Film actors who sing. Who are the good ones? Who’s done their own singing in the movies best?

I'm trying to think.

Watched Rockertman last night, and I was taken by just how good Taron Egerton sang, though he is Welsh and they all seem to have some kind of weird singing gene...

James Marsden is actually decent. He sang in Enchanted.

Our sister in the closet, Hugh Jackman. Did a great job playing Peter Allen in ‘The Boy from Oz’.

Jake, great voice

Hugh Jackman

This is a discussion?

We can rule out Daniel Day Lewis who ruined Nine, Pierce Brosnan who made Streep sound like Callas in Mamma Mia and Russell Crowe croaking in Les Mis.

I'll need to duck for cover typing this, but Spacey. Few rush to watch his Darin biopic even once, but the songs he recorded for it were more than capable. Saw him promote it on UK TV: he sang 'Hello Young Lovers' and (of course) 'Mack The Knife', with a full big band, and smashed it.

Billy Boyd

Richard Armitage

Another one for Taron on Rocketman. What did Elton think of his singing?

Sorry this is not what the topic is but why does Meryl Streep appear in musicals? She can sing but not well. Certainly not as well as she can act. Is she failing up to her level of incompetence? What next, Cuntwoman for Marvel?

Young Christian Bale was good in "Newsies." Ewan McGregor did fine in "Moulin Rouge." Neither would have a career on Broadway but they sounded great considering they weren't trained as singers.

Hugh’s singing in Les Miz and The Greatest Showman was awful. I mean, he was singing correctly but the sound is atrocious, nasal and yowly.

He is a TV person now but Jason Beghe has a great singing voice which is surprising because his speaking voice is raspy. But his sister Francesca is a great singer so maybe it's just genetic.

AnnE.

DL fave Ben Barnes. Did his own singing in several films that none of you have seen, and he's very good.

Tim Blake Nelson in O Brother, Where Art Thou?

He also sang in Buster Scruggs so I thought he was a singer turned actor.

Jessie Buckley.

Cynthia Erivo also has the most sublime voice.

Pierce Brosnan

I don't know if you've heard of him but there's a film actor by the name of Luke Evans...

I liked Johnny Depp's singing in Sweeney Todd.

[...]

r25, see r21 for a perfect example.

[quote] Jake, great voice

Why don't they dub real singers in? Film is artifice by its very nature.

Timmy has a nice voice.

[quote]James Marsden is actually decent.

Marsden is excellent. No studio sweetening needed.

[quote]Watched Rockertman last night, and I was taken by just how good Taron Egerton sang

I know Rocketman wasn't everyone's cuppa, but I thought Egerton was perfect in it. I hope Elton John now sees how ridiculous it was to even consider Tom Hardy for that role. Hardy did a bit of singing in a film and he's horrible, but even if he would lip synch he just wasn't suited.

Egerton has sung in more than a few things. I hate that full length versions of his covers of Sam Smith's "Stay with Me" and John Legend's "All of Me" from the movie "Sing". But he did do the end song for "Eddie the Eagle".

Elton is dark, so id Hardy.

Gwyneth Paltrow is actually pretty good.

Sara Ramirez is top notch.

I love John C. Reilly's voice...."Mr. Cellophane" in "Chicago," for example.

How can y’all be certain they are not all being secretly dubbed? I mean, how long was it before Marla Nixon got busted? You know it’s all fake hair, fake nose, fake skin, fake stunts, fake penises, fake boobies, fake age in the movies.

Suranne Jones.

[Quote] You know it’s all fake hair, fake nose, fake skin, fake stunts, fake penises, fake boobies

But enough about Zac Efron...

[quote]Marla Nixon

Oh, dear.

Beverly D'angleo in Coal Miners Daughter.

Jeremy Northam in "Gosford Park" playing Ivor Novello. Beautiful voice, much better than Hugh's; he should have had a bigger career.

Amy Adams sang well in "Enchanted".

Michelle Pfeiffer sang well in "Fabulous Baker Boys".

Robert Duvall in 'Tender Mercies.' Academy Award, no less.

Kate Winslet had a top 10 hit in the UK

[...]

"Timmy has a nice voice."

Not really. At 2:19.

[Quote] Michelle Pfeiffer sang well in "Fabulous Baker Boys".

Apparently, her vocals had to be pieced together. I remember she was rather flat when she sang on the Muppets reboot.

Jonathan Rhys Meyers, good for being untrained. His father and brothers were / are musicians.

Patrick Wilson, of course.

Steven Pascale. More a TV actor, though.

Oops/ Steven Pascale again.

Steven Pasquale fans can't post links. Sad!

kristin chenowith

I think we have all forgotten the greatest actress who ever lived. Miss Glenn Close.

She has sung in many musicals and has the voice of a young Nana Mouskari.

Batty Buckley

Glenn sings it

In r57’s video you can see Barbara Cooke throw up in her mouth a little.

I guess no one cares about spelling anymore.

Barbara COOK

Steven PASQUALE

Kristin CHENOWETH

Nana MOUSKOURI

Kristi Dawn, if your please.

How many films has Chenoweth actually been in to consider her a film actress? Idina and Mandy have been in films, but not allowed (or have the opportunity) to sing..

Vanessa Redgrave

Ramon Navarro

Deanna Durbin

Gloria Swanson

I have to listen to this at least once a week.

This lot

Jennifer Hudson has an surprisingly good voice. She's nothing special in Sex And The City: The Movie but she really needs a role where she can show off her pipes - she'd blow the house down!

R67 you're a special kind of stupid.

Amy Adams has a pleasant voice and James Marsden has serious pipes. I can't understand how a man like that can be so beautiful, have excellent comic timing, and also be able to sing like that. He's proof of what god can create on a good day.

Meryl isn't as lousy of a singer as people say she is. She sounded excellent in The Prom. I was truly taken aback by her voice in that. She's only ever sounded decent to competent before, but she was belting and growling those songs out like a genuine belter. I know there was probably studio sweetening involved, but you can't sweeten that kind of power into someone's voice. Nicole Kidman was in the same film and she has this pretty, but thin little voice and they couldn't make her sound any more powerful.

[Quote] I can't understand how a man like that can be so beautiful, have excellent comic timing, and also be able to sing like that.

Well, God also gave him his uninspiring career...

[quote]James Marsden has serious pipes. I can't understand how a man like that can be so beautiful, have excellent comic timing, and also be able to sing like that.

I remember the first time I saw him sing on ALLY MCBEAL. My mouth dropped open and I thought, "Life isn't fair."

Ansel Elgort is singing in WEST SIDE STORY. He's released music in the past. But here's a clip of him singing on James Corden.

James Marsden can do no wrong! What a fine specimen of a human.

Janie...

Literally came in to the thread to mention Marsden! Love his little flourishes on Corny Collins in the HAIRSPRAY remake. Class.

Truly we are blessed by his existence.

^^also Scott Speedman was a lucky dog getting to tie Marsden up in that weird creepy movie they did back. But that’s another thread...

[quote]Meryl isn't as lousy of a singer as people say she is. She sounded excellent in The Prom. I was truly taken aback by her voice in that.

Why thank you. It wasn’t easy.

Yet another gorgeous actor with some vocal chops: Matt Bomer.

According to Matt, this was sung Live and not to a pre-recorded vocal track.

A softer side of Matt:

Bomer singing behind the scenes of WHITE COLLAR.

Collin Farrell in Crazy Heart.

Reese and Joaquin.

I didn't think Penelope Cruz and Marion Cotillard were bad in Nine. They were hitting all the notes in a fairly pleasant way. Kate Hudson was another surprise. She has a great voice. Her mom, Goldie Hawn, was a pretty good singer in her day, too. She was supposed to do Chicago with Liza Minnelli back in the 80's, but the project fell through. She'd have been excellent.

Scarlett Johanssen sings quite a bit.

Dana Andrews

Robert Taylor

Loretta Devine

SJP

CZJ

Seth McFarlane

Justin Timberlake

Lesley Anne Warren

Kate McKinnon

Queen Latifah

Bette Midler

Babs

Bomer sings through his nose.

I'm not sure if he's ever sang in a film but Robert Pattinson can sing. Pre-Twilight he would post his songs on Myspace. His musical style is more bluesy like Ray LaMontagne. Jared Leto. Milla Jovavich has released at least one cd. Scottish actor Jack Lowden (Mary Queen of Scot, Dunkirk) has sung - quite well- in TV projects ENGLAND IS MINE where he played Morrissey and in WAR AND PEACE.

Ryan Gosling. I went to his band's concert years ago. I was pleasantly surprised.

Rita Moreno

Some Garland woman.

r91 Beverly?

I think many people were surprised by Chris Pine's singing in "Into the Woods," (2014), but he'd actually showcased his voice in a little indie flick called "Small Town Saturday Night" produced in 2008, distributed 2010.

Streisand released a cd of duets with actors. Pine was on it along with Patrick Wilson, Daisy Ridley, Hugh Jackman, Melissa McCarthy and Alec Baldwin. She and Pine covered "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face".

[quote] She and Pine covered "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face".

Better him than me.

Chris Pine has a sexy speaking and singing voice.

But his breath...

Julian Ovenden

Jeremy Northam

How far back do you want to go?

Irene Dunne...

R87

Seth McFarlane need to learn control of those eyebrows when singing....

Dolores Gray

I think it would be necessary to separate the primary singers from the primary actors. So, musical theater people who happen to be in a movie ( musical or not) would not be held in high regard when it comes to this thread.

OP just to be clear about something, just because an actor can sing and do so well sound produced may not be want suits (including those who wrote or have rights to musical score) want to hear. In that case all or part of a song will be dubbed or maybe enhanced with some modern technology.

Ava Gardner worked her ass off to get her singing voice down pat for Showboat. In the end it wasn't what studio wanted so a decision was made to dub anyway.

I always liked Patrick Swayze's singing on "She's Like the Wind". There's certainly some studio wizardry there, but his voice has a fairly ear-friendly tone to it. I've never even seen "Dirty Dancing", but of all the hits from that movie, I I like his song the most.

What I like is that he seemed to know his limitations, didn't go for too much, and best of all, didn't try to make a career out of singing, unlike his fellow 80's heartthrobs Don Johnson and Bruce Willis. He apparently loved singing and writing songs (he co-wrote "She's Like the Wind"), but he did it mostly for his own pleasure. I don't think he ever even released a proper album, he just had an occasional song on a soundtrack.

[Quote] I don't think he ever even released a proper album, he just had an occasional song on a soundtrack.

He was the Zac Efron of his day...

Jane Russell

Does it have to be said? Fabulous.

Diane Keaton has a surprisingly admirable singing voice. She performed "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To" in Woody Allen's "Radio Days." I remember when the movie was released in theaters, the talk was all about how skillfully she pulled off the scene in the night club.

Robert Downey Jr. I enjoyed his songs on Allie McBeal and Chaplin.

It is mark of a true actress/actor who can sing when they do so in a role very badly and off key.

Madeline Kahn had a wonderful and classically trained voice. She even tried out for MET opera but the instrument through good was deemed not to have enough power so they turned her down.

As Lili von Schtup, Ms. Kahn broke nearly every single rule on proper singing, but she nails the character who was based upon Marlene Dietrich

OTOH Madeline Kahn was more than capable of delivering the goods.

MK even managed to nail "I'm Not Getting Married Today"

hundreds replies and nobody mentioned Renee Zellweger ? Catherine Zeta Jones sang well in Chicago too

Ewan McGregor & Renee Zellweger Here's to Love

Det. Lennie Briscoe, aka the late, great Jerry Orbach.

"Try To Remember."

R99 meet R41 re Jeremy Northam

Madeline Kahn also did a truly wonderful "Lost in the Stars" on SNL years ago.

Jeremy Northam also sang those songs live on set while they were filming "Gosford Park", making them even more impressive.

I enjoyed the songs that Lynda Carter did for the video game Fallout 4.

Jeremy Northam also play Dean Martin to Sean Hayes' Jerry Lewis in a tv movie some years ago. I remember that they were quite good.

Whitney Houston from The Bodyguard had a nice singing voice. I think she released a record from the film. Shame it wasn't a hit.

Emma Stone has a voice that's full of character and personality. Not technically perfect, very raspy like her speaking voice, and without much range, but she was excellent as Sally in Cabaret on Broadway and she did that 8 shows a week. I find that impressive.

Renee Zellwegger is also an underrated singer. She handled the songs in Chicago incredibly well and gave it a solid try in Judy, but it's impossible to sound exactly like Judy.

Emily Blunt had a lovely voice in Into the Woods and also seemed to be capable of acting while singing which many can't do. It really is an art form.

Some time ago, Joseph Gordon-Levitt announced a film project (described as an R-rated musical) that he would direct and star in. No word on the status. (It was called "Wingmen" and Channing Tatum was also attached.)

JGL singing.

I recall JGL singing on SNL and he was impressive.

There's a difference between singers who might act in one or two movies, and actors who might sing in one or two movies.

So, not clever, r122. Sorry!

R125 Yeah, for his opening monologue, he did Donald O'Connor's "Make 'em Laugh" routine from "Singing' in the Rain."

Hasn't done movies to my knowledge, but actress Patricia Routledge certainly can sing.

Again her character Hyacinth Bucket singing so badly takes someone who actually knows what they are doing.

Angela Lansbury actress of stage, screen and television also has a legitimate trained voice. Sadly often in films (such as Harvey Girls) Ms. Landsbury was dubbed.

Doesn't even sound like Angela Landsbury!

Routledge is a Tony winner (unfortunately never had a hit in NY, other than the Delacorte run of "Pirates of Penzance") with many musicals and Lansbury has 5 Tony Awards, four for musicals.

Not exactly a very powerful instrument, but never the less Tony Perkins could sing...

Charmian Carr who was in Sound of Music also could sing...

Hot damn! That young tall cool drink of water Tony Perkins had all that physical beauty and could sing.

Anthony Perkins starred on Broadway in "Guys and Dolls", "Most Happy Fella" and "How to Succeed..", etc. composer/lyricist Frank Loesser's "Greenwillow"! He sounds very good on the OCR.

IIRC Hollywood's favorite ghost voice (dubbing) was brought in to do some notes for Marilyn Monroe, much of what one hears in her various musical numbers was MM's own voice.

When allowed to sing within her own natural range, MM had a quite good singing voice. But suits or others often wanted something higher or at least occasional high notes that MM just really couldn't manage. Well not enough for film anyway.

Dean Jones never sang (IIRC) in any of his films, but boy could he and how!

OBC of Company

And Dean Jones replaced Anthony Perkins in Company. The role of Bobby was written with Perkins in mind.

R135

For you!

Shame Greenwillow only ran for about 97 performances before closing. Perkins was filming Psycho at same time, Hitchcock allowed a stunt double for the shower scene since it didn't require seeing Perkins face.

[quote]Hasn't done movies to my knowledge, but actress Patricia Routledge certainly can sing.

She was in "To Sir With Love," and "If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium"

The beautiful Cheryl Ladd - that woman can do it all.

R72, yuk, I hope Ansel sings in a white accent in West Side Story.

As I recall, Val Kilmer got great reviews for his singing as Jim Morrison in "The Doors" film. One of his very first films was "Top Secret" wherein he also sang.

A true classic

Lansbury did not have a legit voice. She said as much herself when recounting her early musical work on Broadway.

Christopher Lee does Ghost Riders in the Sky.

Olivia Newton John from Greece and Zannadoo

Adam Driver in 'Marriage Story' surprisingly bursts into 'Being Alive', and sings it affectingly well.

[quote]Zannadoo

Come on, man.

Gene Kelly was dubbed in "Young Girls of Rochefort". What took someone so long? His singing of the ballads in "Singin' in the Rain" otherwise mar a perfect film.

I always thought Gene Kelly had a very pleasant voice.

Gene Nelson, Donald O'Connor and Fred Astaire had better voices thank Gene Kelly, who is relative fine singing up-tempos but a trial in slower tempos.

Taron Egerton was so Auto-tuned!

Raw, he’s like nails on a chalkboard.

Best. Javert. EVER.

Eddie Murphy.

Taron sings.

Am also going to say clear out nearly 90% of the awful things many (including local state or city politicians) predicted about New York at start of covid-19 mess largely have *NOT* happened.

Wealthy have not fled city in droves, in fact opposite seems to be true.

Neither NYS nor NYC economy has hit the skids. Again in fact both had record setting revenue for 2020 thanks in large part to financial and real estate sector earnings which are heavily taxed, fees and surcharged.

Did people move out of Manhattan? Yes, but in many cases they just moved across river to Brooklyn where they found more space for less money.

Damn! Wrong thread... Ignore post R158....

Carry on!

Ben Whishaw

From another DL thread, Eddie Redmayne

Just to point out even if an actor cannot sing well enough often at least for stage something will be written for him or her regardless.

Famous example is Walter Huston actor who begat that famous dynasty.

"The singer is Walter Huston who was somewhat limited in range but for whom composer Kurt Weill and lyricist Maxwell Anderson wrote this specially. The song originally appeared in the Broadway show 'Knickerbocker Holiday' in 1938. According to the sleeve notes of 'Mack The Knife - Songs of Kurt Weill' this version was recorded in 1938 and 1944. For me it's the definitive version...nobody puts the same longing and melancholy into it as Walter Huston."

In such instances you often get songs that are more spoken than sung. Again this is fine for Broadway or West End, but some film producers may have an issue with casting an actor for a film who just cannot sing perfectly in musical numbers. That's where dubbing historically came in regardless of said actor's wishes. But today as we see with clip of Eddie Redmayne doing "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" things can be managed. Technology available today can enhance a voice which coupled with strategic dubbing might work enough to make suits happy.

R161 Reminds me of this video where this music coach dissects Redmayne's singing of that song. .. Dear gawd .. Poor guy gets so emotional over it, he looks like he's about to start crying several times.

I bet he posts on DL .. lol!

Joaquin Phoenix did his own singing in WALK THE LINE and actually won a Grammy for the soundtrack.

I thought Eddie Redmayne was one of the best parts of Les Mis, especially Empty Chairs.

Samantha Barks was quite good -- she seemed like one of the few who'd be effective on stage -- AnnE was filmed liked she was in "Passion of Joan of Arc".

[quote]Samantha Barks was quite good -- she seemed like one of the few who'd be effective on stage

Is that the same Samantha Barks who is an established musical theatre performer making her film debut in Les Mis?

Samantha Barks is hardly a stage star, no matter how many productions she's done. I wouldn't needle anyone for not knowing her resume.

Tom Huddleston did his own singing as Hank Williams.

"Hiddleston."

Jamie Foxx.

Unfortunately she hasn't been given the chance to really sing on film (and she was apparently a finalist for "Chicago" and "Sweeney Todd"), but Toni Collette was superb in the Broadway "The Wild Party". Excellent voice, so surprising, she looked good in the blonde wig and even went topless. [Marc Kudish showed his ass too which was a plus]. Certainly, Mandy Patinkin can sing, but while Barbra directed him at his best in "Yentl", she didn't allow him to sing. That thing about not having anyone else sing in the film is a bit wrong, since Amy Irving's character at one point sang (though it wasn't a real song).

I really like Minnie Driver's voice - especially her second album Seastories.

I hope she puts out a fourth

R137, you need your meds checked. Dean Jones sounded TERRIBLE, like he swallowed a vibrator stuck on 'Low' during an earthquake.

"Being A LLLLLL IIIIIII VVVVEEEEEEEE."

For some reason Disney didn't use Zac Efron's voice in "High School Musical" yet it was him in"HSM2", "HSM3", "Hairspray" & "The Greatest Showman"

If Toni Collette were ever do to a true movie musical, I do believe she'd get that Oscar. Wasn't Amy Sherman Palladino working on a new film version of Gypsy a few years ago after Streisand's version failed to take off? If she were smart, she'd cast Collette. She's the most qualified actress for that role at the moment.

[quote]Unfortunately she hasn't been given the chance to really sing on film

Didn't Toni Collette sing in CONNIE AND CARLA?

Leave us not forget Mario Lanza.....

Collette has worked so much on screen but she's never been seen as a movie star. A movie co-star, sure.

R172

Babs could have at least thrown Mandy Patinkin a bone and let him sing in this scene. It was deleted but never the less would have captured MP's voice.....

That was very narcissistic of Streisand to direct/star/write/produce a movie musical in which she was the only one who sang.

I almost wish she got to make her version of "GYPSY."

Definitely not M.

She sounded like a cat being strangled at the end of SILKWOOD

"Aaaamaaaazzzing greeessse hawww sweet das sawwwnd" 😩

So in Florence Foster Jenkins, there was no need for her to try to sound awful.

Harry Dean Stanton

That's hardly surprising about Mario Lanza. He was an professional opera singer before he did any acting in films.

Dean Jones might not have the greatest voice but his Being Alive is one of the very greatest performances from an obcr. I got the album as a boy when the show opened and I still feel it as powerfully as I did then. Sadly I believe he did only two weeks of the show after the opening(anybody have the exact number?) If he had continued would his voice have held up?

R33 Goop does a great job in Duets singing “Cruisin’” with Huey Lewis.

Also, I’ve always liked Brando singing “Luck Be a Lady.”

DL loved to hate her R187, but GOOP is a … not great, but certainly above average singer (for an actress).

Many of these suggestions

[quote]Seth McFarlane (voice actor)

[quote]Justin Timberlake

[quote]Queen Latifah

[quote]Bette Midler

[quote]Babs

[quote] Chenoworth

{quote]Hudson

Are singers who occasionally (or often) act to varying degrees of success.

R178, Mario Lanza was a singer by main profession.

You can't include people who started out as musical theater performers like Irene Dunne.

Robert Preston -- started as a character actor mainly playing villains in films, did stage work, then became huge star playing Harold Hill in "Music Man" on Broadway and the film -- good enough voice with superb presence and delivery that musicals are what he's best known for now

I never miss a Gladys Kravitz musical (especially a "gay" one.)

Lovely...

Ben Whishaw has a heavenly voice.

R186, and that's why you think it was so powerful. Because you thought so when you were a little boy.

No one has recorded a better "Being Alive" than Dean Jones.

Dean Jones was going through an extremely nasty, bitter divorce while Company was playing out-of-town previews and between his personal troubles and performing that particular part night after night, he was afraid he was going to have a breakdown. He went to producer/director Hal Prince and begged to be released from his contract. Prince wanted him badly in the part and the compromise they made was that Jones would open the show for the critics and stay a month before Larry Kert took over. Whether he stayed 4 or 5 weeks varies according to which account you read.

R155 is the reason I can't wait for Glenn's Sunset.

Larry Kert.... Another great one we lost far too soon.....

[quote]No one has recorded a better "Being Alive" than Dean Jones.

Excuse me, sir!

[quote]No one has recorded a better "Being Alive" than Dean Jones.

Well most Sondheimites always insist the original cast recordings of his show are always the best. Truth be told, no one has recorded a better "Being Alive" than Dean Jones. because it's not a very good song.

"No one has recorded a better "Being Alive" than Dean Jones."

DL sacrilege!!!

More DL sacrilege.

John Payne's mother was a professional opera singer and started him singing as a child and remained his voice teacher until he went off to college. He attended Columbia but daily took the subway down to Julliard where he continued his voice lessons. He had a pleasant light baritone voice and never had to be dubbed when he did those lightweight Technicolor Fox musicals with Alice Faye and Betty Grable in the early 1940s.

Yeah, he was also gorgeous. Forever Fred Gailey in "Miracle on 34th Street", too.

Don Ameche had a very good voice, too. Same studio. He also co-starred opposite Elaine Stritch in "Goldilocks" on Broadway and had a hit in "Silk Stockings".

Some are more successful than others.

Part deux.

R204 I think Juilliard was right up near where Payne was going to school at Columbia. Wasn't it in the same building that now houses the also-excellent Manhattan School of Music on like West 120th Street?

GOOP

Goop also sang on "Glee" and won an Emmy. She also showed up in the concert movie.

John Payne! God damn!

Dubbed?

Why does every Barbra Streisand arrangement have to sound like old people's hotel lobby music?

She's old, her audience is old, and she's not even trying anymore.

Jane Wyman had a rich & beautiful singing voice. Surprisingly Warners, Broadway & Television never took advantage of it.

British Blonde Bombshell Diana Dors had a pretty singing voice and soothing tone. Her "Swinging Dors" LP is excellent Late 50's / Early 60s Pop Jazz.

Barbara Streisand much like another famous singer with Jewish background (yes, Mandy P, I'm looking at you), tries too hard to get down with some sort of soul/R&B vibe that just comes off as too schmaltzy or something.

On her "Broadway" album cover of "Ladies Who Lunch" is totally lacking in character of who Joanne is supposed to be. There's no anger, bitchiness bitterness, or anything else that often comes out of a drunk's tirade. It's just elevator or doctor office music.....

No, Elaine Stritch didn't have best voice, but she nails LWC by capturing the essence of Joanne.

Emma Thompson.....

Clifton Davis of television and film.....

When I hear R218 I'm so sorry I didn't pursue Broadway. I didn't realise how low the bar was.

Maureen O'Hara had a lovely soprano voice and released several albums. She desperately wanted to do the film of The King and I and she was supported Darryl Zanuck, the head of Fox. But Richard Rodgers had casting approval and wouldn't even allow her to audition. He considered her the "Queen of the Bs."

There used to be a wonderful video on youtube of her singing Hello Young Lovers on TV in the 1950s but it's gone now. Here she is singing And This Is My Beloved from Kismet instead.

Believe it or not, 1950s sexpot Mamie Van Doren began her career as a chanteuse and was a protege of no less than Harold Arlen! So there must have been some sort of talent there somewhere. It's a shame that Hollywood never took advantage of it.

Here's a clip from the Merv Griffin Show in 1985. At around the 10:40 mark Mamie performs a respectable rendition of '"What Did I Have That I Don't Have?' from "On A Clear Day You Can See Forever".

Although MGM dubbed Ava Gardner with Annette Warren in the actual film of Showboat, when the released the soundtrack album, the used Ava's own tracks.

^ when THEY released

Was Barbara Nichols a protege of Arlen's?

R221

Please don't stir those old pools again. Pages upon pages of text have been written on DL about Elaine Stritch and her vocal talents (or lack thereof), and how she managed to have a career on Broadway.

That being said early on while no one would ever claim Ms. Stritch was a possessed of great vocal talent, given proper material (read mostly speaking type songs within a narrow range), she could do well enough for theater. Sadly decades of booze and ciggies destroyed what little voice there was for a start.

This has been posted before but here are Stritch and Russell Nype doing You're Just in Love from Call Me Madam. Stritch had stood by for Merman on Broadway and then took over the first national tour from her after Merman opened it.

Work that skirt, Elaine, work it!

Elaine seems to have inherited Merman's "don't even look at your fellow performer" style.

Maureen O'Hara starred on Broadway in a big flop called "Christine" which was recorded. It's a big ripoff of "The King and I', and while she indeed does have a lovely voice, getting through one listen of the entire OCR is a trial.

I didn't realize Paltrow was in "Cruising" with Huey Lewis. I liked that song at the time.

Also, Brian Stokes Mitchell has a fantastic voice.

Well, Brian Stokes Mitchell is a Broadway star, known especially for musicals like "Ragtime" and the "Kiss Me, Kate" revival. It's interesting seeing him on old "Match Game Hollywood Squares Hour" on Buzzr tv where he used to be billed at Brian Mitchell when he was a cast member of "Trapper John, M.D." I don't think he's done much in the way of feature films though.

^"Well ...."

Though more of a film actor than movie star, Garrett Hedlund.

R218 here...

Correction, make that "LWL" not "LWC"....

Carry on....

Russell Nype, now there's a name you don't hear very often today. That is sad because the man was (or is) a legend.

Here he is joining Elaine Stritch in 2016 singing "You're Just In Love". This is from 2016 just two years before Russell Nype died in 2018 aged 98....

In his prime there were few better on Broadway than Russell Nype.

Today of course the suits would look at a Russell Nype and say he is just all wrong voice or not, more is the pity really.

A DLer used to play piano at the Nypes' parties.

[quote]Here he is joining Elaine Stritch in 2016 singing "You're Just In Love". This is from 2016 just two years before Russell Nype died in 2018 aged 98....

Stritch died in 2014. That was the summer when Stritch, James Garner, Joan Rivers, Lauren Bacall, and Robin Williams died in quick succession.

John Payne had a nice voice. Dana Andrews trained as a singer but never sang on film (apart from some folk/group singing in The North Star)

Megan Mullally. I'm always surprised how warm and lovely her natural voice is.

Sean Hayes has a really nice voice, too.

Stritch’s voice, range , timbre, etc., is almost beside the point when seeing her live. Like many others (Channing, Merman, Martin), the inspiration of fans’ ardor (Mary!) comes from seeing them live. On the screen, or hearing songs out of context, they become a little flat. In theatrical history some of the biggest stars were those who knew how to put a show over, it’s quality almost beside the point.

Vaudeville was full of such performers so it’s no wonder why you don’t see it much today as that strain of show business lore is now forgotten.

Oh, you'd see it today if lipsync wasn't so common.

R242

You'd never think it would you? Yes, Sean Hayes has a wonderful voice.

Have all the main WILL & GRACE cast done Broadway? I know that Eric McCormack did THE MUSIC MAN and THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. (I was obsessed with him in the early 2000s).

Frankie Grande.

Yes, IIRC all of main W&G ensemble cast have done Broadway. To date however IIRC Debra Messing has only done theater ( Outside Mullingar), not a musical.

Promises Promises is a great song. He does OK with it.

Has Debra Messing's Irish accent been recorded for posterity?

OBC Jerry Orbach doing "Promises, Promises"

Daniel Radcliffe

Poor Radcliffe. Rob didn't give a shit that his leading man has to sing rather a lot in that dance number.

Daniel Radcliffe looks like runt of the litter in that musical number. Or rather like a six year old playing football with a bunch of twenty something grown men. It really is too bad...

That isn't bad for the character, though.

Eric McCormack did a pretty good job as a replacement Harold Hill in the last revival of "Music Man". He did reasonably well with the big patter numbers "Trouble" and "Seventy-Six Trombones" and did better with the other songs. I saw Sean Hayes in "Promises, Promises" and also as Applegate in "Damn Yankees", the latter in which they had him playing piano very well at one point. He has a reasonably good voice, with what I recall is a somewhat goatish sounding vibrato at times though. That's why he was able to do a good Cher imitation on "Will and Grace".

Eric McCormack

Serenading Harry Connick, Jr.

Peter Gallagher in one of my favourite songs from “Guys and Dolls”

R243

Have to admit this tune by Elaine Stritch surprised me, and you're right, she just makes things work in spite of that voice.

A name most don't know, but should; Johnny Desmond......

[quote]Ryan Gosling. I went to his band's concert years ago. I was pleasantly surprised.

Actually Gosling was a singer/dancer as a kid before he was an actor.

Christina Applegate

Mr. Applegate's daughter (from "Damn Yankees") perhaps?

Applegate was a very winning Charity. I'd love to see her return to Broadway.

Sean Hayes's goat vibrato in R245 explains why he does such great impressions of Cher.

Keira Knightley

Stritch whose Ladies Who Lunch is one of the pinnacles of musical theater is a low bar? Another DL loon. Saw her do it in Company and also saw Night Letter which took the roof off the St. James. Honestly I don't know how people sit through today's amateurish shit.

Clifton Davis from "Two Gentlemen of Verona" also wrote "Never Can Say Goodbye". Good-looking guy from "That's My Mama" and "Amen" on tv, too. I think he appeared shirtless on those "Battle of the Network Stars" back in the day and looked really good. I think recently he had a supporting role in "Aladdin" on Broadway.

Clifton Davis released an album or something last year IIRC.

Scott Bakula. He was nominated for a Tony for "Romance-Romance". Here he is in "Nite Club Confidential" circa 1986. While he sings throughout the show, he does a really nice version of "I Took A Trip On A Train" starting at 23:00.

R204 John Payne should have been dressed like this in all his musical numbers.

James Corden, yeah I said it.

Don Ameche also had a very nice singing voice and starred on Broadway, too.

R239, And my husband and then my best friend. Annus horribilis.

R236, "Russell Nype, now there's a name you don't hear very often today. That is sad because the man was (or is) a legend."

He was famous for one thing. His role in the original stage version of Call Me Madam. Carol Channing was a legend (unfortunately), but Nype? Absolutely no way.

And by the way, this thread is about FILM ACTORS WHO SING.

Daniel Craig.

MISS Helen Lawson

[quote]He is a TV person now but Jason Beghe has a great singing voice which is surprising because his speaking voice is raspy. But his sister Francesca is a great singer so maybe it's just genetic.

An accident changed Beghe's speaking voice. I recently saw him in an episode of the TV series "In The Heat of the Night", which has being airing on Ovation, his voice was completely different.

According to WIKI: Beghe was in a car accident in 1999. He said, "I was intubated, and I kept pulling this tube out of my throat." This has left him with a voice described as "gravelly".

Louis Jourdan

Jourdan was gorgeous, and was very effective in "Gigi", but he mostly spoke-sang his songs, similar to how Rex Harrison did his in "My Fair Lady". But later on, when Jourdan was starring out-of-town in the pre-Broadway run of "On a Clear Day You Can See Forever" Alan Jay Lerner and composer Burton Lane wanted his character to really sing out beautifully the gorgeous title song and his other numbers; there may have been some other reasons (like not getting enough laughs), but Jourdan was fired (though he got a very generous payout) and understudy who could really sing John Cullum got his big break and became a star opposite Barbara Harris on Broadway. Jourdan was a wonderful actor, and on PBS was one of the best Draculas I have ever seen.

[quote]Clifton Davis from "Two Gentlemen of Verona" also wrote "Never Can Say Goodbye". Good-looking guy from "That's My Mama" and "Amen" on tv, too. I think he appeared shirtless on those "Battle of the Network Stars" back in the day and looked really good. I think recently he had a supporting role in "Aladdin" on Broadway.

Clifton has always been a singer. I remember he was a regular on Melba Moore's 1970s summer show, he would frequently sing on the show. He was dating Melba at the time. Comedian/actress Liz Torres was also a regular on Melba's show, Liz was super skinny back then.

"Davis' romantic interest in songstress and Broadway performer Melba Moore led to his co-starring role on her musical variety television show. Later he made a guest appearance on the third episode of the first season of The Bobby Vinton Show in September 1975, singing "I've Got the Music in Me" and "Never Can Say Goodbye." He successfully sang the Polish lyrics with Vinton to the show's theme song, titled "My Melody of Love".

Is Liz Torres the same one who sang freestyle music?

Babs Streisand of course.

[quote]Is Liz Torres the same one who sang freestyle music?

Liz Torres is an actress and a stand-up comedian. She's now 73. As far I know Liz was never known as a singer.

Liz was a regular on 'All in the Family'. "She had the recurring role on All in the Family as Teresa Betancourt, a wise-cracking nurse who checked Archie into the hospital when he needed a gallbladder operation and then became a boarder at the Bunker house " Liz used to call Archie. Mr. Bonkers.

"Torres later guest starred in Ugly Betty, Desperate Housewives, Private Practice, Scandal, One Day at a Time, and Devious Maids"

Here are some photos of Liz. The last photo, she's in a scene from 'Gilmore Girls' with Sally Struthers.

Jamie Foxx. Was great in Ray and had a few short-lived but decent releases on the R&B charts

[quote]Liz Torres is an actress and a stand-up comedian. She's now 73. As far I know Liz was never known as a singer.

Liz started as a singer in NY doing nightclubs and Merv, Mike Douglas and variety shows. She's married to a Hollywood producer who started his career as a pornographer and Liz is actually in one "It Happened In Hollywood" in a non sex role and sings the theme song.

Why are some of you listing people who famously got their start in musical theater? It's no surprise to anyone that Kristin Chenoweth sings well: basically 99% of all she's ever done in her career is musical theater.

And people listing Barbra Streisand--my God, what a SURPRISE! And here all along everyone had thought she was just made it on her looks.

The clip at r115 shows Renee Zellweger has a perfectly serviceable voice, but Ewan McGregor actually has a real first-class voice, both in terms of tone and musicality.

His voice apparently had some problems with intonation (keeping in pitch) when he did "Guys and Dolls" live in London.

Jane Horrocks also had trouble singing the score to "Annie Get Your Gun" when she played the title role in London.

Jason Beghe had a raspy voice before his accident, He sounded raspy in his guest appearance on the first season of The X-Files from 1993-94.

Odd fact: Jason Beghe was close friends in high school (Collegiate) with both David Duchovny and John-John Kennedy. His friendship with Duchovny helped get him the gig on The X-Files.

Jason Beghe didn't sound raspy at all in his "In The Heat of the Night" appearance.

His voice was not as gravely as it is now. If I didn't recognize his face, I wouldn't have known it was him.

Imelda Staunton, best known for the Harry Potter movies, has done several West End shows playing everyone from Miss Adelaide to Momma Rose to Mrs. Lovett. Here she is Sally in Follies.

Another ugly Sondheim dirge.

Adrian Lester.

R3 decent, but not 'good'

James Marsden sings wonderfully in "Hairspray".

MOAR

Jan Hooks was a classically trained singer with a gorgeous contralto operatic voice.