# Who says hoo in the hootin boob tube? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [January 8, 2024, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-says-hoo-in-the-hootin-boob-tube/995781 "2024-01-08T16:10:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2024, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-says-hoo-in-the-hootin-boob-tube/995781/1 "2024-01-08T16:10:07Z")
I’m gonna ruin a tiny bit of TV for you, because once you notice it you can’t un-notice it. When a TV show (or movies, I suppose, but I really notice it with shows) wants to let you know that the characters are outside at night, and there’s _nature everywhere_–or if they want you to know that it’s nighttime and the character is _lonely_–there’s a specific sound effect the show uses: the hoot of an owl. I spend a reasonable amount of time outside at night, and I’ll occasionally hear an owl. But nowhere near as often as I hear one on TV. And I think it’s the same owl-hoot every time. It’s not like sometimes there’s a tawny owl and sometimes there’s a screech owl. It actually might be the equivalent of the Wilhelm Scream: a single sampled owl-hoot from like fifty years ago that gets used over and over. Thus my question: who’s the owl? At the very least, is there a specific species that’s used? Or is there one specific sample with a specific history? Owl be interested in owl the answers I get! ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2024, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-says-hoo-in-the-hootin-boob-tube/995781/2 "2024-01-08T16:17:21Z")
Pretty sure the “standard tv/movie owl hoot” is a Great Horned Owl. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2024, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-says-hoo-in-the-hootin-boob-tube/995781/3 "2024-01-08T16:20:37Z")
A quick Google suggests that the classic cinema owl is a Great Horned but, listening to sound clips, none of them have the distinctive long Hoooooo. Maybe I’m listening to the wrong clips. I agree that their shorter Hoo-hoo-hoo call does sound like stereotypical background forest noise though. In any event, I hope that owl got paid as much as the red-tailed hawk used for every raptor call/scream. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2024, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-says-hoo-in-the-hootin-boob-tube/995781/4 "2024-01-08T16:21:37Z")
Thinking about it, the TV owl says, “hoot-hoot hoot-hoot.” Don’t great horned owls say, “HoWEEoo hoo hoo hoo?” I’m happy to be wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2024, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-says-hoo-in-the-hootin-boob-tube/995781/5 "2024-01-08T16:29:22Z")
Of course, a certain UK show prefers the cry of a fox…. > [@Midsomer Murders - What is that nocturnal animal/bird cry?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/midsomer-murders-what-is-that-nocturnal-animal-bird-cry/703581): > > In pretty much every episode of “Midsomer Murder” with an outdoor night time scene, sooner or later you hear a cry. A sort of loudish “YAWWK.” At first I thought it might be the death cry of some animal, but sometimes you’ll hear it repeatedly, just a couple minutes apart, and I don’t think there would be that many animals getting offed that quickly. So, maybe some bird? Anybody know? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2024, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-says-hoo-in-the-hootin-boob-tube/995781/6 "2024-01-08T16:51:50Z")
Owls hoot around here most quiet nights. Some of the noisy nights too I’m sure, but even on the quiet nights it’s not that loud most of the time. It’s also a brief ‘Hoo’, no change of pitch or volume, but I doubt these are Great Horned Owls. ---
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2024, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-says-hoo-in-the-hootin-boob-tube/995781/7 "2024-01-08T16:58:04Z")
I’ve never heard an owl hoot like the stereotypical canned one heard on TV. The ones I hear are more of a gruff, staccato “hoo hoo hoo hoohoohooHooHOOO!” ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2024, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-says-hoo-in-the-hootin-boob-tube/995781/8 "2024-01-08T17:14:08Z")
At least it’s not a kookaburra. For supposedly being native only to Australia, those birds really get around. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2024, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-says-hoo-in-the-hootin-boob-tube/995781/9 "2024-01-08T17:20:34Z")
“Ah - the cry of the kookaburra. We must be in a stereotypical jungle somewhere other than Australia.” ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2024, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-says-hoo-in-the-hootin-boob-tube/995781/10 "2024-01-08T19:11:30Z")
Another thing I’ve noticed is often when a character discovers tension/danger/etc, you will hear a quiet thunder and lightning in the background. Even if it’s during the day and even if it’s not raining. I guess it’s just short-hand for a dun-dun-duuun moment. > [@Chronos](#): > > At least it’s not a kookaburra. For supposedly being native only to Australia, those birds really get around. Indeed.