Entertainment TV Can You Guess the Actors Behind These Iconic '90s and '00s Cartoon Characters? From SpongeBob and Patrick to Tommy and Chuckie: see the actors who gave voice to some of the most famous cartoon characters on TV By Alexandra Schonfeld Alexandra Schonfeld Alexandra Schonfeld is a features writer at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since April 2022. Her work previously appeared in Newsweek. People Editorial Guidelines Published on April 16, 2024 08:30AM EDT Close Spongebob, Tommy and Fred Flintstone. Photo: Nickelodeon; Nickelodeon Movies/Kobal/Shutterstock; Courtesy of Everett These iconic characters would not be the same without the talented actors who voiced them. Whether its nailing SpongeBob SquarePants' famous laugh or finding the perfect tone for the pint-sized tots on Rugrats, these actors' abilities to shift their voices is one impressive feat. From Tom Kenny's decades-long run as the guy "who lives in a pineapple under the sea" to Christine Cavanaugh's turn as several of the iconic characters of the 1990s, learn more about 17 actors who brought some of your favorite TV characters come to life. 01 of 20 SpongeBob on 'SpongeBob SquarePants' Tom Kenny. Nickelodeon; Steve Granitz/FilmMagic Tom Kenny has voiced the guy "who lives in a pineapple under the sea" since SpongeBob SquarePants premiered in 1999. Beyond his work as the lovable sponge, Kenny, 61, is also the voice of Gary the Snail on the series and has lent his voice to several other projects including The Powerpuff Girls, Adventure Time and Rocko's Modern Life. 02 of 20 Patrick on 'SpongeBob SquarePants' Bill Fagerbakke. Nickelodeon; Irvin Rivera/Getty Images for IMDb SpongeBob's best friend Patrick has been voiced by Bill Fagerbakke since the show's start. Fagerbakke told PEOPLE that when the show first premiered, his daughters — who were 4 and 6 at the time — "loved it." "And I went, 'Yes, this is going to be fun.' I figured for a few months and then something else comes along, you hope. But 25 years later," he said. In addition to extensive voice work, the 66-year-old has appeared on Young Sheldon and How I Met Your Mother. 03 of 20 Bubbles on 'The Powerpuff Girls' Tara Strong. Cartoon Network/Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock; Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for IMDb Tara Strong's voice can be heard on numerous television shows including The Fairly OddParents as Timmy Turner, Rugrats as Dil Pickles and the My Little Pony franchise as Twilight Sparkle. But from 1998 to 2004, the 51-year-old was the voice behind Bubbles on The Powerpuff Girls. 04 of 20 Buttercup on 'The Powerpuff Girls' E.G. Daily. In addition to her work as Buttercup on The Powerpuff Girls, E.G. Daily's voice can also be heard on shows like Rugrats as Tommy Pickles and Curious George as Steve. Early in her career, the 61-year-old appeared on Laverne & Shirley and CHiPs. 05 of 20 Blossom on 'The Powerpuff Girls' Catherine Cavadini. Cartoon Network/Courtesy of Everett; Eric Charbonneau/Berliner Studio/BEImages Before stepping into the role of Blossom on The Powerpuff Girls, Catherine Cavadini, 62, lent her voice to the 1980s series Kidd Video and Jem. 06 of 20 Mojo Jojo on 'Powerpuff Girls' Roger Jackson. Moviestore/Shutterstock; Gregg DeGuire/WireImage As well as voicing Mojo Jojo on The Powerpuff Girls, older audiences might recognize Roger Jackson's voice from the Scream films, as the 65-year-old is the voice that comes through the phone when Ghostface calls. 07 of 20 Dexter on 'Dexter's Laboratory' Christine Cavanaugh. Cartoon Network/Courtesy of Everett; KMazur/WireImage Before her death in 2014, Christine Cavanaugh gave voice to numerous iconic characters including Babe in the 1995 film of the same name, Chuckie Finster on Rugrats and Dexter on Dexter's Laboratory. 08 of 20 Chuckie Finster on 'Rugrats' Christine Cavanaugh, Nancy Carwright. Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty; Klasky-Csupo/Courtesy of Everett; Frank Micelotta/Disney via Getty And speaking of Chuckie Finster, while Cavanaugh voiced the red-headed tot for the majority of episodes during the original show's run from 1992 to 2003, Nancy Cartwright stepped in to voice Tommy's pal later on in the series. Cartwright, 66, has also voiced Bart Simpson on The Simpsons since 1989. 09 of 20 Tommy Pickles on 'Rugrats' E.G. Daily. Nickelodeon Movies/Kobal/Shutterstock; Weiss Eubanks/NBCUniversal via Getty E.G. Daily has voiced Tommy Pickles for decades, starting back in 1991 when the original show first aired. Most recently she reprised the role on the Rugrats reboot that kicked off in 2021. 10 of 20 The Brain on 'Pinky and the Brain' Maurice LaMarche. Warner Bros Animation/Amblin/Kobal/Shutterstock; Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for SCAD During Pinky and the Brain's four-year run, Maurice LaMarche played the smaller of the two mice, The Brain. LaMarche, 66, has had a storied career in voice acting that included other roles on shows like Space Goofs, Transformers: Rescue Bots, Futurama, Rick and Morty and the film Zootopia. 11 of 20 Pinky on 'Pinky and the Brain' Rob Paulsen. Warner Bros Animation/Amblin/Kobal/Shutterstock; Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for SCAD The second half of the Pinky and the Brain duo was voiced by Rob Paulsen, 68, whose voice has also featured on shows like Animaniacs and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. 12 of 20 Johnny Bravo on 'Johnny Bravo' Jeff Bennett. Courtesy of Everett; David Buchan/Shutterstock Jeff Bennett, 61, played the titular role on Johnny Bravo from 1997 to 2004. His voice can also be heard on Animaniacs, 101 Dalmatians: The Series, Pepper Ann, Dexter's Laboratory and as the Man in the Yellow Hat on Curious George. 13 of 20 Arnold in 'Hey Arnold!' Toran Caudell, Phillip Van Dyke and Spencer Klein. Nickelodeon/Viacom/Kobal/Shutterstock; Showtime/Courtesy of Everett; Paramount Television/Courtesy of Everett; ABC/Courtesy of Everett At least three different voice actors stepped in for the role of Arnold during Hey Arnold!'s five-season run on Nickelodeon, per IMDb, including Toran Caudell, Phillip Van Dyke and Spencer Klein. 14 of 20 Gerald Johanssen on 'Hey Arnold!' Jamil Walker Smith. Nickelodeon/Viacom/Kobal/Shutterstock; Frazer Harrison/Getty During Hey Arnold!'s time on Nickelodeon, Jamil Walker Smith voiced Arnold's best friend Gerald Johanssen. Since then, the 41-year-old has appeared on both seasons of Stargate Universe and most recently was on a few episodes of The Rookie in 2022. 15 of 20 Ms. Frizzle on 'The Magic School Bus' Lily Tomlin. Nelvana / Courtesy of Everett; Ryan Emberley/Getty Images for RBC Everyone's favorite teacher Ms. Frizzle was voiced by none other than Lily Tomlin for The Magic School Bus' four seasons. While we only hear her voice in the role, Tomlin, 84, has of course starred in numerous projects in front of the camera, including Nashville, 9 to 5 and Grace and Frankie. 16 of 20 Penny Proud on 'The Proud Family' Kyla Pratt. The Disney Channel/Courtesy of Everett; Elyse Jankowski/Variety via Gett From 2001 to 2005, Kyla Pratt voiced Penny Proud on Disney Channel's The Proud Family. The show returned with a reboot titled The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder in 2022, and Pratt, 37, reprised the role nearly 20 years later. 17 of 20 Suga Mama on 'The Proud Family' Jo Marie Payton. Disney+/Courtesy Everett; Tommaso Boddi/Getty Before stepping into the role of Suga Mama on The Proud Family beginning in 2001, Jo Marie Payton played Harriette Winslow on Family Matters from 1989-1997. More recently Payton, 73, reprised her Proud Family role on the show's 2021 reboot. 18 of 20 Kim Possible on 'Kim Possible' Christy Carlson Romano. Disney Channel / Courtesy of Everett; Rick Kern/WireImage Another Disney Channel cartoon favorite was Kim Possible, which aired from 2002 to 2007. Christy Carlson Romano, 40, voiced the titular character after landing her breakout role on Even Stevens. 19 of 20 Wilma Flintstone on 'The Flintstones' Jean Vander Pyl. Courtesy of Everett; Archive Photos/Getty Jean Vander Pyl voiced Wilma — and Pebbles! — Flintstone in the 1960s series The Flintstones. She would reprise the role on numerous occasions and also lent her voice to another popular cartoon of the time, The Jetsons. In 1994 she appeared in The Flintstones live action movie as Mrs. Feldspar. 20 of 20 Fred Flintstone on 'The Flintstones' Alan Reed. Courtesy of Everett; ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Before Alan Reed voiced Fred Flintstone on the series, the actor lent his voice to Disney's Lady and the Tramp in 1955. In 1961, he also appeared in Breakfast at Tiffany's.