Don LaFontaine, the world's most recognisable voiceover artist, famous for voicing thousands of film trailers, has died.
LaFontaine, who was 68, died from complications arising from the treatment of an ongoing illness.
Speaking to the Associated Press, fellow voiceover artist Jim Tasker said: "He was the originator of the modern voiceover for movie trailers.
"He is the standard for which all other voiceovers for movie trailers are measured. For the past 30 years, his voice has been the gauge for all of us in the industry."
The renowned baritone had a very distinctive gravelly voice and, thanks to his deft diction, went on to voice more than 5,000 trailers in a career that spanned 33 years.
He worked until recently, averaging seven to 10 voiceover sessions a day.
For many years, LaFontaine was chauffeured from session to session in a limousine - he insisted he could do more work if he did not have to search for a parking space.
While he worked behind the scenes, LaFontaine also appeared in a popular 2006 US TV ad in which he melodramatically retold a customer's mundane account of dealing with her car insurance company, while standing inside her kitchen.
Paying tribute, fellow voiceover artist Tom Kane said: "The truth is there's only about 15 to 20 guys in the country who can do this.
"They'll do their best to fill his shoes... To one degree or another; they're all doing their best Don LaFontaine impersonation."
LaFontaine is survived by his wife Nita Whitaker and three daughters.
