The Official Adventures in Odyssey Podcast

Bob Smithhauser: Hi there. Welcome to the official Adventures in Odyssey podcast. I'm Bob Smith Hauser, but most folks around here call me Bob.

Jesse Florea: Hm, that sounds a lot like something a beloved ice cream and Discovery Emporium owner might say.

Bob Smithhauser: I was hoping somebody would catch that because today we're talking about the man himself, John Avery Whitaker. And this is a pretty important podcast for Odyssey, Jesse.

Jesse Florea: That's me, and here's the latest news.

Bob Smithhauser: Since Whit left on a trip in the episode Now Hiring at the beginning of the year, listeners have been speculating about what would happen when he got back.

Jesse Florea: Well, there are two headlines. The first is that Whit will return on November 5th in the episode Ready When You Are, the first adventure in Album 83 Phase 1.

Bob Smithhauser: The second headline is much bigger. When Whit comes home, he'll sound different. For the first time in many years, John Avery Whitaker will be played by a new actor.

Jesse Florea: Before we tell you who that actor is, we want to spend a moment talking about why this change is happening. We know how much Whit means to all of you, and we know how much Andre Stojka means to all of us, too.

Bob Smithhauser: Andre has given nearly 20 years to this character. His warmth, humor, and the unmistakable twinkle in his eye have become part of Whit for an entire generation of listeners. We love Andre, and we're enormously grateful for everything he's brought to Adventures in Odyssey.

Jesse Florea: At the same time, the team has been thinking and praying for several years about the future of Whit. As circumstances have changed for Andre, and as we've looked ahead to the adventures we hope to have in the years and even decades to come, we believe that this is the right time for a transition.

Bob Smithhauser: It wasn't an easy decision or a quick one. Whit is at the heart of Odyssey, and Andre's place in the legacy of this show cannot be overstated. This is really about looking toward the future while honoring everything Andre's given us.

Jesse Florea: And that meant the next question would be a very big one. Who could possibly step up to the microphone?

Bob Smithhauser: Behind the scenes, our Odyssey team has been searching for the next voice of Whit for the last few years. After hundreds of auditions, dozens of callbacks, and much, much prayer, we have a new actor for this character, and his name is Phil Crowley.

Jesse Florea: Phil isn't entirely new to Odyssey. You might remember him as Detective Maddox in Red Herring, lawyer Michael Frazier in Expect the Worst, or the bad guy Mac in No Way Out. Changing the voice of any character in an audio drama is a big adjustment. Changing the voice of Whit after all these years and after all that Andre has brought to him is that time's infinity. So we want to give both sides of this transition the time they deserve.

Bob Smithhauser: Today we'll introduce you to Phil, and at the end of this podcast, you'll hear from Andre himself. Then our entire next edition will be devoted to Andre, his years as Whit, some favorite memories, and his thoughts about passing the role along.

Jesse Florea: But now, let's meet the man who will be carrying Whit into this next chapter. We invited executive producer Christopher Neel and showrunner Marshall Younger to join us to talk about the long road that led to Phil and what they heard in him that made him the new Whit.

Bob Smithhauser: Oh, sounds like a crowded studio, Jess. How about I step out to listen and join you again at the end?

Jesse Florea: That sounds good.

Phil Crowley: This should be fun because I'm surrounded by an eclectically talented group of guys. So welcome Phil, Marshall, and Chris.

Bob Smithhauser: Hey, good to be here.

Jesse Florea: Hey.

Phil Crowley: Yeah, thank you.

Jesse Florea: Well, Phil, let's start with you because this is the question that everyone will be asking. How much do you physically resemble Whit?

Phil Crowley: Oh, man. Uh, I would say that I don't It's a little less gray.

Jesse Florea: Okay.

Phil Crowley: A little less, yeah, right. And I don't have a mustache, although some years ago, of course, I had a mustache. That you know, that's an interesting question, particularly since Odyssey's a radio drama. You know, you have to consider that everybody has their own image of what Whit looks like, I suppose.

Jesse Florea: Yeah.

Phil Crowley: But I mean, did Hal Smith or Paul Herlinger or Andre Stojka, did they look like Whit?

Jesse Florea: None of them had None of them had the mustache.

Phil Crowley: And and and I'm trying to lose weight.

Jesse Florea: Well, Phil, you're no stranger to Odyssey at all. Long before becoming Whit, you played several other roles on Odyssey. So who were some of those characters and what do you remember about those recording sessions?

Phil Crowley: You know, many of them were like incidental characters, although I I seem to remember playing somebody's dad or foster dad or something like that.

Jesse Florea: Yes, you were Eugene's foster dad.

Phil Crowley: Yeah.

Bob Smithhauser: Yes, right.

Phil Crowley: I just Yeah.

Bob Smithhauser: Foster dad.

Jesse Florea: That's right.

Phil Crowley: Ah, that's right.

Jesse Florea: Yeah.

Phil Crowley: That's right.

Bob Smithhauser: Oh, and recently I got to play King Saul.

Jesse Florea: Yep.

Bob Smithhauser: I think in one of those time travel episodes.

Jesse Florea: Yes.

Bob Smithhauser: Yeah, that was fun.

Jesse Florea: That was fun.

Bob Smithhauser: And I I especially enjoyed the guy who played Goliath. Oh, he was a crackup. He was amazing.

Jesse Florea: Fred Tatisuare, yeah.

Bob Smithhauser: He was wonderful.

Jesse Florea: He's a great voice. He has done a lot of stuff for us, yeah.

Bob Smithhauser: Yeah.

Jesse Florea: Yeah, you were You've worked with amazing people and and you've known people that are close to Odyssey for years and years, like Katie Lee. Also Townsend Coleman, of course, who's Jason. So how did those friendships begin with those guys? And what was it like to return to the studio as Whit working with Connie and Jason?

Phil Crowley: Right. Oh, boy, that was amazing. Katie, I actually met her for the first time when we were on a panel, a voice over panel together out at Azusa Pacific University. There were a number of voice actors, and we were talking to the theater majors or something like that. And of course, I'd heard of her and I but I I don't think I'd ever met her until that day, and that was a pleasure.

Jesse Florea: Okay.

Phil Crowley: And Townsend and I have had the same agent for a long time. And so I 've known Townsend for many years, and we were even in a play. We were cast together in a play, uh, A Wilderness at Actors Co-op in Hollywood. Actors Co-op is a all Christian theater company. It's been around for about 30 years. And yeah, Townsend and I have we've been good friends for a long time. It's fun to be doing stuff with friends, people you know. Uh, and so many of the people in Odyssey over the years that I have been friends of mine.

I mean, I I remember Earl Bowen and I were good friends. Earl who was blaggard. Wonderful guy.

Jesse Florea: Yeah, yeah. Mhm. So how did you first become involved in becoming the new Whit? Did you just throw your hat in there? And then when you started, what did you think your chances were of, you know, landing that key role to the show?

Phil Crowley: Oh. It came out of the blue, actually. Townsend called me and he said, you know, they're looking for a new Whit. And I said, really? And he said, yeah. This is And I said, well, man, I'd like to submit for that if I can. And that's really kind of where it started. And we said with a phone call, Townsend let me know that that it was going on. But yeah, we and we've known I mean, our kids grew up with Adventures in Odyssey. We've listened to the the tapes and the the radio broadcasts and just, you know, for for years.

And so it's been a part of our our family history almost.

Jesse Florea: Right. Take us inside the audition process. What did the Odyssey team say they were looking for? How did you kind of interpret Whit initially? And did you change anything as you were given some direction from the team?

Phil Crowley: Well, I mean, you guys already had a flushed out character and a history. And and three other actors who had played him, and I think

Jesse Florea: That's right. Yep.

Phil Crowley: I think they you guys wanted to know that I was familiar with the character and if I could, you know, put on his clothes and and so on.

Jesse Florea: Embody his voice, yeah.

Bob Smithhauser: Yeah, Whit, yeah.

Jesse Florea: Yeah, we we just to give a behind the scenes look at at this whole process. We weren't looking for a voice match. I mean, we've had three Whit's so far. What does that even mean, a voice match? Who who exactly are you matching? But but we wanted somebody to embody the character of Whit to be warm and to be wise, uh, and everything that that Whit is. And that's what we were looking for. And that was That's really tough. I mean, the voice has to be kind of close. Can't have Daffy Duck playing Whit.

Phil Crowley: Right. Yeah. Yeah, right.

Jesse Florea: You know, and and and so that's a diamond in the rough there, you know.

Bob Smithhauser: Just to listen for that authenticity that we want from Whit so that he's really when he's speaking to a child, you can tell that he's really his heart is for them. But yet, when he needs to be

Phil Crowley: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Bob Smithhauser: disciplined or have the sternness, he can still do that, but with the caring side of it. Uh, that's something that we want to make sure.

Jesse Florea: And be And be funny and be adventurous and all the all the everything, yeah.

Bob Smithhauser: Yeah, all of that. It's a It's a It's a big role.

Phil Crowley: Yeah. It's interesting to me how all the characters, you know, over the 40 years that you guys have been doing it, these characters have developed. They've got much more complexity to them and and they become more and more human. I mean, uh, Whit is he's vulnerable, but he can speak with authority. He's multi-dimensional, you know. And he's got strength and he's got weaknesses. And he's us, you know. I think a lot of people would like to be John Avery Whitaker. This is the kind of person you want to aspire to be. And, uh, when you're just in your own community talking with people and interacting with your friends and family, you want to be the best that you can be.

And, uh, so

Jesse Florea: I love it. Well, obviously it was a long process, but let's just jump to the end because that's the cool part, right? So what was the conversation like when the Odyssey team finally told you you're the new Mr. Whitaker?

Phil Crowley: Oh, man. Uh, it was it was great. I do remember thinking, wow, you know, now I can tell my family.

Bob Smithhauser: Yeah.

Jesse Florea: Yeah.

Bob Smithhauser: Well, it was just, uh, again behind the scenes when when we kind of made this decision, we were all in a room together and we we listened to Phil's final audition and and you know, it it was down to a couple maybe of people that that that were thinking about. And then we we all said, well, you know what, it 's a no-brainer. It's Phil.

Phil Crowley: Yeah, there was a Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Bob Smithhauser: And again, it was a moment It was like a confetti cannon moment for us. Wow, this is real. This is what we're doing. And and this is a mammoth moment for us.

Jesse Florea: Yeah.

Phil Crowley: Yeah.

Jesse Florea: And you you talked about Phil, uh, your friendship with many of the the actors, including Andre Stojka, who has played Whit since 2009.

Phil Crowley: Yes. Yeah, you know, Andre and I have Well, you know what, we're really close acquaintances. That's what we are.

Jesse Florea: Okay.

Phil Crowley: I mean, over the years we've been we've been sort of lobby buddies, uh, because we're at the same agency. We never got together to like for dinner or anything, which why I wish we had. But, uh, and he's kind of a elder statesman in voice overs. Uh, I do remember one time we talked about going to Italy, uh, not together, but but he and his wife were planning to go to Italy. And he said, we're going to eat our way through Tuscany, you know. And and and I had been there in 2000 something with my wife and one of our daughters and, uh, and we had some amazing meals in Venice and Vernazza and Cinque Terre and Siena.

So all of a sudden Andre and I were like Italy buddies.

Jesse Florea: Right. Phil, you mentioned at the beginning that Whit has been portrayed by Hal Smith, Paul Herlinger, and Andre Stojka. So how do you honor those actors who kind of established the role while still making the performance and the character your own?

Phil Crowley: Yeah, yeah. Big shoes, big shoes.

Jesse Florea: Yeah. Mhm. Mhm.

Phil Crowley: I think I would say that, uh, each of those gentlemen brought something to the character of Whit that was already inside them. And, uh, I think that anybody who plays this role has a responsibility to this character that you guys have created. And Whit is somebody that we wish we could be, that we want to be. I mean, how can you not want to be like like Whit? And, uh, and, uh, he's the um, well, we're all we're all in the image of God. But the imago dei, he's the image of God that we all want to be and that we're all supposed to be, I think.

Jesse Florea: Yeah. Yeah. Mhm. Yeah. Yeah. Mhm.

Phil Crowley: Here's the thing. Whit himself wants to be like Christ. And we all want to be like Whit. You remember Paul in the Bible Yeah, Paul says, imitate me as I imitate Christ.

Jesse Florea: Paul said that. Yeah.

Phil Crowley: And I think that Hal and Paul, uh, Herlinger and and Andre all wanted to be like that. They all saw what what was like. And they probably said to themselves, well, I want to be like that. And it's a desire to be better than we are. And and I think it starts with that desire. And, um, you know what reminds me of something I heard many, many years ago from Arch Hart, who is a professor of psychology at Fuller Seminary. He said, two things to remember, two things to forget, one thing never to forget. He says, remember your dreams, remember God's blessings, forget your hurts, forget your failures, never forget God's plan for what you are to become.

Jesse Florea: Mhm. Mhm.

Phil Crowley: And that's my desire. And I And I I hope that what Hal and Paul and Andre brought to the role will will have that kind of continuity. At least, you know, that's what I hope for.

Jesse Florea: Yeah.

Bob Smithhauser: You know, Phil, just listening to you and and we've gotten to work with you now for a while and and just enjoy having your company and it's fun to hear you even say stuff like that because it really does It's like that's what Whit does, right? He he has these wisdom points, and so we appreciate

Phil Crowley: Uh-huh. Yeah.

Bob Smithhauser: uh, when you you kind of bring those to light to us as well.

Jesse Florea: Right. We're just praying for us before we started this podcast, which nobody got to hear.

Phil Crowley: Um, Yeah. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yep.

Jesse Florea: Yeah, I I haven't heard you as Whit yet, but I did hear that the first session that you recorded as Whit included many of Odyssey's main characters, of course. But but getting to the studio through Los Angeles traffic was kind of its own adventure. So so what happened that day?

Phil Crowley: Yes. Oh, yeah. Well, it's LA. That's LA. I mean, that you know, it it's freeway. We're used to that here.

Jesse Florea: Yeah.

Phil Crowley: Uh, I'll tell you what was really cool was walking in the door of the of the studio and seeing Townsend.

Jesse Florea: Mhm.

Phil Crowley: I don't know that he had a session that day with you guys, or did he? But but

Jesse Florea: Yeah, and he was I think he was just there to see you.

Bob Smithhauser: Mhm.

Phil Crowley: He was there to see me.

Bob Smithhauser: Yeah. Yeah.

Jesse Florea: Yeah.

Phil Crowley: He came down to the studio, I think, just to welcome me. When I opened the door, he was standing right there and he gave me this great big hug and I was Oh, man, it was so great, so nice. And And then that day I got to work with Katie for the first time as Whit. That was so cool. Uh, and I just loved it. It was Everybody Everybody was so professional and they and they made me feel so much at home. I just

Jesse Florea: Well,

Phil Crowley: That's what that day was like, you know.

Jesse Florea: Yeah, they have they have a good way of doing that.

Phil Crowley: Um, Marshall and Chris, this is for you guys. In that first session, was there like a specific line, scene, or maybe a little exchange when suddenly you guys said yourselves, oh, yeah, he's Whit now.

Jesse Florea: Yeah, I've got two instances like that. One of them was actually during the audition process when we had We were doing We were auditioning with the script Angels in Horse Hair where we took a scene from that. It's a show we did maybe 12 years ago, something like that. And And it involves a Whit and this kid named Aldo, which is who is a teenager who is kind of making mischief. And And we brought Phil in and we had him do that role. And he did that scene and it just it just clicked with me because it was a a human moment between the two of them.

And he was giving his wisdom and he was he was doing it in a very Whit-like way. And it just nailed it for me. Okay, that is what we need from Whit. And And And that that's what clinched it for me. And the second one was actually what you're talking about, Jesse, in the in the first session with him. It is a show called Ready When You Are. And it it's a scene with Whit and Connie. And to to me, you know, Whit and Connie, all the Whit's and Katie have had excellent chemistry. And I thought, okay, that's what I'm looking for here.

We're looking for the chemistry that he has with our main characters, and especially Connie. And so And And they did this scene and they they it's kind of an argument scene actually. But they had such chemistry and they were so great together and it was it was obvious that that these guys have been friends. And And I thought, man, that's a great moment. I thought, okay, yeah, we've made the right choice. This is our Whit.

Bob Smithhauser: Mine wasn't necessarily the first session that I want to draw attention to, but one that we just did. And it's for a show called The Pen. Whit is talking to another another kid. And it was a long monologue that he had to say. And Phil navigated that so well to show how to care for this kid in in the place that this kid was in. I was like, that's it. That's that's what Whit needs to do. He needs to be able to to guide, uh, and and to care, but also to be able to give some direction, uh, that that a kid needs to hear.

And I'm like, that's where I really saw Whit start to emerge.

Jesse Florea: That's awesome. Phil, outside of Odyssey, we have to ask you because listeners will probably recognize your voice from other places. I know you've been the a long time announcer for Shark Tank, but your career includes documentaries, commercials, video games, theater, and much more. So where else might a fans heard your voice?

Phil Crowley: Aside from Shark Tank, which is probably the most visible credit, I did a lot of documentaries on the History Channel and Court TV and E Entertainment. I I I did about 100 episodes of E True Hollywood Stories. I don't know if anybody remembers that show.

Jesse Florea: Oh, yeah.

Phil Crowley: And, um, but one of my favorite shows was on the History Channel was called Dog Fights. It was about historical airplane battles all the way from like World War I up to Korean War and conflicts in the Middle East. And, uh, the narration on that show had a lot of tension and excitement in it. But the role that probably prepared me best for Whit was actually a stage play at Actors Co-op, that one that Townsend and I were in. Uh, it was A Wilderness by Eugene O'Neill. And I played the father, Nat Miller. And it was Oh, it's a beautiful play.

I I I I like to say that it was the best time I ever had on stage. It was just a happy, happy time doing that show.

Jesse Florea: And you portray CS Lewis in a one man play. Uh, I think you even performed in Lewis's Oxford home in England. So now that you've portrayed both Whit and CS Lewis, what similarities or differences do you do you see among those men?

Phil Crowley: Um, yeah, there are actually quite a few differences. CS Lewis First of all, he's British. So he's a British accent.

Jesse Florea: Yeah.

Phil Crowley: Yeah, and and Lewis is more of a homebody, I think, than Whit. He probably more of an introvert. His imagination and the characters that he creates are what's exciting, the one in his books. But but his personal involvement with other people seems to be more limited to his small circle of writers and intellectuals and so on. Of course, he wrote thousands of letters to his admirers, you know, many of whom were children. But Whit, he's all over the place and he he gets much more excited about stuff. He's much more physical and apparently he travels all over the world and whereas Lewis's excitement is all in the books and his imagination.

Jesse Florea: Would you Would you ever see CS Lewis on an archaeological dig?

Phil Crowley: No. No. No. No. Not really. No. He He would like to experience these things from a distance, you know. Anyway, yeah, they're different, but they're both beautiful minds and beautiful Christian men, you know. It's just except that Lewis was a real person. Whit is an idealist in a way. So

Jesse Florea: What do you hope listeners, especially kids hearing Whit for the first time, will take away from your portrayal of John Avery Whitaker?

Phil Crowley: Okay. I, um, I really hope that kids will look up to Whit and want to be like him. He's just good, you know. He's everything that you could want in a father or a mentor or a friend. And again, I hope that people will forget me and just see John Avery Whitaker, frankly. That's what I hope.

Bob Smithhauser: Which I think I think would be that's an easy transition, I think, because Phil is a really kind, engaging, and and humble person. And that's what Whit is. And so just Phil being himself would go a long way to making Whit be Whit.

Jesse Florea: Nice. Well, Phil, congratulations from, you know, the Odyssey podcast team. And this is awesome having you on the show. I know we're going to have you back. We didn't even touch on your music so that they don't There's a whole other podcast waiting for that and and so much more from you. But, uh, congratulations and welcome to the role of Whit. We're excited for many, many more years to come.

Phil Crowley: Oh, boy. Thank you very, very much.

Bob Smithhauser: What a great interview and what a great man who's playing a great character.

Jesse Florea: You're not the only one who thinks so. As you heard, the Odyssey cast appreciates Phil, too. He's already recorded almost a dozen episodes alongside our other amazing actors. Let's hear a few thoughts from Katie Lee, voice of Connie, Townsend Coleman, voice of Jason, and Andre Stojka, the man who has been Whit for many years.

Katie Lee: Well, first of all, I just want to welcome Phil Crowley to the Adventures in Odyssey family. I have been fan of his for years. I've seen him in plays that he's done with, uh, Townsend. And he's a really great actor and he has a very good sense of humor and I think the fans are really going to like him.

Bob Smithhauser: I've known Phil Crowley as an esteemed colleague in our voice over community for probably going on 40 years now. I know him not only as a great voice actor, but a great actor on stage as well. I had the great privilege of being in a play with Phil many years ago and saw first hand what a terrific actor he really is. So when I heard that the creative team at Focus was potentially going to be looking for a new voice for Whit, I immediately thought of Phil, mentioned him to them. They brought him into audition and of course, he nailed it as I knew he would.

So now I get the great privilege again of working with my good friend Phil Crowley as my dad on Adventures in Odyssey.

Andre Stojka: I think he's a basically nice person. You know, and I I don't know if you've looked at the uh, television or listened to the track, but no, there are not a lot of roles for nice people to play. Usually, you know, I mean, the everybody's tough and you know, and and violent and and all of that. And, uh, but Phil is a nice guy. He's compassionate and he's a he's a human being and, uh, and I my guess is that he will connect very well with the with the audience.

Bob Smithhauser: We'll hear a lot more from Andre in our next podcast. Don't miss it.

Jesse Florea: You can hear Phil Crowley's first show as Whit on Thursday, November 5th on The Club. Just a few more days, Bob, and it'll be live to club members. On the same day when Ready When You Are comes out, we'll release a video interview with Phil so you get to see the person behind the new voice. If you aren't a club member, you can watch the video on social media.

Bob Smithhauser: That brings us to the end of a pretty significant edition of the official Adventures in Odyssey podcast, a presentation of Focus on the Family. You know, changes like this can take some getting used to. And we're grateful that you've let us share a little of the thought, prayer, and care that went into this one.

Jesse Florea: And whether you've been listening to Whit for a few months or for nearly 40 years, we hope you'll come along for this next chapter. Join the club or find out more about the show at adventuresinodyssey.com. Don't forget there's a free radio episode every day even for non-members.

Bob Smithhauser: And you can always call us at 1-800-A-Family. I'm Bob.

Jesse Florea: And I'm Jesse, reminding you that with God in your life, every day is an adventure.