Jodi Marie Marzorati Benson (born October 10, 1961) is an American actress, voice actress, and singer. She's best known for voicing Ariel from The Little Mermaid (1989), a role she's reprised in all future projects since, making her the longest running voice actress for a Disney Princess. She was born and raised in a Catholic environment, graduating from Boylan Central Catholic High School in Rockford, Illinois. She married actor/singer Ray Benson in 1984. They have two children, McKinley and Delaney.
She has no relation to Robby Benson (the voice of the Beast), or Ashley Benson for that matter.
Here is a list of all the major works she's done:
- The Little Mermaid franchise - Ariel
- Toy Story 2 - Barbie (She would reprise the role for the Toy Story Toons shorts, Toy Story 3 and Toy Story 4 )
- The title character of Thumbelina (1994)
- Hercules: The Animated Series - Helen Of Troy
- A Bug's Life video game - Queen Atta
- Aladdin: The Series - Nasira
- The Crippled Lamb by StarToons Animation - Abigail, Mary, and Laura Lamb
- Pepper Ann - Amber O'Malley
- Batman Beyond - Aqua Girl
- The Wild Thornberrys - Mother Cheetah ("Cheetahs Never Prosper")
- The Mighty Kong - Ann Darrow
- House of Mouse - Ariel, Belle
- Joseph: King of Dreams - Asenath
- Kingdom Hearts - Ariel
- Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure - Lady
- The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy - The Blue Fairy, Floraculture Lady, Rich Lady
- The Balto sequels - Jenna
- Duck Dodgers - Princess Incense, Captain Tortelli
- Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind - Lastelle's mother (2004 English dub)
- Camp Lazlo - Patsy Smiles, Ms. Jane Doe, Almondine
- Enchanted - Sam
- Flubber - Weebo
- The Little Engine That Could - Jillian
- Tinker Bell: Secret of the Wings - Healing Fairy
- Grandia II - Millennia and Reena
- The Pirates of Dark Water - Tula
- Kinect: Disneyland Adventures - Ariel
- Sofia the First - Ariel, Queen Coraline
- Clarence - Diana
- Star vs. the Forces of Evil - St. Olga's singing teacher
- Ralph Breaks the Internet - Ariel
Here are tropes associated with her:
- Beautiful Singing Voice: Given that her most famous role of all time, Ariel, this is her signature trope, Ms. Benson has been particularly famous, even among the Disney Princesses, for her amazing voice.
- Endearingly Dorky: She voices plenty of awkwardly endearing young characters with a ton of energy. She's also this in real life, being very geeky and a bit childish, yet still adorable.
- Genki Girl: She voices plenty of spunky and energetic characters. She's also this in real life, showing great enthusiasm.
- Hiccup Hijinks: At times, she gets hiccups from eating too much.
- Older Than They Look: She looks 40, yet is actually 60. Older than she sounds, too, considering that she can still do the young Ariel's voice exactly the same way over thirty years later.
- Role Reprise: She's voiced Ariel in every Disney production since 1989.
