What's up with rich American people having quasi British accents in movies?

[GolovKing]

I notice it especially in older movies but not really in any movies made today. An example would be the mom from the movie George of the jungle



Was that even a real thing? Did people in the US actually talk like that before or was it something they would just add to exaggerate the fact they are supposed to be snobby and kind of annoying, since a lot of Americans view the English accent in that way anyways?

 

[RoastBeast]

Yeah everyone in America that makes over 100k talks like that.

I didn't know Judd Apatow's wife was in that btw.

 

[Spam On Rye]

It's called the mid-atlantic accent. It was popularized back in the 30s and 40s with actors like Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn. Pretty sure there's a wiki for a deeper dive if curious.

 

[Wilmer Digreux]

It's a transatlantic accent and it's pretentious and pompous

Except for Frasier Crane. His is dope.

 

[ChosenOne]

They are taking back some jobs from all the Brits, speaking American, so they can take roles in American movies.

#NoMoreBrits
#SpeakProperEnglishAKAAmerican

 

[Zer]

If an actor can develop a solid English accent it opens up more opportunities for them, for example they can play Germans/Nazis

 

[Get To Da Choppa]

I notice it especially in older movies but not really in any movies made today. An example would be the mom from the movie George of the jungle



Was that even a real thing? Did people in the US actually talk like that before or was it something they would just add to exaggerate the fact they are supposed to be snobby and kind of annoying, since a lot of Americans view the English accent in that way anyways?

Speaking of accents in movies, I have always found the casting choice in the man from Uncle to be weird and strange. You have a British actor Henry Caville playing an American agent, and an American actor Armie Hammer playing a Russian agent. So now both actors had to probably take accent classes and put on a new accent. Why can't they switch the roles and just have one actor, Henry Caville do an accent.

 

[PaddyO'malley]

Yoo hollywood be makin' up fake accent even wholeazz languages all di tayum I ain't agree wif it but mandem haffi secure dat bag either way

 

[GolovKing]

It's called the mid-atlantic accent. It was popularized back in the 30s and 40s with actors like Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn. Pretty sure there's a wiki for a deeper dive if curious.

I wonder if it was a rich people thing or strictly a show business kind of thing too? Would rich people not involved with showbusiness also fake a brit accent too?

 

[KBE6EKCTAH_CCP]

It's a transatlantic accent and it's pretentious and pompous

Except for Frasier Crane. His is dope.

I initially thought Frasier was English. Are there really murrkans who speak like zhat?

 

[IIIIIIII]

I initially thought Frasier was English. Are there really murrkans who speak like zhat?

maybe only those tied with english family or have lived in england for a long time. maybe something like bisping's kids. i think a few of them grew up in england and then moved to the u.s. they probably have mixed accents.

 

[Only Here for Attachments]

It's called the mid-atlantic accent. It was popularized back in the 30s and 40s with actors like Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn. Pretty sure there's a wiki for a deeper dive if curious.

IIRC it was meant to make speaking lines in movies more understandable.

 

[KBE6EKCTAH_CCP]

Another good example is Christopher Plummer, although he's Canadian and like 300 y-o. I think that old WASPY Canadians used to have some british component in their English but maybe i am wrong.

 

[Osculater]

I initially thought Frasier was English. Are there really murrkans who speak like zhat?

Probably in the upper east coast

 

[milliniar]

Southern US accents are closer to olde English than current British accents.

 

[Fuzzybabyducks]

I like how James Stewart talks in wonderful life

 

[mozfonky]

It seemed to be mandatory in the early days of film, for whatever reason. I know not all the actors in hollywood talked like that. In fact, I heard that in The Bride of Frankenstein, they were actually spoofing the fact that hollywood spoke in a fake british accent.

It's pretty uncommon in real life for me at least. I've known only a few brits. I just met a family who had the strangest accent that I couldn't place, turns out they had spent time in Boston and England and they seem to vascillate between the two accents. When I was working in a grocery store, one of our bitchiest customers had an English accent, we had a checker who insisted it was fake.

 

[mozfonky]

Southern US accents are closer to olde English than current British accentsm

That's what they say, yes. I've even read that black english resembles it.

 

[mozfonky]

I wonder if it was a rich people thing or strictly a show business kind of thing too? Would rich people not involved with showbusiness also fake a brit accent too?

I'm sure it happened, some people are super pretentious. I've seen interviews with marvin Gaye where he would say "rather" or something in a fake accent.

Also, i was called by a guy who to me, was obviously black who imitated (badly) a brit accent, he was trying to scam me by sending a thousand dollar check and sending it to him. The scam was they'd "pay" me something to cash it, send the rest to them and once the check bounced the bank would charge me the full amount. I fucked with him for awhile, then told him when I tried to cash it they called the police, last I heard from him, hope he's well.

 

[Flower2dPeople]

IIRC it was meant to make speaking lines in movies more understandable.