Takeshi Watabe was a veteran Japanese actor and voice actor born on March 21, 1936, in Kochi Prefecture. He passed away on December 13, 2010, at the age of 74. Watabe began his entertainment career in the 1950s, active even before the voice acting profession became fully established in Japan. He was affiliated with Tokyo Actor's Consumer's Cooperative Society before his final agency, 81 Produce.

Watabe was known for his powerful, deep voice, which made him a frequent choice for villainous roles and stern authority figures in both anime and tokusatsu productions. However, his range also extended to portraying kind-hearted middle-aged and elderly men. In tokusatsu, he provided voices for numerous monsters and villains, notably in long-running franchises like Super Sentai and Kamen Rider. He also worked as a dialect coach for the 1980 NHK drama "Lion no Jidai," utilizing his native Tosa dialect.

His extensive anime filmography spanned over five decades and included many prominent roles. Among the roles cited, he voiced the Earl of Dorincourt in the 1988 anime series Little Lord Fauntleroy. He played Admiral Gresco in Aoki Ryūsei SPT Layzner. In the FireStorm anime from 2003, he voiced Drew MacCallister. He was the voice of Poseidon Elder in the classic 1972 series Umi no Triton. He played Gigano Dragon in Dinozaurs: The Series. He voiced Fudo no Ryoma in Wrath of the Ninja - The Yotoden Movie. He took on the role of Obitaki in the 2007 Lupin III special Elusiveness of the Fog. In Gunparade Orchestra, he voiced Touji Kazama. He played Gray in Future GPX Cyber Formula Sin. He was the voice of Tokuzo Sugiyama in the OVA Riki-Oh: Tōkatsu Jigoku. He appeared in Shinshaku Sengoku Eiyū Densetsu - Sanada Jū Yūshi The Animation as Cheongju-jiju Masanori Fukushima. He voiced Tenkai in the OVA Sword for Truth. One of his earliest roles was as Adjutant in the 1969 anime Kaitei Daisensō - Ai no 20,000 Miles. Other significant and long-running roles included the second voice of Kaminari-san (God Thunder) in Doraemon, Inspector Takao Arizuka in You're Under Arrest, Gamabunta in Naruto and Naruto Shippuden, and roles in several Gundam series, such as John Kowen in Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory.

In recognition of his long-standing contributions to the industry, Watabe was posthumously awarded the Special Achievement Award at the 6th Seiyu Awards in 2012.