Jerry Nelson the "Mel Blanc" of the muppets?

[Drtooth]

I don't know. I don't know if I'd call him the Mel Blanc of Muppets.... I'd call him the Paul Frees of Muppets (Blanc and Frees are my 2 favorite voice actors of all time, BTW). Here's my reasoning. Blanc did absloutely everyone's voices in the Looney Tune Cartoons. Absolutely everyone. Where as Frees was part of a voice acting quartet in Rocky and Bullwinkle (counting the Narrator). Now Frees only had one main character in R and B, but he played absolutely everyone in the background. I think Jerry is the same.

Jerry only has a couple big Characters on the Muppet show, much more in Sesame Street, and his only true starring role was Gobo in Fraggle rock. But as for background characters.... It's hard to spot one that isn't Jerry. And that's better than being held back by a few major characters. You can really stretch your legs and play as many parts as possible when you do backgrounds.

 

[wwfpooh]

The same "Ghost Host" and "Pirate Narrator" Paul Frees? If so, that's awesome.

 

[SSLFan]

Well, we all know Jim is the father of all Muppetdom, Frank is his right hand man, and Jerry the man of a thousand voices, whilst Steve is the young buck of the bunch.

What about Dave Golez?

 

[wwfpooh]

He'd be the wackiest weirdo amongest them all.

 

[Super Scooter]

Hmm, yeah, Jerry Nelson does A LOT of Muppet voices, but I'm not sure if he's the "Mel Blanc" of Muppets... Mel Blanc was "A Man of a Thousand Voices", and after a while, Jerry's voices all start to sound a little similar, as does Jim's, Frank's, and even Kevin's.

Actually, some people have said Mel Blanc did one voice performed a thousand different ways. I personally think all Mel's voices sound very similar. What's impressive to me is that each one is pretty much their own character.

Here's my reasoning. Blanc did absloutely everyone's voices in the Looney Tune Cartoons. Absolutely everyone.

Er, well, not quite, but close. There were a number of other voice actors who would perform on Looney Tunes as well. And, I do agree with you about Frees and Jerry Nelson. The roles that they play on their respective shows are very similar.

 

[wwfpooh]

Frees and Nelson FTW for the now named "Most Recognizable Background Voice Actor/Performer" award!

 

[bugmenot]

It is well documented that Mel Blanc was a pain in the backside.

Jerry Nelson on the other hand is a marvelous chap.

 

[CensoredAlso]

Actually, some people have said Mel Blanc did one voice performed a thousand different ways. I personally think all Mel's voices sound very similar. What's impressive to me is that each one is pretty much their own character.

Agreed, sometimes it's not that a performer has a ton of voices, but that he/she can play a wide range of personalities.

 

[SarahOnBway]

The whole "vocal flexibility" is an interesting topic. Personally, after listening intently to every Muppety thing I can lay my hands on, it is very easy for me to discern who's doing what voice. Definitely Jerry's got a great amount of vocal talent, but to the Muppet-trained ear, you can tell. My little sister all the time tells me, as we're listening to a random Muppet Show song or watching some minor character, "that sounds like Robin/Gobo" and I know that she can pick out Jerry's voice too, haha. But it's hard, once you know who does what voice to be able to listen to it without thinking about who does it... Does that make any sense? It did in my head.

Personally, what I think Jerry, Richard and Steve have in SPADES is amazing singing talent, moreso than Jim, Frank, Dave, Bill (although Johnny Fiama's pretty awesome)... Jerry, Richard and Steve sing like singers, whereas everyone else (obviously I'm not including Louise Gold, I'm just talking about the main Muppeteers) are more actors who sing... idk.

Everyone has a great amount of vocal variety--I know people who are amazed that Jim Henson did both Dr. Teeth and Rowlf (although I've never met anyone who couldn't tell that he played both Ernie and Kermit hehe), even though we all can hear it instinctively.

BTW, hi everyone! I've been away for MONTHS! IDK if people really noticed, but Ryan did and that made me happy hehe Basically my comp broke and I borrowed one that was old and took FUHEVA to load the forum, so I just couldn't deal, but then THAT ONE broke (neither broke was my fault, btw) and now I've borrowed this lap top from a friend who went away for the weekend. So heyyyy, and I'll be around for two days and then gone until my mom gets me a laptop for Christmas (she spoiled the surprise, not me).

 

[CensoredAlso]

Welcome back, Sarah!

You're right, some actors are very skilled as singers, while others may not be as trained but can still give a grand performance.

The more projects you watch the easier it does become to tell who is who. My friends used to be shocked that I could pick the performers out, but now they're pretty good at it too.