Question about Jerry's voice for Biff

[SkyeFan]

I always liked the voice Jerry Nelson gave to Biff the Construction Worker. He gives him a real thick Brooklyn-based accent to resemble a typical New York-bred blue collar worker you'd find either at a construction site or else paving a city street. I'm just curious about one thing - did Jerry by any chance base Biff's voice off of Leo Gorcey's. If anyone's familiar with the "Bowery Boys" film series, you'll know who I'm talking about. It's a series of B-Movies from the 1940s and 1950s. It stars the Bowery Boys, a group of young mischievous, city dwelling fellows who were first seen in a handful of Warner Bros. crime dramas of the late 1930s such as "ANGELS WITH DIRTY FACES" with James Cagney. Leo Gorcey is the leader of the group, and when I first heard his voice I immediately thought of Biff on "Sesame Street". These movies are aired Saturday mornings on Turner Classic Movies (for anyone who gets that channel) around 10 am, so you can get a chance to see what I mean.

 

[MuppetSpot]

I always liked the voice Jerry Nelson gave to Biff the Construction Worker. He gives him a real thick Brooklyn-based accent to resemble a typical New York-bred blue collar worker you'd find either at a construction site or else paving a city street. I'm just curious about one thing - did Jerry by any chance base Biff's voice off of Leo Gorcey's. If anyone's familiar with the "Bowery Boys" film series, you'll know who I'm talking about. It's a series of B-Movies from the 1940s and 1950s. It stars the Bowery Boys, a group of young mischievous, city dwelling fellows who were first seen in a handful of Warner Bros. crime dramas of the late 1930s such as "ANGELS WITH DIRTY FACES" with James Cagney. Leo Gorcey is the leader of the group, and when I first heard his voice I immediately thought of Biff on "Sesame Street". These movies are aired Saturday mornings on Turner Classic Movies (for anyone who gets that channel) around 10 am, so you can get a chance to see what I mean.

I heard from an interview with Jerry that Biff was based off of comedian Jack Burns.

 

[SkyeFan]

Hmmm...didn't know that. I know Jerry had used that same voice on the show before Biff came along. There was Tough Eddie in the one sketch with Bert and Ernie at the beach, and the movie usher who throws Bert out of the theater when Ernie's making loud noises with his snacks. I think those voices sound more like Leo Gorcey of the Bowery Boys movies more so than Biff.