The widely acclaimed ""Voiceover King" is now forever silent. Don LaFontaine, whose strong, deep, assured voice accompanied untold thousands of movie trailers, TV show plugs and commercials, died Sept. 1.

Until he did a TV spot for Geico, LaFontaine's face was virtually unknown; even since then, most people could pass him by in the mall and not realize they were passing greatness.

LaFontaine's famous delivery and his de facto trademark kickoff to so many trailers - "In a world …" was parodied endlessly. Lord knows I have cleared my throat and tried not to squeak as I employed that phrase for some inane reason or another - including reading fat-packed items on a truck stop menu ("In a world where steaks are chicken-fried, one man just wants a salad...).

LaFontaine could raise or lower the timbre of his voice just enough that the delivery perfectly matched the materials, from The Terminator to The Simpsons.

His deepest voices have been compared with the sound of God speaking from a mountaintop. So - maybe when God is busy, He will put Don LaFontaine on the prayer line.