JaGSQ
07-11-2001, 11:59 PM
I've got an idea for a website. We all hate how WB's been treating the voices of our fav characters since Mel died (As well as countless other studios with their reworkings.), so I say there should be a webpage devoted to recreating the voices the way they were meant to be. Once I get some work done on my Lost Animation Archive, I'll have a page where we cartoon fans can post our voice characterizations. I think I'll have to have the sounds in Real Audio format to save space, but we might get something going. Get some coaching going on and maybe we'll have some better people to get the job done.
As for me, I can do a range of characters acurately, and some still need some fine-tuning. I can do the following dead-on:
Beavis, Tom Anderson, (Better known as Hank Hill) McVicker, Mojo Jojo, Him, (Also known as The Gromble from AA!! Real Monsters!) Ed Bighead (Also known as the Red Guy and Prof. Monkey For A Head. Charlie Adler does basically the same voice for all 4 of these plus several more, but one the first 2 are very head-voicey.) Spunky, (From Rocko's Modern Life) both Chameleon Brothers, (Which were actually two different guys.) Dr. Nick, Snake, Smithers, Mr. Burns, Jasper, (Grandpa's old bearded friend in the retirement home) Itchy and Scratchy, Scooby Doo (Yes, it's not as high as all the other's who've done it, plus I can nail the laugh.) Timmy, (Southpark) Mr. Hanky The Christmas Poo, Barney Rubble, The Abominable Snowman, Armstrong/Fats Waller (That old stereotypical voice, also used as the Owl on Sesame Street. They say the cat in Tin Pan Alley Cats is supposed to be like Fats Waller, but he sounds like Armstrong singing What A Wonderful World.) plus several I'm probably forgetting.
Some I still need to perfect:
Cow and Chicken, (I've come close. Since I can do the Red Guy I've tried to make the voice nosey with only some success.) Courage The Cowardly Dog (I can actually do this voice rather well, I just want to perfect my screams. If you can talk and scream and still sound like the character, you've got it down.) Marvin Martian, (It's just hard to keep it from turning into Dr. Nick's voice.) Barnyard Dawg, (One of my favs, still have trouble getting it past a grunt.) Bugs Bunny, (I can get some elements like a laugh here and there, but I'm off on the pitch.) Daffy Duck, (Mine sounds like Beavis impersonating Daffy, but that's because my real voice is really close to Beavis's like Mel's was close to Sylvester.) Sylvester, (Daffy unsped up. Same trouble.) Taz, (Just have to finalize some screams.) Porky Pig, (The sped-up Sad Sack voice. I have trouble matching the pitch.) Elmer Fudd, (Right now I'm doing the post-Arthur Q Fudd. Remember the Mountain Lion episode? I believe Butler was the one who did it. I can do some of the regular Elmer's screams, though, so I know I'm on the right track.) and several others.
Really, if you listen, Mel was pretty true to his word when he said he said he didn't like the natural voice to bleed through. Most of the characters sound totally independent of each other. But if you listen to his later work, like the slow-paced Chuck Jones films made after the studio originally shut down, (Most notably the second Duck Dodgers.) you'll notice Mel has one tone that seems to carry through out all the characters, especially an aged Bugs.
Personally, I'd rather have Mel than anything, but we all know that's not really possible besides the computer databased Mel they have going now. As for Noel, Mel really wanted him to keep the characters alive, (I remember reading the part in his autobiography where he said Bugs and Porky saved his life and getting chills.) but that's not likely to happen for more than commercials and a few extras in movies. I heard he had a much lower voice than his dad, which could have been a reason the WB didn't want him, but that's up for debate. I just think it's a waste not to let him do it, myself.
As for post-Mel, I think Jeff Bergman has been the most accurate in doing all the characters correctly. I know some have said he's a jerk who billed himself as the next Mel, but he is pretty good. Just check out his site, JeffBergman.com (Or was there a hyphen?) Anyway, Alasky's rather skilled, too. Didn't he also do Plucky? I remember thinking the Plucky voice sounded the same as the Daffy used on the Bugs & Daffy Show. One thing I always wondered, why do they always cast two guys to play Sylvester and Daffy? If they're really budget-minded, it'd be better to just use the same guy, plus it'd sound more continuous throughout.
One last comment: I happen to like Billy West. He's talented. As Bugs, he at least does it with a flow that a bunch of voice actors can't because they're affraid their own voice will sneak in. It all goes back to his Stimpy voice, though, which is based on Larry of the 3 Stooges. He did the voice of Larry in a Penn and Teller sketch and it made me think, "Who would base any voice on Larry Fine? And how did he get so accurate with that?" Though his Bugs does leave something to be desired, his Fudd is right on. What isn't on, though, is his Scooby. (He did Scoob for awhile, didn't he?) Adler's is about the same, really. They're both too high. But at least Adler does a decent Shaggy. And could someone explain why Casey Casem isn't Shaggy anymore? Does he refuse to do it since Messick died or something?
Well, that's enough rambling for now. Please post some comments. I'm gonna start work on the page soon, hopefully. Later
As for me, I can do a range of characters acurately, and some still need some fine-tuning. I can do the following dead-on:
Beavis, Tom Anderson, (Better known as Hank Hill) McVicker, Mojo Jojo, Him, (Also known as The Gromble from AA!! Real Monsters!) Ed Bighead (Also known as the Red Guy and Prof. Monkey For A Head. Charlie Adler does basically the same voice for all 4 of these plus several more, but one the first 2 are very head-voicey.) Spunky, (From Rocko's Modern Life) both Chameleon Brothers, (Which were actually two different guys.) Dr. Nick, Snake, Smithers, Mr. Burns, Jasper, (Grandpa's old bearded friend in the retirement home) Itchy and Scratchy, Scooby Doo (Yes, it's not as high as all the other's who've done it, plus I can nail the laugh.) Timmy, (Southpark) Mr. Hanky The Christmas Poo, Barney Rubble, The Abominable Snowman, Armstrong/Fats Waller (That old stereotypical voice, also used as the Owl on Sesame Street. They say the cat in Tin Pan Alley Cats is supposed to be like Fats Waller, but he sounds like Armstrong singing What A Wonderful World.) plus several I'm probably forgetting.
Some I still need to perfect:
Cow and Chicken, (I've come close. Since I can do the Red Guy I've tried to make the voice nosey with only some success.) Courage The Cowardly Dog (I can actually do this voice rather well, I just want to perfect my screams. If you can talk and scream and still sound like the character, you've got it down.) Marvin Martian, (It's just hard to keep it from turning into Dr. Nick's voice.) Barnyard Dawg, (One of my favs, still have trouble getting it past a grunt.) Bugs Bunny, (I can get some elements like a laugh here and there, but I'm off on the pitch.) Daffy Duck, (Mine sounds like Beavis impersonating Daffy, but that's because my real voice is really close to Beavis's like Mel's was close to Sylvester.) Sylvester, (Daffy unsped up. Same trouble.) Taz, (Just have to finalize some screams.) Porky Pig, (The sped-up Sad Sack voice. I have trouble matching the pitch.) Elmer Fudd, (Right now I'm doing the post-Arthur Q Fudd. Remember the Mountain Lion episode? I believe Butler was the one who did it. I can do some of the regular Elmer's screams, though, so I know I'm on the right track.) and several others.
Really, if you listen, Mel was pretty true to his word when he said he said he didn't like the natural voice to bleed through. Most of the characters sound totally independent of each other. But if you listen to his later work, like the slow-paced Chuck Jones films made after the studio originally shut down, (Most notably the second Duck Dodgers.) you'll notice Mel has one tone that seems to carry through out all the characters, especially an aged Bugs.
Personally, I'd rather have Mel than anything, but we all know that's not really possible besides the computer databased Mel they have going now. As for Noel, Mel really wanted him to keep the characters alive, (I remember reading the part in his autobiography where he said Bugs and Porky saved his life and getting chills.) but that's not likely to happen for more than commercials and a few extras in movies. I heard he had a much lower voice than his dad, which could have been a reason the WB didn't want him, but that's up for debate. I just think it's a waste not to let him do it, myself.
As for post-Mel, I think Jeff Bergman has been the most accurate in doing all the characters correctly. I know some have said he's a jerk who billed himself as the next Mel, but he is pretty good. Just check out his site, JeffBergman.com (Or was there a hyphen?) Anyway, Alasky's rather skilled, too. Didn't he also do Plucky? I remember thinking the Plucky voice sounded the same as the Daffy used on the Bugs & Daffy Show. One thing I always wondered, why do they always cast two guys to play Sylvester and Daffy? If they're really budget-minded, it'd be better to just use the same guy, plus it'd sound more continuous throughout.
One last comment: I happen to like Billy West. He's talented. As Bugs, he at least does it with a flow that a bunch of voice actors can't because they're affraid their own voice will sneak in. It all goes back to his Stimpy voice, though, which is based on Larry of the 3 Stooges. He did the voice of Larry in a Penn and Teller sketch and it made me think, "Who would base any voice on Larry Fine? And how did he get so accurate with that?" Though his Bugs does leave something to be desired, his Fudd is right on. What isn't on, though, is his Scooby. (He did Scoob for awhile, didn't he?) Adler's is about the same, really. They're both too high. But at least Adler does a decent Shaggy. And could someone explain why Casey Casem isn't Shaggy anymore? Does he refuse to do it since Messick died or something?
Well, that's enough rambling for now. Please post some comments. I'm gonna start work on the page soon, hopefully. Later