In addition to GeGeGe no Kitarō, he also had prominent roles in Tensai Bakabon (as the first voice of Honkan-san), Mazinger Z (as Mucha), Paul's Miraculous Adventure (as Doppe), Magical Princess Minky Momo (as Sindbook), Akuma-kun (as Youaltepuztli), Dr. Slump & Arale-chan (as Gara and Akira Toriyama), Dragon Quest: Dai no Daibōken (as Brass), and the Persona series (as Igor).

When it came time for the 1980s series the producers decided to go with an all new voice cast, but auditions for Medama Oyaji came up short so Tanonaka was asked to reprise the role yet again.

From there he continued to voice the character in practically every adaptation made during his lifetime, the sole exception being the PlayStation 2 games from the early 2000s, in which the role was given to Kazuo Kumakura, and a single episode of the '71 series where Hiroshi Ōtake filled in for him.

Tanonaka even performed the voice of Medama Oyaji for the live action adaptations, and also appeared on many variety shows and in many commercials as the character.

As Medama Oyaji is actually the reanimated form of Kitarō's deceased father, the character was voiced by Daisuke Gōri when he appeared alive in the first episode.