I am embarrassed to say that my own daughter who is an actress can fool any Brit with her British accents but has lost her own Virginia accent and now a hard tiime doing a southern accent. She was born and raised in Richmond (with a Scottish dad) but-- like many of her generation-- has a more indistinguishable accent. She once asked me to send a tape of my mother when she had an audition for a part that required a southern voice. I couldn't believe that she was having such a hard time getting it back.
On another note, when working with performers I have noticed that British actors can often do a southern accent better than non-southern American actors; and, conversely, southern actors have an easier time with British accents. Interesting.
--
Melinda C. P. Skinner
Writer and Wonderer
-------------- Original message ----------------------
From: Diane Ethridge <[log in to unmask]>
> I think that's wonderful! Can't wait to pass that along to my friend who
> was very insulted at the remark from her speech instructor, lo those many
> years ago. She did get a few acting jobs, in commercials playing a
> Southerner, & on stage, off-Broadway, as "Truvy" in "Steel Magnolias" but
> then came on back to TX to teach school. That's okay though...she had fun!
>
> Diane in TX
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Sunshine49" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Thursday, January 11, 2007 9:19 AM
> Subject: Re: [VA-HIST] Speech Patterns
>
>
> > That explanation is the most ridiculous thing I've [almost] ever
> > heard, and I detect a whiff of that old anti-southern bias. Not one
> > mention of the ethnic or cultural background of southerners as being
> > roots for the way we speak. No, it's hot and we're lazy. Geesh. Do
> > people in the hotter latitudes of, say, India speak slowly? Hawaii?
> > Cairo? My husband once worked with a guy who had worked in Chicago
> > for a time. His boss there really didn't like him, and one day told
> > the guy he spoke slowly because he was southern and all southerners
> > were stupid. The friend said no, southerners speak slowly because
> > they like to think first before they open their mouths, so as not to
> > put their foot in it. The next DAY the boss came in and told the guy
> > he just realized that that statement had been an insult directed at him.
> >
> > Talk about slow.
> >
> > Nancy
> >
> > -------
> > I was never lost, but I was bewildered once for three days.
> >
> > --Daniel Boone
> >
> >
> >
> > On Jan 11, 2007, at 8:44 AM, Diane Ethridge wrote:
> >
> >> I have a good friend, here in TX, who decided to become an
> >> actress, so after college, she left to try her luck in New York
> >> City. After being turned down several times from some small
> >> acting parts, she finally asked her agent what the problem could
> >> be & the agent mentioned not being as "marketable" because of her
> >> Southern accent. Friend enrolled in speech class to try to rid
> >> herself of the regional sound in her speech pattern. The
> >> instructor told her that one can never completely lose a Southern
> >> accent & that it was brought about originally by the warmer climate
> >> making folks less energetic & causing them to adopt a slower pace.
> >> This translated into a habit of speaking more slowly & "chewing" on
> >> their words. That, along with the added habit of also chewing
> >> tobacco brought about the "drawl" & the different "slower" speech
> >> patterns of today's Southern folks.
> >>
> >> Since there are some famous newscasters from TX, such as Walter
> >> Cronkite, Dan Rather & Bob Schieffer to name a few, it apparently
> >> isn't completely impossible to lose the accent but then maybe they
> >> do still have traces of it & I just don't notice it as readily as
> >> someone from other areas of the country might do. Recently I
> >> heard someone on the news pronouncing the word "out" as "oot" & I
> >> immediately thought, "They must be from Virginia." Turns out,
> >> they were from Canada.
> >>
> >> Diane in TX
> >>
> >> To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the
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> >> at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html
> >
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