# What does "Sister Act" mean? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 18, 2008, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088 "2008-09-18T02:37:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/21 "2017-10-05T04:19:52Z")
> [@minlokwat](#): > > **Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit** is an obviously play on ‘habit’ the term used for a nun’s garment but does anyone use the expression “back in the habit”? I once dated a nun, but I gave it up. I couldn’t get \*\*into \*\*the habit. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/22 "2017-10-05T04:21:10Z")
> [@jackodewhackofromwaco](#): > > There was a time when the Marx Brothers were four, ie, Groucho, Harpo, Chico and Zeppo. Five. You forgot Gummo. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/23 "2017-10-05T04:22:23Z")
> [@Don\_Draper](#): > > For the record, the word “sister” has nothing to do with Whoopie being black. It certainly adds a whole other dimension though, doesn’t it? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/24 "2017-10-05T05:35:24Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Five. You forgot Gummo. 🆒 He was more behind the scenes. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/25 "2017-10-05T08:50:42Z")
> [@Don\_Draper](#): > > For the record, the word “sister” has nothing to do with Whoopie being black. In fact, the role was originally written for Bette Midler, but she dropped out. (It was quite a revelation to a lot of people that Whoopie could actually sing.) That’s weird. I recall Whoopi once remarking that her vocal talent was limited to very convincing lip-synching. I can’t find a cite now, but I had heard that her vocals for the film were provided by Carmen Twillie. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/26 "2017-10-05T09:46:17Z")
One great thing about sister acts is, they can harmonize better than just about anyone. The Roches’ signature sound was one of tight, eccentric harmonies. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/27 "2017-10-05T11:08:37Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > He was more behind the scenes. No, Gummo was part of the original act on stage. He quit and Zeppo replaced him. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/28 "2017-10-05T13:28:34Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > Then, of course, you have the [Hilton sisters](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daisy_and_Violet_Hilton) for an additional dose of “unusual”… > [@Wiki](#): > > Daisy died [of the flu, alone in their home] first; Violet died between two and four days later. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/29 "2017-10-05T15:35:49Z")
> [@lissener](#): > > To sum up: “Sister Act” traditionally refers to a group of female singer who are all singers (Andrews, Lemon, Boswell). Everybody else seems to have got your point even with the typo, but it’s driving me mad and I have to correct it: “Sister Act” traditionally refers to a group of female singers who are all **sisters**. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/30 "2017-10-05T16:57:28Z")
And let’s not forget the [Cherry Sisters](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherry_Sisters), a group of vaudeville-era singing sisters who were generally considered to be downright awful. They were so bad that, when a newspaper wrote a scathing review (excerpt: “the mouths of their rancid features opened like caverns and sounds like the wailings of damned souls issued therefrom”) and the sisters sued for libel, they lost after performing their act in court. The appellate court said the review was “fair and reasonable.” ---
**Author:** ![John\_Bredin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@John\_Bredin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Bredin)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/31 "2017-10-05T17:43:32Z")
> [@Max\_Torque](#): > > And let’s not forget the [Cherry Sisters](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherry_Sisters), a group of vaudeville-era singing sisters who were generally considered to be downright awful. They were so bad that, when a newspaper wrote a scathing review (excerpt: “the mouths of their rancid features opened like caverns and sounds like the wailings of damned souls issued therefrom”) and the sisters sued for libel, they lost after performing their act in court. The appellate court said the review was “fair and reasonable.” Headline of a Cherry Sisters review: [FOUR FREAKS FROM IOWA; They Presented a Spectacle More Pitiable than Amusing.](http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9E05EFDE1331E033A25754C1A9679D94679ED7CF&legacy=true) Note that’s a New York Times review, not some proto-New York Post tabloid. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/32 "2017-10-05T18:15:03Z")
Means something _completely_ different to me… ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/33 "2017-10-05T18:23:32Z")
> [@Max\_Torque](#): > > And let’s not forget the [Cherry Sisters](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherry_Sisters), a group of vaudeville-era singing sisters who were generally considered to be downright awful. They were so bad that, when a newspaper wrote a scathing review (excerpt: “the mouths of their rancid features opened like caverns and sounds like the wailings of damned souls issued therefrom”) and the sisters sued for libel, they lost after performing their act in court. The appellate court said the review was “fair and reasonable.” Huh. When I was in high school in Minneapolis (1972–73), I knew a girl whose last name was Cherry. She kind of resembled the sister shown on the right. Iowa being adjacent to Minnesota, I wonder if they were related. :dubious: 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088/34 "2017-10-05T18:29:03Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > Then, of course, you have the [Hilton sisters](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daisy_and_Violet_Hilton) for an additional dose of “unusual”… The subjects of the underrated musical “Side Show!” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-sister-act-mean/464088.md?page=1)