1. Fran Drescher
She was arguably the most annoying voice on television for a good portion of the 90s. Starring in The Nanny, I always prayed that my babysitters would be nothing like her. She tried to reignite her career with the show Living with Fran about her being with a man way too young for her. It was a bad show but I applaud her effort. Either way, anytime I hear her voice on a commercial or just while I am out of the room, I know right away that it is her.
Even if you don't admit to watching Sabrina, Salem's voice was pretty distinctive. We will be haunted by this voice for the rest of our lives (probably not in as horrifying a way as Fran Drescher's). And some of us still wait for our cats to start talking too.
I never actually knew what the man behind Salem's voice looked like until I googled him. It was kind of disappointing.
It was as if he was one of our teachers. We grew up listening to him teach our friends Cory, Shawn, Topanga, and Eric important life lessons.
My dad remembers him as the voice of "KITT" in Knight Rider but I guess that's besides the point.
I remember his voice far better than any other teacher I have ever had. Then again, he was our teach for 7 seasons followed by years of syndication. The longest I have ever had one professor or teacher was 3 semesters.
Some may remember her as the mom in Married with Children, others recognize her as the hologram of P.A.T. in Smart House. And the youngest 90s kids may only remember her as John Ritter's wife in 8 Simple Rules. No matter which way you remember her, I guarantee you have heard her voice somewhere and thought, "that sounds like the lady from ____!"
Rory's grandfather had a very deep, commanding voice. People really took him seriously. After Gilmore Girls was cancelled and Stars Hollow was old news, I was watching the History channel with my own grandfather (who I call PopPop and no one takes him seriously) and right away recognized the voice of good ol' Mr. Gilmore. I shouted out "It's Mr. Gilmore!" and my Pop-Pop looked at me as if I was a lunatic. He clearly was not a fan of the fast-talking, mother-daughter duo on primetime WB. I realized later that he narrated many History channel specials and historical documentaries. His commanding and comforting voice put me to sleep a few times in high school as I learned about ancient worlds and fallen kings.
The dad from Family Matters. I hated this show but I still watched it for some reason. I hear his voice from time to time on TV, commercials, or whatever. But I always know that it's him and you probably know too.
Who are some of yours?
-Brianna