Noriko Ohara, voice of Doraemon’s Nobita, dies at the age of 88

Tokyo, July 23 (Jiji Press) – Japanese voice actress Noriko Ohara, best known as the voice of Nobita Nobi in the popular anime series “Doraemon,” died on July 12. She was 88 years old.

Ohara, whose real name was Noriko Tobe, was being treated for an illness, according to her agency.

Ohara, a Tokyo native, spent 26 years starting in 1979 as the voice actress for Nobita, the lazy but optimistic boy cared for by the earless robot cat Doraemon, a role that made her known to a wide range of generations.

Ohara also played numerous other characters in other anime works, including energetic boys such as Peter, a goatherd in Heidi: Girl of the Alps, and Conan in Future Boy Conan, as well as sensual women such as Doronjo, the villain in Yatterman, and Oyuki in Urusei Yatsura.

In addition, Ohara voiced American actress Shirley MacLaine and French actress Catherine Deneuve in Japanese-dubbed films.

(Copyright: The Jiji Press, Ltd.)