# What's up with Kathleen Turner's Voice? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 1, 2006, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-kathleen-turners-voice/366864 "2006-08-01T12:13:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-kathleen-turners-voice/366864/1 "2006-08-01T12:13:15Z")
Kathleen Turner has always been known for having a husky voice, bt of late she’s _really_ husky. I heard her on Law and Order a while back, and was surprised at how different it sounded. We just saw **Monster House** this past weekend, and I wouldn’t have guessed that was her as Constance. Her voice has really changed from sexy huskiness to downright raspy. She seems to be choosing roles that fit that voice. Has she had some sort of illness or operation that accounts for this? I don’t follow entertainment news, so if something was reported I didn’t hear it. Her iMDB entry doesn’t say anything about it. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-kathleen-turners-voice/366864/2 "2006-08-01T14:00:22Z")
Years and years of cigarettes? ---
**Author:** ![ddgryphon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8c91f0/32.png) [@ddgryphon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ddgryphon)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-kathleen-turners-voice/366864/3 "2006-08-01T14:40:55Z")
And drinking. She now sounds like your Aunt Illyanna, the irresponsible, chain smoking alcoholic that Mom never like to talk about, but in her day was every middle school boys favorite aunt. ---
**Author:** ![ddgryphon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8c91f0/32.png) [@ddgryphon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ddgryphon)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-kathleen-turners-voice/366864/4 "2006-08-01T14:42:43Z")
And drinking. She now sounds like your Aunt Illyanna, the irresponsible, chain smoking alcoholic that Mom never liked to talk about, but in her day was every middle school boys favorite aunt. ---
**Author:** ![ddgryphon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8c91f0/32.png) [@ddgryphon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ddgryphon)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-kathleen-turners-voice/366864/5 "2006-08-01T14:43:48Z")
Sorry for the double post – Skip if you’d delete the first one with the typo, I’d appreciate it… Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-kathleen-turners-voice/366864/6 "2006-08-01T14:49:38Z")
I will say that casting her as the often mentioned but never previously seen Chandler Bing’s transsexual father was a stroke of casting genius. Monica: That can’t be your father! Chandler: I’ve been telling myself that for years! ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-kathleen-turners-voice/366864/7 "2006-08-01T14:55:38Z")
IANAD, much less Kathleen Turner’s doctor, but that sound is often an indication of nodules, cysts or polyps on the vocal folds (which can be caused by or aggravated by alcohol and smoking). I assume, since it’s been like that for so long and she undoubtedly has access to good medical care, that it’s not a life threatening condition, if indeed that’s what it is. Or whiskey. Could be whiskey. ---
**Author:** ![Annie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/858c86/32.png) [@Annie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-kathleen-turners-voice/366864/8 "2006-08-01T16:26:32Z")
She developed Rheumatoid Arthritis in 1993. The drugs she took for it probably raised a fair bit of hell on her voice. [Guardian](http://film.guardian.co.uk/interview/interviewpages/0,,1688231,00.html) ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-kathleen-turners-voice/366864/9 "2006-08-01T19:01:01Z")
She’s playing Martha in “Who’s Afraid of Virgina Wolfe” at the Ahmanson this upcoming season. Opposite Bill Irwin. I am really looking foward to it. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-kathleen-turners-voice/366864/10 "2006-08-01T21:21:31Z")
She’s done several plays recently, and that can play hell on one’s vocal chords, too.