Annoying Hollywood cliche # 5732984573982: Everyone in the Old West had a Southern accent.

[Aristus]

I hate that cliche. Sure, Doc Holliday was from Georgia, and John Wesley Hardin and Bill Longley were from Texas. But many of the major figures of the Old West were not from the South.

Wyatt Earp and his brothers were from Illinois, and grew up in California.
"Wild Bill" Hickok was also from Illinois.
Bat Masterson and Billy the Kid were both from New York City.
"Mysterious" Dave Mather was from Massachusetts.
Jim Courtright was from Iowa.
Ben Thompson's birthplace has been named by some historians as Texas, but still others as England!

Next time you watch a Western, count how many Southern accents you hear. Probably too many to be historically correct...

[BlueJazz]

1. How about when they show the "Town Drunk" and his teeth look like this >>

[ForrestGump]

2. Flatnose Curry was a durned fur'ner...

Prince Edward Island, Canada.

The Official Hoser of the Wild Bunch.

[Number23]

3. That's 'cause everyone likes a cowboy with a drawl. I hate the Hollywood cliche that

Helen of Troy must always be played by a blonde. Easily one of the dumbest and most inexplicable cliches in modern movies.

But come to think of it, there may be others that are just as bad and historically inaccurate:

[jobycom]

6. She probably would have been blonde.

She was Mycenaean. She was portrayed as blonde throughout western history.

[Number23]

14. Hi Joby

She probably would have been blonde. She was Mycenaean.

That's true but I'm willing to bet that there were plenty of dark-haired Mycenaeans/Spartans. :)

As I mentioned in another post, most of the ancient depictions of Helen were of a beautiful brunette. It didn't seem to be until fairly recently (last 150-200 years or so) that she suddenly became blonde. At least that's my take on it.

[Chan790]

8. um...Helen of Troy was a blonde.

It's implied repeatedly in several places in the various plays and stories of and contemporaneous to the Trojan War. Usually by describing her as "golden".

If I wasn't too lazy to get out of bed, I'd grab the books and have actual citations too.

[Number23]

13. I've never heard of a single reference to Helen of Troy being blonde

I love all things Greek and mythical. And I'm not in any way saying that I'm an expert because I most definitely am not. But I've loved Greek history and mythology since I was a teenager.

Most ancient portrayals of Helen were that she was dark-haired which would be entirely appropriate.





It didn't seem to be until relatively modern Europeans began depicting Helen that she suddenly became blonde.

Do you think it's possible that the use of the word "golden" may have meant that she was just otherwordly, or perhaps radiant...luminous? Zeus was her papa after all!

I love this stuff!

[grasswire]

12. do you mean Cleopatra? (eom)

[PVnRT]

4. I want to know why everyone in ancient Rome/Greece had an English accent

Even when they're played by non-English actors.

[Chan790]

9. That oddly has a known cause...

it's the bard's fault.

Several of the more prominent film early (prior to 1960) versions of Julius Caesar starred all Brit casts. Simple reason of lack of quality non-Brit Shakespearean actors. People have come to associate British accents with the play as a result and performances seem less convincing if Caesar does not speak with one. Slowly it creeped out genre-wide. Because we have little idea as a generally-dumb vox populi what they sounded like...most people associate the accent to the period though their is zero chance they actually spoke that way.

Really. It's also true of other pieces by Shakespeare. The Tempest for example. Takes place off Cyprus, every character in the play is Italian. Nearly always performed with British accents, even with all-American casts.

Hamlet has poisoned the minds of a great many people to think that Scandinavians have British accents too. That also is creeping. Watch The 13 Warrior based on the Michael Crichton novel. Only Bulwyf and Ahmed ibn Fadhlan don't speak with a British or Irish accent. Even Melchisidek speaks with a British accent!

[datasuspect]

5. i imagine they would have had the residues of some scots-irish

dialect - what became our modern day hillbilly and redneck.

[baldguy]

7. WWII movies with Germans having English accents.

Cold War movies with Russians having English accents.

[Westegg]

10. And the Sundance Kid was from Pennsylvania!

[bikebloke]

11. Deadwood my be an exception.

The characters had different accents to reflect their different origins.