro's takeover of Cuba, McFadden was asked to perform a Spanish-language show despite not speaking the language. His brother-in-law wrote the script phonetically for him. A highlight of the act featured George 'Gabby' Hayes, Roy Rogers' sidekick, singing underwater in Spanish.
Bob McFadden passed away on January 7, 2000, from ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.
