MARIA BAMFORD is busy, the Minnesota native long-ago leaving behind “The Land of 10,000 Lakes” in favor of the Los Angeles River. Aside from doing stand-up and making appearances on shows such as ABC’s FRESH OFF THE BOAT, Bamford is a prolific voice actor, lending her chords to everything from ADVENTURE TIME and KUNG FU PANDA to WORDGIRL and AXE COP. One of her most-heard roles is that of TALKING GINGER – a boy kitty, performed by a girl. As part of the YouTube hit,TALKING TOM AND FRIENDS: THE ANIMATED SERIES, millions have seen the character from Outfit 7‘s popular series of apps go on countless adventures. To celebrate Talking Ginger’s birthday (today, April 8), Bamford took a few minutes to throw down some knowledge about the curious cat.
“For your birthday, Tom and I got you candy. But first let me teach you how to eat candy with YOUR candy. GIVE ME YOUR CANDY! Chomp, chomp, crunch, clabbi, burdi, glom. Burp!” — Maria Bamford, to her alter-ego, Talking Ginger.
Q: What does Ginger do on his birthday?
A: He loves to do anything with his friends (who have candy.)
Q: What’s your favorite thing to do on your birthday?
A: I’m more of a hot fudge sundae lady – go Fosters Freeze!
Q: We see that practical jokes are a part of Ginger’s every day routine. Do you like to play practical jokes, and if so, what’s the best one you’ve ever played?
A: I’m very gullible and I will walk into a banana cream pie without hesitation, if asked.
Q: How old is Ginger?
A: He is 6 years old. I am 45, but have not changed discernibly since infancy on an emotional level.
Q: As a kid, did you ever envision you’d do voice overs?
A: I did voices but it I didn’t think it was a job possibility. I was terrified after high school ended.
Q: What did you want to be when you grew up?
A: A doctor dancer.
Q: You are one of the busiest people in animation. What else are you doing these days?
A: “The Adventures of Puss in Boots” on Netflix, “Adventure Time” on Cartoon Network, “Pig Goat Banana Cricket” on Nickelodeon, and of course “Talking Tom and Friends: The Animated Series” for Outfit7 on YouTube and YouTube Kids App..and constantly auditioning for more.
Q: What would you like to see Ginger do in his next app release?
A: Give up sugar!
Q: Are you a dog or cat person?
A: I love them both a little old and overweight.
Q: What’s it like to play a boy character? Do you think you’d play Ginger differently if he was a girl?
A: Gender is very fluid in society today and certain “traits” identified as male or female can be limiting to people – when you feel like you have to choose one over the other. I mean our dogs Bert (boy) loves romance novels, and Betty (girl) is a karate aficionado. So, I guess my l answer is maybe. Depends.
Q: Ginger’s an Aries. What’s your sign?
A: Virgo!
Next on the horizon for Bamford is her Netflix Original Series LADY DYNAMITE, which premieres May 20, 2016. The series draws inspiration from Bamford’s life and tells the story of a woman who loses — and then finds — her s—t. Guest stars include many of Bamford’s friends, such as Patton Oswalt, Ana Gasteyer, Sarah Silverman, Jenny Slate, June Diane Raphael, Adam Pally, Tig Notaro, Mira Sorino, Brandon Routh and Dean Cain.
Learn more about Talking Tom and Friends at http://outfit7.com/
Photos Courtesy Outfit 7 – used with permission.
