JoBe Cerny, Actor and Director Behind Pillsbury Doughboy Voice, Dies at 78

A familiar commercial voice

Cerny voiced the Pillsbury Doughboy, the cheerful Poppin’ Fresh character who giggled when poked in the belly. He took over the role after Paul Frees and Jeff Bergman, continuing until about 2020.

He also appeared without speaking as the Cheer detergent “Cheer Man” and played bugs in Raid advertisements. In a 2007 interview, Cerny recalled that one executive wanted the Doughboy to stop talking, but the character later had more lines.

Studio and audio projects

For more than three decades, Cerny owned and ran Cerny/American Creative Recording Studio in Chicago’s River North neighborhood. The company produced thousands of projects, including commercials, feature productions and audiobooks.

Among his major projects was The Word of Promise, a 98-hour dramatized audio version of the New King James Version of the Bible. More than 500 actors took part, including Jim Caviezel, Marisa Tomei, Richard Dreyfuss and Gary Sinise. Cerny also adapted episodes of The Twilight Zone for radio and wrote new installments for a podcast series.

A career across performance

Born Dec. 5, 1947, in Cicero, Illinois, Cerny graduated from Morton East High School in 1966. He studied Speech & Drama at Valparaiso University and earned a master’s degree in Theater from Northwestern University.

In the 1970s, he performed improv with The Second City in Chicago and on its national tour. His film roles included appearances in Somewhere in Time, My Best Friend’s Wedding and Road to Perdition, along with Rent-a-Cop, Mo’ Money and Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde. Cerny also appeared on episodes of Lady Blue, Early Edition and Chicago Hope, and wrote a weekly Screen Magazine column called “ADventures in Advertising.” He collected model trains and drove go-karts well into his 60s.

Family and legacy

Cerny’s parents, Joe and Bea, combined their names to create his first name. He had planned to enter the seminary before pursuing theater and performance. His survivors include his wife of 56 years, Eileen; sons Tim and Patrick; daughters-in-law Andrea and Lily; and grandchildren Archer and Cleo. Cerny once said he was glad he had chosen a life that let him play someone different each day.