"Posh" American accent?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No. Although certain accents are not-posh (country accents, southern maybe), there is no posh accent.

There is actually an upper class southern accent, but it's not one that I would imagine northerners would be familiar with.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No. Although certain accents are not-posh (country accents, southern maybe), there is no posh accent.

Jersey and Boston accents. You forgot those.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Boy, I guess it's still fashionable and acceptable to be prejudiced against Irish Catholics and Southerners.

PP, we are just stating facts, not condoning it. When JFK was growing up that is how Catholics were treated. My family also faced discrimination as my Dad ( graduated number 1 from University of Penn law school ) couldn't get a job because he was Catholic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yep, like the Kennedys and FDR spoke. It's a WASPy northeastern boarding school accent.

You do know that the Kennedys are not WASPs? And have Boston accents (described as "hooligan" by another pp.)

And that Boston accent sounds like fingernails on a chalkboard to me. Not what I would consider posh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There's a podcast on this. i think it's from stuff you should know or stuff you missed in history class. In short the answer is no. There may have been at one time...the way people talked in movies in the 30-40s but it's essentially died out.

I notice this in classic movies.

The actors talk so much more classy + elegant than they do in today's movies.

There is a specific name for this But I am too lazy to look it up. It was essentially lost by the early 70s but it was originated in the Northeast. FDR. JFK and a predominance of radio broadcasters, among others used it. "Been" is "bean" not "bin" etc.

I believe it was called a transatlantic accent?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Locust Valley Lockjaw (Long Island)
Larchmont Lockjaw (Westchester)
Basically local terms for mid-Atlantic speech. As in, midway btw US and UK and not as in this part of the country. The accent was affected and taught but died out. Listen to John Cheever reading The Swimmer on Youtube or FDR, William F Buckley or, I suppose, Frasier Crane.

For my money I think the best US accents are the clear California accent you hear with someone like Robert Redford or New England/Northeast accent of Sam Waterston.

Is there a California accent? That's a new one to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Locust Valley Lockjaw (Long Island)
Larchmont Lockjaw (Westchester)
Basically local terms for mid-Atlantic speech. As in, midway btw US and UK and not as in this part of the country. The accent was affected and taught but died out. Listen to John Cheever reading The Swimmer on Youtube or FDR, William F Buckley or, I suppose, Frasier Crane.

For my money I think the best US accents are the clear California accent you hear with someone like Robert Redford or New England/Northeast accent of Sam Waterston.

Is there a California accent? That's a new one to me.

NP. Californians, particularly Southern Californians, have such a strong accent that I'm surprised anyone could earnestly ask this. It's a lot of drawn out vowels. Watch "The Californians" for a very OTT and absurd version of it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Locust Valley Lockjaw (Long Island)
Larchmont Lockjaw (Westchester)
Basically local terms for mid-Atlantic speech. As in, midway btw US and UK and not as in this part of the country. The accent was affected and taught but died out. Listen to John Cheever reading The Swimmer on Youtube or FDR, William F Buckley or, I suppose, Frasier Crane.

For my money I think the best US accents are the clear California accent you hear with someone like Robert Redford or New England/Northeast accent of Sam Waterston.

Is there a California accent? That's a new one to me.

NP. Californians, particularly Southern Californians, have such a strong accent that I'm surprised anyone could earnestly ask this. It's a lot of drawn out vowels. Watch "The Californians" for a very OTT and absurd version of it

They totally do have their own accent and I find it hilarious and cute.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Locust Valley Lockjaw (Long Island)
Larchmont Lockjaw (Westchester)
Basically local terms for mid-Atlantic speech. As in, midway btw US and UK and not as in this part of the country. The accent was affected and taught but died out. Listen to John Cheever reading The Swimmer on Youtube or FDR, William F Buckley or, I suppose, Frasier Crane.

For my money I think the best US accents are the clear California accent you hear with someone like Robert Redford or New England/Northeast accent of Sam Waterston.

Is there a California accent? That's a new one to me.

NP. Californians, particularly Southern Californians, have such a strong accent that I'm surprised anyone could earnestly ask this. It's a lot of drawn out vowels. Watch "The Californians" for a very OTT and absurd version of it

They totally do have their own accent and I find it hilarious and cute.

I am the PP and I do too. As do I find their liberal peppering of "dude" "awesome" "man", etc. (Generalizing, of course). It's like American speech turned up to 11.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How about deep south? A refined drawl can be so genteel

The Southern accent sounds like the very definition of uneducated and ignorant.

Not the refined drawl. Not all southern accents are rednecky.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How about deep south? A refined drawl can be so genteel

The Southern accent sounds like the very definition of uneducated and ignorant.

There is no such thing as "the Southern accent". There are many different Southern accents. Open your ears.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Locust Valley Lockjaw (Long Island)
Larchmont Lockjaw (Westchester)
Basically local terms for mid-Atlantic speech. As in, midway btw US and UK and not as in this part of the country. The accent was affected and taught but died out. Listen to John Cheever reading The Swimmer on Youtube or FDR, William F Buckley or, I suppose, Frasier Crane.

For my money I think the best US accents are the clear California accent you hear with someone like Robert Redford or New England/Northeast accent of Sam Waterston.

Is there a California accent? That's a new one to me.

NP. Californians, particularly Southern Californians, have such a strong accent that I'm surprised anyone could earnestly ask this. It's a lot of drawn out vowels. Watch "The Californians" for a very OTT and absurd version of it

I've have family in Southern California and have been there many times and have not noticed it. But then again, I'm a southerner so drawn out vowels don't really stand out to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Locust Valley Lockjaw (Long Island)
Larchmont Lockjaw (Westchester)
Basically local terms for mid-Atlantic speech. As in, midway btw US and UK and not as in this part of the country. The accent was affected and taught but died out. Listen to John Cheever reading The Swimmer on Youtube or FDR, William F Buckley or, I suppose, Frasier Crane.

For my money I think the best US accents are the clear California accent you hear with someone like Robert Redford or New England/Northeast accent of Sam Waterston.

Is there a California accent? That's a new one to me.

NP. Californians, particularly Southern Californians, have such a strong accent that I'm surprised anyone could earnestly ask this. It's a lot of drawn out vowels. Watch "The Californians" for a very OTT and absurd version of it

They totally do have their own accent and I find it hilarious and cute.

I am the PP and I do too. As do I find their liberal peppering of "dude" "awesome" "man", etc. (Generalizing, of course). It's like American speech turned up to 11.

People in Virginia Beach and the Outee Banks talk this way as well.

[Anonymous]

The poshest American accent is no accent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Locust Valley Lockjaw (Long Island)
Larchmont Lockjaw (Westchester)
Basically local terms for mid-Atlantic speech. As in, midway btw US and UK and not as in this part of the country. The accent was affected and taught but died out. Listen to John Cheever reading The Swimmer on Youtube or FDR, William F Buckley or, I suppose, Frasier Crane.

For my money I think the best US accents are the clear California accent you hear with someone like Robert Redford or New England/Northeast accent of Sam Waterston.

Is there a California accent? That's a new one to me.

NP. Californians, particularly Southern Californians, have such a strong accent that I'm surprised anyone could earnestly ask this. It's a lot of drawn out vowels. Watch "The Californians" for a very OTT and absurd version of it

They totally do have their own accent and I find it hilarious and cute.

I am the PP and I do too. As do I find their liberal peppering of "dude" "awesome" "man", etc. (Generalizing, of course). It's like American speech turned up to 11.

People in Virginia Beach and the Outee Banks talk this way as well.

No they definitely don't. Those accents are nothing alike. It's a very regional way of speaking