Junius Matthews

Junius Conyers Matthews (June 12, 1890 – January 18, 1978) was an American actor.

Career

He was a private in World War I before becoming an actor, and determined to become a popular radio and television actor, his career began on stage where he got his first role in a silent film called The Silent Witness (1917). He later played the role of the Tin Woodsman on a radio version of The Wizard of Oz. His distinctive voice can be frequently heard in supporting roles in radio, particularly westerns where he was often cast as an old codger, miner, or master of the cook wagon. He played a recurring role in the short-lived series "Luke Slaughter of Tombstone" as Slaughter's sidekick, Wichita.

Winnie the Pooh

It was not until the last ten years of his life that Matthews became widely known for his role as Rabbit in the Winnie the Pooh movies produced by the Disney studio from 1966 to 1977, including the featurettes Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966), Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (1968), and Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too! (1974) as well as the feature-length compilation film The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977). He played other roles for Disney, most notably the owl, Archimedes, in Disney's The Sword in the Stone (1963).

Death

Matthews died in 1978 from natural causes at age 87 and was buried in Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery.

Filmography

The Silent Witness (1917)
Seeds of Freedom (1943)
Black Angel (1946)
Without Reservations (uncredited) (1946)
Chicken Every Sunday (uncredited) (1949)
My Wife's Best Friend (uncredited) (1952)
The Lineup (1958)
The Sword in the Stone (1963) - Archimedes the Owl (voice)
Gumby (Dragon Witch, Treasure for Henry and Who's What) (1964) - Rodgy (voice)
Mary Poppins (1964) - Fox (voice)
Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966) - Rabbit (voice)
Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (1968) - Rabbit (voice)
Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too! (1974) - Rabbit (voice)
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977) - Rabbit (voice)