Francis Fulton Burley was an Irish-Canadian actor, who performed as an Irish tenor at Disneyland's Golden Horseshoe Revue from 1962 to 1987. His is also the voice of Michael, one of the macaw hosts of Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room.
Background[]
Burley was born in Toronto and raised in Windsor, Ontario. At age 7, he performed in church weddings, and by 14, on radio in Windsor, where he worked three mornings a week before school. He, also, went on to sing with the Windsor Symphony Orchestra. He attended college and studied law and minored in music, however, he dropped his law studies to pursue a career in entertainment. Gaining a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), he appeared as a supporting actor in films, such as Without Love and Homecoming with Clark Gable and Lana Turner, but he later landed a singing lead in the Broadway musical Diamond Horseshoe Revue. He continued to tour the United States after World War II, performing primarily in musical comedies. It was during this time that Burley honed what would become a near-legendary repertoire of jokes.
While playing at the Hacienda Hotel in Las Vegas in 1962, Burley received a call from Golden Horseshoe Revue entertainer Wally Boag, with whom he worked as a contract player at MGM. A regular at the Golden Horseshoe Revue had taken ill and Boag concluded that Burley would fit the role perfectly. It was during that time that Burley recorded the voice of Michael and Boag provided the voice of José for the Enchanted Tiki Room.
Burley retired from the Golden Horseshoe Revue in 1986 and was named a Disney Legend in 1995 alongside castmates Boag and Betty Taylor. In 1997, reprised his role for "The Enchanted Tiki Room (Under New Management)" at Magic Kingdom along with Boag, Thurl Ravenscroft and Gilbert Gottfried reprising his role of Iago from Aladdin. Burley died on May 7, 2007, at Sunrise Assisted Living at La Costa in Carlsbad, California.
Role[]
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- He entertained Disney fans across the country, when he traveled on special tours promoting films and re-releases of animated classics, such as Cinderella theatrical re-release in 1981.