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Edgar the Raven, or simply the Raven, is a raven possessed by the ghost of a man of unknown species.
Description[]
One of the most active Happy Haunts of Disneyland's Haunted Mansion, the Raven is an unnaturally long-lived, red-eyed raven possessed by the spirit of a man the Ghost Host describes as "an old nag". He is often antagonistic to the Ghost Host, who, in turn, spreads rumors that Edgar would like to discard his raven body and possess a mortal, if he could. The Raven is one of the few beings whom Madame Leota tolerates in her Séance Room while she practices the black arts. Additionally, whether he is intentionally quoting Poe or not is unclear, but the Raven sprinkles numerous ominous warnings in "nevermore" and "evermore" in his speech.
Gallery[]
Behind the scenes[]
Edgar the Raven first appeared as a part of the Haunted Mansion attraction in Disneyland, which opened in 1969.
The Raven was originally intended to speak (in the voice of Eleanor Audley, providing alternate commentary in opposition to the Ghost Host's, something still reflected by his role in The Story and Song of the Haunted Mansion (based on outdated scripts) and simply by the numerous silent appearances the Raven makes throughout the ride — as the animatronics, having already been built, were kept in the finished attraction. The one exception is his planned appearance in the Stretching Room, sitting on a shelf, of which nothing remains.
He is to be compared to Carl Barks's Randolph from Raven Mad, another talking raven (this one non-supernatural in nature) inspired by Poe's The Raven.
In the Ghost Gallery, the raven body is said to have been the pet of Master Gracey/the Ghost Host, who called it "Richard", with occasional hints as to its sinister nature. (Interestingly, up until 1971 there was an empty birdcage on the exterior of the Disneyland version of the Haunted Mansion, lending credence to this theory.) The Gallery further posits that the "old nag" possessing the Raven is the Sinister Man, from the Sinister Couple portrait.
Beyond the Richard moniker, other Cast Members and fans have occasionally nicknamed the Raven "Lucifer". However, The Haunted Mansion Show crystallized the Raven's name as "Edgar" in the fandom.
Voice Actors[]
- Eleanor Audley (unused ride audio)
- Ginny Tyler (The Story and Song of the Haunted Mansion)
- Candy Candido (caws in the final ride audio)
- Anton Burek (The Haunted Mansion Show; unofficial)