Gilbert Auchinleck, better known as Doc Harris, the man whose narration on the English version of Dragon Ball Z has reached iconic meme status over the decades, has died at age 76. News of his passing was first posted by Broadcast Dialogue, which reported Harris died on Saturday, October 5, following “minor surgery” in September.
Harris worked in Canadian radio as far back as the ‘60s, but today most people likely know him for his work in animated series, having played Grogar in My Little Pony, Golem in Monster Rancher, and perhaps most famously, serving as the narrator in Dragon Ball Z. Even if you’ve never watched the iconic anime, you’ve probably heard Harris’ work on the show because the phrase “find out on the next episode of Dragon Ball Z” or some variation has become a long-running joke on the internet.
Harris narrated the show for over 223 episodes between 1996 and 2003, though that role eventually went to Kyle Hebert, who voices Gohan in the anime. Hebert’s take on the narrator is near-identical to Harris’ booming, guttural delivery, so even if he’s been gone from the franchise for 20 years, his impact can still be felt in more recent dubs of the series. Sadly, Jōji Yanami, the narrator for the Japanese version of the series up until his retirement in 2015, passed away in 2021.
Harris isn’t the only loss the Dragon Ball franchise has had to endure in 2024, as series creator Akira Toriyama passed away in March. His final posthumous works included the Sand Land RPG that launched in April, and the upcoming anime Dragon Ball Daima. With the Dragon Ball franchise still a cultural mainstay to this day, it’s easy to forget that it’s approaching its 40th year, until we get news like this. Time marches on.
