Post by xpt626 on Feb 17, 2004 7:26:30 GMT -5
....and not be him." ....a common argument used by skeptics. However, this is very naive thinking.
Celebrity impersonation is a multi-millon-dollar moneymaking business. And no, not everyone is "identical" to the celebrity they portray. Some are terrible, many are good, and others are truly unbelievable. I was fortunate enough in my career to work with some of the best celebrity impersonators in the country. For many years, the "best of the best" were affiliated with Legends in Concert, headquartered in Las Vegas. Legends has several theatres throughout the USA. The performers with Legends do not lip-synch. They do their own singing and play their own instruments. One of the most phenomenal I have ever seen is Sandy Anderson, who performs as Dolly Parton. She looks like Dolly, even having the same height and figure. She speaks and sings exactly like Dolly, and has performed onstage with the real Dolly. In photos, it is impossible to tell which is which!
PART 2: "the fans could tell!!"
...not neccessarily. Most people believe what they are told. In 1995, Kenny Rogers filled in at the Legends Las Vegas show for Kenny impersonator Mark Hinds. The audience was not told of the switch. Patrons were interviewed on their way out of the theatre by TV's "Entertainment Tonight", and the comments were "well, he's good, but he's no Kenny Rogers"
They were told it was an impersonator, therefore it was an impersonator!
acmi.canoe.ca/MusicHistoryFebruary/february21.html
(scroll about 3/4 down the page to see mention made of the "switch" )
******************************
here is a list of links regarding celebrity impersonators, feel free to take a look. And while most of these performers are not really " doubles", some are eerie....and makes the "Faul as Paul" argument a very real possibility.
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1928739008/qid=1076830007/sr=1-4/ref=sr_1_4/104-6556261-2155912?v=glance&s=books
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0060988061/ref=pd_sim_books_1/104-6556261-2155912?v=glance&s=books
devoncass.com/home.html (click on DOUBLE TAKE SAMPLE in left hand menu bar)
www.legendsinconcert.com/
www.legendsinconcertsc.com/legendsweb_011.htm
www.lasvegas.com/show_event/legends_in_concert__3535_show_detail.htm
www.stars-in-concert.de/ (choose your language to enter the site, then click "gallery" link at top of page)
www.celebrity-doubles.com/roster.htm
www.lookalikes-usa.com/main.cfm
www.101lookalikes.com
www.entertainmentcaterers.com/impersonators.htm
www.partycentral.com/impersonators/
rnrheaven.net/performers/impersonators.html
www.lookalikesbychar.com
images.google.com/images?q=celebrity+impersonators&svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=active&start=0&sa=N&filter=0
Celebrity impersonation is a multi-millon-dollar moneymaking business. And no, not everyone is "identical" to the celebrity they portray. Some are terrible, many are good, and others are truly unbelievable. I was fortunate enough in my career to work with some of the best celebrity impersonators in the country. For many years, the "best of the best" were affiliated with Legends in Concert, headquartered in Las Vegas. Legends has several theatres throughout the USA. The performers with Legends do not lip-synch. They do their own singing and play their own instruments. One of the most phenomenal I have ever seen is Sandy Anderson, who performs as Dolly Parton. She looks like Dolly, even having the same height and figure. She speaks and sings exactly like Dolly, and has performed onstage with the real Dolly. In photos, it is impossible to tell which is which!
PART 2: "the fans could tell!!"
...not neccessarily. Most people believe what they are told. In 1995, Kenny Rogers filled in at the Legends Las Vegas show for Kenny impersonator Mark Hinds. The audience was not told of the switch. Patrons were interviewed on their way out of the theatre by TV's "Entertainment Tonight", and the comments were "well, he's good, but he's no Kenny Rogers"
They were told it was an impersonator, therefore it was an impersonator! acmi.canoe.ca/MusicHistoryFebruary/february21.html
(scroll about 3/4 down the page to see mention made of the "switch" )
******************************
here is a list of links regarding celebrity impersonators, feel free to take a look. And while most of these performers are not really " doubles", some are eerie....and makes the "Faul as Paul" argument a very real possibility.
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1928739008/qid=1076830007/sr=1-4/ref=sr_1_4/104-6556261-2155912?v=glance&s=books
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0060988061/ref=pd_sim_books_1/104-6556261-2155912?v=glance&s=books
devoncass.com/home.html (click on DOUBLE TAKE SAMPLE in left hand menu bar)
www.legendsinconcert.com/
www.legendsinconcertsc.com/legendsweb_011.htm
www.lasvegas.com/show_event/legends_in_concert__3535_show_detail.htm
www.stars-in-concert.de/ (choose your language to enter the site, then click "gallery" link at top of page)
www.celebrity-doubles.com/roster.htm
www.lookalikes-usa.com/main.cfm
www.101lookalikes.com
www.entertainmentcaterers.com/impersonators.htm
www.partycentral.com/impersonators/
rnrheaven.net/performers/impersonators.html
www.lookalikesbychar.com
images.google.com/images?q=celebrity+impersonators&svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=active&start=0&sa=N&filter=0
