Harry von Zell (July 11, 1906 - November 21, 1981) was an announcer on radio programs and an actor in films and TV shows.

After his family moved to California, von Zell studied music and drama at UCLA and worked at a variety of different jobs. When friends tricked him into singing on a radio program, he received offers from radio stations, and his radio career began. Auditioning for Paul Whiteman's radio show, he beat out 250 other announcers. When that series came to an end in 1930, he headed for New York and became a CBS staff announcer, working for Fred Allen, Phil Baker, Eddie Cantor, Eddy Duchin and Ed Wynn, and announcing for The March of Time.

As a young announcer, von Zell made a memorable verbal slip when he referred to U.S. President Herbert Hoover as "Hoobert Heever". This Spoonerism was made in 1931, as part of a live tribute on Hoover's birthday. It came at the end of a long reading of Hoover's career, during which von Zell had correctly pronounced the president's name several times. The incident did not occur during a broadcast at Hoover's presidential inauguration, as is often believed: That version was fabricated by Kermit Schaefer for his Pardon My Blooper album.

Von Zell developed into an excellent announcer; he delivered commercials persuasively and displayed a good sense of humor on the air. Radio comedians recognized von Zell's quick wit, and scripted dialogue routines were brightened by his ad-libbed interjections.

Portly, pudding-faced, wavy dark-haired actor/announcer Harry Von Zell, whose well-modulated voice was a standard radio fixture during the 1930s and 40s, also extended his talents toward film and TV where he appeared in numerous comedy outings, often as a straight man foil. Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on July 11, 1906, he attended UCLA and first started on the air waves in 1927 with KMIC as both announcer and singer, eventually moving into national radio, announcing for Bing Crosby among others. Known for his quick and clever ad-libbing, he nevertheless got quite a bit of ribbing and won an honorary award in the Immortal National Hall of Bloopers Fame for referring to President Herbert Hoover once as "Hoobert Heever." Von Zell decorated a number of films, owning a few prime buttoned-down support parts in both comedy, including Strange Affair of Uncle Harry, The (1945), For Heaven's Sake (1950) and Son of Paleface (1952), and dramas, such as Guilt of Janet Ames, The (1947) and Saxon Charm, The (1948). He was also front-and-center in a number of comedy shorts, usually playing himself. The name Harry Von Zell became a household word, while riding on the talented coattails of the husband/wife comedy team of George Burns and Gracie Allen in their classic TV comedy. He played the hesitant, somewhat bewildered friend of the family, also serving as the program's announcer. In addition, he was with CBS in New York for six years and a TV network announcer for the likes of Eddie Cantor, Fred Allen (I) Phil Baker (I), Dinah Shore and Joan Davis (I) over his long career. Following his retirement in the 1970s after some TV work including "Bachelor Father" and "Perry Mason" (he also once wrote and appeared on a "Wagon Train" episode), Van Zell was seen frequently at nostalgic functions. He died of cancer in 1981 at the age of 75 in Los Angeles. He was a posthumous inductee of the National Broadcasters Hall of Fame.