Veteran voice actor John Erwin, of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe and The Archie Show fame, has passed away at the age of 88. Erwin died at his home in Camarillo, California, on or around 20 December 2024. His death was not announced publicly until 31 January 2025.
The talented actor who defined the childhood of several generations in the 60s, 70s and 80s voiced iconic characters including He-Man aka Prince Adam, Reggie Mantle and several characters in Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Groovie Ghoulies died last month of natural causes at his home in Camarillo, California.

“Working with John Erwin was a ballad of irreverence, professionalism and surprise,” said voice actor Alan Oppenheimer, who voiced the evil Skeletor across He-Man in He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, in a statement. “He was a series actor, writer, performer of commercials, musician, painter and an all-around lovely gentleman, an indelible addition to my life.”
In a Facebook post titled “A Letter to My Brother,” voice actress Melendy Britt, who played Prince Adam’s sister Adora aka She-Ra, wrote, “Aside from being friends in real life, for 40 years we had been a team. We were He-Man and She-Ra. To have “my brother” pass on is a tremendous sorrow even though I know life is not infinite. The tears I have are because John was such a special quiet man and we shared a very special relationship in those roles as twin brother and sister. Your body of work will live in the hearts of so many people to whom you gave love and strength and hope and laughter in times of difficulty and the need to be calmed by laughter and hope.”

Erwin started acting on TV and appeared as a recurring character Teddy in Eric Fleming and Clint Eastwood’s American Western series Rawhide in 1959. He pivoted to become a voice actor in 1968, starting with Reggie in the animated sitcom The Archie Show and later became synonymous with the character of He-Man starting from 1983, as well as Prince Adam and Beast Man. Erwin continued voicing the characters until its conclusion in 1986 with the animated movie. He made one final return to the character of He-Man in 2005, for an episode of Family Guy.
In accordance with his wishes, no names of his surviving family, or a photo of him, were released by his PR agency.