Doraemon's Nobita's voice actress Noriko Ohara passes away at age 88

Modified Jul 23, 2024 16:27 GMT

On Tuesday, July 23, 2024, the official website of 81 Produce announced that Noriko Ohara, the voice actress for Doraemon's Nobita Nobi, passed away at the age of 88 while recuperating from her illness. She had passed away on Friday, July 12, 2024.

Noriko Ohara, also known as Noriko Tobe, was born on October 2, 1935, and was represented by Production Baobab while working as a voice actress. She was the mother of Sunrise animator Atsuo Tobe and was well known for her role as Nobita Nobi in Doraemon.

Doraemon voice actress Noriko Ohara passed away on July 12

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On Tuesday, July 23, 2024, the official website of 81 Produce revealed that Noriko Ohara had passed away at the age of 88 on Friday, July 12, 2024. The Japanese voice actress was seemingly recuperating from an illness. The talent management firm has yet to reveal the cause of her untimely death.

Following her death, a funeral ceremony was held by her relatives at the request of the bereaved family members. 81 Produce also expressed their deepest condolences and gratitude for the kindness she had shown them during her lifetime.

Nobita as seen in the anime (Image via Shin-Ei Animation)

Noriko Ohara was most popularly known for her role of Nobita Nobi in the TV Asahi version of the Doraemon anime. She voiced the character from the anime's premiere broadcast in 1979 until 2005, contributing to over 30 anime productions.

She also voiced the roles of Doronjo in the Yatterman anime, all female lead villains in the Time Bokan Oudou Fukko anime, Conan in Future Boy Conan, Peter in Alps no Shoujo Heidi, and Oyuki in Urusei Yatsura anime.

Fans react to the voice actress's death

Nobita as seen in the anime (Image via Shi-Ei Animation)

Fans only had good things to say about the voice actress. Many fans thanked her for voicing Nobita Nobi in Doraemon, as the anime was a significant part of their childhood, and for them, there was no other Nobita like her. Additionally, fans wished that the voice actress's soul would rest in peace.

"Rip Noriko-san thank you for voicing Nobita. Doraemon is my whole childhood and i enjoyed watching it when i was a kid and there were no Nobita like her," one fan said.

"rip GOAT. The OG nobita is always the best. Legend!," another added.

"Its a heartwarming anime. Rip Noriko Ohara," another fan said.

"Never watched in Japanese but, rest in peace," another said.

Other fans expressed that Doraemon is a heartwarming anime, and learning that the voice actress of Nobita had passed away hurt them. One fan added that they had never watched the anime in Japanese but loved the series. Hence, they too wished that Noriko Ohara would rest in peace.