Former Nickelodeon star Kirk Baily has passed away. Per TMZ, the actor, who’s perhaps best known for his role as Kevin “Ug” Lee in the 1990s Nickelodeon show Salute Your Shorts, died over the weekend after a battle with lung cancer. His family says Baily had just been diagnosed six months earlier. He was 59 years old.
Salute Your Shorts spanned two seasons which aired on Nickelodeon from 1991-92, though reruns kept it popular with kids of the era for the next several years. Created by Steve Slavkin and produced by Propaganda Film, the series followed the lives of young campers at the fictional Camp Anawanna. While it only lasted 26 episodes, it was one of Nickelodeon’s highest-rated programs and has since maintained a cult following. On the show, Baily played Kevin “Ug” Lee, a dim-witted camp counselor who served as an antagonist to all of the children.
On-screen, Baily played an antagonist, but behind the scenes, he remained friends with his Salute Your Shorts co-stars. In 2019, he participated in a cast reunion in Hollywood at the Good Burger pop-up shop. Baily stayed busy with other acting gigs as the years went on, but his spot in the Nickelodeon fandom was always special to him, as his excitement is evident in the cast reunion footage.
As an actor, Baily continued working right up until his death. He has appeared in many films including Voodoo Dawn, Houseguest, 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain, and Nobel Son. On the small screen, his other live-action credits include Silk Stalkings, Beverly Hills, 90210, 7th Heaven, Star Trek: Voyager, Felicity, NYPD Blue, and Melrose Place.
Kirk Baily Was a Prolific Voice Actor in Films, TV, and Video Games
Kirk Baily was most prolific as a voice actor, working as a voiceover artist for decades. This includes providing voices to many big-name Disney films like Big Hero 6 and Frozen, as well as other animated features like The Lorax, ParaNorman, Hotel Transylvania, Despicable Me 2, Minions, and The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run. He also voiced Brawn in the Transformers spinoff Bumblebee.
Baily also did a lot of work on animes, from the Mobile Suit Gundam series to Cowboy Bebop, Yukikaze, and From Up on Poppy Hill. His voice can also be heard in a slew of video games. That includes voiceover work for Galerians, Star Trek: Voyager - Elite Force, Kessen II, Shadow Hearts: Covenant, and Condemned 2: Bloodshot.
Fans are paying tribute to Baily online as he played such a big part in the childhood for an entire generation of 90s kids. As one fan writes in a tweet, “Just heard about the passing of Kirk Baily. This is heartbreaking. Great anime voice actor and legendary role on Salute Your Shorts. Thank You for being a part of my childhood. RIP Sir.”
Our thoughts are with Baily’s family and friends at this difficult time. May he rest in peace as his memory lives on. For fans wanting to check out some of his classic work on Nickelodeon as a way of remembering Baily, the series can be found streaming on Paramount+.
