Some fun facts about Don LaFontaine

Q: Where in the world did "In a world" come from?

A: The phrase sprung from the early days of movie trailers, LaFontaine says. "(W)e are taking people ... and we are literally about to transport them into a different dimension, a different world entirely. So we have to very rapidly establish the world we are transporting them to, and that's very easily done by saying, 'In a world where ... violence rules.' 'In a world where ... men are slaves and women are the conquerors.' You very rapidly set the scene."

Q: Some voice-over artists avoid onions or milk because they irritate and affect the quality of their voice. Any special protective measures for LaFontaine's voice?

A: "I protect it by not abusing it. I try to avoid black coffee too much, because it'll put some stuff on your throat. I've never been all that fussy about it."

Q: Does he rehearse before a read?

A: "The script tells me how it wants to be read. I rarely read them at all before I go into the studio. I like to bring as much freshness and honesty and veracity to it the first time around, and usually the first couple of reads are the best reads. I find that the more you read something, the more of the honesty is leeched slowly out it."

Q: What does he do when he's not working?

A: LaFontaine's hobby is cutting video, including a piece featuring Clay Aiken, Ben Vereen and other stars for the sweet 16 birthday party of his daughter, Skye. "I'm a family guy," LaFontaine says. "My wife is here a lot. (Nita Whitaker, a professional singer.) My kids are here a lot. (Besides Skye, 12-year-old Lisi and Christine, 37, who lives in Florida.) My days are full."

Q: Does "The Voice" have a favorite movie trailer?

A: "'The Elephant Man' (released in 1980) is certainly one of my top five trailers. It is, by far, the most unusual also. I wrote the script for the trailer based upon the feature script, and it was approved by the film's producer, Jonathan Sanger, before a foot of film was shot. We made one cut of the trailer. No revisions. It went directly to finish.

"It had to be the most inexpensive trailer ever produced for a major motion picture. We needed John Hurt to re-voice one line — 'I am not an animal' — for the trailer, and when he saw it, he wept. A memorable moment in my career."