‘Courage the Cowardly Dog’ voice actor Thea White passes away

Thea White, who voiced Muriel on the animated series "Courage the Cowardly Dog", has passed away at the age of 81. Her brother John Zitzner announced the sad news on Facebook, writing in another post that White died after battling liver cancer, which she was diagnosed with months ago. He said she underwent two surgeries, before passing away peacefully on the morning of July 30 at Cleveland Clinic in Ohio.

White got her start in theatre, but was best known for voicing Muriel, the elderly woman who owned the fearful pink dog along with her grumpy husband in the Cartoon Network animated series. She voiced the character from 1999 to 2002, and reprised the role in various shorts and games. She also voiced Aunt Margaret in the 2011 movie "Scooby-Doo! Legend of the Phantosaur". Zitzner also said in his Facebook post that White was looking forward to seeing the upcoming film "Straight Outta Nowhere: Scooby-Doo! Meets Courage the Cowardly Dog", which features her as Muriel once again.

Born Thea Ruth Zitzner on June 16, 1940, in Newark, N J, she studied acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and at the American Theatre Wing in New York. She got her start as Marlene Dietrich's personal assistant, a job she landed via her future husband Andy White, who played the drums for Dietrich's concert act. After their marriage, White became a librarian, but later decided to audition for "Courage the Cowardly Dog".