How to Imitate Orson Welles by Impressionist Jim Meskimen
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 ก.ย. 2024
- Actor/impressionist and voice artist Jim Meskimen (Parks & Recreation, America's Got Talent, Whose Line) with a short vlog about things to consider when trying to imitate the voice of the great actor/director Orson Welles.
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I'm auditioning to play a young Welles for a feature film, this was incredibly helpful!
Wow, that's great! I think his voice was probably deep from adolescence. What a talent and what a raconteur!
@@jimmeskimen I watched interviews from his early broadcast days, it's not quite so deep but still has that obvious Welles tone. More of a baritone than a bass. This video gave me all the qualities needed to do my best on his voice!
@@bdawk511 was it MANK?
One of the toughest parts of doing Welles was his evolving accent. Whatever accent he developed, he always sounded like someone who tried very hard to sound like he wasn’t really from Wisconsin.
I think that’s where Maurice LaMarche’s Canadian accent might be close enough to build off of to do such an entertaining impression.
I appreciate the depth in explaining the voice!
That's a good observation, Breece. I'm glad you liked my analysis. Mo is a good friend and a true master at the impression.
From one Welles admirer to another, this was fascinating to watch. You are a truly talented fellow 🤝
I had a dream in which I was watching old 1970s footage on TH-cam of Orson Welles being interviewed on a talkshow. It wasn't Dick Cavett, it was someone else. To Welles's right was the previous guest, some Canadian celebrity. Welles was laughing and talking about some legal trouble he'd had with one of his films' financiers. And the Canadian guy -- something about Welles's famous diction just didn't sit right with his Canadian sensibilities about how English should be spoken and he winced every time Welles said the word "lawsuit". After a few incidents like this Welles stops telling his story, turns to the guy and says: "I've seen you do that little gesture with your face several times now, and each time I've let it go -- but now, I'm afraid my curiosity has gotten the better of me, and so I must ask you: what, _exactly,_ is wrong with the way I say the word 'lawsuit'?" His choice of words and diction rang in my head so clearly I think I actually tried to find the clip upon waking.
I don't know that I'll ever be able to do a good Welles voice. I've tried. But my brain can do his voice!
Amazing dream! Sounds like something Orson would say, for sure!
HUGE Welles fan. Bravo. Recover swiftly, Jim.
“And they gave us the coo coo clock good bye Holly “A giant in every sense of the word
Agree! Thanks for watching!
I’m going to a party where I have to introduce a wine so this is helpful
Perfect. Let me know how it goes.
6:50 >> the Welles twinkle. Nicely, nicely done all the way through. Excellent actor you are. Thanks for the show.
Glad you enjoyed that detail. His persona is quite irresistible. I should act like that more often...
@@jimmeskimen lol go for it! And here's to our friend.
Appreciate this academic study for those of us wishing to describe California sparkling wine to friends and family
I hope it will help you in those important moments...
With Maurice La Marche, I've noticed that he made a few changes to Wells' voice for Brain. One thing I've noticed is his voice is lower and even more nasal. He also slows down his speech and emphasises stress in certain syllables eg. "Are you PONdering what I am PONdering". Maybe he's trying for more of a caricature of Wells
I think that may be true, but he can do a very subtle dead-on rendition. I have to concentrate on the parts of the voice I CAN duplicate, lacking what Mo is able to bring to it. Thanks for watching!
Thank you for replying! You have a real talent and I really enjoy your impressions and all the accuracy that you put into them. Keep making more videos like this, please!
"Oh what luck! There's a French FRY stuck in my beard."
Orsen Welles played Unicron in the 86 Transformers movie. His voice made that character what it was, the Satan of Cybertronians and, it was the best and most chilling voice of any Transformers character to this very day. I consider that a perfect reason to learn how to impersonate Welles voice..lol!
His final screen performance, I understand. He was a brilliant performer.
He described his role as Unicron thus: "We play Japanese toys that do horrible things to one another." Clearly not the biggest Transformers fan. But I don't think anyone was in 1986 except for kids.
Very well done. Very subtle. Magnifique!
Awesome! I couldn't stop laughing. I was waiting for you to say Paul Masson.
I so enjoyed this, Jim. Rather informative , with some excellent laugh out loud moments indeed!
Glad you enjoyed it, Don! Killing time in Prague? Hope you are having a great time being King! See you back home.
@@jimmeskimen I was actually working on a mid Atlantic accent and that’s how I came upon your video here. Thanks for your help.😃
Anytime! If you want to jump on a Zoom call, I can coach you sometime, too. Happy to help.
This is absolutely brilliant.
After watching your How To on Robin Williams I have been hooked.
Well done.
That's amazing.
Thank you!
Vocally, just wow!
"... phootonnicch Pat Stewart..."
Very nice! Paul Frees did a great Welles. I've used it for several jobs. You use your eyes and tilt your head just right. You start to look like him. Your Cavett is great too. Great advice.
Thanks very much, Joe! Where are you writing from?
I actually just want to do a Dan Halen impression, so... Orson Welles, yeah.
Very helpful! Thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
Very good!
your voice reminds me of Timothy Dalton. However, Orson Welles voice reminds of Dom DeLuise, especially in Dom's flowery pose in Stargate SG1 as Urgo.
Hmmmm. I'll have to look that one up!
I managed to clone Orson Welles voice and I used it on a couple of videos that I produced. One thing that cloning voices teaches you is that you very much of your own speaking inflections comes through. You have to learn how to inflect like the original person whom you are impersonating. That's why all the old talents like the impersonators we used to see on The Ed Sullivan Show back in the '60s were so effective. Even though they're voice didn't sound exactly like the person they were impersonating they knew how to mimic the inflections of the original speaker.
I'd love to hear that cloned version. Yes, the impressionist can process an artist's persona in a way that machinery can't do, because they are empathetic to the human, physical realities of a character. Even children can be effective mimics, for the same reason.
@@jimmeskimen Sure thing. Here's one clip I did of him telling a joke.
th-cam.com/video/wiLA6PvPXos/w-d-xo.htmlsi=x-tKDqz1e7YdyLzj
In my experience, inflection is so important. I'm not talking about text to speech either--just the way Joe Schmoe speaks using Orson Welles' voice model for instance. It pays to listen to the original speaker and practice their inflections.
Do people with a Mid-atlantic accent have to sail 800 miles east of New York to visit the homeland?
Hmmm... I think you are right! Let me get my Rand McNally...
Thank you for this video. I happen to have the family name Welles and thought it would be interesting to try to sound like Orson Welles, since even just trying to sound like him will likely make me a better speaker. (Also a big fan of Dick Cavett as well, so this video is doubly interesting to me.)
I'm glad! Welles is very well represented on TH-cam, and I like to listen to him all the time. He is so amazingly articulate, and his stories are really beguiling.
Another thing I noticed in his speech is that when he said the word "violence" he kinda went vy-AH-lence where he emphasized the middle syllable. I've never heard anyone say violence like that before but it has been stuck in my head for a while now
Yes, that's very true. His mid-atlantic thing "Britishizes" a lot of his vocabulary, shortening some vowel sounds and lengthening others. Thanks for watching. Were you doing research for a particular project?
@@jimmeskimen No, I've just become a huge fan of his recently. I am not that good at impressions unfortunately. My "best" one is Piccolo from DBZ.
All good tips for Orson. I played Orson in the Streamy nominated web series Everything's OK. I wasn't entirely sure of my delivery when I was working on it up to shooting, so I contacted Maurice La Marche to get his blessing. Now my impression of Orson is officially Maurice La Marche Approved!
www.eokshow.com
Very wild show, man! Good job on that Orson, too!
Is just me or does this guy kinda look like a younger Patrick Stewart?
Interesting. (Just watched “Compulsion” last night).
I’ve got a couple of actors for you. I don’t think I have ever heard any impressions of Roddy McDowall,
Or Andy Devine( one of The worst voices in Hollywood.🙂
Love your impressions 👍‼️
Thanks for watching, Jeff! I need to watch Compulsion, don't think I've ever seen it. The Third Man is just about my favorite Welles role, but he never fails to please in any. Roddy McDowall was an early inspiration as a narrator, I can actually do a pretty good homage. I know Andy Devine, but only superficially, which may be all to the good. I'm so glad you like what I do.
Dude u look like patrick stewart
One other actor you sound like is Darren McGavin.
My God, It's like Welles possesed you...
He's got a very magnetic persona. Unforgettable.
@@jimmeskimen Pinky and Orson Welles could rule the world...
why not call it dulcet tones?
Indeed why not! I should have.
Mr. Welles goes quite RP, more than his usual, from 1:12 in this video: th-cam.com/video/JK7BNKNZ5Gc/w-d-xo.html
Very good example. I love his response too. He's a very bright fellow. I do hope he has come back in some other form by now. Human, I mean, not as an alpaca or a newt or something.
There was a Newt who did some domestic speaking. ;)
Speaking of speaking (well, writing about it, really): I wouldn't mind an instructional video from you on sounding like Dick Cavett.
imply something, not infer something. get to the impersonation.
Well, they are interchangeable, if not 100% proper. And I hope you listened long enough to receive the actual impression.