Vocal Impressions on NPR

[Beth]

I don't know if any of you have seen this, but I thought it was worth sharing. NPR has apparently been doing a segment throughout this year called "Vocal Impressions", where they give the names of different people and ask listeners to describe the emotions and sounds that person's voice evokes. I have gotten such a kick out of it! I heard it today on the radio, and then I went back and looked at all the previous segments for the year. The NPR website lists ten or so of the best submissions for each person. Here are a few of my favorites:

Morgan Freeman: A lion gargling with pebbles

Marilyn Monroe: Champagne lava

Truman Capote: An exasperated raven with a tension headache

Jack Nicholson: The bottle that told Alice, "Drink me"

Phyllis Diller: The Vlasic Pickle Stork's girlfriend

Cher: The voice of a middle-age woman on a rollercoaster giving birth

Fred Astaire: A scoop of vanilla ice cream melting and sliding around in a bowl

Rodney Dangerfield: A drunk walrus on a trampoline

Ethel Merman: the sound of the Queen Mary entering Walden Pond (actually a quote from J.D. Salinger)

Roy Orbison: the sound of a prom dress being thrown away

Samuel L. Jackson: Mr. Ed, recast as a rottweiler


I loved this, because my husband and I make a regular game out of identifying celebrity voices in animated movies and commercials. NPR rocks!

[whichwaydidshego, the sage of sass]

Beth! Great post! I completely agree that NPR rocks. I haven't heard this segment, though... I LOVE the idea. I, too, always notice/recognize the voices in commercials and animated features. Once you tune in, it's pretty easy - but fun. I think I'll go read those over again now! They are so sensory, aren't they?

[Shannon, the founder of fun (back from sabbatical)]

Wow Beth that is really cool. I'll have to check out the website.
I too am a big NPR fan. I usually always listen to Morning Edition and All Things Considered everyday.

[Arctic]

Science Friday! gotta love it.

i'm a bit of a NPR fan too. i have a shirt, a calendar, and most recently several of their All Songs Considered cds - great collections.

haven't heard the Vocal Impressions program yet, but it sounds great. :) thanks for pointing it out.

When I went to my local station's website I also noticed a couple of PBS ads: 1) PBS will be airing a two part adaptation of Jane Eyre starting this Sunday and 2) PBS will be airing all of their Jane Austen adaptations in January! I thought it was funny that they were advertised together...heh. I might have to tivo the Jane Eyre production and watch it after I've read the book.

and kind of unrelated, BBC has a great program called In Our Time which may be of interest to some of you. it discusses literature, history, and philosophy.

[Beth]

Yes, I am so excited about the upcoming Masterpiece Theatre season. I will definitely be watching all the new Jane adaptations. And, Gillian Anderson (X-Files) is hosting now.

I love NPR, too, but I don't get to enjoy as much of it as I would like. I used to download a lot of the shows as podcasts, but there just isn't time for everything! I do love "Fresh Air", of course. "Morning Becomes Eclectic" is a great music show. And, "The Treatment" with Elvis Mitchell is an AWESOME 30 minute show, which all of you pop-culture mavens would love. He interviews someone from the movie/TV industry every week, usually someone who has a new movie or TV show out. Elvis does great interviews, wonderfully deep and very insightful. He does come across as a bit of a smarty-pants sometimes, which is why my husband refuses to listen to the show. But, I love it, and I highly recommend it to anyone in this group.

Oh, Terry Gross once interviewed Amy Sherman-Palladino on her show. You can download it for a couple of bucks on audible.com, or you can probably access it through the NPR archives.

[whichwaydidshego, the sage of sass]

I saw the second part of latest Masterpiece Theatre version of Jane Eyre when it was first aired. Even though I hadn't seen the first half, I went and bought it right away (thank God for half.com). It's that good. It is one of the few versions that keeps in much of the part with her cousins, etc. It's of course nothing to the book, but it really is a great companion. The girl who plays Jane is wonderful. The best Rochester of all time is Orson Wells - just enough gruffness and that bit of ogre couple with at charm and wit... effectively demonstrating the intense inner turmoil while still being, well, broodingly hot... he is amazing. Not a very good version, but he was fabulous.

Yup. Big PBS person, too, me. Mystery! is another great show. Two staples in my visual diet (Masterpiece Theatre & Mystery!).

[Beth]

I guess the only "Jane Eyre" I've ever seen is the one with William Hurt. I remember my friends and I mocking him through the whole movie. He's a great actor, but terrible in that. I did like Charlotte Gainsbourgh as Jane Eyre. She is so gorgeous, just one of those faces I can't look away from.

[whichwaydidshego, the sage of sass]

Yeah, that version was annoying. I think Charlotte Gainsbourgh is a good actress, but I never thought her very attractive... which is good for Jane as she wasn't meant to be fabulous in any way - other than character, of course! Ruth Wilson is fantastic in this new version, though. I hope you check it out!

[Amy]

YAY! I'm so happy to be surrounded by fellow NPR and PBS fans! I honestly don't know how I'd survive without Masterpiece Theater and Mystery. I loved the latest Marples (series two is on its way to me thanks to Amazon gift certs for Christmas!), and I swooned again when rewatching Jane Eyre last night. I'm looking forward to the Jane Austen movies so much! Billie Piper! YAY!

Minnesota Public Radio has a great station called the Current. They play anything and everything. From the latest indie hipster bands to ACDC and Billie Holiday to Merle Haggard. Stream it! You won't regret it!