The Surprise About Gilbert Gottfreid

Quiet? No one would believe me when I said that the voice of Zazu in Aladdin and the Aflac duck was QUIET in person. But at dinner in Hartford in the 1990’s it…

Jaybeau Jones

Published Feb 28, 2020 3:51 PM EST

NEW YORK, NY – FEBRUARY 28: (L-R) Jon Bon Jovi, Al Roker, Gilbert Gottfried and Will Forte perform on stage at 2015 Comedy Central’s “Night of Too Many Stars: America Comes Together For Autism Programs” on February 28, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images for Comedy Central)

Quiet?

No one would believe me when I said that the voice of Zazu in Aladdin and the Aflac duck was QUIET in person. But at dinner in Hartford in the 1990's it was just that with Gilbert Gottfried. With today being his birthday, I'd thought I'd share this funny story.

Back in the 90's we hired him to come on the air and also do some TV commercials for our station in Hartford. When met the night before at the restaurant, what we found was not the Gilbert we see on TV and in movies. We found someone who was a more soft spoken, smart, interesting gentleman, but still FUNNY. My boss pulled me aside and said "did we make a mistake? He's pretty low key."

But the next morning when the "on-air" light came on, we heard this voice:

Happy birthday Gilbert!!!

Here's Gilbert singing Footloose with Kenny Loggins on Gilbert's podcast:

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Jaybeau JonesWriter

Jaybeau Jones’s radio career has brought him from New York City’s #1 station Z-100 and America’s Top 40 to WROR! Currently, JayBeau’s distinctive voice can be heard not only on WROR but also on Sirius XM’s 70’s Channel and on Dunkin Donut’s in-store radio. Jaybeau’s other life is his writing. In 2012 he launched “Heroes Mentors and Friends” a book about well-being and positive thinking. Jaybeau lives in the area and has two grown children, Jordan and Matthew. Jaybeau loves spending time in nature and spending every second with his wife Heidi and the kids. Jaybeau likes to write about pop culture, music, and personal growth. Jaybeau also loves to write his own backyard in Boston.