Nobuyo Oyama, the voice artist of the iconic cartoon character Doraemon, died at the age of 90.
According to CNN, the Actors 7 agency confirmed the death of the Japanese voice artist in a statement on Friday, October 11, 2024.
As per her agency, Oyama died on September 29, 2024, due to old age. She was buried after a private funeral attended by her relatives.
The agency also apologized for the delay in the announcement, saying, “We would like to express our sincere gratitude for the kindness you extended to the deceased during her lifetime.”
Furthermore, Oyama voiced the beloved blue robotic cat, created by the cartoonist Fujiko F. Fujio in 1970 between 1979 and 2005.
As per Japan’s public broadcaster NHK, Oyama, who was born in Tokyo, played a role in NHK’s puppet show Boo Foo Woo, before voicing Doraemon.
Voiced artist Kazuhiko Inoue paid tribute to Oyama in a post on X (previously Twitter). She wrote, “Ms. Nobuyo Oyama… She was someone who supported me from the very beginning of my career. Thank you so much for all your hard work over the years. I truly appreciate it.”
The story of a friendship between the robotic blue and white cat Doraemon and a good-hearted but “terrible at everything” young boy, Nobita, became popular worldwide, especially in Asia.
