Then and Now: Actors (and their Voices) in Commercials

[Lola16]

Sarah Michelle Gellar in a Burger King ad

Amusing given an episode of The Crazy Ones focused on a pitch for McDonald's.

[Rinaldo]

Some voices in commercials are instantly recognizable: John Corbett, Linda Hunt, Ty Burrell, Peri Gilpin. I always feel good when I hear them, both because I like the people and because this is incredibly good pay for those who do it.

I've more recently become aware that some voice-overs are actors whom I admire (primarily from the stage) and I had no idea they had achieved this nice a paycheck for themselves. Like, a few years ago I belatedly heard that the MasterCard "priceless" guy is Billy Crudup (it may have been when he actually got to appear onscreen in this one):

And yesterday I discovered that my current favorite stage actor, Santino Fontana, is the voice for Macy's, CoverGirl, and Excedrin.

[Rick Kitchen]

Rinaldo, have you ever seen Santino Fontana in the web series, "Submissions Only"?  It's a really funny series about Broadway and the audition process, and it has a lot of huge Broadway names in it in small roles.  He had one of the main roles in the first season.

He also has several Broadway credits of his own, and most recently played the Prince, Topher, in the Broadway production of "Cinderella".

[Rinaldo]

Rick Kitchen, you may be certain that when I call Santino my favorite, I've seen everything of his that I can get my hands on! :) I've seen all the episodes of Submissions Only (S3E4 is coming up, and this season he's credited as regular rather than recurring!), I saw The Importance of Being Earnest in its movie broadcast (and the funny YouTube bits where he and costar David Furr read authentic Jersey Shore dialogue in Oscar Wilde voices), I looked up the early Good Wife episode on which he appeared, and I traveled to NYC to see Cinderella in January (unfortunately catching his [very good!] understudy's scheduled performance). And just last Saturday I was in NYC again and saw him onstage at last in Act One, playing Moss Hart. So yeah, I like him a lot.

[Prevailing Wind]

I'm pretty sure that's Christine Lahti on all the Olay commercials.

[fastiller]

I just found out that someone I knew 100 years ago (well, not quite - but a long time ago) does voice-over work.  Now I find myself trying to 'locate' him in commercial work.

[Katmai]

I knew the first time I heard the new LG Electronics "Mom's Inner Voice" commercial, where she says basically "the tree from which the apple fell" was Leslie Mann. Her voice is very distinct to me. 

[Portia]

For some reason I always found the high, scratchy, kind-of-goofy voice of Dave Madden comforting in voice-overs. Maybe it made me feel like a kid in the '70s again, since he was best known as Reuben Kincaid on The Partridge Family. He will be missed.

[ikmccall]

George Clooney does Budweiser voice overs and I think Cadillac too.

[riley702]

Not a commercial (so kind of a tangent), but I was watching a National Geographic show the other day, and immediately recognized the narrator as Avery Brooks, aka Capt. Benjamin Sisko on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

[Eliot]

Is that Julie Bowen on Olive Garden?

[Aquarius]

Is that Julianna Margulies in the Chase Sapphire commercials?  It's been driving me nuts because it sounds like her, then it doesn't.

[VillaVillekulla]

Is that Julie Bowen on Olive Garden?

Yes. Apparently it has been for a while, per this Yahoo article from almost 2 years ago:

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/olive-garden-revamps-modern-family-104135599--finance.html

[AimingforYoko]

Is that Julianna Margulies in the Chase Sapphire commercials?  It's been driving me nuts because it sounds like her, then it doesn't.

Yes.

[prican58]

One of my favorite games is Guess The Famous Voice. I actually love listening to Margulies' voice over. it's a soothing voice.

 

I also love Richard Thomas doing a car commercial and I think it's Volvo (?) He is a very underrated actor whom I've admired since even before The Waltons. Very calm and soothing. I seem to like that.

 

riley702, I personally prefer to think of Avery Brooks as Hawk from "Spenser" And speaking of "Spenser", the late great Robert Urich did some ads back in the day. Good voice..manly, authoritative yet kind. Miss him.

[AimingforYoko]

Richard Thomas has been the voice of Mercedes-Benz for a number of years. (As well as killing it as Frank Gaad on The Americans)

[Aquarius]

And speaking of "Spenser", the late great Robert Urich did some ads back in the day. Good voice..manly, authoritative yet kind. Miss him.

 

One for Anacin.  "This isn't any little headache.  This is a full grown, adult-sized bangaroo."  To this day in my household we use the term "full grown, adult sized bangaroo" to describe our headaches.

[Prevailing Wind]

I thought that was Excedrin.  In any case, my late mother loved him, but could never remember his name.  After that commercial, she referred to *him* as "Bangaroo."

[Aquarius]

I thought that was Excedrin.  In any case, my late mother loved him, but could never remember his name.  After that commercial, she referred to *him* as "Bangaroo."

 

It could have been.  The commercial never swayed us to buy the product even if the phrase stayed in our household lexicon. 

 

Also hilarious at the time, I caught Robert Ulrich on David Letterman when that spot was airing.  And Letterman just kept interjecting "full grown adult-sized bangaroo" into the conversation.  Ulrich was getting annoyed, and I'm sure it was annoying, but we thought it was hilarious.

[prican58]

With the passing of Ms Ruby Dee this past week i recall that she was the voice of the ads for NY LIfe Insurance. Those ads aired here in NYC but not sure about nation wide. A very quiet voice she had. I think her late husband Ossie Davis also did ads. 

[St. Claire]

Speaking of iconic voices who we've lost recently, here is the incomparable Casey Kasem for Chevy.

[BigDfromLA]

Jon Hamm and Tom Selleck are all over the place on commercials. Funny to hear Selleck talk about orange juice. I hear Jon Hamm all the time on both radio and television.

[MilkMachine]

This is a current commercial, but I am thinking it's the best place to ask this.

 

I'm trying to figure out if the actress from "First Moon Party" is Darcy Rose Byrnes from Desperate Housewives.

 

(Funny commercial, even if you don't care who the actress is.)

 

 

 

[Lola16]

This is a current commercial, but I am thinking it's the best place to ask this.

 

I'm trying to figure out if the actress from "First Moon Party" is Darcy Rose Byrnes from Desperate Housewives.

 

(Funny commercial, even if you don't care who the actress is.)

 

Disturbingly funny.  Reminds me of one of the Molly Ringwald teen movies when her grandmother grabs her breast and declares it to be 'perky'.

[Snow Apple]

The BK ad just reminded me of the follow up holiday commercial with SMG, Lea Thompson, and Elizabeth Shue.

Edited June 22, 2014 by Snow Apple

[smittykins]

Dustin Hoffman shills for the VW Fastback:

 

 

Edited July 12, 2014 by smittykins

[Prevailing Wind]

Whooo-hoooooo!  An electric clock!!!

 

Y'know, considering how short Hoffman is, it's pretty funny that they'd use him to tout plenty o'room.

[ParadoxLost]

Amusing given an episode of The Crazy Ones focused on a pitch for McDonald's.

 

I think The Crazy Ones focused on a pitch for McDonald's because of the SMG commercial.  Back when that came out it was one of the first times that a company attacked another company specifically in their TV ads.  McDonald's sued Burger King over it.  It was a huge media story.

[HelenBaby]

Does anyone know who does the voice of the female chameleon in the ads for Valspar paint? It sounds so familiar. Maybe Rachel Harris?

[Rick Kitchen]

This says it's Lori Alan.

[xls]

Oh, this is full of good ones...

[Bastet]

Isn't "black and long" a parody?

[riley702]

I really hope so.

[ParadoxLost]

Nothing could equal pretentiousness Brad Pitt's Channel No. 5 commercial; but damn if Matthew McConaughey isn't trying.  He's saved by no black and white and a bull.

 

 

Well, no bull to  save him in this one

 

[Raiderred]

Paradox, I'm on a tablet so I cant quote but I came here to say Matthew M. is so full of himself. Blech. I get squicked out when thiscommercial comes on. My parents live in a retirement community and Matt's mom lives there. They said she always brags about her husband dying during sex with her! Vomit.

[Prevailing Wind]

You mean he'd rather die than finish the deed with her?

 

I've *never* liked MMcC.  I'm not sure why, but he gives off a really creepy vibe to me.  I'll watch things he's in, but I can't stand him; I keep wishing they'd cast someone else in the part I'm watching.

[SoSueMe]

You mean he'd rather die than finish the deed with her?

 

I've *never* liked MMcC.  I'm not sure why, but he gives off a really creepy vibe to me.  I'll watch things he's in, but I can't stand him; I keep wishing they'd cast someone else in the part I'm watching.

Lol.

 

I agree, he has always creeped me out too but I just finished watching True Detective and I can't imagine anyone else in his role. That mini series blew my mind.

[Stella MD]

He seems perpetually stoned and vaguely greasy, like a douche-bag former frat boy who never grew up. I imagine he has crabs, and not only doesn't care but is sort of proud of it.

[Rick Kitchen]

Nicholas Hoult doing the Jaguar villain ads.  He's a little young for the role, I would think.

 

[Jipijapa]

For your enjoyment and historical edification: the most complete collection of James Garner-Mariette Hartley Polaroid ads on Youtube (about 30 commercials).

 

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLnSUNv1-ufJ5rz3ZJUfoJ3s7PS_DPU4qU

 

(Sadly, this only represents about one-tenth of the complete Garner-Hartley Polaroid oeuvre, which numbered in the hundreds.)

[Prevailing Wind]

I miss him. 

[HunterHunted]

Jimmy Fallon and Justin Timberlake are up to their usual banter in the iPhone 6 and 6+ commercials.

Edited October 23, 2014 by HunterHunted

[Taylorh2]

Looks like Genie Francis (General Hospital) is the new spokesperson for Nutrisystem.

 

It also looks like Kristie Alley (Jenny Craig) has lost a lot of weight since she filmed "The Middle"

Edited February 16, 2015 by Taylorh2

[Maverick]

Really?  :Pierce Brosnan is shilling for Kia?  

[Taylorh2]

Is that Michaela Watkins ( Trophy Wife) in the toilet paper ad where the kids tp the yard and  the woman asks the kids hiding "what kind of toilet paper his mother uses  ?

[riley702]

According to iSpot, her only commercials are as the wife of the sun in the Jimmy Dean commercials.

[LoneHaranguer]

Do the folks at Priceline not like Kaley Cuoco's new hairstyle? You hardly see her in the latest ad.

[Trini]

Um, why is Jeff Goldblum shilling for apartments .com?

[Rick Kitchen]

Money.

[riley702]

Do the folks at Priceline not like Kaley Cuoco's new hairstyle? You hardly see her in the latest ad.

I was more distracted by how... portly Shatner is. All those side shots really show he's as deep as he is wide.