Unshō Ishizuka Who Portrayed Professor Oak From ‘Pokémon’ Has Passed away

Trainers, this post isn’t regarding the Pokemon Go community but it’s for the World of Pokemon and the entire anime community as a whole. It’s a very sad day the Voice actor Unsho Ishizuka, who is best known for his role as the lovable Professor Oak in the Japanese Pokémon series, has passed away.

Ishizuka has been voicing Ash Ketchum’s mentor since the original series debuted back in 1997, though his contributions to Pokémon go even further than that. Ishizuka was also the narrator for the series, as well as the voice of a few Pocket Monsters, including Steelix and Onix.

According to Aoni Production’s official website, Ishizuka died on August 13 from esophageal cancer. He was of age 68.

Besides his Pokémon anime work, Ishizuka also voiced Jet Black in Cowboy Bebop, among many other iconic roles. After voice actor Daisuke Gori died in 2010, Ishizuka also took over the role of Mr Satan in the Dragon Ball franchise and Heihachi Mishima in the Tekken series.

However, his acting legacy is one that will be remembered, as he brought a great deal of joy to millions of people over the years.