Early life
Adler was born on October 2, 1956, in Paterson, New Jersey, and grew up in the New York City area.1 By his own account he was a childhood "TV junkie" who idolized the comedy of Rocky and Bullwinkle, The Three Stooges, and Irene Ryan, and he decided to become a performer in the fifth grade after an encouraging teacher. He trained in improvisational theater and was mentored by the comedienne Imogene Coca.1 His sister, Cheryl Adler, is a psychotherapist.1
Career
Adler's first professional job was a television commercial in 1971.1 Before acting became steady work he supported himself in a string of jobs including waiter, janitor, teacher, and church caretaker. He performed Off-Broadway in Once Upon a Mattress in 1975 and went on to star in the touring production of Torch Song Trilogy in 1984 and 1985, work that earned him the 1985 Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a touring production.1 His earliest animation credit was Spike the Dragon in a 1984 My Little Pony television special, and he relocated to California in 1986 to pursue voice work full time.1
From the late 1980s onward Adler became a fixture of American television animation, frequently playing several characters opposite himself within the same show. His signature roles include:1
- Buster Bunny on Tiny Toon Adventures
- Ed and Bev Bighead on Rocko's Modern Life
- Ickis on Aaahh!!! Real Monsters
- Cow, Chicken, and the Red Guy on Cow and Chicken, voicing most of the show's cast
- T-Bone Furlong on SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron
- Snively in the Sonic the Hedgehog animated series
- Mr. Whiskers on Disney's Brandy & Mr. Whiskers
- Cobra Commander (and other roles) on G.I. Joe: Resolute and G.I. Joe: Renegades
- MODOK and Doctor Doom across various Marvel animated productions
- Starscream in the live-action Transformers film franchise (2007 through 2011)
In video games he voiced Harold in the Fallout series and Professor Monkey-for-a-Head in Earthworm Jim, among many others.
Adler is also an accomplished voice director. His directing work began in the late 1990s with Rugrats and grew to include The Wild Thornberrys, Rocket Power, All Grown Up!, The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack, The Replacements, Blaze and the Monster Machines, and Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny. He shared a 2003 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Children's Animated Program for Rugrats, received a 1999 Annie Award nomination for his voice work on Cow and Chicken, and was nominated for a 2020 Daytime Creative Arts Emmy for animation directing.1 As of 2026 he remains active in the animation industry.
Ghostbusters
Adler was a recurring guest voice actor throughout the franchise's animated run, lending his range to one-off and supporting characters across three series.
The Real Ghostbusters
On The Real Ghostbusters he voiced an assortment of incidental characters, including the Newsboy, the Genie, and a ghost in "Janine's Genie"; Sanders, a father, and a ghost in "Egon on the Rampage"; and a worker, Osiris, and an obnoxious tourist in "The Ghostbusters in Paris." He also introduced the recurring character Elizabeth in episodes such as "The Slob," "Deja Boo," and "Not Now, Slimer!"
Slimer!
The Slimer! segments gave Adler his steadiest Ghostbusters character, the bratty girl Elizabeth, whom he voiced across episodes including "Out with Grout," "Doctor Dweeb, I Presume," "Sweet Revenge," "Show Dog Showdown," "Slimer for Hire," "Sticky Fingers," "Slimer's Silly Symphony," "Movie Madness," and "Slimer & the Beanstalk." He also recurred as Rafael and voiced numerous bit parts in the spin-off, among them a man, health personnel, a voice on the phone, a dog, street vendors, a cop, an organ grinder, the Lone Stranger, an alien, an alligator, a monster, and a woman.
Extreme Ghostbusters
On Extreme Ghostbusters Adler contributed guest voice work to the episode "The Unseen."
Adler is a regular presence on the convention circuit thanks to his enormous animation resume, which makes his autograph and recorded greetings popular catches for collectors of Ghostbusters animated memorabilia. GBFans.com does not stock items tied specifically to his Ghostbusters guest roles.
References
Some content on this page was researched using the Ghostbusters Wiki on Fandom.
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"Charlie Adler," Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-13, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Adler.
