Image

Arthur John Miles Anderson was born on Aug. 29, 1922, the son of George Christian Anderson (his name had been changed from Andersen when he immigrated to the United States), an electrical engineer, and the former Violet Brookfield.

He attended the Professional Children’s School in Manhattan and was heard on “Uncle Nick Kenny’s Radio Kindergarten” and on “Let’s Pretend,” a radio show that re-enacted fairy tales, from 1936 to 1954.

In 1963, Mr. Anderson successfully auditioned for the Dancer-Fitzgerald-Sample advertising agency, which was seeking a voice for an animated leprechaun to promote the toasted oats and marshmallow bits — pink hearts, yellow moons, orange stars and green clovers — that General Mills sold collectively as Lucky Charms.

He considered the part a wedding present. He married Alice Middleton, a casting director, who died last year. He is survived by their daughter, Amy Anderson.

Mr. Anderson also appeared in the Woody Allen film “Zelig” (1983) and John Schlesinger’s “Midnight Cowboy” (1969) and on television in “Car 54, Where Are You?” and “Law & Order.” He was the voice of Ducky Drake, the mascot for the Drake’s Cakes brand; appeared in performances at the Metropolitan Opera; filled in for the puppeteer on “The Rootie Kazootie Club”; published two memoirs; and was a regular at annual conventions of the organization Friends of Old Time Radio.

“His range was incredible,” said Sean Dougherty, an organizer of the conventions. “He made himself famous playing a leprechaun, though he wasn’t in any way Irish. On ‘Let’s Pretend,’ he played a troll, a parrot, a giant in ‘Jack and the Beanstalk.’ He was always the oddball voice. Arthur said: ‘I never got the girl, not in 19 seasons. I was never starred, I was never featured. But I always worked.’”