Tuesday, December 06, 2011

Favorite Actor Voices

Here's my top fifteen favorite male actor speaking voices (because I had a hard time narrowing it down to 15, and 10 was almost impossible). Not singing voices... which is another thing altogether. And not the voices I think are just plain cool... that would be yet another list! Or the voices I love that are just so distinctive and famous you'd know them anywhere.... I love all of those in a different way. (Man, there are so many ways to love and categorize things, aren't there.) This is more the list of voices I'd like just to talk to me over a quiet, candlelit dinner, where I'd be resting my cheek on my hand, sighing and listening and not eating. Perhaps I should just call these the voices I find sexiest? Hm, but it's more than that. We'll just go back to saying "my favorite speaking voices..."

For the most part, there seems to be a commonality here... I appear to like deeper throaty/raspy/purring/gravelly, well-enunciated voices.

1. Oliver Reed - by a landslide!

Everyone else (ranking quite flexible):

2. Aldo Ray
3. Lee Marvin
4. Dana Andrews
5. Yul Brynner
6. Richard Burton
7. Alec Baldwin
8. William Holden
9. Sean Connery
10. Ralph Meeker
11. Malcolm McDowell
12. Vic Morrow
13. James Mason
14. Anthony Hopkins
15. Antonio Banderas

When I got to meet Malcolm McDowell, one of the coolest things ever was just listening to him talk. Yowza, what a marvelous voice! Way better live and in person than out of that box in my living room. I could have stood there all day, just listening. Which makes me wonder how the other actors sounded in person? Mmmmm.

Least favorite male actor voice... Marlon Brando. Cannot cannot cannot stand listening to him. Nails on a chalkboard.

3 comments:

Patti said...

I was so glad to see a post by you!! I've missed you!

You will probably find this funny, but I have absolutely no idea who Oliver Reed is.

I am definitely with you on Dana Andrews, William Holden, and James Mason. Oh, and Marlon Brando too...he's beyond difficult to listen to...like his mouth is filled with oatmeal or something.

I also really like Gregory Peck's voice...and Charlton Heston's.

Not sure who Malcolm McDowell is either, but how cool that you got to meet him. I can for sure believe the voice is better in person than from the TV.

DKoren said...

Yeah, sorry I vanished there. I just get so busy some nights!

Actually, I'm not surprised you don't know who Oliver Reed is. His movies are later than the classics we normally watch, 1960's and on. Same with Malcolm McDowell, who I mostly know from "Time After Time" (1979) and later movies.

I love Gregory Peck and Charlton Heston too! There were so many good voices to choose from! I had such a hard time narrowing it down, and I still left off some favorites.

Patti said...

Thank you for stopping by yesterday and for sharing your thoughts about movies others love but which don't do it for you. You and I definitely have quite a bit in common...even down to our mutual love for William Holden!!

I DO like "River Kwai," but ONLY because Holden's in it. Had it been any other actor, the movie probably wouldn't resonate with me at all. But I understand what you mean...much as I adore Gary Cooper, there are a couple of his films I just can't tolerate (Love in the Afternoon being one of them). And, as we've discussed before, I couldn't make it through "The Wild Bunch," despite having 2 of my loves in that one. (I will try it again one day...maybe!)

So I know what you mean with "River Kwai."

By the way, thanks for informing me that Oliver Reed and Malcolm McDowell are newer actors.