Uncle Pom

Uncle Pom is an old coal miner in Laputa: Castle in the Sky. He was voiced by Fujio Tokita in Japanese, Edward Mannix in the Streamline English dub and Richard Dysart in the Disney English dub.

Appearance
Uncle Pom is a stocky elderly man with wild white hair and a bushy mustache and beard. He wears a cap, a worn and patched coat, and a knapsack. Uncle Pom also carries lots of supplies for life in the mine, such as a bedroll, canteen, and lantern.

Role in the Film
Uncle Pom is usually found in the deeper parts of mines and rarely ever goes above ground. He is a kind old man that the townspeople call Uncle Pom, because he looks out for everyone. He is especially fond of Pazu.

When Sheeta and Pazu become lost in the mines, Uncle Pom helps them find their way out. While they are resting deep in the mine, Uncle Pom tells the children that he talks and listens to the rocks. When they don't understand, Uncle Pom puts out the fire and lantern light, and the rocks begin to glow. Uncle Pom explains that the rocks contain traces of the element volucite/aetherium, which makes them glow. He says that the technology to mine the volucite has been lost. Sheeta recognizes the glow as being similar to that of her crystal necklace, and she shows it to Uncle Pom. He recognizes it as a pure volucite crystal, but then asks Sheeta to put it away because its voice is too loud for him to bear. Uncle Pom eventually leads the children out of the mine and wishes them well.