# Mushmouth Actors **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 23, 2007, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194 "2007-09-23T14:16:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e68b1a/32.png) [@Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abby_Emma_Sasha)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/1 "2007-09-23T14:16:38Z")
I love the TV show “Without A Trace”. It’s had some less than stellar seasons but bounced back nicely. The latest cast addition was [Roselyn Sanchez](http://imdb.com/name/nm0761052/), and the woman is sex on wheels. However, I can’t understand a damn thing she says. She’s a mushmouth. She doesn’t enunciate and she strings all her words together. It’s annoying. Last week I saw the Robin Williams movie “Man of the Year”. It was quite good and RW was understated which worked well. Don’t ask me to quote any of Christopher Walken’s lines, though, cause I couldn’t understand a damn thing he said. Say, Chris, you ever work with that Sanchez chick? Okay, I just finished watching “Stranger Than Fiction” after swearing no Will Ferrell movie would ever get past my remote control button. I liked it, i really liked it. Dustin Hoffman, not so much. I couldn’t understand a damn thing he said. Hey Hoff, do you know this Walken guy? I know there are more actors who piss me off when they mumble and slur, but these are the ones that bug me the most. Could they just try enunciating a wee bit? Please? Who else wants to share mushmouth stories? ---
**Author:** ![St\_Ides](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@St\_Ides](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/St_Ides)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/2 "2007-09-23T15:31:18Z")
One name: Bernie Mac. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/3 "2007-09-23T15:36:17Z")
Benecio Del Toro, particularly in _The Usual Suspects_. “Flip ya. Flip ya fer real.” ---
**Author:** ![Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e68b1a/32.png) [@Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abby_Emma_Sasha)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/4 "2007-09-23T15:41:47Z")
I don’t think I’ve ever seen Bernie Mac in anything so I can’t speak of him, but BD Toro, yes. Mushmouth extrodinairre. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/5 "2007-09-23T15:50:25Z")
If someone could post a link to clips of natural (or portrayed-as-natural) speech which counts as “mushmouthed” and also that such speech that doesn’t count as “mushmouthed” I’d be much obliged. -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e68b1a/32.png) [@Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abby_Emma_Sasha)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/6 "2007-09-23T16:19:46Z")
[QUOTE=Frylock] If someone could post a link to clips of natural (or portrayed-as-natural) speech which counts as “mushmouthed” and also that such speech that doesn’t count as “mushmouthed” I’d be much obliged. -FrL- [/QUOTE] I can’t do it **Frylock** because I am on dial up and am not able to view video but perhaps I can give you an oral, err written example. Emma Thompson is a wonderful actress who has an amazing speaking voice. Whether she is playing a Shakespeare heroine or a drug addict her diction is clear and concise. I have never left a movie wondering “What the hell did Emma Thompson say?”. Michael Richards as Kramer. I think everyone has seen at least one Seinfeld episode, and so has seen Cosmo Kramer. He is the epitome of the mush mouthed fast talking moron, but he is _expected_ to be funny. My gripe is with actors who are excellent at their craft but get mumbly because a) they’re bored or b) they get lazy and think we won’t notice because they are so good and we don’t care what they say. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/7 "2007-09-23T16:27:50Z")
[Nadine Velazquez](http://imdb.com/name/nm1229204/) on **My Name is Earl**. Whenever she has an extended monologue, she sounds like she’s talking around a mouthful of spit. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/8 "2007-09-23T16:30:08Z")
Ted Levine. ---
**Author:** ![Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e68b1a/32.png) [@Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abby_Emma_Sasha)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/9 "2007-09-23T16:37:49Z")
[QUOTE=Johnny L.A.] Ted Levine. [/QUOTE] Hmmm. Can you give an example, because I have never had a problem with ol’ Buffalo Bill. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/10 "2007-09-23T16:46:24Z")
[QUOTE=Abby\_Emma\_Sasha] Hmmm. Can you give an example, because I have never had a problem with ol’ Buffalo Bill. [/QUOTE] He has sort of a ‘snuffly-face’, like a sniffing dog. In _From The Earth To The Moon_ he just seemed to me to be ‘snuffling’ his lines. While he did enunciate some lines well in TSOTL, [here’s](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkJkQS5fI_U&mode=related&search=) a loop that has him sounding ‘snuffly’ and not enunciating particularly well. ---
**Author:** ![Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e68b1a/32.png) [@Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abby_Emma_Sasha)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/11 "2007-09-23T16:59:16Z")
[QUOTE=Johnny L.A.] He has sort of a ‘snuffly-face’, like a sniffing dog. In _From The Earth To The Moon_ he just seemed to me to be ‘snuffling’ his lines. While he did enunciate some lines well in TSOTL, [here’s](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkJkQS5fI_U&mode=related&search=) a loop that has him sounding ‘snuffly’ and not enunciating particularly well. [/QUOTE] Okay, this thread is for opinions on actors and I have no call to question them. I apologize. I may love XYZ and someone else may think XYZ is an illiterate moron. I will keep my personal stuff out of it. Folks, post what you dislike about mushmouths and I will not criticize anything. ---
**Author:** ![Gala\_Matrix\_Fire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4da419/32.png) [@Gala\_Matrix\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gala_Matrix_Fire)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/12 "2007-09-23T17:56:12Z")
Don Francisco on _Sábado Gigante_. It’s terrible for people trying to learn Spanish to tune into this three-hour program and not be able to understand a damn word that man it saying. Of course, that’s not \*his \* problem. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/13 "2007-09-23T20:29:44Z")
Danny Glover and Nick Nolte. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/14 "2007-09-23T21:03:29Z")
When young, I never would have nown who Clu Gallagher was, if my mom hadn’t always called him “mushmouth.” ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/15 "2007-09-23T21:13:56Z")
[QUOTE=Abby\_Emma\_Sasha] Dustin Hoffman, not so much. I couldn’t understand a damn thing he said. [/QUOTE] And did you see him in **Dick Tracy**? Appaling! ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/16 "2007-09-23T21:16:21Z")
[QUOTE=bluethree] Don Francisco on _Sábado Gigante_. It’s terrible for people trying to learn Spanish to tune into this three-hour program and not be able to understand a damn word that man it saying. Of course, that’s not \*his \* problem. [/QUOTE] I’ve long suspected that, even if I _could_ understand Spanish, I still wouldn’t know what the hell was going on… ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/17 "2007-09-23T22:37:10Z")
[QUOTE=Big Bad Voodoo Lou] Benecio Del Toro, particularly in _The Usual Suspects_. “Flip ya. Flip ya fer real.” [/QUOTE] That was a character choice; he was \*supposed \*to difficult to understand. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/18 "2007-09-23T23:41:30Z")
The ol’ Godfather himself, Marlon Brando. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/19 "2007-09-24T02:17:10Z")
\*\*Steven Hill **as Adam Schiff on _Law & Order_ \*\* Harry Dean Stanton** as Roman Grant on _Big Love_ d’whatnow? ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194/20 "2007-09-24T02:23:17Z")
Boomhauer 😃 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mushmouth-actors/420194.md?page=2)