One reason anime is able to affect us so deeply is the quality of the voice actors, and without the outstanding performances of names like Megumi Hayashibara (Rei Ayanami), Kikuko Inoue (Belldandy, Kazami from Please Teacher), and Toru Furuya (pretty much every major male role in the 80s), the characters and stories wouldn’t be so enjoyable. Back in 2007 attendees of Anime Expo were treated to a visit by the voice actresses of the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Aya Hirano, Chihara Minori and Yuko Goto. One of the most embarrassing moments came with the M.C. asked the girls how they came to be professional voice actors, which in the case of the Japanese stars involved attending special “talent” schools for years and giving up much to realize their dream of going pro. When the English voice actors were asked the same question, the answers were basically, “I saw an ad in the newspaper, went down for an interview and got the job that day.” Today (May 30) is the birthday of one of our favorite voice actresses here at J-List, the cute tsundere queen Rie Kugimiya, and we’d like to wish her a happy one. If you own one of our Rie Kugimiya tribute T-shirts, wear it today!
Happy Tsundere Day, everyone! Today is Rie Kugiyama’s birthday.
