# Non-singer hits? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 12, 2002, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613 "2002-08-12T23:53:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/1 "2002-08-12T23:53:44Z")
here are a number of non-singer celebrities…actors and such…who have charted hits: Vikki Lawrence, Don Johnson, Bruce Willis, Patrick Swayze, etc. Which celebrity had the biggest hit? ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2002, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/2 "2002-08-12T23:56:16Z")
should have said THERE are a few celebrities… of ALL the non singer celebrities, which one had the biggest hit? ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/3 "2002-08-13T00:26:49Z")
Eddie Murphy’s “Party all the time” was a pretty big hit… Or how about “The Superbowl Shuffle” by the 85 Chicago Bears? ---
**Author:** ![WSLer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a6a055/32.png) [@WSLer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WSLer)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/4 "2002-08-13T01:43:58Z")
I think you should replace “celebrities” with “actors”, as that seems much more appropriate. That being said, of the 4 named in the OP, only Vicki Lawrence has a #1 hit, which was **The Night That The Lights Went Out In Georgia**. The other 3 all had Top 10 hits, but only Patrick Swayze wrote/co-wrote his hit, **She’s Like The Wind**. Bruce Willis’s cover of **Respect Yourself** wasn’t quite the worst atrocity to hit radio, **SHATNER, SHATNER, SHATNER!!!** but he comes \*really \* close. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/5 "2002-08-13T02:12:06Z")
I would have to say one of the biggest hits though, would have to be Richard Harris with **MacArther Park**. It was well up there in the top 10 as was Robert Mitchum’s **Thunder Road** in 1958. Walter Brennen’s **The Mule, Old Rivers and Me** was also very big, as was Lorne Greene’s **Ringo**. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/6 "2002-08-13T02:18:55Z")
I would have to say one of the biggest hits though, would have to be Richard Harris with **MacArther Park**. It was well up there in the top 10 as was Robert Mitchum’s **Thunder Road** in 1958. Walter Brennen’s **The Mule, Old Rivers and Me** was also very big, as was Lorne Greene’s **Ringo**. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/7 "2002-08-13T03:11:43Z")
Well… I can think of many actors and actresses who had big hit records. But it’s not as if they were all William Shatners and Leonard Nimoys who had no business singing! And I know of many singers who pursued acting, but they’re no ALL jokes like Mariah Carey. Many actors AND singers have backgrounds in musical theater. So, a celeb who becomes well-known as an actor may use his fame to further musical ambitions he already had. Similarly, someone who becomes famous as a singer may get movie or theater offers, and find them intriguing. - A few actors I can think of who had hit records? David Soul, best known as Ken Hutchinson on “Starsky and Hutch” used his TV fame to get a record contract, and had a #1 hit with “Don’t Give Up On Us, Baby.” Rick Springfield had numerous hit records after starring as Noah Drake on “General Hospital.” But as I noted… Soul and Springfield had musical ambitions before become famous actors. I don’t know that I’d call either a “non-singer.” ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/8 "2002-08-13T03:38:44Z")
I think you’re missing a pretty big one here… Will Smith. Wasn’t he like, an absolute monster music star? And didn’t he have a pretty big hit with “Men in Black” long after being an A-list actor? Anyone want to count Elvis? He made a lot of movies. How about Jennifer Lopez? Madonna? ---
**Author:** ![Horseflesh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horseflesh/32/7502_2.png) [@Horseflesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horseflesh)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/9 "2002-08-13T04:22:07Z")
Uh, the OP said _non-singer_ celebrities. The ones you named were all singers first. Anyhoo, the only one I can think of at the moment not already mentioned is John Schneider of _Dukes of Hazzard_ fame. Can’t name any of his songs as I’m not a C&W fan. Unless we’re counting movie stars who also appear in Broadway musicals. The best example I can think of is Nathan Lane. ---
**Author:** ![Horseflesh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horseflesh/32/7502_2.png) [@Horseflesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horseflesh)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/10 "2002-08-13T04:34:41Z")
Urg. I knew I’d think of some more after I hit Submit. John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd put out an album of the songs from _The Blues Borthers_. I liked some of the songs. John Goodman showed up in the sequel and seems to have some singing talent. Don’t know if he’s actually released anything. Didn’t Robin Williams sing some songs with Bobby McFerrin? Speaking of Robin, are we only counting musical hits? Lots of stand-up comedians have released audio only album versions of their routines. ---
**Author:** ![Invisible\_Chimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f05b48/32.png) [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/11 "2002-08-13T05:18:48Z")
David Hasselhof is really big as a singer in Germany. And I believe Jennifer Love Hewitt had some hit albums in Japan. JLH just released an album in the States. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/12 "2002-08-13T06:02:01Z")
Steve Martin’s “King Tut” ---
**Author:** ![Spanky\_The\_Dolphin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Spanky\_The\_Dolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spanky_The_Dolphin)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2002, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-singer-hits/123613/13 "2002-08-13T07:04:37Z")
What about Leonard Nemoy with “The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins”? I actually like that song quite a bit.