Tweet The first time you heard an actor/actress speak?

I don't know what I expected the first time I heard Charley Chase's voice. As native Baltimorons, we have a very distinctive way of Americanizing or Baltimorizing English. For instance, we pronounce the town of our birth, spelled Baltimore, as "Balmur". The "o" in the word most, doesn't sound like a rounded "oh", but more flattened out like "ouh"in joust. A concrete sidewalk is called a "payment" instead of pavement or "seament" rather than "cement". I will not go on with the other 600 or 700 variations. Now, some years later, as much as I listened to Charley talk, sing, giggle, recite poetry, or use various accents, I have yet to hear any trace of a Baltimore accent. Richard Ward in his book about Roach Studios calls Charley's accent "a southern drawl." I know the Professor, last time I checked, was living in Illinois. If Charley has a drawl, I don't hear it. Maybe I'm too close to that type of accent to hear it. If anyone hears the "southern drawl", please weigh in.

Anyway, Charley Chase had a terrific baritone singing voice. One of his great tools as a comedian was his voice; high and low registers, soft or loud on demand, accents or character voices. I really believe Charley had it all vocally. Hal Roach dodged the sound bullet because all his major players had excellent speaking voices, and could sing when the situation warranted it.
The first time I heard him speak was in "Whispering Whoppee"; I was relieved that his voice sounded so normal and he seemed even more masculine to me. Singing to Thelma Todd in "High C's", was a welcome surprise. Thelma's reaction to his singing was amazing. I thought that if she likes his singing as much as she appears to, she's either one hell of an actress or Charley's number one fan.

Richard Barthelmess' gloomy purr was a big jolt but I like it now.

Somehow I'd forgotten about Barthelmess, I'm pretty sure the only sound film of his I've seen is The Last Flight (which I think is brilliant) and I also think his voice is just what I would expect for him.

To look at the question in reverse, so to speak, I heard John Barrymore's great voice long before I saw him in silent film, but somehow I don't miss his voice because it is so fascinating to just look at his face and feel that I'm watching him thinking.

Myrtle Stedman had a supporting part in Klondike (32) and I liked her voice very much; she should've been put to better use during the 30s.

Thomas Meighan had a slightly gruff baritone that wasn't quite what I expected but it worked well for his character in Peck's Bad Boy (34). He had a wonderful, infectious laugh.

I don't know that Wallace Reid ever made a recording, but Wally Jr. was in a number of talkies. His small part in The Hoosier Schoolmaster (35) revealed a somewhat thin, adolescent voice, though of course that isn't necessarily an indication of how his father sounded.

James Murray spoke like a pretty typical urban wisecracker, which was suitable for most of his characters even if not quite how I imagined John Sims' voice.

Laura La Plante, Pola Negri, Jack Mulhall and many others all sounded just like I thought they would.

-HA

[Mike Gebert]

I'm pretty sure no one expected the Little Tramp to sound like Monsieur Verdoux, but then in 1917, I'm sure he didn't...

Keaton's voice makes him a different character to me. The fleet, ingenious young man of, say, The General is not at all the same character as Elmer the hayseed.

No discussion of "Silent Voices" would be complete without mentioning ... GARBO. It was said that audiences accepted that her voice was exactly as they imagined it. And I quite agree.

I like to imagine myself sitting in the theater at the premier of "ANNA CHRISTIE" and hearing "Geeve me a wheesky, jeenjer ale on the side", for the first time. The deep resonance. The accent. Perfect.

"And don't be stingy, babee".

Danny

Richard Barthelmess' gloomy purr was a big jolt but I like it now.

Actually, that sound is exactly what his reserved, somewhat moody, screen persona suggests to me. What I did not expect to hear was the (almost) counter-tenor warble that flowed from his lips in Weary River, 1929--so jarring it spoiled the picture for me.

Poor Florence Vidor had her voice dubbed in CHINATOWN NIGHTS(1929) by a stage actress reportedly talking like she's speaking from the heavens.

Another archaic talkie to search for (probably in vain), as I adore Flo. But was there not a trace of her native southern (Houston) accent audible in that "voice from the heavens"? Though the speech coaches would have worked hard to purge her voice of it, something of it should have remained, if the voice was her own.

Richard Barthelmess' gloomy purr was a big jolt but I like it now.

Actually, that sound is exactly what his reserved, somewhat moody, screen persona suggests to me. What I did not expect to hear was the (almost) counter-tenor warble that flowed from his lips in Weary River, 1929--so jarring it spoiled the picture for me.

I guess most folks know that Barthelmess' singing in WEARY RIVER was by somebody else. If you want to see a scene that says it all about silent actors in talkies, catch THE FINGER POINTS (1931). Barthelmess has two scenes with Clark Gable. Watching and listening to them is revealing. Gable towers over Barthelmess making him look like a shrimp. Gable's voice cuts into the soundtrack like a knife while Barthlemess' voice floats along it. If you knew nothing about old movies, it's easy to guess which actor is headed for bigger things and which actor is on his way out.

I guess most folks know that Barthelmess' singing in WEARY RIVER was by somebody else. If you want to see a scene that says it all about silent actors in talkies, catch THE FINGER POINTS (1931). Barthelmess has two scenes with Clark Gable. Watching and listening to them is revealing. Gable towers over Barthelmess making him look like a shrimp. Gable's voice cuts into the soundtrack like a knife while Barthlemess' voice floats along it. If you knew nothing about old movies, it's easy to guess which actor is headed for bigger things and which actor is on his way out.

Something similar happens in The Cabin in the Cotton (1932). Barthelmess is too old for his role, and comes off as rather pallid and uninteresting, but then Bette Davis shows up and things get interesting immediately. Everyone remembers her famous line from this film ("I'd like to kiss you, but I just washed my hair"), in fact that may be the only reason anyone remembers the film at all, but who recalls any lines Barthelmess delivered, in this or in any of his talkies?

I guess most folks know that Barthelmess' singing in WEARY RIVER was by somebody else. If you want to see a scene that says it all about silent actors in talkies, catch THE FINGER POINTS (1931). Barthelmess has two scenes with Clark Gable. Watching and listening to them is revealing. Gable towers over Barthelmess making him look like a shrimp. Gable's voice cuts into the soundtrack like a knife while Barthlemess' voice floats along it. If you knew nothing about old movies, it's easy to guess which actor is headed for bigger things and which actor is on his way out.

I had the same thoughts while watching The Finger Points, but I honestly don't remember the voices. All I thought was "Gable is blowing Barthelmess off the screen." I can't remember when I've seen a more vivid example of a pivotal moment in film history.

who recalls any lines Barthelmess delivered, in this or in any of his talkies?

I don't, but memorable lines are more often a tribute to the writer, it's fair to say, than to the speaker; it was Bette's good luck to be handed the marvelous line quoted above. "Rather pallid" is a pretty apt characterization of Barthelmess, but for roles of a man beaten down by time & circumstance (Last Flight, Heroes, Only Angels), the vitality of a Clark Gable persona would be out of place.

There must, however, have been more to Barthelmess than pallor, because he & his wife were among the closest friends of one of the gayest, most exuberant & free-wheeling personalities in Hollywood--Kay Francis.

who recalls any lines Barthelmess delivered, in this or in any of his talkies?

I don't, but memorable lines are more often a tribute to the writer, it's fair to say, than to the speaker; it was Bette's good luck to be handed the marvelous line quoted above.

Oh, I disagree with that. You can write the best dialogue in the world, and a bad line reading by an actor will ruin it. Conversely there are actors who can take bad dialogue and make it sing. Bette was in the latter camp, as far as I'm concerned, and what she could do with a good line has rarely been topped. The lines she's best remembered for ("Fasten your seatbelt...") are memorable because of the way she delivered them.

Gee, i just saw Klondike, too. An interesting picture with a lot of silent vets in it, all of whom acquitted themselves well. Even if the plot is fantastically improbable.

A surprise for me was Tom Moore, who i had found quite unappealing in silents. In Side Street i found him to be a real Irish charmer. Similarly, i had always disliked Conway Tearle in silents, until i discovered he has one of the loveliest voices among the silent film folk. So here's a case where after hearing actors in talkies i developed a fondness for them even in their silent films that hadn't been there before.

Nobody's brought up Vilma Banky yet. Her voice is startling in A Lady to Love, though you eventually get used to it. She is well cast in that film as a working class immigrant, but the voice would have definitely clashed with her romantic silent film roles.

greta

Henry Walthall's voice suited him, so warm and elegant. Hobart Bosworth also had a rich speaking voice, and both should, since they had spent so much time on the stage.

some famous stage stars from the Victorian and Edwardian eras who availed their voices to us in the 30s:
*Tyrone Power, Sr. - THE BIG TRAIL(sadly his only talkie but what a voice)
*Henrietta Crosman - THE ROYAL FAMILY OF BROADWAY(1930)
*Mrs. Pat Campbell(aka Stella Beatrice Tanner) - RIPTIDE(1934)
*Mrs. Leslie Carter - ROCKY MOUNTAIN MYSTERY(uploaded under it's alternate title ?? on Youtube) with Randolph Scott(1935)
**....Mrs. Carter said to be in BECKY SHARP 1935 but I didn't recognize her
*Charles Richman - BECKY SHARP(1935)
*William Faversham - BECKY SHARP(1935)

Test sound footage filmed by David Selznick of two great ladies of Broadway:
*Maude Adams - (1938 test for THE YOUNG IN HEART)
*Laurette Taylor - (1938 test for I believe the same part as Adams)

I thought Vilma's voice was beautiful. It had a better accented tinge than Garbo's or I. Bergman's. It didn't approach the stereotypical Hungarian voice like ZsaZsa & Eva Gabor or even similar sounding Greek voice like today's Arianna Huffington. But a shame she didn't make more sound pictures even just for good principle. Would have been nice if Vilma did like Betty Blythe did in the 60s return for a classic role in a classic film or something.

Similarly, i had always disliked Conway Tearle in silents, until i discovered he has one of the loveliest voices among the silent film folk.

Indeed he does, & his screen persona doesn't differ drastically from that of Barthelmess--"rather pallid." But that's not bad, in suitable roles, such as favorite of mine, The Truth About Youth, 1930, (a "dated curio," Maltin would say), which features a memorable line of its own spoken by Myrna Loy as she observes Loretta Young's firmly-packed bosom: "you have two dangerous curves of your own."

Oh, I disagree with that. You can write the best dialogue in the world, and a bad line reading by an actor will ruin it. Conversely there are actors who can take bad dialogue and make it sing. Bette was in the latter camp, as far as I'm concerned, and what she could do with a good line has rarely been topped. The lines she's best remembered for ("Fasten your seatbelt...") are memorable because of the way she delivered them.

Of course that's true--spoken by another, the above line might well have fallen flat, or merely sounded stupid. But whereas colorless, mundane lines like "Fasten your seatbelt..." or "What a dump..." live or die as they're delivered, whoever wrote "I'd love to kiss you..." deserves, for his bizarre originality, at least half the credit for the line's impact.

Norman Kerry. He speaks his lines with such a debonair accent that I'm surprised his career didn't continue in talkies.

Buster Keaton. Didn't expect the foghorn baritone.

Having grown up on Keaton's TV and movie work from the 1960's I was more surprised when I heard how differently his voice sounded in his earliest talkies, while still a young man. In 1930 his voice wasn't quite that deep yet, it was more reedy in tone. Between the hard drinking, smoking Moguls and whatnot, all conspired to take a toll on his voice over the next 30 years...

Harpo Marx. From what little snippets I found on youTube, he had a very pleasant voice, but it's way too normal sounding for the character he played. I'm glad he never spoke in their films.

lillian gish, the first thing that came into my mind was glenda the good witch (AKA billie burke) not really what i expected but i still loved it it suites her

marion davies - her voice is just like i imagined it would be.

yeah im not a fan of charles farrells voice. as for gaynor, i liked her voice when she wasent doing that odd irish accent (delicious, which was sadly the first talkie of hers i saw).

after the stories i read about john gilbert i was pleasently surprised with his voice, it matched him.

pola negri - i liked her voice, although her accent was a bit heavy, i feel the same about garbo but unlike pola garbo's accent added to her talent.

marion davies - her voice is just like i imagined it would be.

Same here, I only recently saw a few of her talkies thanks to TCM running a slate of them on her birthday, and they came as a pleasant surprise. It's a shame they're not better films, but there are moments to enjoy, especially in Not So Dumb
, which has a few nice supporting turns from Franklin Pangborn (as a screenwriter whose upcoming picture "Sin" is clearly a goofy riff on Intolerance) and Raymond Hackett as Davies' wisecracking younger brother (Hackett is certainly appealing, and most handsome, I wonder why he retired from films a year later?).

Nothing prepared me for Davies dropping the N-word in an offhand comment in Not So Dumb though.

Poor John Gilbert... his famous "I love you, I love you, I love you..." resulted in a career destroyed.
He was so good in 'The Big Parade', did they ever put him in anymore of these types of roles? other than the stereotypical romance leads he's famous for.

marion davies - her voice is just like i imagined it would be.

Same here, I only recently saw a few of her talkies thanks to TCM running a slate of them on her birthday, and they came as a pleasant surprise. It's a shame they're not better films

Better than Marianne--I couldn't stand it! Or Going Hollywood, or Blondie of the Follies. I'll come out of the woodpile to say I prefer (with the exception of Show People) her talkies, because she DID have such a delightful, expressive voice, especially when she exploited that extrordinary gift for dialect, as in Peg O' My Heart--faultless Irish, as far as I could tell. Frankly, I don't see how there can be any doubt that her career was enhanced by sound.

Better than Marianne--I couldn't stand it! Or Going Hollywood, or Blondie of the Follies. I'll come out of the woodpile to say I prefer (with the exception of Show People) her talkies, because she DID have such a delightful, expressive voice, especially when she exploited that extrordinary gift for dialect, as in Peg O' My Heart--faultless Irish, as far as I could tell. Frankly, I don't see how there can be any doubt that her career was enhanced by sound.

A particularly interesting example, given that she had a bad stutter in real life which disappeared when she was acting. I've never heard a recording of Marion speaking candidly, and I don't suppose one exists, probably for that reason.

I was surprised the first time I heard George O'Brien's voice. He sounded like a New England native, but he was from San Francisco, and as a native Californian it didn't make sense to me. I've come to learn he had a San Francisco Irish accent that has pretty much disappeared now.

James Murray did sound a bit like a New Yorker, but his voice was a little deeper than I originally thought.

Harrold Lloyd's voice was a bit of a shock.

I liked Buster Keaton's voice. Seriously. Nice and deep.

Never expected anything in particular from Charlie Chaplin, but his voice was quite nice. I found it a bit soothing.

I was slightly shocked the first time I heard Harry Langdon speak, not so much because his voice didn't suit him, but simply because I couldn't imagine ANY voice coming out of his "Elf character"...it works in a few films where he only speaks when necessary, but when Langdon is required to do more dialogue than pantomime, he's deprived of his mystique and unique potential, in my opinion.

Langdon's voice seems more appropriate to his later horn rim glasses character, as in MISBEHAVING HUSBANDS.

Many of the silent stars I saw for the first time in talkies (Janet Gaynor, Gloria Swanson, Mae Murray, Corinne Griffith, Charley Chase, etc) or saw them being interviewed on television (Lillian Gish) so it was not at "so that's how they sound" thing for me. The few silent stars I saw first in silents like Chaplin and Fairbanks, it never made much of an impression on me one way or another when I finally heard them.