Need some info on a famous scream.

May 3, 2006 9:38 PM

Does anyone have any information on this scream?

I'm something of a sound effect/sound design buff, and I've been hearing and loving this scream sound effect for a long time. Problem is, I don't know anything about it - where it's from, who made it, etc. Every search for famous screams always turns up info about the Wilhelm, which is not what I'm looking for. Any ideas?

btw, I ripped this sound from the opening credits of "Aaaaah! Real Monsters," so pay no attention to the music - the scream is what I'm interested in.

posted by superconnected to media & arts (19 comments total)

The original music for Real Monsters was done by Drew Neumann (he also did the Wild Thornberrys music). You can see his IMDB profile at http://imdb.com/name/nm0627032/. If you're really interested in answering this, your best bet is probably to contact him directly and see if he can point you in the right direction.
posted by zachlipton at 9:58 PM on May 3, 2006

Have you heard it anywhere else? Could it be one of the voice actors from "Aaahh!!! Real Monsters"?
posted by jjg at 10:02 PM on May 3, 2006

I don't have any specific information but I also like this scream and am SURE (though cannot recall any other sources) that I've heard this in several other commercials, shows, movies, etc.
On further searching, perhaps this thread in IMDB might help you. Apparently it's not the Wilhelm scream.
posted by shokod at 10:22 PM on May 3, 2006

@zachlipton: good call. if the hive mind doesn't know, i may do just that.

@jjg: I doubt that it's one of the actors, as I've heard it in about a million commercials/tv shows/movies. I'll look into it, though.
posted by superconnected at 10:23 PM on May 3, 2006

Sounds like the Nutrigrain scream to me,

http://boards.theforce.net/Fan_Films/b10015/14398929/?48

http://www.nutrigrain.com.au/ (see the advert that uses it.. click on the nutrigrain logo in the "Media Room"... the final scream, not the one where he falls in the water)
posted by holloway at 10:29 PM on May 3, 2006

More searching for nutrigrain turned up watmm.com but and a thread where no one knew the source either, http://tinyurl.com/n5m8g
posted by holloway at 10:49 PM on May 3, 2006

FWIW, I've also heard this scream all over the place. No idea of the source, although it appears to have popped up around 1993 or so.
posted by neckro23 at 11:19 PM on May 3, 2006

Haven't got a clue, but it does sound a lot like a ti-fighter.
posted by popcassady at 4:43 AM on May 4, 2006

Have you heard it anywhere else?

The sound's been used in at least one Mountain Dew commercial, and is also the scream of the Lord Kramdar The Invincible on Wonder Showzen.
posted by Danelope at 6:45 AM on May 4, 2006

I don't know for certain, as I can't listen to the sound file at my current locale, but is it perhaps the infamous Wilhelm scream?
posted by WCityMike at 7:30 AM on May 4, 2006

Read the more inside WCityMike.
posted by teg at 7:36 AM on May 4, 2006

My fault. Sorry.
posted by WCityMike at 7:36 AM on May 4, 2006

Almost sounds like a snippet of Wesley's scream in The Princess Bride to me. Just a snippet, because that scream was like 45 sec long.
posted by SlyBevel at 8:59 AM on May 4, 2006

Heh, I've wondered about that scream too. I have heard it many many places. I think I most commonly associate it with the sound you get when you click on a Starcraft Terran Academy. This is certainly not the source.
posted by rlk at 9:36 AM on May 4, 2006

This scream is one of the many "clipart" sound effects that you commonly hear used by lazy or poor sound designers. I don't know the original source, but the chances are that it's out of copyright since it's so ubiquitous.

After all, who would pay money to use a scream that's so played out and indicative of amatuerishness when they could make an original scream for free?

It's used in many, many video games, most memorably for me from Dark Forces as the "falling to your death" sound effect.
posted by Durhey at 12:28 PM on May 4, 2006

Well, this is not a lot of help, but they don't know what it is at Slashdot or the IMDB either.
posted by MsMolly at 1:46 PM on May 4, 2006

Maybe the sound the monster made in "The Thing?" (John Carpenter Version.) As the monster transormed from on thing to another it made a long weird half human yell. I'm fascinated by this scream question. This scream isn't all that ubiquitious, since it's not on any of the sound effects boards. Don't give up superconnected, and don't forget to report if you find anything out. I'm going to ask a friend who's a sound effects guy.
posted by Blingo at 10:17 PM on May 5, 2006

Hey everyone, I just want to thank you all for the comments. This is actually exactly what I'm talking about: a ton of people know the scream, and it's been in a ton of things, but no one knows anything about it's origins. Strange...

Then again, I doubt most people really care that much about some old sound effect :)
posted by superconnected at 2:50 PM on May 6, 2006

There's a YTMND trying to revive this one.

http://whatsthisscream.ytmnd.com/
posted by iBulk at 2:07 PM on December 2, 2006