You know Snake, the criminal character from The Simpsons? What is his accent?

June 23, 2004 6:26 AM

You know Snake? The criminal character from The Simpsons? What is his accent - where's it from? It seems pretty highbrow for a lowbrow kind of guy.

 <---- This guy

posted by ssmith to media & arts (20 comments total)

On an episode of Inside The Actor's Studio, Hank Azaria said it came from an old roommate in college who when stoned would ponder life.

It also sounds similar to a Chong impression from the The National Lampoon Radio Hour from the 1970s.
posted by the biscuit man at 6:38 AM on June 23, 2004

Here's a wav file of "Alright, time for a crime spree!". I get distinct Keanu Reeves vibes from this guy.
posted by iconomy at 6:39 AM on June 23, 2004

I'd never really thought about it, but it sounds more-or-less like a surfer-dude accent to me, not particularly highbrow.
posted by uncleozzy at 6:39 AM on June 23, 2004

I believe he speaks with a Springfeildian type of "Dude."
posted by bondcliff at 6:46 AM on June 23, 2004

Yup...we're talkin' (well, actually, he is) outer LA.
posted by i_cola at 7:13 AM on June 23, 2004

I concur with i_cola . I always identified that accent as San Fernando Valley.
posted by adamrice at 7:57 AM on June 23, 2004

Absolutely--Snake's definitely from Jeff Spicoli-land.
posted by LairBob at 7:58 AM on June 23, 2004

Here is the Cheech & Chong parody I mentioned earlier. I believe that Chong's voice was done by Christopher Guest. The voice bears some similarity to Snake's, particularly at 0:15.
posted by the biscuit man at 7:58 AM on June 23, 2004

Yeah, I guess everybody caught that but me. For some reason I kept thinking it was some kind of New England Blueblood accent. You can really the hear the surfer dude in this clip.

I found that here - a huge archive of Simpsons quotes in .mp3 format.
posted by ssmith at 8:20 AM on June 23, 2004

For some reason I kept thinking it was some kind of New England Blueblood accent.

Good way to recognize that-- think of Franklin Roosevelt making a speech. Brahmins have (had, effectively) vowels that were a bit further back, but FDR's New York blueblood accent is pretty close is widely recognized.
posted by Mayor Curley at 8:30 AM on June 23, 2004

Good way to recognize that-- think of Franklin Roosevelt making a speech. Brahmins have (had, effectively) vowels that were a bit further back, but FDR's New York blueblood accent is pretty close is widely recognized.

Which is pretty much Mayor Quimby's accent, right? With some JFK / New England mixed in.
posted by milovoo at 9:25 AM on June 23, 2004

"Say Chowdah, Frenchie! SAY CHOWDAH!"

That's Quimby's nephew, and it's pretty much straight JFK, IMO.
posted by jpoulos at 9:35 AM on June 23, 2004

Huh, I saw that Actor's Studio episode, and Azaria didn't mention that (I realize the recording probably lasted at least 4 hours, they edit it). Maybe I saw a different edit - mine was a 1-hour one, but I've also seen 2-hour ones for certain actors (I was thinking, they gave Barbra Streisand two hours, and the entire cast of The Simpsons one?).
posted by abcde at 10:39 AM on June 23, 2004

No no no. Mayor Quimby is Buddy Cianci I say. (Or perhaps it's just an illusion I cherish.)
posted by dame at 10:41 AM on June 23, 2004

It seems pretty highbrow for a lowbrow kind of guy

Well, he did go to Middlebury.

Or at least, after stealing some cash once* he says "Allright! Goodbye student loan payments!" and he sometimes wears a Middlebury t-shirt.

For all I know he only went to UVM and wants people he's robbing to think he went to Middlebury.

*"22 Short Films About Springfield." He robs Moe. Who then suffomacates inside his airtight Robbery Booth.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 10:57 AM on June 23, 2004 [1 favorite]

From the indespensible snpp.com (SNPP stands for Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, for those not in the know):

Who is Snake?
Snake is the generic crook/robber/jailbird of the show. A friend of both Otto and Sideshow Bob, he first appeared in 7F20 (as Otto's guest at Bart's party). He robbed the Kwik-E-Mart six times and has had seven run-ins with Chief Wiggum. Some notable features are the snake tattoo on his right arm, his torn jean-jacket, his hair and the bulge of the cigarette pack he keeps under his right sleeve. According to Hank Azaria (Snake's voice), he was based on a druggie at his alum, Tufts University, named Cliff Tazner, who would walk around informing people of his current drug condition ... without reason {mgk}.

posted by funkbrain at 11:33 AM on June 23, 2004 [1 favorite]

Oh. Tufts. Definitely lowbrow then. (jk)
Thanks for the help everybody.
posted by ssmith at 11:46 AM on June 23, 2004

Which is pretty much Mayor Quimby's accent, right? With some JFK / New England mixed in.

Quimby's pretty much a straight impression of a Robert/John/Ted Kennedy accent, which is an odd and unique mixture of common and patrician New England accents. Sounds like any other to people from outside the region, but New Englanders recognize it immediately as "The Brothers."
posted by Mayor Curley at 12:49 PM on June 23, 2004

Ahhh, Tufts, how I sometimes miss thee...
posted by kaibutsu at 9:35 PM on June 23, 2004 [1 favorite]

What would you describe the accent of the generic, wisecracking shopkeep/blue collar worker that sometimes pops up in the show? He's usually portrayed as a badling guy with a moustache. Of course at the moment I'm at a loss when trying to remember some distinctive lines of his...

The only one that comes to me right now is from the episode where Homer deliberately makes himself fat. He goes to see a movie and the crowd outside the theatre is mocking him, and someone, with the accent in question, shouts out:

"Hey fatty, I've got a movie for you: A Fridge Too Far!"
posted by picea at 9:08 AM on June 24, 2004